After all of the great feedback and all the fun I had writing a joint post with 2loud2old, I would be happy to write joint posts with many of you in the future. It doesn’t even have to be two person post adventure and I’m sure many of us here could put our heads together and write a joint post. Posts could be ranking a band’s albums, ranking musicians or anything really, the sky’s the limit!
The only issue is that I would like to keep these type of posts spaced out as I am totally committed to the tour of heavy metal’s golden decade. Actually, I’m closer to the end as I am now well into 1988 and there’s only 89 left. However, it was never my intention that when I posted the final album of 1989, to end 80smetalman. You don’t get rid of me that easy! While I might cut down the frequency of the posts after that, I would still be open to ideas and joint posts would be one of them. Although, we could still write some along the way.
One point which I must absolutely insist on is that any joint post involving Savatage, Mike has to be included. He’s a big Tage fan as much as I am. Other than that, the sky is the limit.
The idea for writing a post ranking albums from Survivor came as a result of comments on my post about their 1988 album, “Too Hot to Sleep.” Reading comments from 2loud2oldmusic, I suggested we write a joint post ranking Survivor albums, to which he thought it was a good idea. What this has done is to get both of us going back and listening to all eight of Survivor’s studio albums and putting them in our order of preference. Here’s mine:
8. Premonition
“Premonition” was Survivor’s second album released in 1981. Many bands seemed to have the Sophmore jinx and the same applies here. The album has its good moments but overall lacks the hunger of the debut and it’s not quite as finely tuned as future Survivor albums.
7. Survivor
Like with so many debut albums, the band’s hunger is there to see. The 1970s progressive hard rock is clearly there to hear and it has some great hard rocking moments as well as guitar solos.
6. Eye of the Tiger
Ah, the album made famous by the “Rocky” films. Even if the title cut hadn’t appeared in “Rocky III,” it was still a good enough album to stand on its on. They tended to go more hard rock on this one.
5. When Seconds Count
A good album which continues down the melodic rock path began by its predecessor, “Vital Signs.” If I had been writing this post in 1986, it would have probably be one place lower but as I am mellowing with age, I can appreciate the musicianship quality of it. However, I haven’t mellowed that much and still prefer a good rock out.
4. Vital Signs
With “Vital Signs,” Survivor veer away from hard rock and head in a more progressive, melodic rock direction. The album proves that they did so with considerable ease. There are still a couple of great guitar solos on it.
3. Caught in the Game
This album passed me by in 1983, I blame it on being in the service. But when I listened to it, I had a very pleasant surprise. This is a really good hard rocking album with some of the best guitar solos.
2. Reach
After being away for nearly 20 years, Survivor’s comeback album in 2006 is fantastic. Cliche warning: it’s almost as if they had never been away. Having different vocalists on the songs gives the album a different perspective which works well. Plus it ends with a phenomenal power ballad.
1. Too Hot to Sleep
The members of Survivor do everything to their full potential here. Great vocals, guitar solos, keyboards and a great rhythm section. Even if studio musicians were brought in for the latter. There is some great rock to be had by all. Sometimes, I can’t understand why they waited 18 years after this one to record their next album.
So there you have it, my ranking of Survivor albums. As you can see, 2loud and I have differing opinions on this but that’s something a good band with so many good albums will produce. Everyone will have their favourites.
Today’s post comes compliments of 2Loud. The reason for this is because by 1988, I thought Cheap Trick had disappeared into obscurity and I was left to simply enjoy memories of classic albums such as “Dream Police” and “Cheap Trick At Budokan,” Fortunately, 2Loud’s recent series on Cheap Trick alerted me to the many albums I had missed after the 1982 “One on One” album. After reading, 2Loud’s post on the 1988 “Lap of Luxury” album and how successful it was in the US, I had to put it on my list.
Memories of Cheap Trick came flooding back with opening riffs of “Let Go.” Hearing that gave me reassurance that they hadn’t gone anywhere and had not lost their touch. While I try not to let other reviews on albums effect my own, I can’t help agreeing with 2Loud’s point that they were (probably under the record label’s direction) trying to adapt to the pop of the 1980s. That comes through on the second track, “No Mercy.” It’s obvious to me that it’s still Cheap Trick playing the song, Robin’s vocals are too unique, the drums seem to be turned up to synth pop level and while this is no intent against what a great drummer Bun E. Carlos is, it does detract from the song a bit.
