Winger disbanded in 1994. In 2001 they reunited and have since conducted several successful tours. In 2006, the band's 1993 touring line-up (minus Paul Taylor but including John Roth) reunited to record the band's first studio album in over 13 years, IV, and toured in support of the album into 2008.
In 2009, the band released their fifth album, Karma. As of 2013, Winger was performing on mini-tours, festivals and private events. Their most recent album, Better Days Comin', came out in 2014.
History:
Main career and break-up (1987–1994).
The debut album, Winger, was released on August 10, 1988 on Atlantic Records. The record was a success, achieving platinum status in the United States, and gold status in Japan and Canada. On February 11, 1989, the album peaked at number 21 on the Billboard 200, and was in various places on the chart for 63 weeks. Radio and MTV hits from the album included "Madalaine", "Seventeen", "Headed for a Heartbreak" and "Hungry". In 1990, the band was nominated for an American Music Award for "Best New Heavy Metal Band".
Shortly after that tour, Winger released its second album In the Heart of the Young, which went 1-and-1/2 platinum in the U.S. and gold in Japan. Hit radio tracks and MTV videos included "Can't Get Enuff", "Miles Away" and "Easy Come Easy Go".
Winger followed the release of its second album with a 13-month world tour, playing over 230 dates with Kiss, Scorpions, ZZ Top, Extreme and Slaughter. Paul Taylor left the band after the tour, citing exhaustion after years of touring. Their third studio album, Pull, produced by Mike Shipley, was recorded in 1992/1993 as a three-piece band. It was originally to be called Blind Revolution Mad, after the opening song. Reportedly, Kip Winger, anticipating that critics would dismiss the album out of hand, renamed it Pull as a tongue-in-cheek reference to the CD being used by critics as a skeet-shooting target. The album was not as successful as the previous albums sales wise, but gained solid reviews. On the following tour, John Roth was called in to replace Paul Taylor on rhythm guitar. The album coincided with the rise of grunge, which swept aside the brand of melodic pop metal that Winger represented.
In the 1990s, Winger was subject to mockery from MTV's animated series Beavis and Butt-head. Series creator Mike Judge later revealed that he had been incorrectly informed that Kip Winger had asked the network not to make jokes about the band on the series, which led to further jokes about the band, but later learned from Winger himself that he had never made any such stipulation. “Stewart”, an early character from the TV show, wore a Winger t-shirt during the shows original run on MTV during the early 90s.
After disbanding in 1994, bassist/lead vocalist Kip Winger went on to a solo career, guitarist Reb Beach went on to touring projects with artists Dokken, Alice Cooper and has held a permanent guitar spot in Whitesnake since 2002. The band's other members pursued or resumed careers as session musicians.
Reunions (2001–present)
In 2001, it was announced that all original members of the band would return to the studio to record the song "On the Inside" for The Very Best of Winger. In 2002, all five members embarked on a reunion tour of the U.S. and Canada on a bill with Poison. According to Kip Winger, in a 2008 interview with rock and roll comic C.C. Banana, it was important to include all five members because "it was the big, long-awaited reunion so I wanted to include everybody who had ever been in the band." In 2003, it was confirmed that activity had been halted due to Reb Beach's touring commitment with Whitesnake as well as his solo album "Masquerade" and involvement with "super-group" project The Mob with King's X frontman Doug Pinnick and Night Ranger drummer Kelly Keagy.
On July 16, 2005, it was announced that Kip Winger would perform as the lead singer for the Alan Parsons Live Project at the Common Ground Music Festival in Lansing, Michigan. In May 2006, it was confirmed that Winger had reformed without one of its original members Paul Taylor, to record another album and tour Europe. The album, IV, was released in Europe in October and the nine-country "Winger IV Tour" ran in the last two weeks of the same month.
On February 25, 2008, the band performed in Providence, Rhode Island, as part of a benefit for survivors of the Station nightclub fire. The concert, along with other artists was debuted on VH1 Classic on March 23, 2008. In late 2009, it was confirmed that Winger would record a fifth album Karma, with a tour to support it. Most recently, John Roth became the guitarist for Giant and would appear on their forthcoming album Promise Land then set for release in February/March of 2010.
Winger released their sixth studio album titled, Better Days Comin' in April 2014, after teasers were published on Kip Winger's website and on the official Winger Facebook page as well.
As of late 2018, Winger was playing club dates. They were scheduled on Dec 29, 2018 in Westland, Michigan.
Style and influences.
The band's musical style combines elements of glam metal and progressive metal. Kip Winger, in description of the band's musical ability and style, said, "Our band was known to musicians, and a lot of musicians showed up to see me play — watching, trying to figure out how I'm playing. We were like the 'hair band' (version of) Dream Theater."
Only Love
Winger Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We are a lonely world, living empty pages
So if you hear her crying for your ghost of love
It's to yourself you're lying, if you find you're all on your own
Nothing else will make us only love can take us there
Nothing else can change us only love can make us, only love
Asking you to free her, she's meaning to break through
So if you see her crying for your ghost of love
It's to yourself you're lying, if you find you're all on your own
Nothing else will make us only love can take us there (It's only love)
Nothing else can change us only love can make us, only love
Solo
Nothing else will make us only love can take us there, only love
Nothing else can change us only love can make us, it's only love
Nothing else will make us only love can take us there, only love
Nothing else can change us only love can make us, man it's only love,
Only love
The lyrics of Winger's song "Only Love" are about the importance of love in a lonely world. The opening lines, "Like the stars at midnight, living through the ages, we are a lonely world, living empty pages," set the tone for the song by painting a picture of a world that is desolate and without purpose. The chorus emphasizes the idea that love is the only way to fill this void, with the lyrics "Nothing else will make us, only love can take us there. Nothing else can change us, only love can make us."
The verses specifically address a woman who is crying for the love of the person she is addressing in the song. The lyrics are symbolic of the way that people sometimes feel lost and without purpose when they do not have love in their lives. The line "If you find you're all on your own" is a powerful statement about the isolation and loneliness that can come from feeling disconnected from the people you love.
Overall, the lyrics of "Only Love" are a statement about the transformative power of love in a world that can sometimes feel cold and unfeeling.
Line by Line Meaning
Like the stars at midnight, living through the ages
We have been through a lot like the stars that have been there for ages
We are a lonely world, living empty pages
As a collective society, we are feeling isolated and directionless
So if you hear her crying for your ghost of love
If you hear someone longing for a past, lost love
It's to yourself you're lying, if you find you're all on your own
You are only fooling yourself if you think you are truly alone
Nothing else will make us only love can take us there
Love is the only thing that can truly bring us happiness and fulfillment
Nothing else can change us only love can make us, only love
Love is the only thing that can truly change us and bring out our best selves
No you may never see her, yeah she's talking to you
You may not physically see someone calling out to you for help but they are reaching out to you
Asking you to free her, she's meaning to break through
The person is asking for someone to help them break free from their current state of being
Nothing else will make us only love can take us there (It's only love)
Once again, love is the only true path to fulfillment and happiness
Only love can make us, only love
Love is the only thing that can truly make us feel alive and fulfilled
Nothing else will make us only love can take us there, only love
Love is truly the only thing that can bring us true happiness and fulfillment
Nothing else can change us only love can make us, man it's only love, Only love
Love is the only thing that can truly change us and make us better people
Contributed by Julia S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.