British band, Mammoth, first came to my attention via a compilation album which I’m going to cover in the very near future. The song represented on that album from this debut is “Fatman” and it was a good choice as for me, it’s the best song on the debut. It’s a good heads up rocker and I get the impression that the band are laughing at themselves with it, in a good way of course.
Of course, we got to ask about the rest of the album. If they were looking for Top of the Pops chart success, then the opener “All the Days” would be a prime candidate. It does open with a pop oriented intro but never gets too heavy for the delicate ears of the top 40 brigade. However, there is a cool guitar solo in the middle. Mac Baker is a decent guitarist.
Like with so many bands on their debut albums, some might say that Mammoth were trying to discover what they were. True, on the album songs go in a variety of directions but they mostly stay with the hard rock formula. “Can’t Take the Hurt” is another mid tempo rocker which also could have been released as a single. With the video, maybe it was as it’s the closest they come to a true ballad. The history behind the band is vague at best.
They prove they can rock on tracks like “Bet You Wish,” “Long Time Coming” and “30 Pieces of Silver.” These are good hard rocking tracks and “Bad Times” is a steady melodic one. However, they venture into more progressive metal territory on “Dark Star” and the closer, “Home From the Storm,” and they sound pretty good. I put forward the argument that Mammoth weren’t necessarily trying to find their sound as opposed to the belief that they just wanted to make music.
Track Listing:
All the Days
Fatman
Can’t Take the Hurt
30 Pieces of Silver
Dark Star
Bet You Wish
Long Time Coming
Bad Times
Home From the Storm
Mammoth
Nicky Moore- vocals, keyboards
Mac Baker- guitar
John McCoy- bass, guitar, synth guitar
Vinnie Reed- drums, percussion
Additional Musicians:
Bernie Torme- guitar
Kenny Cox- guitar
Rob Fisher- keyboards
David Lloyd, Mark Williamson- backing vocals
Steve Sidelynk- percussion
Mammoth was one of those bands who came and went without getting much notice. According to sources, they wouldn’t release another record until 1997. Shame, because with this debut, they were certainly heading in the right direction.
Next post: Dream Theater- When Dream and Day Unite
To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
Main objective behind writing “Rock and Roll Children” was to remind people, especially metalheads, of heavy metal history. At the time I began writing, there seemed to be a push by mainstream media to downplay the role heavy metal played in during its golden decade, the 1980s and that decade, contrary to what the media was pushing was not all Frankie Goes to Hollywood. Like it or not, heavy metal was a dominant force in the 1980s. True, it got little radio play and minimal play on MTV but the most successful bands sold millions of albums and played to packed out arenas. So, we can safely say that the 1980s was the golden age of heavy metal and I wrote “Rock and Roll Children” to bring home that point.
With all that said, the 80s for me was a busy decade and there were a lot of events, both music related and not, which took place in the time period in the book, 1984-7. That is the purpose of today’s post, to give you a history refresher of the events, (sorry, it’s the teacher in me) and by some weird hope, more of you will buy the book.
Non- Musical Events
U.S. Marines in Lebanon- In the story, Bob’s older brother, Mitch, served with the US Marines in their ‘peacekeeping’ mission in Lebanon. Although, he wasn’t there when the big tragedy happened in October 1983, some of his friends were. He is clearly effected by his experiences there, getting wounded when a grenade went off near him.
McDonald’s Mass Shooting- In the summer of 1984, a man went into a McDonald’s in California and shot and killed 22 people. Before he left, the shooter declared he was going to hunt humans. In “Rock and Roll Children,” the main characters joke that if they go to McDonald’s, they’re going to get shot.
Famine in Africa- I make reference to this in the book because it led to one of the greatest musical events of the decade, which I will mention more further down.
Ronald Reagan’s Re-election: This is briefly mentioned because Mitch is upset that the country re-elected the man who sent him to Lebanon where he was wounded.
Super Bowls XIX, XX and XXI- All three of these super bowls get mentioned.