Another reason why the album passed me by is that I was already established in England by this time and the album made no headway there. Case in point, the band’s only number one single, “The Flame.” It only reached number 77 in the UK charts and therefore went pretty much unnoticed. That was a damn shame because even though it’s a ballad, Rick Neilsen shows he still can bend the six string to his will with a cool acoustic guitar intro followed by a his best guitar solo on the album. For me, this is the best song on the album.
“Space” sounds very 80s to me with the keyboards but there is the drone of the guitar in the back to make it hard rocking enough. There is another good guitar solo from Rick and I like the backing vocals on it. However, the singles seem to be the best songs on the album because “Never Had a Lot to Lose” is a traditional Cheap Trick rocker. It has the harder guitar with the new wave melody. Robin’s diverse vocal style definitely makes the song but it might have been better if Rick had more of a guitar solo on it but that’s up to debate.
On the other hand, while I can understand why they might have wanted to release the cover of the Elvis classic, “Don’t Be Cruel.” as a single, I wonder if it should be on the album, let alone released as a single. Don’t get me wrong, I like Cheap Trick’s spin on it but in comparison to the rest of the album, it feels a little out of place. Saying that, it’s growing on me a little. Things do go back to normal with “Wrong Side of Love” where I love Tom Petersson’s bass work on it and I’m glad that he rejoined the band when I hear him. Rick’s guitar work is great as well and together, they make “Wrong Side of Love” the hidden gem.
Here’s my one thought of a flaw on the album. It’s simply a case of song order. I think that tracks eight and ten should have been swapped around. To my ears, “All We Need is a Dream,” would have been a better closer. It’s a ballad but the intro stomps it’s authority in a way that tells me that this is the end of the album. Robin’s vocals assist on this point and the way the band all seems to come together on the song just screams “Closer!” All Wound Up” is a good song too but it would have been better placed anywhere from tracks 2-8. Penultimate track “Ghost Town” is best left where it is as it does serve as a great set up to whichever song is going to be the closer. It’s a ballad and Robin nails it with vocals and there’s nothing wrong with an album finishing with two ballads had they swapped those tracks around.
Track Listing:
Let Go
No Mercy
The Flame
Space
Never Had a Lot to Lose
Don’t Be Cruel
Wrong Side of Love
All We Need is a Dream
Ghost Town
All Wound Up
Cheap Trick
Robin Zander- lead vocals, rhythm guitar, synthesizer
Rick Neilsen- lead guitar, backing vocals
Tom Petersson- bass, backing vocals
Bun E. Carlos- drums, percussion
“Lap of Luxury” was the first album where outside songwriters were used. In the case of this album, it worked, at least in the US. I can say that while “Lap of Luxury” will not make me put away all those classic albums from the late 1970s, it’s still a good album and it was great to see that the band was still chugging away.
Next post: Tracy Chapman
To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
Note: I have been told that “Rock and Roll Children” is available as an e-book but this hasn’t been made known to me.
My stepson, Teal, recommended the film, “Metal Lords,” to me and in the past few weeks, I’ve seen it twice and now I’m going to plug how good the film is here. Without spoiling the entire plot, “Metal Lords” is about two socially displaced high school kids, Hunter and Kevin. Hunter is a total metalhead who dreams of hitting the big time as a great metal guitarist. Kevin, the drummer, although not a metalhead in the traditional sense, follows Hunter’s lead because Hunter saved him from a bully in third grade. Together, they form the band, Skullfucker.
All the heavy metal cliches are in the film but the thing was, I don’t care because they are all the truth. There’s the being picked on by the jocks, singled out by teachers and late in the film, Hunter’s father has him committed to a clinic because as we all know, only insane people listen to heavy metal. In addition, Kevin gets a girlfriend, Emily, who plays the cello. With the band still not able to find a bass player, Kevin tries to pitch Emily but Hunter rejects it saying that the cello is not a metal instrument. This eventually leads to a falling out between the two friends and Kevin joining the bubble gum pop band, Mollycoddle. It all leads to what some will call a predictable ending but it’s all done a great metal form.
