|
No place like home --- Big Country --- 1991 (Vertigo)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._Like_Home.jpg Although I'm a reasonable fan of this band, I have to admit to not owning many of their albums. In fact, the only one I have other than this is “Through a big country”, and since I rarely if ever review greatest hits packages --- mostly for the simple reason that, crammed as they are with hits and singles, most people will more than likely know most of the tracks --- that leaves me with just this album to concentrate on, if I want to talk about Big Country. Which I do. I'm quite aware there are better known albums from them --- the likes of “Steeltown”, “The Seer” or even “The Crossing” that would be better material for a review, but I don't have any of those so I'm going with what I've got. I couldn't even tell you why I bought this album. It was probably just a bargain, and I picked it up in one of the buying frenzies I used to indulge in: go to the record stores, look around, see if there was anything decent going cheap. I did that all the time in the eighties, when mostly the only way you could hear music was by buying it, and second-hand albums were always a good way to check out something you had perhaps not enough faith in to shell out the full price for. I knew Big Country's hits, of course, like most people, but would a full album be worth investing in? So perhaps this was bought as a test of that principle. Or maybe I just liked the cover, or it was cheap, or both. Whatever the reason, it was the only one of their albums, bar the greatest hits, that I ever bought, and I've never even listened to it up till now. Of course, there's extra poignancy since the untimely death of lead singer, guitarist and frontman Stuart Adamson in 2001, an event that shook Big Country to its foundations and led to the band no longer touring until they reunited in 2010, after a brief reappearance in 2007 to put out a greatest hits/tribute album, and are now back on the road. But Adamson, the voice and heart of Big Country, will and can never be forgotten. I haven't heard any music from them post Adamson, but you would have to wonder how they could recreate that unique sound he imbued the band with, and whether Big Country without Stuart Adamson could be like Queen without Freddie Mercury? But back to the album. Tying in with its title, “We're not in Kansas” opens on a jingly guitar and strong percussion, that classic Big Country guitar sound not as prevalent as you might expect, but Stuart's distinctive voice unmistakable. It's a kind of mid-paced song to get us underway, a lot of punch but more restrained that the sort of thing we've come to expect from this band. Very much a Delta blues opening to “Republican Party reptile”, also kind of mid-paced but with more energy maybe than the opener, and some really good individual fretwork from Bruce Watson as well as from Adamson. Little touches of gospel too and a sharp, angry vocal as you would probably expect on a hard political satire song like this. Big keyboard and flowing guitar intro then to “Dynamite lady”, heavy organ carrying the melody against Adamson's wounded vocal, the song becoming a swaying, swinging ballad, but I have to admit I haven't heard too much to get excited about yet. Still, we're only into track three of twelve. There are no hits or even well-known songs (to me, anyway) on this album, so there's nowhere to hide really: I'm hearing everything for the first time, and on its own merits. Things get a lot better with the uptempo rocker “Keep on dreaming”, more like the sort of thing I'm used to hearing from these guys, then the country/bluegrass tinged “Beautiful people” rides along on Bruce Watson's happy mandolin and some great piano from Richie Close. Just infectiously upbeat, and though driven on mostly the same idea all the way through you don't really mind, it's so good. There's nothing happy though about the next track, with a serious message and a lot of bitter anger in “The hostage speaks”, a powerful indictment of war and conflict, seen through the eyes of the innocent and the powerless, played somewhat in the vein of “Just a shadow” or “Wonderland”, then we're back to hard rockin' for “Beat the devil”, with twin guitars punching out the rhythm, and then a slower but no less powerful track in “Leap of faith”. Everything changes in style though for “You me and the truth”, where Big Country go all soul, with solid organ and riffling guitars (yeah, it's another word I made up: wanna make something of it?) ;) which actually works surprisingly well, would probably have made a good single. Things stay soul-influenced for “Comes a time”, while “Ships” has a real air of Marc Cohn or Bruce Hornsby about it, especially in the piano. A soulful ballad that really slows things down and allows you to catch your breath, it's actually the first time I've heard Big Country play a slow song. Even on their greatest hits the slower songs were not what I would class as ballads, but this definitely is, and Adamson puts in a superb vocal performance, passion and emotion creaking in his voice as he sings ”Where were you/ When my ship went down?/ Where were you/ When I ran aground?” The song exists on Close's gorgeous and plaintive piano melody, and sails along (sorry) on the fragile yet strong and bitter vocal of Adamson as he looks for answers. Standout of the album, no question. It closes then on “Into the fire”, almost Dire Straits in its makeup, with some joyful organ and a triumphant vocal by Stuart, the guitars more restrained but still there, proving I guess that Big Country don't survive or depend only on the big wide expansive guitar sound on which their name was made, and on which their reputation persisted throughout their heyday. The first Big Country album I've listened to all the way though that isn't a collection, I can't honestly say I'm overly impressed, but I'm not disappointed either. “No place like home” has certainly got its moments, perhaps not enough of them, but it's a good rock album and contains a few surprises along the way. I didn't regret listening to it, and if you take the time I doubt you will either. TRACKLISTING 1. We're not in Kansas 2. Republican Party reptile 3. Dynamite lady 4. Keep on dreaming 5. Beautiful people 6. The hostage speaks 7. Beat the devil 8. Leap of faith 9. You me and the truth 10. Comes a time 11. Ships 12. Into the fire |
A message to my mod friends: Fairly warned, be thee, says I!