The Bombing of Libya- When the US bombed Libya in 1986, there was concerns for the safety of Americans travelling in Europe. Jeff had been accepted to the University of London and while he wasn’t worried, some others were.
Reagan’s Contra War in Nicaragua- Bob becomes an anti- Contra Aid protester in light of events. He saw what Lebanon had done to his brother and this is what drives him here.
Arthur Fowler’s Imprisonment- When I got to England, I became engrossed in the very popular soap opera, “East Enders.” (Today it holds no interest for me.) In one episode, the character Arthur Fowler gets sent to prison for stealing money from a Christmas Club. A couple of nights later, I saw stickers at one underground station saying, “Free Arthur Fowler.”
Herald of Free Enterprise Disaster- In March, 1987, a British ferry called The Herald of Free Enterprise capsized in Zeebrugge, Belgium, killing 193 crew and passengers. This was a huge tragedy. One month after the event, Jeff and his roommate, Henry, take a ferry to France and this does worry them a little.
Music Related Events
Concerts- Every concert which takes place in the story actually happened and at the time they actually occurred.
Vince Neil’s Accident- This rocked the heavy metal community hard and gave plenty of ammunition to the anti-metal establishment. In case anyone has been living on Jupiter, Vince was more than twice over the drink-drive limit and crashed his car, injuring two people and killing Hanoi Rocks drummer, Razzle. It had an effect on the major characters in the story as after that, they made sure that they didn’t overdo it if they had to drive.
Rick Allen’s Accident- Rick’s accident happened about three weeks after Vince’s. While Rick and his girlfriend survived, Rick lost his arm as a result of the accident and the entire heavy metal world held their breath as to whether he would play the drums ever again.
Aerosmith’s Bottle Incident- The actual event happened seven years before it gets mentioned in the book, therefore, it’s told retrospectively. The character Tammy was at the concert in Philadelphia in 1979 when some moron threw a bottle on stage hitting Steve Tyler. She gives her full account of the incident and alludes to why Aerosmith seemed to holding back their best efforts when they played Philadelphia in 1986.
Live Aid- This was the musical event of the 80s I mentioned earlier. The concert was put on to raise money to help those in famine stricken Africa. Two concerts took place simultaneously, one in London, the other in Philadelphia. In “Rock and Roll Children,” I focused more on the two metal acts which performed that day, Black Sabbath and Judas Priest.
Farm Aid- This was a concert to raise money to help American farmers who were losing their farms. The main takeaway from that concert was Eddie Van Halen and Sammy Hagar playing together for the first time. The rest of the story is history.
Jesus Freaks at Concerts- I wrote a post about this. Starting in 1986, whenever people went to a metal concert in America, there were the Jesus freaks all there telling people they were going to hell for seeing that band. It was a great source of entertainment.
Bon Jovi and Europe Being in the top 10 in the UK Charts- In November, 1986, Bon Jovi was at number nine in the UK charts with “Living on a Prayer” and Europe at number two with “The Final Countdown.” For many of us metalheads, it was a slap in the face to the mainstream music industry.
Prosecution of Jello Biafra- This made the news in England. Former Dead Kennedys singer, Jello Biafra, was prosecuted and fortunately acquitted on the charge of distributing pornographic material to minors on the DK album, “Frankenchrist.” While Jeff was reading about it on the train to the airport to return home, it gave him a wake up call about the society he was heading back to.
See, you do learn about history if you read “Rock and Roll Children.” One thing I was criticized for but make no apologies was how metalheads were discriminated against in the 1980s. Not that we let that stop us. Maybe I did over-pound the point but it was real. There were a lot of great and tragic events both musically and not throughout the 80s. I tried to bring history to life and maybe that was the problem, I wrote it too much like a history book.
To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
Critics and fans have called “Dr. Feelgood” Motley Crue’s best studio album. It was their most commercially successful album going six times platinum in the US and gold in many other countries. Furthermore, it produced five singles, two of which made it into the top 40. However, while impressive, this doesn’t make it their best album in my view. That honour belongs to “Shout at the Devil.”
