It has come to my attention that Anal Cunt guitarist Josh Martin has died. According to reports, he was killed from a fall off of an escalator. Witnesses claim that Martin was clowning around on the escalator, fell off and hit his head on a table at the food court below. FFI click the link below:
I was hoping that maybe the music deaths were going to slow down, as I haven’t heard of any in a while but once again, it is not the case. I know very little of Anal Cunt but the name itself, while offensive to some, makes it worth giving it a listen. In tribute to Josh, here’s their song “You Quit Doing Heroin You Pussy.”
Living in Southern New Jersey, I was very much influenced by what was happening in Philadelphia which was fifty miles away. I rooted for their sports teams, most of the time, except when the Phillies played the Dodgers, the Eagles played the Steelers or the 76ers played the Celtics. However, I have always been a die hard Flyers fan. Most importantly though, Philadelphia was where I went to see most of my concerts. Which is why most of the concerts in “Rock And Roll Children” take place at the Spectrum. Furthermore, Philadelphia radio stations were far superior to the one in Atlantic City, also I got treated to some of the bands coming out of there. One of these bands was Beru Revue.
The Philadelphia Spectrum, now sadly torn down.
Back in the mid 1980s, Beru Revue made several trips to South Jersey clubs and I was lucky enough to catch them three times. Their brand of rock, considered new wave by most was definitely unique. They combined great musicianship and if you listened to the lyrics, keen political awareness while maintaining a sense of humour. This gave them a pretty large cult following around the clubs of the Delaware Valley, (comprising Eastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey and Delaware.) One of their songs, “Hoods A Go Go For the 80s” got airplay on local radio, unfortunately, their fame never spread much beyond that. Although I did take two friends who were visiting from Rhode Island to see them and they were so impressed, they bought Beru’s EP.
Beru Revue:
Bob ‘Beru’ McCafferty- lead vocals
Greg ‘T-Bone’ Davis- guitar
Gerry Healy- guitar
Johnny Sacks- bass
Buzz Barkley- keyboards
Tommy ‘Sir Francis Drake’ Pinto- drums
This is my favourite Beru Revue song:
Hopefully, you’ve had a listen and agree with me that Beru Revue were far too good to be just a locally known band. Even to this day, I have cool memories of them. Maybe one reason they never made it nationally or internationally was the fact that Philadelphia has produced so many great musical acts over the years. One such band would get national attention in 1985, you’ll read about that in the near future and a year later, a Philly metal band would do the same. However, I lament as to what a great contribution to the music world Beru Revue would have been if they had been luckier.
Next post: 1985- The Backlash Begins
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The moment of truth has arrived! I am going to real my all time top ten power ballads. Before I do, let me just thank you for all of your comments and for simply enjoying the ride. While sitting down actually figuring out my top 30 was more exhausting than I had anticipated, it was still great fun. Think of all the songs I got to listen to. I know some of you might be a little disappointed that a power ballad you really love didn’t make the list but believe me, there were so many to choose from. Pity poor Ozzy, he has delivered many a great power ballad but not one of them made my list. It’s not that I didn’t want to include him, my favourite Ozzy power ballad, “In Old LA Tonight” from the “Osmosis” album came pretty damn close. Maybe if he preforms it at Download, I may change my mind. Anyway, enough of me rambling on, here’s my top ten.
10. Dokken- Alone Again
9. TNT- Eddie
8. Beggars and Thieves- Your Love is in Vain
7. Steel Panther- Community Property
I can see with lyrics like these why some people don’t take SP seriously but this is a kick ass power ballad!
6. Tyketto- Standing Alone
Another reason why Danny Vaughn doesn’t get the accolades he so truly deserves as a singer.
5. Pretty Maids- With These Eyes
4. Twisted Sister- The Price
For me, this song put the power in the ballad!
3. Savatage- All That I Bleed
I had to do some complicated math to include this one. The first half of it is a piano ballad while the second half completely rocks. So I applied the formula ballad + power rocker = power ballad
2. April Wine- Just Between You and Me
Go back and re-read my post on their 1981 album, “Nature of the Beast” and you’ll see why it’s number two.
Heart- Allies
Heart would put out two more commercially successful power ballads later on in the 1980s. However, in my mind, they would never be as good as this one, not even close.
There you have it, 80sMetalman’s top thirty power ballads. I hope you have enjoyed listening to them as much as I have.