Tomorrow I'll be uploading the final version of my tribute to Ronnie James Dio, as Wednesday is the anniversary of his death. It's been several weeks in the compiling, and I would like to try to ensure that it's all up by then, so I'll begin uploading probably early evening. This may of course mean that the entries will be up before Wednesday rolls around, but I'd rather they were early than late. The tribute is split into six parts, so just to advise you that there will be some work in it for you. As with all of my entries, I've doublechecked everything before uploading, so bar the YouTubes there shouldn't be too much for you to check --- I know, don't tell us our jobs! I'm not trying to, just letting you know that I've proof-read and amended it as much as I can before letting you guys have it. I hope it won't be too much work for you, but would definitely appreciate it if all six parts can be "live" by Wednesday, to tie in with the anniversary. Thanks and keep the faith! Troll |
|
http://www.trollheart.com/dailyworm3.jpg
Rock acts from Iceland are few and far between, but shake out the sugarcubes and there's one waiting to be discovered... oh, the worm is very clever today, isn't he? Isn't he...?! |
Page 59-64
Richard Marx- In many ways Richard Marx kept the AOR flag flying in the late 1980s and early 1990s, as by then the genre as a major commercial draw had long since died. I like listening to Richard Marx's songs individually, but over an album they lack diversity and he often demonstrates everything bad about the AOR/soft rock genre with his reliance of ballads and overly commercial material. One of the main reasons I always followed his discography, is that one of his main writing collaborations was with Fee Waybill the frontman of the Tubes and an old idol of mine, he often sings backing vocals on some Richard Marx stuff as well. The Steve Lukather link is no surprise, because if you wanted real guitar quality on your songs, he along with Neil Schon were the best two around. Tom Petty- Now Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers were great on their first five albums, it was after that though that they started to embrace the heartland rock and southern rock which I really dislike, so I more or less stopped listening to them and Tom Petty's solo stuff around that time. Now their first albums were great, Long After Dark probably not as strong as the other four though. The big issue that I have with the first four albums, is that whilst being very good are not as great as they are often made out to be. I think if all the best parts of the first four albums were condensed into just two albums, they would be amongst two of the best albums of all time. Probably my favourite song by them and one of the most overlooked as well. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers ~ Luna - YouTube Meat Loaf- Now you just had to have Meatloaf didn't ya?:finger: I know that you were reviewing another album but I just have to mention a Bat out of Hell it must be one of the most overblown and silliest albums ever conceived with its operatic overtones and it was certainly Jim Steinman's baby, but thanks to Meat Loaf's bombastic singing the whole thing is pulled and we have an album that is probably essential to any CD collection. I put it on now and again and think how silly it is, but I keep on putting it on......I also saw that you did a feature previously on Jim Steinman's solo album (his only I think) whilst that album sounds like a direct sequel to Bat Out of Hell it suffers from Jim Steinman's lack of range and it could have been so much better had Meat Loaf been on it, because the songs were there. I thought Dead Ringer the true follow-up to Bat as a disappointment though. I see that you have a section of Bruce Dickenson comin up, looking forward to that. |
http://www.trollheart.com/marriage2.jpg
I know we've featured a collaboration between David Bowie and another artiste before, and that in itself is significant, as Bowie seldom works with other musicians, but this one is pretty special. Perhaps because it's Bowie working with a legendary figure outside of the rock spectrum, one who has plied his trade, and become a respected and even revered figure in the often tough and competitive world of jazz. Pat Metheny, with his Pat Metheny Group, has been around since 1975, though he began his career a year earlier, and had been teaching music since he was eighteen. He has released over seventy albums, has won almost twenty Grammy awards, and that's to say nothing of the many soundtracks he has composed or played on. A true virtuoso, the often insular nature of jazz nonetheless makes Metheny something of an unknown outside his own sphere of expertise, and so it was with a sort of a “Pat who?” that the world greeted his only collaboration with Bowie, in 1985. This is not America --- Pat Metheny Group and David Bowie http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...NotAmerica.jpg