Total Control is the first solo album by Europe guitarist John Norum. It was released after Norum left Europe following the release of 1986’s The Final Countdown and the tour that followed.  Apparently guitarist John Norum left Europe back in the 1980’s because he was unhappy over the more commercial bent of the group’s music. The band definitely had more success with that change but in more recent years have gone more towards that classic rock sound. While the album’s production is clearly of the 80’s, the material does veer greatly into the heavier guitar driven sound. While keyboards do have a presence on the album, they don’t overwhelm the clearly more aggressive rocking vibe.

Joining him on this album are singer Goran Edman on 3 tracks, while John tackles vocals on the other 8, and Norum’s friend from the early days of Europe Marcel Jacob, when they were still called Force. Jacob joined the band Force for 3 years before quitting to rejoin Yngwie Malmsteen’s band Rising Force. Jacob also cowrote 8 of the 11 songs. Peter Hermansson played drums on the record while Per Blom added keyboards on some songs. We start off with Norum singing and playing guitars on the more rockier Let Me Love You which has a great bass and drum rhythm throughout the song. It was also the first single. The video for the next song, Love Is Meant To Last Forever is from a live performance. The song is about two lovers who are trying to make it through the struggles and Goran takes the vocals on this one.

John comes back to sing the slower Too Many Hearts which is the first ballad in the album. The slower paced guitar solos shows off more of Norum’s range. Someone Else Here sounds more like Europe than most of the other songs in the album. Eternal Flame starts off with a searing solo before the rest of the song kicks off, reminding me a bit of Joe Lynn Turner era Rainbow. Back on the Streets is a cover of a Vinnie Vincent song from the previous year and has got a great music video in which John’s guitar is stolen and he searches for it only to find it in a pawn show before he joins Goran, Marcel and the others to play the solo. More chaotic is the song Blind with John singing again.

One of my favourite songs of the record is the oddly sounding Law Of Life penned by Max Lorentz & Mats Lindfors. For a 11 year old, I thought that this song would be good in a Western movie. We’ll Do What It Takes Together is once again another song that reminds of Turner & Rainbow – especially the rhythm part. I remember singing this song loudly in my room back in the preteens. The album ends with the instrumental In Chase Of The Wind, featuring some beautiful acoustic guitars along with electric. Some regions got a bonus track in a Thin Lizzy cover of Wild One. Norum who is a fan of the band and Phil Lynott, dedicated it to the latter who passed away the previous year.

The album earned the #4 spot in Sweden and did well across Europe heralding Norum’s successful solo career before he rejoined his friends in Europe in 2003 as the band reunited from a long hiatus and has put the band first while still maintaining his solo efforts.