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Five Man Acoustical Jam is the third offering from Tesla. Released on the 9th of November, 1990, a date now etched in the annals of rock history. 

Tesla, a hard rock band that birthed amidst the glitzy, spandex-clad torrent of glam metal. A tide that sought to sweep them into its shimmering, superficial current. Yet, they were no glam metal band, no siree; their roots dug deep into the raw, unvarnished soil of hard rock. 

Their first two albums, Mechanical Resonance (1986) and The Great Radio Controversy (1989) are carved out a name for themselves. Selling a million copies in America alone, a testament to their grit and resonance.

But it was Five Man Acoustical Jam that became their magnum opus. This is a work so profound that even the legendary Jimmy Page himself tipped his hat in admiration. 

This album sparked a movement, a seismic shift towards the “unplugged” phenomenon. A wave that would ripple through the music world like a thunderclap in a quiet storm.

(But in fact, MTV Unplugged aired it since late 1989, almost a year before the Five Man Acoustical Jam album.)

The crafting of rock music in the acoustic vein was no novel endeavour, mind you. Led Zeppelin III was awash with it. its folky strums and pastoral echoes a world away from the electric thunder of their earlier works.

Even Poison, had their moment of unplugged introspection with the ballad “Every Rose Has Its Thorn”, a song that stripped away the glitter to reveal a thorny heart. And let us not forget GN’R Lies, that raw, acoustic EP from Guns N’ Roses, a snarling beast momentarily tamed.

Yet, it was Five Man Acoustical Jam that drew the admiration of none other than Jimmy Page himself, a nod that carried the weight of the heavens for the lads in Tesla. Jimmy, in his infinite wisdom, even remarked to Brian Wheat, the band’s bassist, that while it might not have been the first acoustic album, it was indeed the first live acoustic album, a distinction that lent it an undeniable gravitas, a uniqueness that shimmered like a rare gem in the rough.

Now, whether it truly was the first live acoustic album, well, that’s a question left to the pedants and the historians, for who has the time to sift through the annals of rock lore? But when Jimmy Page himself sings its praises, you know there’s something extraordinary at play. What, then, was the secret to its triumph? Was it the way they breathed new life into their classic tunes, reimagining them with an acoustic soul? Or was it simply that their songs, in their very essence, were destined to be unplugged, their melodies and lyrics so inherently suited to the stripped-down, intimate embrace of acoustic performance? The answer, perhaps, lies in the alchemy of both, a perfect storm of artistry and timing that made Five Man Acoustical Jam not just an album, but a moment, a movement, a revelation.

The Making of Five Man Acoustical Jam

The genesis of the album, now there’s a tale. Tesla, in their wildest dreams, had never set out to craft a live album, let alone an acoustic one. But fate, that capricious weaver of destinies, had other plans.

First, there was the gnawing spectre of financial woes, a burden that weighed heavy on their shoulders, driving them to toil ceaselessly. 

Strange, isn’t it? Here they were, a band whose first two albums had each sold over a million copies, yet still they found themselves scraping by, their pockets as empty as a beggar’s bowl.

Some whispered it was the devil in the details of their contract with Geffen, the advance a noose around their necks, the fine print a labyrinth of debts and obligations.

Then came the Dr. Feelgood Tour, where they played support to Mötley Crüe, a gig that filled their calendar but not their coffers. Three days a week they’d play, but the remaining four? Ah, those were days of restless hunger, of desperation gnawing at their heels. 

Tesla, ever the scrappers, couldn’t bear to let those idle days slip by, not when the wolf was at the door. And so, they took to the road, playing smaller, more intimate shows of their own, squeezing every penny from the cracks in the pavement, just to keep the lights on and the wheels turning.

Oh, the life of a rock band, forever dancing on the edge, forever scrambling to make ends meet. Day by day, gig by gig, they fought to keep the dream alive, their music a lifeline in a world that demanded everything and gave little in return.

Comin’ Atcha Live

Such is the lot of the artist, the eternal struggle, the ceaseless hustle. And yet, from this crucible of hardship, Five Man Acoustical Jam would emerge, a testament to their resilience, their ingenuity, their unyielding spirit.

And then, the next twist in the tale. On the 17th of March, 1990, Tesla took to the stage at the Bay Area Music Awards.