Despite the misleading hierarchical credits shown on the sleeve of the single, this was very definitely a Metheny project, coming from the movie “The falcon and the snowman”, for which Metheny composed the soundtrack, and this song was in fact a rewriting with lyrics by Bowie of another piece on the soundtrack, called simply “Chris”. Now, I have not heard the soundtrack, nor seen the movie, and when I heard the single I of course thought “Bowie”, because his is the only voice you hear singing. I don't think (but I can't confirm) that Pat Metheny sings, at all. I think his field of professionalism lies in the guitar playing on which he has made his name, and composing. But he definitely doesn't sing on this song. You can though hear the subtle but very obvious differences between this and Bowie's own material. Even music he has sung on from other soundtracks, like “Absolute beginners”, sound like his own sort of thing, whereas the laidback, dreamy nature of the musical accompaniment on this song puts you in mind of a different type of sound. It's certainly hypnotic, and while no-one would venture to claim that Bowie does not sing excellently on it, and for most people would have been the single's major selling point (how many would have bought the record had it been by the Pat Metheny Group? As it was, this hit number 14, and surely that has to be mostly attributed to Bowie fans buying the single?), it's the music that really characterises the song, and marks it out as so much different to anything we've heard before, even from Bowie. Of course, if you were and are a Metheny fan already, you're reading this and rolling your eyes. But I don't know that many who are, and even though I enjoyed this single, I'm not a fan of jazz so would think it unlikely I would ever listen to one of Metheny's albums. But then again, when it's as good as this... |
Quote:
Well, firstly he had two solo albums, "Bad for good" being his first and featuring the original version of "Surf's up" that appeared later on Meat Loaf's "Bad attitude" album (a truly great ML album!), as well as "Lost boys and golden girls", which resurfaced on "Bat out of Hell II", but I don't understand your comment about his range on "Original sin", as he didn't sing on that. I think he does the monologue on "I've been dreaming up a storm lately", but otherwise all the songs are sung by female vocalists. I do agree though that Meat Loaf would have worked very well on it. Yes, there's a special on Bruce and tonight I'll be uploading my special on Dio: can you believe it's two years already? |
http://www.trollheart.com/bestyears.jpg
Broken rainbow --- a tribute to the life and work of Ronnie James Dio (July 10 1942 - May 16 2010) http://www.trollheart.com/RJtrib.png The chances are, if you call yourself any sort of a metal fan at all, your path has crossed that of one Ronald James Padavona, better known as Ronnie James Dio. From Rainbow to Black Sabbath and on into his own band, Dio, Ronnie carved out a path to glory through the highest echelons of heavy metal, working with, and earning the respect of, giants like Geezer Butler and Tony Iommi, Cozy Powell and Richie Blackmore, and gaining a huge following, which seemed to transfer with him as he went from band to band. He was a tireless campaigner for several worthy causes, including the Children of the Night, an organisation which attempts to save children from falling into prostitution, and he had a huge regard for the dispossessed and the lost. Today, Wednesday April 16 2012, marks the second anniversary of his untimely death at the age of 68 from stomach cancer, and we would like to dedicate the second feature in this section to him. We will be looking at his long and varied career, from his start in Elf through his association with Rainbow and Black Sabbath, into the eventual and perhaps inevitable formation of his own band. Ronnie never wrote or sang on any chart-topping singles, and to the masses outside of heavy metal and rock he may be virtually unknown, but to those who knew and loved his music, the man was indeed what his assumed surname translates as, a true god of rock and roll. Part I: Dio rising Ronnie was born in Portsmouth but soon moved to New York, and remained in America for most of the rest of his life. He originally played the trumpet and French horn, but even in his early bands a natural ability to sing --- which he apparently attributes to the special kind of breath control it's necessary to learn in order to play the French horn --- was evident, and he soon took over vocals in his first band, which went through many namechanges but eventually settled on Ronnie and the Prophets. This was back in 1961, and that band lasted till 1967, when he disbanded it and with their former guitarist, Nick Pantas, formed the Electric Elves, later shortening the name to Elf in 1969. For all intents and purposes, this is where, musically, we pick