Editing Poison (band) (section)

===''Look What the Cat Dragged In'' and ''Open Up and Say... Ahh!'' (1986–1989)===
Unable to secure a major label recording contract, Poison was signed by Steev Riccardo with the smaller [[Enigma Records]] in 1986 (see [[1986 in music]]) for approximately $30,000, a fraction of the hundreds of thousands of dollars many similar acts were receiving from major labels at the time. Their debut album, ''[[Look What the Cat Dragged In]]'', was released on May 23, 1986, with the band members themselves partially funding the recording. The album was initially expected to produce only one single, "[[Cry Tough (song)|Cry Tough]]"; however, ''Look What the Cat Dragged In'' became a surprise success and subsequently spawned three charting hits: "[[Talk Dirty to Me]]", "[[I Want Action]]", and "[[I Won't Forget You]]",<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Konow|first=D|title=Bang Your Balls|publisher=Three Rivers Press|year=2002 |page=268}}</ref> The record became the biggest-selling-album in Enigma's history. With heavy rotation on MTV, their debut earned the band tours with fellow glam rockers [[Ratt]], [[Cinderella (band)|Cinderella]], and [[Quiet Riot]], as well as a coveted slot in the Texxas Jam in Dallas. In 1987 the band recorded a cover of the [[Kiss (band)|Kiss]] song "[[Rock and Roll All Nite]]" for [[Less than Zero (soundtrack)|soundtrack to ''Less than Zero'']].<ref>{{cite web |title=Less Than Zero - Original Soundtrack |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/less-than-zero-mw0000193666 |website=Allmusic |access-date=June 25, 2020}}</ref>

[[File:Poison in 1987.jpg|thumb|Poison in 1987]]

Poison's second album, ''[[Open Up and Say... Ahh!]]'', was released May 21, 1988.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://godsofrock.com/day-in-rock-history/May/21|title=This Day in Rock History for 21 May|access-date=October 18, 2009}}{{dead link|date=March 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}</ref> It peaked at No.&nbsp;2 on the American charts. The album included the band's biggest hit, the No.&nbsp;1 single "[[Every Rose Has Its Thorn]]", along with other hits "[[Nothin' but a Good Time]]", "[[Fallen Angel (Poison song)|Fallen Angel]]", and the [[Loggins and Messina]] cover "[[Your Mama Don't Dance (Poison song)|Your Mama Don't Dance]]". The album's initial cover art was controversial, as it depicted a demonic female figure with an obscenely long tongue. A censored version of the cover followed, focusing on the figure's eyes. In 1989, the band released their first video album titled ''[[Sight for Sore Ears]]'' which featured all their music videos from the first two albums.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sight for Sore Ears! - Poison |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/sight-for-sore-ears%21-mw0000676162 |website=Allmusic |access-date=June 28, 2020}}</ref>

Conflict pursued the band persistently. Michaels' frequent brawling garnered him further lawsuits in Atlanta, Los Angeles and Tallahassee.<ref>{{cite web |title=Biography |url=https://musicianguide.com/biographies/1608001262/Poison.html |website=musicianguide.com |publisher=Net Industries |access-date=August 26, 2022}}</ref> Bryn Bridenthal, head of publicity at [[Geffen Records]], filed a $1.1 million lawsuit against the band for drenching her with drinks and a bucket of ice at a music industry party. Then, [[Sanctuary Records|Sanctuary Music]], Poison's former management company, filed a $45.5 million breach of contract suit against the band. Poison retaliated with charges of mismanagement of funds. [[Easy Action (band)|Easy Action]] filed a lawsuit, claiming that Poison stole the chorus of their song "We Go Rocking" for their single "I Want Action".<ref name=lawsuitsandhealth>{{cite web |last1=Tanos |first1=Lorenzo |title=All the times Poison has been sued |url=https://www.grunge.com/352722/all-the-times-poison-has-been-sued/ |website=grunge.com |publisher=[[Static Media]] |access-date=August 26, 2022 |date=March 11, 2021}}</ref> As recalled by Easy Action's lead vocalist [[Tommy Nilsson]] in an interview with Rock United, they received an unspecified financial settlement for the alleged plagiarism in 1989. DeVille put the amount at $25,000 in a 1994 radio interview with [[Lonn Friend]].