The album has been primarily described as glam metal,[9][10] but has also been described as funk-metal,[11] and hard rock.[12]
Reception
The album sold modestly well at around 300,000 units,[13] and was favored by heavy metal fans, but did not achieve significant mainstream success.[14] Three of the album's singles, "Little Girls", "Kid Ego", and "Mutha (Don't Wanna Go to School Today)", received medium airplay on Headbangers Ball.
Extreme was met with mixed reception. AllMusic gave the album three stars saying,"Extreme's first album shows the band struggling to shed their influences, particularly Van Halen, and develop a style of their own; consequently, it's wildly uneven, but guitarist Nuno Bettencourt is always worth hearing".[1] In his review for Extreme II: Pornograffitti, Bryan Rolli called the album "rote glam metal".[9]Rolling Stone writer Kim Neely gave the album three stars, but called it an "extremely good listen".[3]
Track listing
All songs written by Cherone & Bettencourt, except "Mutha (Don't Wanna Go to School Today)" by Cherone, LeBeaux & Hunt.
No.
Title
Length
1.
"Little Girls"
3:47
2.
"Wind Me Up"
3:37
3.
"Kid Ego"
4:04
4.
"Watching, Waiting"
4:54
5.
"Mutha (Don't Wanna Go to School Today)"
4:52
6.
"Teacher's Pet"
3:02
7.
"Big Boys Don't Cry"
3:34
8.
"Smoke Signals"
4:14
9.
"Flesh 'n' Blood"
3:31
10.
"Rock a Bye Bye"
5:57
11.
"Play with Me" (not present on any vinyl releases except Australia and New Zealand)
^ a bNeely, Kim (July 13, 1989). "Extreme: Extreme - Music Reviews". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 24, 2007. Retrieved March 26, 2015.
^ a b"Extreme by Extreme | Billboard 200 Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 2021-08-08.
^ a b"Mainstream Rock Airplay Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 2021-08-08.
^Romano, Evan (2022-05-27). "The 'Stranger Things' Season 4 Soundtrack Is an '80s Nostalgia Trip". Men's Health. Retrieved 2022-06-05.
^Bergman, Kieth. "'Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks The 80s': Complete List Of Songs Revealed". Blabbermouth. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
^ a bRolli, Bryan (July 1, 2021). "Top 30 Glam Metal Albums". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved 2021-07-16. Extreme built upon the rote glam metal of their self-titled debut
^ a b"Guitar World - Top 20 Hair Metal Albums of the Eighties". Guitar World. December 12, 2008. Archived from the original on December 20, 2008. Retrieved August 8, 2021.
^DeRiso, Nick (August 7, 2015). "Revisiting Extreme's Path to Success With 'Pornograffitti'". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
^Draper, Jason (March 14, 2021). "Extreme – And The Debut Album That Tapped Their Maximum Potential". uDiscover Music. Retrieved April 17, 2021.
^A&M Records History. A&M Records. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
^"Extreme: More than metal". EW.com. Archived from the original on 2021-08-08. Retrieved 2021-08-08.
^Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN0-646-11917-6.