Classic Albums: Dokken - Tooth and Nail

Tooth and Nail was the second studio album by Dokken, released in 1984 through Elektra Records. It was the #35 album of 1985 according to Billboard magazine. The album was certified Platinum by the RIAA and reached #49 on the Billboard 200 U.S. album chart.

This album was the group's first with bassist Jeff Pilson following Juan Croucier's departure to join Ratt. Associate producer was Roy Thomas Baker, who had produced successful albums for Queen and The Cars and had re-recorded, remixed and re-mastered Mötley Crüe's Too Fast for Love after the album was picked up by Elektra/WEA. It was produced by Tom Werman, known for producing several successful albums for Cheap Trick and the previous year's Shout at the Devil, the Crüe's breakthrough album.

Lead-off single for the album was "Into the Fire". A music video for the song received moderate play on MTV. "Into the Fire" spent eight weeks in the Top 40 of Billboard's Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart from October to December 1984, peaking at #21 and charting for a total of eleven weeks.



Second single, "Just Got Lucky", was somewhat less successful, again supported by a music video while charting on the 50-place Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart for seven weeks during January and February 1985 and peaking at #27.

It would be a power ballad that would give the album—and the band—its biggest hit. "Alone Again" spent fourteen weeks on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, including two at its peak position of #20. More significantly, the melodic song of heartbreak was aided by strong rotation that spring and summer at MTV and gave the band their first and biggest hit on the Hot 100, where its eleven-week run from May to July 1985 peaked at #64.


Though clearly more an album act than a singles act, Dokken's album sales were tied to the videos for the singles from those albums. Tooth and Nail rose to #71 on The Billboard 200 during the release of "Into the Fire", but fell off the charts for a week before re-entering and rising to #77 during the release of "Just Got Lucky". It was during the run of this single that the album, sliding down the charts after "Just Got Lucky" faded, reversed course and hit its peak of #49. This time, Tooth and Nail would be certified Gold by the RIAA (in August 1985)—the band's first certification—and would linger on the charts for the remainder of the year, aided by a gig opening for the Scorpions. This continued buoying of sales resulted in the unusual circumstance of the album being rated higher on the 1985 year-end charts (#35) than it had actually reached in its chart peak.

The album's three music videos were later featured along with the band's other videos to date on a longform videocassette release, Dokken Unchain the Night, by Elektra/Asylum Records through Elektra Entertainment. That video debuted on Billboard's Top Music Video—Longform chart at #11 in January 1987, peaking at #5 that May. The video collection was certified Gold in April 1987, and Platinum the following April. In 2007 the collection was re-released in the DVD format by Rhino Home Video through Warner Music Vision, debuting on the Billboard Comprehensive Music Videos chart at #27.

The song "Into The Fire" was featured in the 1987 film "A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors", along with their newly-written title track. The song can be heard in some versions of the film when Kristen is listening to the radio in her bedroom.

In March 1989, on the strength of continued sales, Tooth and Nail—the band's first Gold album—was its third to be certified Platinum by the RIAA for sales of 1 million in the U.S. alone.