My strange ability to pick out the small details in films, I found it amusing that when Kevin is in Mollycoddle, he finds playing the drums to their songs a lot easier than being a metal drummer. Even if he does nail, “War Pigs.” Then there’s my favourite scene when Kevin is in the pool and about to cheat on Emily, he is visited by Scott Ian, Tom Morello, Kirk Hammett and Rob Halford who all (Rob even more so) remind Kevin what a great girl Emily is and he shouldn’t cheat on her. Then again, if those four Gods visited me, I would do anything they said. One last point, “War Pigs” sounds excellent played on the cello.
Kevin being visited by Scott, Tom, Kirk and Rob
Of course no metal film would be worth its weight if it didn’t have a killer soundtrack.
Skullflower- Machinery of Torment
Judas Priest- Metal Gods
Iron Maiden- The Trooper
Avenged Sevenfold- Hail to the King
Judas Priest- Painkiller
Metallica- For Whom the Bell Tolls
Black Sabbath- War Pigs
Mastodon- Blood and Thunder
Judas Priest- Grinder
Ozzy Osbourne- Dee
Motorhead- Ace of Spades
Metallica- One
Pantera- Cowboys From Hell
Metallica- Master of Puppets
Zeal & Ardor- Trust No One
Guns ‘N’ Roses- Since I Don’t Have You
Metallica- Whiplash
Pantera- I’m Broken
Performance of the song in the film
I urge everyone to watch “Metal Lords.” It may be a little predictable but with all of that metal, who the hell cares?
Next post: Original vs. Cover
To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
Reading many of your blogs out there, Mike Ledano and 2Loud’s especially, I have learned a lot about one Desmond Child. I never knew that he wrote songs, many of them hits, or produced albums for the likes of KISS, Aerosmith, Cher, Bon Jovi, Bonnie Tyler and many many more. My association with Desmond came about through a totally different manner. Not through his producing, my introduction to him came via the soundtrack of my all time favourite film, “The Warriors.” FFI- I’ve included my post on said soundtrack should you wish to read it.
Desmond not only writes my favourite track on the soundtrack, the closer, “Last of an Ancient Breed,” he sings it as well and I must say that Desmond is a decent singer and could have made it as one if he had gotten the breaks. Note: There were a couple of other talented singers on the soundtrack who vanished after. So, enough of me prattling on, here’s the song.
Yes, they do use excerpts from the 1983 film, “The Outsiders” in this video as well.
Hope you enjoyed!
Next post: Malice- License to Kill
To buy Rock and Roll Children, email me at: tobychainsaw@hotmail.com
Not only was I a big music fan back in 1984, as I am today, I was also a great cinema buff, unlike today. Posting about those two soundtracks from said year threw my mind back to some of the other great and not so great films I got to see in 1984. They may not have had soundtracks I wanted to listen to but most of them were good films or at least a good source of amusement. Therefore, in regards to the golden year of heavy metal, I thought I’d list the films I saw that year.
Ghost Busters
This was probably the most popular film in 1984. It’s theme song, sung by Ray Parker Jr, got a lot of play on MTV. Never cared much for the song but I did like this film as I was a fairly big Bill Murray fan at the time.
Karate Kid was probably the second most popular film in 1984
In spite of the above, I never accepted the proposition that all the blonde haired, blue eyed teenage boys in Southern California were all karate experts.
Ghost Busters might have been the most popular film, but The Terminator was my favourite.
“I’ll be back” has been a very popular catchphrase from the film. However, my favourite part was when the hotel landlord asks, “Do you got dead cats in there?” Robot Arnie’s brain flashes possible responses and he chooses, “Fuck you asshole.”
Hyped up to be the final chapter of the Friday the 13th series. No surprise it wasn’t.
These were considered the big films of the year but there were many more out there.
The Keep: Nazi soldiers are killed in a haunted castle
This was the first film I went to in 1984.
DC Cab: Mr T stars in a film about an on the rocks cab firm.
This was the second
Angel: High school honour student by day, Hollywood hooker by night.
There were some really funny quips in this film. Example: When Angel’s transvestite friend opens the door to the killer, he asks, “Who does your hair, dickface?”
Tank: A soldier uses a tank to rescue his wrongly convicted son from a redneck prison.