up the story. Elf --- Elf --- 1972 (MGM) https://encrypted-tbn3.google.com/im...QwT5nWxLggX-IP Although Ronnie's heavy metal roots would not really show until he joined Rainbow, his first “real” band, Elf, does display his love of rock and roll. Heavy in its way, but more in a Creedence/Zep way than a Deep Purple/Sabs way, their debut album, self-titled, certainly rocks, and you can hear from the very off the powerful set of pipes that were to set the world of heavy metal alight for over forty years. Elf put out three albums over their eight year incarnation, one of which was a live effort. Although they were in fact together since 1967, after Ronnie disbanded his previous band, Ronnie and the Prophets, they began life as The Electric Elves and only changed their name to Elf in 1969, on which name they put out their debut three years later. So in a real, recording sense, Elf only lasted from 1972 to 1975, when Ronnie joined Rainbow: three years, and so that much more impressive that they released three albums within that time. Their debut was produced by Ian Paice and Roger Glover from Deep Purple, who were so impressed with the band that they had them open for them on their tour, giving Elf a lot more exposure than they could ever have hoped for at that time. For a debut, it's a pretty damn fine album, with tracks like the opener “Hoochie coochie woman” and the ballad-that-metamorphoses-into-a-slowburner-blues “Never more” standing out in particular. The keyboard work of Mickey Lee Soule stands out, but it is of course the vocals of Ronnie --- who at the time was going under his given name of Padavona, and who, on this album only, also plays bass --- which really catches the attention and hints at a star in the making. There's a certain sense of a heavier Bob Seger to “I'm comin' back for you”, with some fine piano playing from Soule, but it's the epic southern boogie of “Dixie Lee junction” that becomes the album's standout, a powerful slice of rock and blues with some great time changes. Carolina County ball --- Elf --- 1974 (MGM) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...CountyBall.jpg 1974 saw the release of Elf's second album, “Carolina County ball”, a somewhat less heavy album than the debut, with more of an emphasis on the blues side of their music. Tracks like the title, relying heavily on a brass section presumably created on Soule's keyboards and the riotous joy of “LA 59” still make the album very listenable, and if nothing else it's notable for the first time I can see that Ronnie's love affair/obsession with rainbows begins, with the seventh track titled simply “Rainbow”. Though, to be fair, the premise for using this title is pretty shaky, and the song certainly does not live up to its promise. By this point, Elf had brought a dedicated bass player on board, so Ronnie was able to concentrate on his singing duties, also sharing the writing of all the songs with Soule. Although the tracks in general are good --- not great: I far prefer the debut --- there are those that let it down, like the overlong and quite whiny and boring, perhaps misnomer “Happy”, and the flat, lifeless closer, “Blanche”. At this point destiny was calling anyway, Ritchie Blackmore deciding he'd just about had enough of Deep Purple and thinking of starting his own band, which would eventually absorb not just Dio but most of the remaining, ahem, elves. Trying to burn the sun --- Elf --- 1975 (MGM) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...BurnTheSun.jpg The pointy-eared ones returned to their rockin' roots for their third, and as it turned out, final album, one year later. Much heavier than the very disappointing “Carolina County ball”, their swansong, “Trying to burn the sun” even had Elf experimenting with strings and orchestration when they employed the Mountain Fjord Orchestra on the track “When she smiles”, a sort of Beatles/Beach Boys hybrid. The writing was, however, on the wall. During the recording of this album, Elf were also working with Ritchie Blackmore on his first solo album, which would in fact become Rainbow's debut. After the album was released though, everyone bar Dio was fired by Blackmore, and thus ended the association of Ronnie with his band, as he became an integral part of Rainbow, not only singing but also co-writing most of the band's songs, and bringing his own style and flair to them. Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow --- Rainbow --- 1975 (Polydor) http://canzonimetal.altervista.org/w...es-Rainbow.jpg From the off, Ronnie was more than just a vocalist or writer. He helped Blackmore shape his vision of his new band along lines both were happy with. Ronnie had always been interested in medieval times, but his last band hadn't really allowed him any scope in this area. Blackmore, coming off of Deep Purple's flirtation with fantasy themes, was more willing to explore this side of things and so together they composed “Sixteenth century greensleeves”, “Man on the silver mountain” and “The temple of the king”. The album also afforded Dio his chance to stretch his lyrical muscles on the beautiful ballad, “Catch the rainbow”, which would become a later standard. It was clear that the partnership was a winning one, and Ronnie remained with Rainbow through what would perhaps be termed as their classic years, recording two more albums which are highly praised among the fans. Indeed, after Dio left the band, they took a much more commercial, almost pop turn, admittedly gaining their biggest hit singles with the likes of “I surrender” and “Since you been gone”, but the fantasy, mythic and symphonic rock element left with Dio. Rising --- Rainbow --- 1976 (Polydor) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...nbowRising.jpg I've already reviewed this album at length, so let me just state that it was and is a classic Rainbow album, perhaps the classic Rainbow album, and served to showcase two consummate professionals and experts working at the very top of their game, with Dio shining on powerful vocal performances on the likes of “Tarot woman” and “Do you close your eyes”, while the double-epic that took up the second side of the album (I said, ask yer da!), “Stargazer” and “A light in the black”, were together perhaps one of the most ambitious projects any heavy metal band had undertaken up to then. With a total running time of over sixteen minutes, they tell the tale of a man taken, with many others, to a strange land where they are forced to build a tower in the desert, a ladder up which an enigmatic sorcerer intends to scale to Heaven itself. He fails, and falls, and the second part is the story of the man's journey home. While “A light in the black” was seldom performed live, “Stargazer”, which could stand on its own perfectly well, became a tried and trusted favourite with fans, but more importantly, showed Ronnie firmly stamping his authority on the music, carving out his own idea of what they should sound like, and laying the groundwork for the path he would follow through his long career. Many people will tell you that Rainbow just wasn't the same after Ronnie left, and they're right: the band really changed its sound, and a lot of the fantasy elements were lost from albums such as “Difficult to cure”, “Bent out of shape” and “Down to earth”. On Stage --- Rainbow --- 1977 (Polydor) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ow-onstage.jpg Something of an anchronism and certainly a disappointment to the growing legions of fans who had sprung up after “Rising”, this live album is notable for its exclusion of virtually anything from that album except for the rather tame “Starstruck”, and instead plunders most of Blackmore's first album, ignoring later-to-be-classics like “Stargazer” and “Tarot woman”. One of the album's four sides is in fact given over to a thirteen-minute nonsense of one of Blackmore's old Deep Purple songs, with another taken up entirely by “Catch the rainbow”. Why “Rising”, released the previous year to critical acclaim, was so badly served on this album is beyond me. It's almost as if Blackmore was trying to completely ignore it. Long live rock'n'roll --- Rainbow --- 1978 (Polydor) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...rocknroll1.jpg The last Rainbow album, then, to feature Ronnie, this 1978 effort is characterised by his signature lyrical themes, in tracks that would later become Rainbow classics, such as “Kill the king” and the title track, and one which Ronnie would adopt and play at his own live performances, the eastern-influenced “Gates of Babylon”. It also features what would become a staple of Dio's work, the appearance of a rainbow, either in the song title or lyric, and here we have the closer called “Rainbow eyes”. This, in fact, would resurface on his second solo album, in the lyric to “Egypt (the chains are on)”, when he would sing ”They were frightening in the darkness/ They had rainbows in their eyes!” In the same way that “Rising” featured an orchestra playing on “Stargazer”, the Bavarian String Ensemble contributes to “Gates of Babylon”, and there are both cello and viola in “Rainbow eyes”, a beautiful little minstrel-style ballad that closes the album and gives more space to Ronnie's love of the middle ages. There are some very heavy tracks on it though, and it pushes more away from the overt progressive rock of “Rising” towards a more out-and-out rock idea, which would in the end be watered down by Blackmore as he sought to take the band in a more commercial direction, a position Ronnie disagreed with and which would see his leaving Rainbow after this. It might well have been Blackmore's close-mindedness that led to Ronnie's departure from Rainbow, although it's more widely accepted that he left due to being unhappy with the more commercial direction Blackmore was pushing the band towards, and they parted company in 1979, as a new decade hovered on the horizon, and a new phase of the musical career of Ronnie James Dio was about to begin. |
