Band:	Twisted Sister
Album:	Stay Hungry
Style:	Glam metal, Hard rock
Release date:	1984
Guest review by:	amerislave

Disc I
01. Stay Hungry
02. We're Not Gonna Take It
03. Burn In Hell
04. Horror-Teria (The Beginning)
    1 - Captain Howdy
    2 - Street Justice
05. I Wanna Rock
06. The Price
07. Don't Let Me Down
08. The Beast
09. S.M.F.

Disc II [25th Anniversary Edition]
01. Death From Above
02. Prime Motivator
03. We're Not Gonna Take It [early demo]
04. Death Run
05. This One's For You
06. S.M.F. [early demo]
07. We're Coming On
08. Call My Name
09. Burn In Hell [early demo]
10. Pay The Price
11. What's Love Without You
12. Our Voice Will Be Heard
13. You've Got To Fight
14. The Price [early demo]
15. Stay Hungry [early demo]
16. Kmet Radio Spot
17. 30 [new song]
18. Untitled [hidden track]

Twisted Sister had been touring and playing for years and years prior to the mainstream success of "Stay Hungry". "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock" received massive airplay on MTV. The videos became so popular that they became synonymous with the band and their core fan base jumped ship as the masses came on board.

Anyone that can edit out the thoughts of those music videos when they listen to "Stay Hungry" will find one of the most earnest hard rock / heavy metal albums of the early 1980's. The album takes off with the title track, which serves as a great introduction for an album centered on themes of determination and self acceptance.

"We're Not Gonna Take It" comes next and reminds me Dee Snider's testimony in front of the United States Senate in a hearing on "offensive music". Dee's honest and intelligent testimony would probably have been a better video to accompany the song. Dee definitely was "not gonna take it". It was the Reagan era in the United States and he put himself on the front lines on the worlds biggest stage for his fans and artistic freedom. The fact that "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock" were recorded about a year prior to the testimony makes their sincerity that much more evident. Twisted Sister truly wrote what they felt.

There is not a weak moment on the entire album. Along with the cathartic anthems are darker themed songs that add a lot of texture ("Burn in Hell" and "Horror-Teria: Captain Howdy/Street Justice"). The guitar solos are succinct and well executed on all the tracks and Dee's raspy voice is a perfect fit with the music and lyrics.

The inspiring "The Price" is a slower track that could be considered a power ballad, but its sincerity should spare it that label.

The album starts revving up again with the mid-paced "Don't Let Me Down" before the plodding and heavy "The Beast". "S.M.F." closes the album and is the perfect call to arms that it inspires to be.

Twisted Sister played and wrote for their fans. Dee Snider was asked by a Congressman what the name of his fan club (S.M.F.) was during his testimony before the United States Senate. Dee will go down in history as being the only human being to ever utter the words the "Sick Motherf***ing Friends of Twisted Sister" in that hallowed room.

The album was re-recorded and released recently as "Still Hungry". When the band looked back they decided they didn't like the production and added a few bonus tracks. As usual, the bonus tracks were unnecessary and re-recordings offered nothing. This album is best heard in its original form.