I had been out of the marines only nine months when I saw this film so I was able to identify all the military inaccuracies.
Patrick Swayze leads a bunch of high schoolers against the invading Communist armies.
This film was definitely made to encourage America to accept Reagan’s Contra war in Nicaragua.
Thief of Hearts: A burglar breaks into a home and discovers the wife’s diaries. He uses them to seduce her.
Starman: An alien world accepts Voyager 2’s invitation to visit Earth.
This was the last film I went to see in 1984.
Naturally, there were many more movies in 1984 but these were the ones I went to the cinema to see. That seems to be what I was doing when I wasn’t headbanging away. What films did you all see and like?
Next post: Bon Jovi
To buy Rock and Roll Children, go to: https://www.amazon.com/Rock-Roll-Children-Michael-Lefevre/dp/1609763556/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1508426476&sr=8-3&keywords=michael+d+lefevre
Unlike “Footloose” the soundtrack to the film “Streets of Fire” went with virtually unknown or less known artists, at least for the time. It would be six months to a year before I would hear about The Fixx. The only others I had heard of were Ry Cooder and The Blasters and I’ll get to them in a minute. Stevie Nicks does write and sing backing vocals on the Marilyn Martin track, “Sorcerer” but for the most part, the artists were virtually unknown to me at the time. However, I would take this soundtrack over that of “Footloose.” Quiet Riot, Foreigner and Sammy Hagar weren’t quite enough to tip it past “Streets of Fire” in my eyes.
Before I get onto the soundtrack, let me provide a little background about the film, which was slammed mercilessly by most critics. The 23 year old me in 1984 thought this film was okay. I mean it was the 1980s where one shot from a gun could set off multiple massive explosions and men settled their differences with sledgehammers. What wasn’t there to like? However, as I grew older, I realized how surreal the movie was almost bordering on the ridiculous.
“Streets of Fire” is about a famous rock singer named Ellen Aim who gets kidnapped by a motorcycle gang, led by a guy named Raven played Willem Dafoe, while performing a gig in her home town. Without going into great detail, Ellen is rescued by former boyfriend Tom with the help of an ex-army girl named McCoy played by Amy Madigan. After many explosions and action sequences where they receive aid from an all black doo-wop band called the Sorrells, Tom and Raven have their predictable show down at the end. First with the fore-mentioned sledgehammers and then with fists. Therefore, Dafoe gets his ass kicked twice. Other little details include Rick Moranis, playing the usual nerd but this time it’s in a serious role as Ellen Aim’s manager and current boyfriend. His best line in the film is, “It’s the shits.” He says it several times and his performance, while good, never made me think that doing “Honey I Shrunk the Kids” was a bad career move. The best performance was by Amy Madigan who did receive a nomination for best supporting actress, so I’m not just saying it because Mrs 80smetalman is a huge Amy Madigan fan.
Amy Madigan as McCoy
Rick Moranis as Ellen Aim’s manager. “It’s the shits.”
Willem Dafoe as Raven. Note the pvc dungarees.
Okay, the film wasn’t Oscar material but that doesn’t stop it from having a rather cool soundtrack. When it first came out, MTV plugged the film by constantly playing the video from the first single, Fire Inc’s “Tonight Is What it Means to Be Young.” I do really like the song which was probably why it didn’t go anywhere in the charts. The most successful song as far as chart success was “I Can Dream About You” by Dan Hartman. It is a good song but the irony here is that in the film, the song is performed by The Sorrells. Back in 1984 many people were amazed that a song performed by a black quartet in the film was actually sung by a white man. I think it’s great we’re more wiser about these things nowadays.
Dan Hartman
The Sorrells in Streets of Fire
While all the songs I’ve mentioned are good ones, for me, it’s the rockabilly songs that make this soundtrack. The two tracks by The Blasters are the best songs here and “Hold That Snake” by Ry Cooder gets the bronze. All three of these tracks are just really damn cool and the soundtrack wouldn’t be nearly as good without them. For the record, the song by The Fixx, while good as well, didn’t have me wanting to check out future material without hearing it first.
So, is “Streets of Fire” a bad film with a really cool soundtrack? Well, it’s not a bad film, but it does have a killer soundtrack.