Next post: A Great Unknown Philadelphia Band
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It figures that once I embarked on this massive project, there would be power ballads from my past which really liked but forgot about because of time. Since my last post two have come to light in my mind. Now I know how Sam Beckett must have felt like in Quantum Leap with the Swiss cheese brain. One of them, “I Believe In You” by Y&T, was one but would have only made the lower twenties. The other I have put it jointly with another on the upcoming list. Thing about this one is that this band has already had an entry and though the one from the previous list was commercially more popular, I prefer the the ballad on today’s post to that one. Anyway, here’s 11-20!
20. Def Leppard- Bringing On the Heartbreak
19. Pretty Boy Floyd- I Want to Be With You
18. Danger Danger- One Step From Paradise
17. Von Groove- Arianne
16. Warrant- Glimmer
15. Poison- Every Rose Has Its Thorn
I know I take the piss out of this song a lot but I secretly really kind of like it.
(Joint) 14. The Scorpions- Still Loving You
Yep, you guessed it! This was the other one I had forgotten about. Call me weird but I prefer this one to “Winds of Change.”
(Joint) 14. Metallica- Nothing Else Matters
13. Asphalt Ballet- Wasted Time
12. Steelheart- I’ll Never Let You Go
11. Little Angels- I Ain’t Gonna Cry
There are probably other great power ballads I had forgotten about and you can feel free to put them forward but I must tell you, my top ten is set in stone. In the meantime, you got 11 great power ballads to rock out to.
Next post: 1-10
To get Rock and Roll Children for free, go to: https://crreadac.cf/current/ebooks-free-download-rock-and-roll-children-fb2-by-michael-d-lefevre.html
I’ve said on many a post that I’m a sucker for a good power ballad and there have been many on the hundreds of albums I have posted about so far. Therefore, I thought it would be nice, before I take the tour into 1985, that I share my top 30 power ballads, ten at a time. Originally, there was only going to be 20 but there are so many good ones out there that I had to extend it by another ten.
Google defines a power ballad by being an emotional rock song, generally focused on love with strong vocals. That is only half of my definition of the term. For me, a power ballad consists of either good power chords on the electric guitar or a blistering guitar solo, preferably both. That is why I get annoyed at supposed power ballad compilation albums. Sorry, as much as I love, “I Want to Know What Love Is” by Foreigner, it doesn’t match my definition.
The problem many people have with them is the fact that they cross over into forbidden territories. Many metalheads consider them too soft for metal, while more trendy music listeners are put off by the power chords. I can’t see why we can’t have both, especially when they’re done well. Besides, while they won’t admit, many male metalheads keep power ballads on hand when they want to show their ladies their more ‘intimate’ side.
Okay, I’ll stop rambling now and give you 80smetalman’s top power ballads, 21-30.
30. Hanoi Rocks- Million Miles Away
29. Gotthard- Still I Belong to You
28. Jefferson Starship- Fading Lady Light
Note: This was the first power ballad fitting my definition that I ever heard
27. LA Guns- Ballad of Jane
26. Motley Crue- Home Sweet Home
25. Nazereth- Love Hurts
This was the second power ballad I heard. I didn’t hear it until 1981, otherwise it would have been the first.
24. The Scorpions- Winds of Change
23. Anthrax- Nice F*ckin’ Ballad
I know Anthrax were taking to piss here but it still a cool power ballad.
22. Crystal Ball- Silence of the Night
21. Guns N Roses- November Rain
There you have it! The first ten power ballads on the list. Have a listen, sit back, mellow out and enjoy the guitar solos.
Next post: 11-20
To get Rock and Roll Children for free, go to: https://crreadac.cf/current/ebooks-free-download-rock-and-roll-children-fb2-by-michael-d-lefevre.html
History can never debate that 1984 was the golden year of heavy metal. So many great albums from so many great bands and they even played metal on the radio and MTV. Never again would the genre get so much commercial exposure. However, even with all the great metal, the year would end in a very tragic anti- climax and mean the death of a drummer and his band and another similar tragedy would nearly claim the life of another drummer.
