Detonator is the fifth studio album by the American glam metal band Ratt, released on 21 August 1990 by Atlantic Records. It followed Reach for the Sky, which had gone platinum but drawn some criticism over the quality of its songs. Hoping to win back the popularity they enjoyed in the mid-1980s, the band parted ways with their long-time producer Beau Hill and brought in the songwriter Desmond Child to produce.

The change of direction shows in the music, which leans further towards glam and pop metal. It also contains "Givin' Yourself Away", the only power ballad in Ratt's catalogue, which makes it a curiosity for anyone following the band's story. This was the last record to feature bassist Juan Croucier and guitarist Robbin Crosby, the latter of whom died in 2002, so it marks the end of an era for the group.

Detonator: tracklist, credits and charts

11 tracks · 42:10

Tracklist

  1. 1Intro to ShameWarren DeMartini0:55
  2. 2Shame Shame ShameChild, DeMartini, Pearcy4:33
  3. 3Lovin’ You’s a Dirty JobChild, Croucier, DeMartini, Pearcy3:15
  4. 4Scratch That ItchChild, Croucier, Pearcy3:17
  5. 5One Step AwayBlotzer, Child, Croucier, DeMartini, Pearcy4:50
  6. 6Hard TimeChild, DeMartini, Pearcy3:47
  7. 7Heads I Win, Tails You LoseChild, DeMartini, Pearcy3:59
  8. 8All or NothingChild, Crosby, DeMartini, Kilgore, Pearcy4:14
  9. 9Can’t Wait on LoveBlotzer, Child, Crosby, Croucier, DeMartini, Pearcy4:04
  10. 10Givin’ Yourself AwayChild, Pearcy, Warren5:26
  11. 11Top SecretChild, DeMartini, Pearcy3:50
Produced by
Arthur Payson, Desmond Child
Executive producer
Desmond Child
Recorded at
Lion Share Recording Studios, Microplant, Music Grinder Studios (Lion Share, and Microplant), (Los Angeles)
Mixed by
Mike Shipley
Mixed at
Aire L.A. Studios
Engineered by
Steve Heinke, Arthur Payson
Label
Atlantic
Length
42:10

Line-up

  • Bobby Blotzer · percussion, drums (drum set)
  • Robbin Crosby · guitar
  • Juan Croucier · bass guitar
  • Warren DeMartini · synthesizer, keyboard, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, slide guitar
  • David Garfield · synthesizer, keyboard
  • Desmond Child · background vocals · guest
  • Stephen Pearcy · lead vocals
  • Ratt · background vocals
  • Myriam Valle · background vocals · guest
  • Jon Bon Jovi · background vocals · guest

Singles

  • “Lovin' You's a Dirty Job” · October 1990 (UK)
  • “Shame Shame Shame” · 1990 (Japan)

Peak chart positions

ChartPeak
US Billboard 200 · 199023
UK Albums Chart · 199055
Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 19909
Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 199036

Certifications

RegionCertification
United States · 1990Gold

From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.

46.8
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Releases and pressings

How we know the release date wikipedia + musicbrainz + wikidata
SourceDateNote
MusicBrainz21 August 1990
Wikipedia infobox21 August 1990
Wikidata21 August 1990
US release21 August 1990earliest US date
UK / Europe release21 August 1990earliest UK or European date
9 editions
DateCountryLabelBarcodeKind
—CAAtlanticother
1990CAAtlantic075678212727other
1990USAtlantic075678212727other
1990USAtlantic075678212710other
21 August 1990USAtlantic0208314104256original
21 August 1990XEAtlantic075678212727original
10 September 1990JPAtlantic4988029012227other
25 September 2007XWAtlantic075678212765other
2009JPAtlanticother
Cover art sources

deezer · upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25)

SourceSizeVerdict
deezer ✓1200×1200upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25)
fanarttv1000×1000upscaled
coverartarchive500×492upscaled