Next post: Great and Not So Great Movies of 1984
To buy Rock and Roll Children, go to: https://www.amazon.com/Rock-Roll-Children-Michael-Lefevre/dp/1609763556/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1508165794&sr=8-3&keywords=michael+d+lefevre
There was a very strange trend in regards to movie soundtracks in the mid 1980s. It seems that in order to appeal to all forms of music lovers, there would be songs representing nearly every genre. There would be some trendy pop songs, some rock, some soul oriented songs and even a heavy metal jam or two. This is exactly the case with the soundtrack for the film, “Footloose” which came out in the very beginning for this year.
Let’s start with the trendy. Kenny Loggins was already known for hit songs from soundtracks. He achieved it with the 1980 film, “Caddyshack.” So, it was no surprise that he sings the title track to the film. It has always been one of those songs I’ve neither loved or hated. The “Footloose” soundtrack also gave one hit wonder Deneice Williams her one hit with “Let’s Hear it For the Boy.” That song seemed to be on every AM radio station during the summer of 1984. I’ve heard worse but I’ve certainly heard far better. On the other hand, the soundtrack was unable to give 1982 one hit wonder Karla Banoff her second hit. It’s a song that’s just there. Then comes the usual practice of using former hits like Bonnie Tyler’s “Holding Out for a Hero.” Finally, there’s the let’s take two singers from established bands and have them do a duet for the soundtrack. Cue, Mike Reno of Loverboy and Ann Wilson from Heart with “Almost Paradise.” It was supposed to be a power ballad that draws rock lovers and top forty fans together but no, it doesn’t. Both singers do a good job on the song and it’s better than most of the other tracks but not good enough to get into my top power ballad list.
Let’s side track for a moment. I have an experience with “Almost Paradise.” Mrs 80smetalman and I chose it for our wedding at our local registry office. Three weeks before our wedding, we get a letter from the registrar stating that we can’t use the song because it has religious connotations, which is not allowed at a civil wedding in the UK. I wonder if they would have said the same if I asked for a Deicide song.
Back to the point, “Dancing in the Sheets” by Shalamar was a definite attempt by the movie makers to appeal to music lovers of African origin. It’s like, let’s put in a song by a black band and black people will buy the soundtrack. That’s my take on it. Now, for true rock lovers like me and you, there’s the classic John Cougar song, “Hurt So Good” and another attempt to bridge the rock/top 40 gap, let’s bring back the Foreigner classic ballad, “Waiting for a Girl Like You.” Now to the metal, we got the great “Metal Health” by the then up and coming Quiet Riot but for me the best song on this soundtrack has to be Sammy Hagar’s “The Girl Gets Around.” Maybe someone heard the “Heavy Metal” soundtrack and said, “Hey, let’s use a Sammy Hagar song.” At least they chose a good one.
A note about the film: “Footloose” is about a teenage boy, played by Kevin Bacon, who moves into a small town, which is run by people who are anti-music. The local reverend is the spearhead of the anti-rock campaign. Of course, Kevin and the music win the day and music is allowed in the town but maybe Hollywood was onto something here. The religious right’s war on music was just in the early stages in 1984 and maybe this film could be a prophecy of things that could come about. It’s something to think about. Oh yes, the track by unknown band Moving Pictures called “Never” isn’t bad but it never (pun intended) made me want to explore their discography.
Track Listing:
Footloose- Kenny Loggins
Let’s Hear it For the Boy- Deneice Williams
Almost Paradise- Mike Reno and Ann Williams
Holding Out For a Hero- Bonnie Tyler
Dancing in the Sheets- Shalamar
I’m Free (Heaven Helps the Man)- Kenny Loggins
Somebody’s Eyes- Karla Bonoff
The Girl Gets Around- Sammy Hagar
Never- Moving Pictures
Metal Health (Bang Your Head)- Quiet Riot
Hurt So Good- John Cougar
Waiting for a Girl Like You- Foreigner
Dancing in the Sheets (12 inch mix)- Shalamar
Quiet Riot
Bonnie Tyler
John Cougar Mellencamp
Foreigner
Sammy Hagar
“Footloose” wouldn’t be the only film whose soundtrack got the ‘corporate’ treatment. While there’s something for everyone, at least it’s thought so, there’s not enough songs here for me to ever go out and buy the album. Besides, I already have the tracks I do like from here on other albums.