In comparison to my favourite MC album, what they did similar is play to their strengths. It also helped that the band were addressing their demons in regards to substance abuse and were sober when they recorded. They also recorded each of their parts separately as they were all at each other’s throats but fair dues to producer Bob Rock, he combined all their efforts to make a really good album, the best since my favourite one.
Before, I launch into the album proper, I must say that I’ve apologized enough to Mick Mars for calling him the worst guitarist in metal for many years in previous posts. He never accepted my invitation to come to England and give me a slap and now he’s probably physically unable to do so. With that said, his guitar playing is top notch on “Dr. Feelgood.” Arguably, his best effort is on “Sticky Sweet.”
After a brief opener which they unashamedly borrowed from Queensryche’s “Operation Mincdrime” album, the title cut has lots of swagger to it and shows that Motley Crue were going in the right direction. It’s also good to see that they hadn’t lost their sense of humour. While never lyrical geniuses, “Slice of Your Pie” has some amusing innuendos backed up by some more rock swagger. The same can be said for “She Goes Down.”
The problem with an album which produces so many singles, it’s sometimes hard to find a hidden gem but no worries, I find it with “Rattlesnake Shake.” If there is any song which can take me back to “Shout at the Devil,” it’s this one. They put it all together here with some good drum rolls from Tommy and guitar hooks from Mick and even though some might say that Vince sings the title too much, he does make it sound good.
At the middle of the album, you get three of the five singles in succession. “Kickstart My Heart” begins this and even though it was released as a single, it doesn’t sound overly commercial and that’s always a good thing. I think Crue had a good time making this one, at least the video. That is followed by the first of two power ballads on the album, “Without You.” While not bad, I prefer the other one, the penultimate track, “Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away.)” It was the highest charting of the singles but for me it brings the power to the ballad and while Vince puts his soul into both of them, he does it more convincingly on the second one.
That brings me back to the third of the singles string and my favourite of all the singles, “Same Ol’ Situation.” They rock this one out more. It’s one of those enjoyable anthem sounding songs you just want to bang your head along to. There’s much for me to like about it whether it’s Tommy’s drumstick twirling or Mick’s guitar solo. “Dr. Feelgood” ends with a good closer. Were they singing about their change in lifestyle? I don’t know but all the band comes together to end the album right.
Tom Keenlyside, Ian Putz, Ross Gregory, Henry Christian- horns
The following provided backing vocals:
Bob Rock, Brian Adams, Steve Tyler, Donna McDaniel, Emi Canyn, Marc La France, David Steele, Jack Blades, Robin Zander, Rick Nielsen, Skid Row, Bob Dowd, Mike Amato, Toby Francis
“Dr. Feelgood” gained Motley Crue complete success, although some metalheads complained that it was a step further to them simply becoming glam rock posers. However, the success tells the story but personally speaking, while I like this album, especially more than their previous two, I’ll stick with “Shout at the Devil.”
Next post: Due to having to cover a lot of sickness at work, I won’t post an album next. Instead, I will use one of my supplemental post which will be “Historical Events Mentioned in Rock and Roll Children, Music and non-Music Related.”
On another note, I would like everyone to congratulate Mrs. 80smetalman because today officially marks 19 years of her being married to me.
To buy Rock And Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
After their less than successful attempt at gaining more commercial notice on the album, “Betsy,” Bitch not only went back to their more traditional sound with “A Rose By Any Other Name,” they went even harder. This six song EP comes blasting out of the gate with a more thrash metal approach on “Walls of Love.” You know right from the get-go that Bitch aren’t fooling around. “Walls of Love” comes out at 600mph and maintains that cruising speed all through the track. However, the band remain as they were on previous albums with Betsy’s voice being as good as very, the rhythm section might speed up but remains solid and you get a great guitar solo from the very underrated David Carruth.