Part II: At the end of the rainbow
Heaven and Hell --- Black Sabbath --- 1980 (Vertigo) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...n_and_Hell.jpg The next port of call was Black Sabbath, who had parted company with Ozzy Osbourne and with whom Ronnie recorded one of their most successful albums, “Heaven and Hell”, which again pulled in his love of classical, mythological and medieval themes to create a heavy prog-rock/metal album which still stands today as the favourite of many Sabbath fans. From the opening powerdrive of “Neon nights”, you can hear Ronnie in fine voice and sounding happier than he's been for a while. He wrote the lyrics to all the songs on this album --- of which there are only eight --- collaborating on the music with the rest of the band. There are some real classics on the album, including the title track, “Die young” and “Children of the sea”, the latter being one of two ballads on the album, not complete rarities for Sabbath but certainly not the norm. Ronnie's influence helped pull them away from the overtly dark tag they had struggled with over their career to then, although the lyrics still mention gods, devils, Heaven and of course Hell, but they're treated in a more abstract, less literal way, almost more as concepts than reality. One of Dio's strengths seems to have been that he could subtly change the sound of any band he joined, without actually ruining the image or the ethos of the band. He slotted in well to Black Sabbath, and is still many people's choice of vocalist for that band. Less screechy than Ozzy, more disciplined both in his voice and his work, and with a considerably smaller ego to feed than Ian Gillan, it's a shame really that he only lasted the two albums with them. But then of course if he had stayed, perhaps he would never have started his own band. Ronnie also brought the sense of the epic to Sabbath that had characterised his work with Rainbow with tracks like “Stargazer” and “Gates of Babylon”; Sabbath had not exactly been averse to the odd long song prior to his arrival, but Ronnie definitely brought a more prog-rock feel to the band. Mob rules --- Black Sabbath --- 1981 (Vertigo) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...SabbathMob.jpg Released only a year after the successful “rebirth” of Black Sabbath, “Mob rules” would be the last studio album on which Ronnie would feature, for now. It's a faster, snappier album than “Heaven and Hell”, with much shorter songs, even though it does contain the epic “Sign of the southern cross”, almost eight minutes long, and two five-minute closers in the fast and powerful “Falling off the edge of the world”, and “Over and over”, a grinding, slowburning rock cruncher. You can see on this album, and the previous, how Dio was honing and perfecting both his writing talent and his vocal ability, something that would serve him well when he finally decided to strike out on his own. Live evil --- Black Sabbath --- 1982 (Vertigo) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...Evil-Front.jpg The last actual Black Sabbath album to feature Ronnie (until his brief return in 1992), this was a recording of the “Mob rules” tour, and features, among others, a twelve-minute version of “Heaven and Hell”, as well as other Ozzy-era standards, like “War pigs” and “Iron man”, and of course their signature tune. It's interesting to see how Ronnie handles these, the different nuances and colours his performance give songs which, up until then, had been seen exclusively as lying within the Osbourne pervue. After the album was recorded and was being mixed, differences which had become insurmountable finally led to Ronnie leaving Black Sabbath. He would not return until eleven years later, and then only to record the one album before returning to his solo material. We will look at that in due course, as this section is intended to run chronologically. |
Part III: Stand up and shout
After having parted ways with Black Sabbath, Ronnie and drummer Vinnie Appice, who left with him, sharing his misgivings, still wanted to work together, so they recruited a new young up and coming guitarist called Vivian Campbell, who had been working with Irish heavy metal band Sweet Savage, and keyboardist Jimmy Bain, whom Ronnie had known from his days with Rainbow. Together they formed the new band which would bear Ronnie's name, and gain him his most significant following and fame, and his biggest hits, up to his untimely death. Holy Diver - Dio - 1983 (Vertigo) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...oHolyDiver.jpg I have already extensively reviewed this album, so I won't go too deeply into its guts here, but it is nevertheless important to mark its place as the beginning of the Dio phenomenon, Ronnie in effect stepping out from the shadow of people like Blackmore and