The 80s were the golden age of heavy metal!

Over the past few months, since I started this blog, I have maintained that the 1980s was a golden age in heavy metal.  After much debate, I’ve come to the conclusion that it defintely was the golden age. My first piece of evidence is the Bloodstock Festival. In 2010, Twisted Sister, a famous band from the 80s, headlined on the final day of the festival. They drew the largest crowd and won accolades from both young and old on the day. Furthermore, the band Heaven and Hell were also due to play Bloodstock but they had to pull out due to the death of Ronnie James Dio. Many bands during the 3 days paid tribute to the great Dio and how much of an influence he was on the metal scene.

It seems that in 2011, the promoters of Bloodstock have chosen other great bands from the 80s to play the festival. Headlining on two of the three nights are two memorable bands from that greast decade, Motorhead and WASP. I realise that Motorhead began in the 70s, but they continued to awe millions with their brand of music throughout the 8os as well. As for WASP, in 1986 I bought their album “The Last Command” because it was the first album to have a PMRC sticker on it. Other bands form the 80s who will be playing Bloodstock are Exodus, Napalm Death and Kreator.

It’s not just Bloodstock that has these great shows. There are others like Download which include bands from the 80s. Last year, I believe Iron Maiden and Motley Crue played there. Likewise, there is another festival with the likes of Def Leppard and of course there is the Judas Priest farewell tour with Queensryche and a new release from Whitesnake. Kiss, Megadeth, Metallica and many other famous bands from the 80s are still going strong. True, their records sales may not be as astronomical as they were in the 80s, but over the years, they have amassed a huge following who still buy their albums and go to their concerts. Therefore, this leads me to conclude that the 80s truly was “The Golden Age of Heavy Metal.”

p.s. You can read an account of 80s metal in my book Rock And Roll Children.