After the blinding start, the next track, “Throw Me In,” slows down a little while still managing to pound your eardrums with power chords. This is one of those metal anthem type songs where you want to throw your fist up in the air and headbang along to it. However, better is to come because right after is my choice for best song on the album, “Sunset Strut.” The power metal approach is still present and Betsy’s vocals are just superb with the guitar, bass and drums keeping up support behind her. There are some cool drum fills from Robby Settles (R.I.P.) and David hammers an intriguing guitar solo followed by some nice hooks on the second half of the song.
With the track, “Skullcrusher,” the name says it all. Bitch are out to crush your skull, period. After an cool intro from Dave, the song goes full on thrash here and Betsy proves she can adapt her voice to keep up, I love her screams on this, and need I mention Dave again? Betsy takes a break on the instrumental, “”Crashthepartysmashthecake,” but the rest of the band certainly do not. The speed is kept up and Ron Cordy’s bassline anchors the song firmly, especially when Dave is called upon to work his six string magic. Closer, “Make It Real,” slows down slightly but only enough to deliver one last blow to the jaw before ending the album nicely.
Track Listing:
Walls of Love
Throw Me In
Sunset Strut
Skullcrusher
Crashthepartysmashthecake
Make It Real
Bitch
Betsy ‘Bitch’ Weiss- vocals
David Carruth- guitar, backing vocals
Ron Cordy- bass, backing vocals
Robby Settles- drums, backing vocals
Once again, I’m venturing out onto the thin branch and say that possibly, Bitch was one of the best bands not to get the attention they richly deserved. On “A Rose By Any Other Name,” you might only get six songs but they are six songs you definitely remember.
Next post: Motley Crue- Dr. Feelgood
To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
It’s a good thing I now go back and read posts from bands’ albums which came out previous to the band I’m writing about. In the case of Lizzy Borden’s “Master of Disguise,” if I hadn’t done so, then this post might have gone a different direction. When I first listened to the album, I thought that Lizzy was heading in a more progressive metal direction, which the album is. However, after re-reading my post on their previous album, “Visual Lies,” they were heading in that way on the last few tracks of that one.
The only remaining members of the band on the album were Lizzy himself and drummer Joey Scott Harges as long term guitarist and songwriter, Gene Allen, departed the band. Therefore, other musicians were brought in for the guitar, bass and keyboard parts, although Steve Lukather wasn’t one of them. Now and it’s probably me thinking too much, I wonder if there is any relation to Gene’s departure and the new progressive metal direction.
“Master of Disguise’s” progressive sound comes through on the opening title track. A theatrical keyboard introduction welcomes the album in but it’s not long before Lizzy Borden remind you they’re a metal band. The track gets and holds your attention. More evidence of the progressive comes in the form of the ballad like “One False Move.” It’s an acoustic number, less that three minutes but it would fit in nicely on a concept album. After that, we get the intended single, at least there’s a video to it, “Love is a Crime.” Once again, Lizzy Borden have a song which is totally suited for commercial radio play but never got picked up. Further proof that commercial radio has sucked since 1985.
For me personally, the middle part is my favourite part of the album. Tracks four through nine really make this album what it is and could be why it is Lizzy Borden’s highest charting album. Starting the party is the charging straight forward melodic metal tune, “Sins of the Flesh.” This one has me head banging away even through the more prog rock sounding guitar solo. It would have been my choice for hidden gem had it not been for the next track, “Phantoms.”
“Phantoms,” is the song which completely defines the album. Like the opener, it starts off with a scene setting keyboard influenced intro and then going into an acoustic instrumental after which transforms into a cool metal tune. I really love the guitar solo on this and I would love to know which of the contributing guitarists on the album plays it. Furthermore, Lizzy is at his vocal best with both the lead and backing vocals.
The next four tracks don’t disappoint either, “Never Too Young” has a piano intro before going metal, which would have gotten a thumbs up from Jon Oliva or so I’d like to think. The guitar solo and vocals are really good on it. The coolest intro comes on “Be One of Us.” It is none other than Bach’s “Toccata in D Minor,” which for movie buffs is also the theme song for the 1975 film, “Rollerball.” Again, the rest of the song is pure metal. I would be repeating myself in regards to “Psychodrama” and “Waiting in the Wings,” but who cares? They are both cool tunes.