Iommi, and facing the world on his own terms, as his own man. Probably most singers dream at some point of having a solo career; Ronnie not only worked towards and at it, but succeeded, possibly beyond his own wildest dreams. The debut was a huge smash, at least among rockers, and instantly cemented the credentials Dio already had as a member of Sabbath and Rainbow, but having his own band elevated him to new heights, and the discovery of Campbell was looked upon as something of a master stroke. Not surprisingly, the album courted controversy from the beginning, with its unsettling imagery which could be seen as anti-religious (a claim Ronnie refuted during his life) and Ronnie's reputation of having “been in that Black Sabbath band”, but there was no denying the quality of the album. Tracks like “Rainbow in the Dark”, “Don't Talk to Strangers” and the title track all vie for standout on this debut, with others like “Stand Up and Shout” (which would later lend its name to a charity Ronnie's wife Wendy would set up to fight cancer after the singer's death), “Gypsy” and “Invisible” ensure there is no filler on this excellent debut. Hitting number 13 on the UK album charts and even number 56 on the difficult-to-break-but-bloody-impossible-for-a-debut US Billboard charts, Holy Diver was a roar of intent from the man known as Ronnie James Dio, and a marker for further great albums to follow, though in fairness he would never again achieve the pure brilliance of this debut. The Last in Line - Dio - 1984 (Vertigo) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...LastInLine.jpg No, he may not have reached the dizzy heights of Holy Diver, but by gum he came close with his second effort! Standing as two of the best Dio albums, these were the creative peak of the band, which is sad really, as there were another eight albums to follow, few if any of which attained the level of quality of Holy Diver and The Last in Line. This could perhaps be attributed to the core of the band leaving over the period 1985-1989, with by 1990 no-one left of the original lineup except Ronnie himself. On this album Jimmy Bain, who had played bass and keys on the debut, moves to just bass as Claude Schell is drafted in to take his place behind the keyboard. Nevertheless, this was the heyday of Dio and the album contains some excellent tracks, starting off powerfully and forcefully with “We Rock” (and they do!), which charges along at breakneck speed, slowing down for the title track, which is a true metal cruncher, with a Black Sabbath-like rhythm, somewhat reminiscent of “Heaven and Hell”, in fact, and nodding of course back to Zep's “Kashmir” in the keyboard melody. “Breathless” and “I Speed at Night” kick the tempo back up, flying along in the fashion Dio fans had come to expect from songs like “Gypsy” and “Stand Up and Shout”, before things slow down (insofar as Dio ever slowed things down: ballads were not their forte!) with “One Night in the City”, with some pretty growly backing vocals! Sadly, though three singles were released from this album, none really charted and Dio would never again repeat the commercial success they enjoyed with Holy Diver, but then, few metal bands ever break into the charts, bar the likes of Iron Maiden or Metallica. “Evil Eyes” revisits the opener in style, then “Mystery” is a keyboard-led almost AOR song, taking something of its style from “Rainbow in the Dark”, before the one track I see as sub-par, “Eat Your Heart Out”, spoils things, but then the album closes strongly in an eastern-flavoured cruncher, “Egypt (The Chains Are On)”, reimagining the arrival of aliens whom the ancient Egyptians took for gods. Original? No, but that doesn't stop the song from being a storming finale to a great album. After this album relations between Ronnie and Vivian Campbell would be strained to breaking point, with Ronnie remarking that Campbell “wasn't there” for the recording of their third album, after which the guitarist would leave. Whether due to that, or just the general fall in quality that I personally perceived throughout much of the remaining catalogue, this album would be poorly received, and a general lack of interest would begin to pervade the casual Dio fan, though his hardcore fans would ensure his albums continued to sell, if not in the quantities they had from the start. 