On December 8, members of the bands Hanoi Rocks and Motley Crue had been engaged in a massive drinking binge that had been going on, according to reports, for four days. More booze was being called for so Motley Crue’s Vince Neil, eager to show off his new 1972 Ford Pantera, volunteered to make the run even though he was well over the legal drink drive limit and took Hanoi Rocks drummer, Razzle, with him. At 6:38, Neil lost control of his car, (driving 65 in a 25mph zone might have had something to do with it) while swerving around a stationary fire truck and careered into oncoming traffic hitting two other cars. The driver and a passenger in one of the cars was seriously injured and taken to hospital while the driver of the second was miraculously uninjured. Vince himself only suffered cracked ribs and cuts to his face. Things weren’t so fortunate for Razzle, he was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
The loss of Razzle would spell the end for Hanoi Rocks, the band would break up shortly after. Vince Neil’s troubles were only beginning as he would have to pay $2.6 million in compensation to the victims, do 200 hours of community service and serve time in prison, albeit a mere 30 days! People are still talking about the leniency of that sentence still. Like I said when I posted about Hanoi Rock’s last studio album, I got the chance to see this band about three weeks before the tragedy happened at a small New Jersey night club. That’s why this tragedy continues to weigh heavy on me.
If the loss of Razzle compliments of Vince Neil wasn’t bad enough, further tragedy would happen on the final day of the year. Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen would lose his arm in car accident. While trying to overtake another car at high speed, Rick lost control of his car, hit a dry stone wall and entered a field where he was thrown from his car because he didn’t have his seat belt properly fastened. His left arm was severed and though doctors reattached it, had to re-amputate it on account of infection. Rick’s girlfriend also suffered head and neck injuries as well as a concussion. Although this was a tragedy at the time, Rick would be one of the greatest ‘overcoming of adversity’ stories in all of music.
When 1984 proceeded to 85, a few misguided individuals used these tragedies as some sort of symbol that heavy metal was on its way out. Fools! Yes, heavy metal would never again enjoy the commercial airplay it had in that year, but it would never go away. The lack of radio and MTV play would do nothing to halt record sales and sold out concert attendances.
Next post: My 20 Favourite Power Ballads- 11-20
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Coming to the final month in 1984, just when I thought that the year of metal might be coming to end, I get news of a band shown on MTV coming to a local club. That band just happend to be, yes you guessed it, Hanoi Rocks. Previous to their appearance, I did happen to catch the video to their single, a cover of the CCR classic, “Up Around the Bend.” The video impressed me enough to go to the club and to make a long story short, I was rather impressed. In fact, I sometimes wonder if I should have included that gig in “Rock and Roll Children.” My reason for not doing so was because KISS came to Philadelphia that evening and I concluded that the main characters would have gone to see KISS instead. However, I do mention in the story that Bob’s older brother Mitch goes to see Hanoi Rocks.
Hanoi Rocks’s performance on that memorable evening further motivated me to get their then latest release, “Two Steps From the Move.” Another decision I have never regretted because this album is very good. I would be lying if I didn’t say that “Up Around the Bend” is my favourite track on it. I had always liked the original version and what Hanoi Rocks did was take a great classic and totally metalize it. However, the album is full of great metal jams. The ones which stick out especially are: “I Can’t Get It,” “Underwater World, which has a good guitar solo and “Million Miles Away” is as good a power ballad as any. The hidden gem on the album has to be “Boulevard of Broken Dreams.” The energy on that song is simply phenomenal! Definitely one to blast driving with the window down and “Boiler” is quite amusing. On the other hand and as cliche as this sounds, all the songs really kick ass. If I were to nit pick, it would be that “Don’t You Ever Leave Me” should have been the closer of the album but that’s a tiny technicality.
Track Listing:
Up Around the Bend
High School
I Can’t Get It
Underwater World
Don’t You Ever Leave Me
Million Miles Away
Boulevard of Broken Dreams
Boiler (Me Boiler ‘n’ Me)
Futurama
Cutting Corners
Hanoi Rocks
Michael Monroe- lead vocals and saxophone
Andy McCoy- lead guitar, vocals
Nasty Suicide- guitar, vocals
Sam Yaffa- bass, vocals
Razzle- drums, vocals
In 1984, Hanoi Rocks were on the threshold of international stardom. Unfortunately, just a few short weeks after I saw them obliterate a small club in New Jersey, tragedy would strike the band which would lead to their eventual break up. While it’s no secret what that tragedy was, I thought it would be better to go into more detail next post. Right now, focus on the band’s happier times with this great album.