Penultimate track, “Under the Rose,” is similar to the second track, an acoustic, ballad like number. Closer, “We Got the Power,” sounds like it’s recorded live and the way it’s done, it’s the best way to close the album.
Track Listing:
Master of Disugise
One False Move
Love is a Crime
Sins of the Flesh
Phantoms
Never Too Young
Be One of Us
Psychodrama
Waiting in the Wings
Roll Over and Play Dead
Under the Rose
We Got Power
Lizzy Borden
Joey Scott Harges
Lizzy Borden- lead and backing vocals
Joey Scott Harges- drums
Additional Musicians:
Ronnie Jude, David Michael Phillips, Mike Razzatti- guitar
Mike Davis, Joey Vera, Brian Perry- bass
Elliot Solomon, William Kidd- keyboards
Tim Stithem- additional percussion
Brian Coyle, Jacques Voymont, Jerry Moore, John Chuboda, TJ Santos, Tim Taylor- horns
Black, White and Brown Orchestra- backing vocals on track 12
As stated previously, “Master of Disguise” is Lizzy Borden’s most commercially successful album. Could it be the more progressive metal direction? Possibly or maybe it’s because it’s just a good album. This album puts Lizzy Borden firmly on my list of American artists not to have cracked the UK.
It is now my sad duty to announce the passing of former Cockney Rebel frontman, Steve Harley, who quietly passed away at his home age 73. Rest in Peace Steve.
Next post: Bitch- A Rose By Any Other Name
To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
I think this is great news, especially as heavy metal music and its followers are often snubbed by the so-called mainstream of society. So, I take my hat off to Birmingham City Council for this wise decision.
My sister, Dawn, sent me Danger Danger’s debut album along with two other albums from Dream Death and Wrath as a Christmas present in 1989. I can’t help thinking she was just unloading them. The other two albums were too thrash for her and if I’m right, she probably thought Danger Danger were trying to be the next Bon Jovi. When I listened to the album back then and listening to it now, I remain convinced that they were.
Now, I am not saying that Danger Danger wanting to be Bon Jovi is a bad thing. Bon Jovi have always been a great band to look up to and their success can’t be denied. So, one can’t really blame this band for trying as the result was a pretty decent debut album.
For me, the album doesn’t really kick into gear until the fifth track, “Bang Bang.” There’s nothing wrong with the first four tracks, they’re all good but rather forgettable. Although “Under the Gun” is starting to grow on me. Furthermore, “Saturday Nite” does have a really cool rocking intro and rocks quite a bit but does lose its way around the middle of the song. The ballad “Don’t Walk Away” is okay but there is a far better ballad further along on the album.
Like I said, “Bang Bang” gets the album cooking in full earnest. There is much more pizzaz behind this song and this is the first one to make me bang my head in earnest. That rocking accelerates a little more with “Rock America.” True, they were trying to be Night Ranger here and maybe there could be less keyboards here but the guitar solo nails it. That leads perfectly to my two favourite songs on the album. “Boys Will Be Boys” is a great rocker and it shows that this band had pure potential to be a great metal band. Next is the other ballad, “One Step From Paradise.” Way back in 80smetalman antiquity, actually it was 2018, this track was number 18 in my list of Top 30 Power Ballads according to me. I stand by that.
A tip for listening to the album: Don’t judge the lyrics for many of the songs by today’s standards. Remember and this is not a justification, the album came out in 1989 and back then, it was cooler to sing about subjects like seeing girls in their birthday suits and justifying one night stands, which is done on my favourite track but that’s not why I like it.