Their fingers itching to play, their hearts heavy with the weight of practicality. All their gear was packed away in the truck, a fortress of equipment too cumbersome to unload for a fleeting performance. 

And so, they opted for simplicity, for the stripped-down charm of an acoustic rendition of “Love Song.” No fuss, no frills, just the raw essence of their music, a decision born of necessity but destined to spark something far greater.

That performance caught the keen eye of Peter Mensch (Manager). A man with a nose for opportunity and a knack for seeing potential where others saw only limitations.

He saw something in that acoustic set, a spark, a glimmer of something extraordinary. And so, he nudged them, prodded them, urging them to explore this acoustic path further.

“When he said we were not talented enough, we were like, ‘Fuck you!’,” says Wheat. “But what he was really saying was: ‘You don’t think you can do this. I know you can.’ At the time we thought he was fucking with us, but he knew what he was doing. He had a great way of motivating you.”

Peter Mensch always knew just how to stir the pot, to coax greatness from the reluctant hearts of artists. The sting of those words, the gauntlet thrown. It was enough to light a fire under Brian, to turn his reluctance into resolve.

A spark that would soon grow into a flame, illuminating their path and forever altering the course of their journey.

Peter Mensch helmed Q Prime (together with Cliff Burnstein) he, a management firm whose roster read like a who’s who of rock royalty—Metallica among them.

The Way It Is

And truth be told, the acoustic realm was no foreign land to Tesla.

Songs like “Modern Day Cowboy,” “Love Song,” and “The Way It Is” already carried the DNA of acoustic simplicity. Listen to their melodies and structures ripe for unplugged reinterpretation.

Transforming their electric anthems into acoustic gems was no Herculean task; it was more like peeling back a layer to reveal the soul beneath.

But they didn’t stop there. They reached beyond their own catalogue, weaving in the threads of other artists’ brilliance. Jeff Keith plucked “Signs” from the ether, while Frank Hannon, ever the musical alchemist, drew inspiration from The Grateful Dead’s “Truckin’”. 

“When we were rehearsing ‘Cumin’ Atcha Live,’…” Frank recalled, “I suggested we give it a boogie-woogie twist. We jammed on it, back and forth, until it started to groove like ‘Truckin’. Then we started singing ‘Truckin’ over it, and before we knew it, we had this little medley brewing.”

Tommy Skeoch, meanwhile, reached for “Mother’s Little Helper” by The Rolling Stones, while Troy Luccketta, the drummer with a penchant for Americana, chose “Lodi”by Creedence Clearwater Revival. And Brian Wheat, ever the Beatles aficionado, brought “We Can Work It Out” into the fold.

It was a tapestry of influences. Each thread adding depth and texture to the acoustic canvas they were painting. This album became not just a showcase of Tesla’s own songs, but a celebration of the music that shaped them, a love letter to the sounds that had fueled their journey. 

In the end, it was this blend of the familiar and the unexpected, the personal and the universal, that made the album not just a performance, but an experience, a moment in time that resonated far beyond the stage.

A warm-up before they hit the road with Mötley Crüe took place at The Slim’s in San Francisco. But after that gig, Brian had a thought—why not capture it on tape, just for posterity’s sake? And so, Tesla decided to record their performance at the Trocadero Theatre in Philadelphia on the 2nd of July, 1990. 

At the time, no one imagined that those tapes would more than a memento. It’s a keepsake to tuck away in the archives.

Gettin’ Better

But fate, as it often does, had other plans. Two months later, Cliff Burnstein received a call from WAAF, a radio station in Boston. They told him that their rendition of “Signs”. The song they had played at the station climbing into the top 5 most-requested songs. 

Cliff took this news to Geffen Records, and soon enough, the green light was given to release an acoustic EP. The band, however, found themselves divided when they revisited the recordings.

Jeff and Brian were all for releasing it as a full album, believing in the raw energy and authenticity of the performance. Tommy and Frank, on the other hand, weren’t convinced—the sound quality, they argued, wasn’t up to scratch. But Brian countered with a pointed observation: Aerosmith’s Live Bootleg didn’t have pristine sound either.

]Yet it sold like hotcakes because it captured the emotion, the essence of the moment. So why not do the same? Imperfections and all.