Next post: 1984 Ends in Metal Tragedy
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Just when I thought that 1984 was becoming all metaled out towards the very end of the year, along comes a great album from Canadian greats, Triumph, to continue the metal mayhem that was that year. By then, both commercial radio and MTV was starting to suck, so when the first single, “Spellbound” came blasting over the airwaves on Thanksgiving Day, I was truly psyched. I was already a Triumph convert by then thanks to their previous albums, “Never Surrender” and “Allied Forces” so I welcomed the new “Thunder Seven” album with open arms and ears.
“Spellbound” is my second favourite Triumph song of all time. I just love how Rik Emmett uses his guitar on the song and the harmonizing on the chorus, just great. There are keyboards but unlike the trend in the 1980s, they simply support and not take over the song. Full marks to Mike Levine, he does a good job with them. With the keyboards in that great song, one might be tempted to think that Triumph had gone the same way as their fellow Canadians, Rush, had done earlier in this year. Trust me, they don’t.
Not many songs do what they say in the title but the second song does “Rock Out and Rock On!” Not really much more I can say about it than that, except it’s a cool track. Then, I really do like the cowboy type vibe on “Cool Down.” I don’t know if the song really is about cowboys but what I do know and like is how Rik lays down some really cool guitar work on it. “Follow Your Heart” was the second single from “Thunder Seven” and everything about the song says “single.” It’s a slightly lighter than the other songs but you can still feel Triumph’s energy with it.
The rockingest song and my vote for hidden gem is definitely “Time Goes By.” While this song is harder than “Spellbound,” there is some great harmonizing vocals on it as well. Another song that has Triumph being at their best, especially Emmett’s guitar solo. Following “Time Goes By” are two songs which are less than two minutes, the first one being an acoustic instrumental, done well. The second, sounds like a church choir but it does show the vocal ability of Rik Emmett and Gil Moore in a different light. Their vocal abilities also come through very well on the next track, the ballad, “Killing Time.” However, things pick up with the penultimate rocker, “Stranger in a Strange Land” before going out an a mega high with the blues based instrumental, “Little Boy Blues,” where once again, Rik shows his guitar prowess.
No further proof is needed to support the fact that heavy metal had the world by the balls in 1984 than the album from Japanese metal greats Loudness, “Disillusion.” As far as I know, this was the first Loudness album to be sung in English. All previous albums had been sung in the band’s native tongue although that did not make them any less kick ass.
Thinking about the above statement, that leads to the one small problem with the album. Minoru Nihara’s vocals are sometimes difficult to hear. This is a shame because it is true he sings better English than what he speaks. I’ve heard interviews with him. What is a further shame is the fact that you can’t hear what a great voice he has. Some of you might remember that when I’ve posted about previous Loudness albums, I compared Minoru Nihara to the likes of Ronnie James Dio, Klaus Meine and Ian Gillan. He certainly belongs in the same league as those just mentioned.
While not being able to fully appreciate Nihara’s vocals on “Disillusion” is a little frustrating at times, it is only a small inconvenience because what does obscure the vocals is the brilliant guitar playing of Akira Takasaki. From the first note of the instrumental opener, he just shreds and riffs all over the album. The solos are superb and even his rhythm guitar parts are done amazingly well. He shines extremely well on the tracks “Butterfly” and his instrumental solo “Exploder.” However, my vote for the favourite track is still “Satisfaction Guaranteed” because Nihara’s vocals come through the clearest on it and he does a good job with them. Of course, Takasaki’s guitar playing guided by a good rhythm section help as well.
Track Listing:
Anthem
Crazy Doctor
Esper
Butterfly
Revelation
Exploder
Dream Fantasy
Milky Way
Satisfaction Guaranteed
Ares’ Lament
Loudness
Minoru Nihara- lead vocals
Akira Takasaki- guitar
Masayoshi Yamashita- bass, taurus pedals
Munetaka Higuchi- drums
“Disillusion” put Loudness on the metal map in the West and set the stage for the following album which would propel them to greatness. It also proved that culture, race, or national borders had nothing to do with enjoying great metal.
BTW, I will be purchasing my tickets for Sunday’s Download tonight.
Next post: Triumph- Thunder 7
To get Rock and Roll Children, go to: https://crreadac.cf/current/ebooks-free-download-rock-and-roll-children-fb2-by-michael-d-lefevre.html
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