Track Listing:
Naughty Naughty
Under the Gun
Saturday Night
Don’t Walk Away
Bang Bang
Rock America
Boys Will Be Boys
One Step From Paradise
Feels Like Love
Turn It On
Live It Up
Danger Danger
Ted Poley- vocals
Kasey Smith- keyboards
Bruno Ravel- bass, backing vocals, cello, rap on track 11
Steve West- drums, rap on track 1
Andy Timmons- guitar, tracks 3 and 7
Tony ‘Bruno’ Rey- guitar on all other tracks
Note; Tony Rey played on the album but left to rejoin Saraya and was replaced by Andy Timmons. If you ask me, both of them wail on this album.
Whether Danger Danger were trying to be the next Bon Jovi or even the next Night Ranger, is irrelevant in regards to their debut album. It is good enough to stand on its own.
Next post: Lizzy Borden- Masters of Disguise
To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
A little over a year ago, man how time flies, Mike Ladano and I wrote a joint post ranking Savatage albums from worst to first. In regards to this 1989 album, “Gutter Ballet,” both Mike and I put it near the bottom of our rankings, although my sister Dawn ranked it a number four and my son Jake at five. There are valid arguments for both. What both Mike and I agreed about the album is that the second side does not measure up to the first and is predominantly filler. With that, since I like starting with the ‘not so positive,’ I will begin with the second half of the album.
On another point, do you have an idea stuck in your head that no matter how much you hear to the contrary, there’s no shifting it? Well for me, for over 30 years, I thought the title of the album was “Guitar Ballet” and not “Gutter Ballet.” Silly me. Then again, listening to the album and how it marks Savatage’s shift from mainstream metal to more progressive metal, they carried on what Dio had started, you could say the album actually was a guitar ballet.
“Gutter Ballet’s” descent into mediocrity starts with the track, “She’s in Love.” It’s not a bad track to say the least as another point I will make about the entire album right now is that Criss Oliva’s guitar work is top notch and actually saves songs like this one. It’s a hard and fast song and if it was on the “Fight For the Rock” album, would be one of the best songs on it but unfortunately, it’s not the case here and wouldn’t stand up to songs on albums I view in higher regards.
“Hounds” comes out as if the album is going to get back on track and it does for the beginning and then again at the end. I love the impending doom on the intro combining acoustic guitar notes from Criss and Jon’s vocals before the song explodes in the fashion which typifies Savatage. However, somewhere in the middle of the song, it loses focus, going off into some weird form of tangent which if cut out, would make the track better, especially the way Criss hammers out the guitar solos. He almost singlehandedly saves the second half of the album.
“The Unholy” is a track that sort of comes and goes with little notice. It’s okay to listen to at the time but right after, it fades from memory. It could be the fact that it is followed by the best track on this part of the album, “Mentally Yours.” This is Savatage doing what Savatage do best. A good slow intro before exploding but unlike “Hounds,” it stays on a steady course. On a personal note, reflecting back to my childhood, I can identify with, Jimmy, the protagonist in the song.
Jimmy went out to play with the friends he made
Why did they send him away?
It made his mommy mad, drove his daddy bad
They didn’t understand.
At the end, I find another minor criticism about the album and that’s because I originally got it on cassette. On vinyl, the closer is “Summer’s Rain” and as a closer it is very good. It’s melody guides the album out in the right way. However, on cassette and CD, the track, “Thorazine Shuffle” is added but a good closer it does not make. Now, I know that these two tracks along with “Mentally Yours,” were part of a three song conceptual suite but I still think “Summer’s Rain” should have closed out the album on vinyl, cassette and CD.
Now onto the very positive! The album opens with “Of Rage and War” and it great opener it DOES make! I love how Jon’s shrieks of terror bring in the song with some great riffs from Criss and credit more credit should be given to the rhythm section of Johnny Lee Middleton and Steve Wacholz. Like a good opener, it gets the blood pumping and the listener ready for the rest of the album. Criss’s solos shape what is to come in regards to his guitar playing for the entire album.
“Of Rage and War” is immediately followed by the title track and that is such an awesome song, period. It came in at number five in my rankings of top ten favourite Savatage songs and it came in at number two on Mike’s list. There is so much to like about this song that I would only be repeating myself if I were to put it down here. Just such a fantastic song.