Geffen, however, wasn’t entirely sold on the raw recordings. They suggested some touch-ups, a bit of studio magic to polish the rough edges. But Tesla stood firm. They didn’t want to deceive their fans into thinking the performance was flawless when it wasn’t.

After all, they hadn’t played flawlessly that night, so why pretend otherwise? But then, a problem arose. When they listened back to the tapes, they discovered the bass was missing. In the end, Brian had no choice but to re-record his bass parts. Yet, true to their ethos, he used the same bass he’d played that night and recorded it in one take, as if it were live, preserving the spirit of the performance.

And so, Five Man Acoustical Jam was born!

It become the testament to imperfection, to spontaneity, to the raw, unfiltered magic of live music. It wasn’t just an album; it was a moment frozen in time, a snapshot of a band laying it all bare, unvarnished and unapologetic. And in that rawness, they found something far more powerful than perfection: truth.

The album was released on 13^th of November 1990, peaking at number 12 and the single “Sighs” reaching number 10.

The Songs

Perhaps it was their roots in hard rock, deeply entwined with the blues, that made the transition to acoustic feel so natural. Many of their songs already carried the seeds of acoustic sensibility, woven into their DNA from the start. 

Take “Love Song,” for instance—a ballad of aching beauty, slow and tender. When it first appeared on The Great Radio Controversy, it might have been easy to overlook amidst the flood of power ballads that dominated the era. But stripped down to its acoustic core, it revealed a depth and vulnerability that demanded attention, a testament to their ability to craft songs that could shine in any form.

Then there were the rockers, like “Modern Day Cowboy.” The original was a hard-hitting anthem, its electric guitars slicing through the air with razor-sharp precision. Yet, even in its electrified form, there were moments—fleeting, but unmistakable—where the acoustic guitar peeked through, blending seamlessly without a hint of discord. 

Or “Getting Better,” a track that roared with unrelenting energy. Listening to the original, one couldn’t help but think it would translate beautifully to an acoustic arrangement. Jeff Keith’s voice, already raw and gravelly, carried the same intensity, the same grit, even when the electric guitars were swapped for acoustic strings. The heaviness of the rock remained, but it was reframed, reimagined in a new light.

Modern Day Cowboy

Their foundation was solid, their songs a treasure trove of material ripe for acoustic reinterpretation. And then there were the classic covers, sprinkled throughout the album in just the right measure. These weren’t mere throwaways; they were carefully chosen, each one a nod to the artists who had inspired them, each one treated with the respect it deserved. 

The result was an album that felt both familiar and fresh—a mix of Tesla originals that their fans knew and loved, and timeless rock classics that resonated with listeners across the board.

In this album, Tesla struck a delicate balance. It was an album that honored their hard rock roots while embracing the intimacy of acoustic performance. It was a celebration of their own music, yes, but also a tribute to the songs that had shaped them. And in that balance, they found something truly special—an album that was as much a love letter to their fans as it was to the music that had brought them together.

But what truly set Five Man Acoustical Jam apart was the sheer ease of it all. Perhaps it was because they never intended to make an album out of it—there was no pressure, no grand design. The performances felt relaxed, almost effortless, as if they were simply playing for the joy of it. The banter between songs was lighthearted, filled with laughter and camaraderie, and the atmosphere was electric with a kind of unforced, infectious energy.

The audience, swept up in the moment, responded in kind, their enthusiasm feeding back into the band, creating a loop of shared joy and connection.

The Glory

Five Man Acoustical Jam became the most successful album of Tesla’s career, a crowning achievement that surpassed even their own expectations. While they may not have been the ones to kickstart the “unplugged” craze that would soon sweep the music world, this album undeniably left its mark. It was a live acoustic record that resonated deeply, sparking a renewed interest in the stripped-down, intimate power of acoustic performances.

In the end, it wasn’t just an album—it was a moment, a feeling, a testament to the magic that happens when musicians let go of pretension and simply play from the heart. And for Tesla, it was a reminder that sometimes, the greatest successes come not from meticulous planning, but from the spontaneous, unguarded moments that capture the essence of who they are.

Read More:

The Rock Pit: INTERVIEW: Brian Wheat – Tesla

The Classic Rock Magazine: Tesla: the musical miracle of Five Man Acoustical Jam