Next post: Streets of Fire
To buy Rock and Roll Children, go to: https://www.amazon.com/Rock-Roll-Children-Michael-Lefevre/dp/1609763556/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1507754027&sr=8-3&keywords=michael+d+lefevre
History has always misrepresented English rocker John Parr. For the masses, he is considered a one hit wonder, that one hit being the title track of the soundtrack for the film “St. Elmo’s Fire.” If you were to judge him on that song alone, you would have thought him to be just another 80s synth pop singer. However, I know that this wasn’t the case and most, possibly all the songs, on his 1984 self titled debut album are better. In fact, the “St Elmo’s Fire” track only appears on the UK release and not the US Atlantic records one, which was what I experienced. My conclusion here is that the album is just fine without it.
Long before there was a “St Elmo’s Fire,” (that film didn’t come out until 1985 and it will take a lot of convincing from you the masses for me to visit the soundtrack), I was already familiar with Mr Parr. The first single from the album, “Naughty Naughty” received a good amount of air play on both radio and MTV. It’s a rocker and for me, that song defines John Parr.
Fortunately, his album follows suit along with the song I just talked about. In fact the only hint of synth pop on the album is the track “Love Grammar” and I stress only a hint. Even that song has its hard rocking moments as well as a cool guitar solo from John himself. That’s another thing about him, he can shred a little too as well as sing. The rest is pretty much straight forward hard rock. (Am I using that phrase too much in my posts?) In this case, it does define the album very well. One great example of this is the track, “Treat Me Like and Animal.” Now that song is hard rock, no debate. There is a ballad right after, “She’s Gonna Love You to Death” but there are some decent guitars in the song. The album then returns to more rock ground after that with a rather cool intro on the track, “Revenge” and some cool hard guitars on it. I’m glad they did it that way and not try to use synths as was the custom of the time. The keyboards on the track are more progressive rock than anything. The rest of the album pretty much follows along the path with the possible exceptions “Heartbreaker” and the closer, “Don’t Leave YOur Mark on Me” which sound like they could have been songs for a 1980s film soundtrack. But even these on has their rocking moments. What you get here is a cool rock album from John Parr.
Track Listing:
Magical
Naughty Naughty
Love Grammar
Treat Me Like an Animal
She’s Gonna Love You to Death
Revenge
Heartbreaker
Somebody Stole My Thunder
Don’t Leave Your Mark on Me
John Parr
John Parr- lead vocals, lead guitar, African sounds
Pete Solley- organ
Christopher Marra- guitar
Brad Lang- bass
Colin Farley- bass on tracks 3 and 7
Jon Cook- keyboards
Richard Cottle- keyboards tracks 3,4 and 6
Jonathon J Jeczalik- synthesizer
The Kick Horns- horns
Graham Broad- drums, percussion, African sounds
Simon Phillips- drums on tracks 3 and 7
Chuck Kirkpatrick and John Sombataro- backing vocals
So forget “St Elmo’s Fire,” I never watched the film anyway. Have a listen to this debut album from John Parr. I guarantee you’ll enjoy it much more.
Next post: Tommy Shaw- Girls With Guns
To buy Rock and Roll Children go to: https://www.amazon.com/Rock-Roll-Children-Michael-Lefevre/dp/1609763556/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1501322174&sr=8-5&keywords=michael+d+lefevre
As if! I never saw the movie and never listened to the soundtrack. The only tracks I heard from it were the title track sung by Irene Cara which made her a one hit wonder as did the other song, “Maniac” by Michael Sambello. Neither song was good enough for me one hit wonders post. The fact that they were played constantly in discos throughout the world makes no difference. If anything, it makes me less likely to want to listen to them. Funny thing was that there were some really cool films in 1983. “Trading Places” with Dan Ackroyd and Eddie Murphy, “War Games” featuring a very young fresh faced Mathew Broderick and “Pyscho II” to name just a few. However, I don’t remember any of these having cool soundtracks. If any of you know of a film from this year that had a cool soundtrack, let me know and I’ll listen to it and post about it.
Next post: Business as usual with Alice Cooper- Da da
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