Another thing Savatage do very well is instrumentals and you get two on the album. The first one, “Temptation Revelation,” really showcases what Criss Oliva can do on the guitar aided some good progressive bits thrown in and how they join together at the end. The other instrumental, “Silk and Steel,” is just as good. You get a little acoustic guitar tinkling from Criss but he does such a great job on it. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again, if Criss’s life hadn’t been so tragically cut short, he would have been counted along with the many guitar gods. That’s why he joined Ronnie James Dio up in Rock Heaven. In any case, both instrumentals are less than three minutes a piece but you definitely remember them.
Saving the best for last, “When the Crowds Are Gone” is not only the best song on the album, it’s my favourite Savatage song of all time! In fact, when I do depart the mortal realm, it is in my will to be played at my funeral. Hopefully that won’t be for quite a few more years. This song is simply magnificent. Starting with Jon on the piano with his vocals bringing the song in perfectly before Criss comes in with that guitar and we get a total party. It just gets the adrenaline rushing through my body.
Track Listing:
Of Rage and War
Gutter Ballet
Temptation Revelation
When the Crowds Are Gone
Silk and Steel
She’s in Love
Hounds
The Unholy
Mentally Yours
Summer’s Rain
Thorazine Shuffle
Jon Oliva- vocals, piano, keyboards, bass and drums on “Gutter Ballet”
Criss Oliva- guitars
Johnny Lee Middleton- bass
Steve Wacholz- drums
Chris Caffery does not appear on the album but is credited in the liner notes for guitar and keyboards
“Gutter Ballet” may not be Savatage’s best album but it does help them make the transition to more progressive metal and does so very well. There are some amazing tracks on the album and with Criss, you can call it a guitar ballet.
Next post: Danger Danger
To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
When researching the history behind Great White’s fourth album, “Twice Shy,” I discovered something rather shocking, at least to me. Bassist, Lorne Black, who I gushed over when I wrote about Great White’s two previous albums, “Once Bitten” and “Shot in the Dark” didn’t play on the album. Even more surprising to me was when I attempted to look up any reason for Lorne’s departure from the band was to learn that he had died in 2013. While I’m in no way knocking Lorne’s replacement, Tony Montana, on the album, I can’t help but noticing that the basslines aren’t so prominent.
They say that ‘if in ain’t broke, then don’t fix it.’ I think that Great White listened to that advice as they pretty much took what they did on their iconic “Once Bitten” album and recreated it on “Twice Shy.” The first two tracks come out in perfect Great White fashion. Opening track, “Move It.” starts with a “where is this going?” intro before going into an attention grabbing metal song. That metal formula continues with the next track, “Heart the Hunter,” where the metal continues and Mark Kendall lays down a cool guitar solo.
One track I’m not sure of is “Hiway Nights.” On those previous two albums, they did a great job fusing metal with a more blues based sound but I’m not sure what is the intention here. It does depart a little from traditional territory for them and I love Audie Desbrow’s drums fills on the track but it’s not the strongest of songs but not bad either.
Another of Great White’s strengths is the power ballad and they clearly demonstrate that on “The Angel Song.” Jack Russell nearly lulls you to sleep with his vocals backed up by the piano of rhythm guitarist Michael Lardie. Even the guitar solo from Mark has a lulling effect and though I would call it more ballad than power, I can see why it was their highest charting single. That is followed by the hidden gem, “Mista Bone.” It’s here where you finally get to hear that Tony is a good bass player and where the band puts the blues to the metal to great effect, especially on the guitar solo.
“Baby’s on Fire” is a catchy straight forward metal tune. It is cool how it sounds like it ends then explodes with a final minute instrumental, Mark leading the charge. While it wasn’t a commercially successful as “The Angel Song,” “House of Broken Love” was also released as a single and speaking personally, I prefer it. Jack wrote the song as a result of a relationship break up and it pours his heart and soul out into his vocals. The rest of the band appears to be motivated by this and pour their hearts out in their playing. Yes, we get another great solo from Mark.
If you know Great White, you know that they can’t have just one ballad on an album. The second one comes in the form of “She Only.” While it’s not as lulling as the first ballad, it is a soft acoustic track and Jack pours his soul out on it as does Mark when it comes to the guitar solo. That is followed by the cover of Ian Hunter’s “Once Bitten, Twice Shy” and yes, they do it well. I can see why it was released as a single. The album closes with the rather amusing countrified “Wasted Rock Ranger” and it is an amusing way to close the album.
Track Listing:
Move It
Heart the Hunter
Hiway Nights
The Angel Song
Mista Bone
Baby’s On Fire
House of Broken Love
She Only
Once Bitten, Twice Shy
Wasted Rock Ranger
Great White
Jack Russell- vocals
Mark Kendall- lead guitar, backing vocals
Michael Lardie- rhythm guitar, keyboards, backing vocals
Tony Montana- bass
Audie Desbrow- drums
For those who simply want to remember Great White for the club fire in 2003, I say listen to this album and their three previous ones. You will see that they made some great metal back then and maybe it’s time to forgive them.
Rest in peace Lorne Black
Next post: Savatage- Guitar Ballet
To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
It has been often suggested that the best way to introduce yourself to a band whose discography you want to check out but not sure where to start is that you go to one of their compilation albums first, whether that be a greatest hits or live album. This way, you get an idea of some of their best recordings and that will help you decide if you want to explore the band more. Sound advice I’d say except that in regards to Helix, I didn’t do it that way.
I’ve been exploring Helix more throughout the tour of the 1980s, one album at a time. Therefore, most of the songs on here, I had already listened to on the albums they originated from. So for me, it’s a bonus seeing all the songs I’ve liked from the albums on this compilation album, “Over 60 Minutes With.” Great songs like “Deep Cuts the Knife” off “Long Way to Heaven” and “Animal House” from “Walkin’ the Razor’s Edge” are great to hear on the same album as are all of the other cuts that appear here. Of course, the album closes with their best known song, “Rock You.” So all in all, if I had been completely ignorant of Helix and wanted to check them out and went to this compilation album, I would be completely satisfied with what I had just heard and would want to explore their albums more.
With all of that said, there is one point I find rather perplexing. There are no tracks from the 1987 album, “Wild in the Streets” on this compilation. Now, I know it was a bit of a commercial flop for Helix because like I said when I wrote about the album, they were thinking commercially and tried to be all things to all people and failed as a result. Still, to not include a single track from the album is a bit much. Especially as I really love the song, “High Voltage Kicks,” from that album. “Give’em Hell” could have also been included here. In any case, twenty-one songs in just over 72 minutes is enough great Helix metal to keep you going.
Track Listing:
No Rest for the Wicked
Check Out the Love
Dirty Dog
Give it To You
Young and Restless
Deep Cuts the Knife
Animal House
You Keep Me Rockin’
Never Want to Lose You
Does a Fool Ever Learn
Jaws of the Tiger
White Lace, Black Leather
Long Way to Heaven
Without You (Jasmine’s Song)
Everybody Pays the Price
Heavy Metal Love
Gimme Gimme Some Good Lovin’
When the Hammer Falls
The Kids Are All Shakin’
(Make Me Do) Anything You Want
Rock You
Helix and their friends
Brian Vollmer- lead vocals
Brent ‘The Doctor’ Doerner- guitars
Paul Hackman- guitars
George ‘Fritz’ Hinz- drums
Daryl Gray- bass
Mike Uzelac- bass
And because “High Voltage Kicks” isn’t on the album and I like the song so much, I thought I’d share it here.
No argument here, “Over 60 Minutes With” is a great way to introduce oneself to Helix if one is completely or even slightly unfamiliar with them. This has all their great songs and shows why Helix are another underappreciated Canadian band.
Next post: Great White- Twice Shy
To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
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