1985 saw Ronnie's first real foray into charity work, something that, with second wife Wendy, he would engage in a lot more vigorously throughout his life. When the leading lights of heavy metal banded together to form the metal version of Band Aid, Hear'n'Aid, it was Ronnie's bandmates Vivian Campbell and Jimmy Bain who were instrumental and pivotal in arranging and organising the effort, and of course Ronnie sang on the single they produced, “Stars”, and on the subsequent album, which garnered one million dollars for the charity in its first year. Sacred Heart - Dio - 1985 (Vertigo) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...acredHeart.jpg You can immediately hear the cracks beginning to appear as this album gets underway. Dio's third, and the last one to feature both Campbell and Bain, it would mark a shift away from the quality metal of the first two albums into a sort of muddled no-mans-land through which Ronnie would release another five albums before finally returning to the level of Holy Diver with his 2002 effort, and indeed penultimate album, Killing the Dragon. There are good tracks on this album, and in fairness it's not a total loss, but quality would definitely start to slide after this. Opener “The King of Rock and Roll” gets things going nicely, and like the start of the previous two albums it's a fast rocker, with this time some faux live performance effects, then the title track is a slow cruncher. In fact, looking at the albums, at least the first three, they do seem to follow a pattern of starting with a fast rocker, then slowing for a cruncher, then back up the gears for another few tracks before taking it back down again. Nothing wrong with that, though it does make the albums the smallest bit predictable perhaps. For all that, “Sacred Heart” is a great track, quite keyboard-driven, and so far the album is living up to the promise of its two powerful predecessors. “Rock and Roll Children” is a great song, but lyrically it's just a rewriting of “One Night in the City” from the previous album. Doesn't make it any less excellent though, but a bit of originality I feel might have been more welcome here. Things just get better though with the storming “Hungry for Heaven”, with some great solos from Vivian Campbell. Unfortunately there's a sharp dip in quality from there on, with the only really decent track after this being “Just Another Day”, and the album ends weakly on “Shoot Shoot”. Possibly one of the problems I've come to recognise with Dio's music - at least, with his own band - is that an awful lot of it was very similar. The opening track on this album is very close to that which opened The Last in Line, and as already mentioned, “One Night in the City” from that album adheres fairly closely to the style and lyrical content of “Rock and Roll Children” from this one. Similarly, “Like the Beat of a Heart” here is very much on the same lines as “Straight Through the Heart” from Holy Diver. That does not of course mean Dio's music is generic or formulaic always, but a lot of it does seem, on close analysis, built on the same ideas, themes, melodies and rhythms. Things would go from bad to worse for Ronnie the next year, as Campbell left the band, citing musical differences and disappointment in the direction Dio was heading, often it would seem a familiar reason for bands splitting. Unfazed, Ronnie recruited a replacement and went on to release Dio's fourth album, but it does come across as largely quite flat, missing the spark that characterised the first two, even three albums. Between this and the release of his fourth album, Ronnie put out a live album - well, more an EP really, as it only had a total of six tracks. One of these was a new song, included to introduce the new guitarist, Craig Goldy, who was to replace Vivian Campbell. Intermission - Dio - 1986 (Vertigo) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...termission.jpg As far as live efforts go, I feel it's kind of a case of rehashing stuff I have already written about particular tracks or albums, so rather than repeat myself (not to mention the fact that I don't have his live albums!) I will just give a quick overview of each as I come to them, pointing out any important tracks or points, such as above, where there was an extra track included, “Time to Burn”, and also the fact that this being so relatively early in the career of Dio the band, that there is a medley of two Rainbow songs mixed in with one of his own. Pretty unremarkable though really. Dream Evil - Dio - 1987 (Vertigo) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...oDreamEvil.jpg Personally, this was the point at which I decided to stop buying Dio albums. I was very disappointed with this effort, and though it made a decent showing in the UK album charts, it did not do as well as Sacred Heart, and was in fact the last Dio album to trouble the upper echelons of the charts. As a matter of record, the highest any Dio album after Dream Evil would attain was 159, this being for their last album (although of course at that point no-one knew it was destined never to be followed up, with Ronnie dying six years later). Sacred Heart was in fact the last Dio album to be certified, going Gold in the USA. After that, there was a massive vote of non interest. Dream Evil has its good tracks, though they are few and far between. It starts off well (and predictably) enough, with “Night People”, though this track is a little more keyboard than guitar-driven, and the strain of sparring with Campbell does seem to be telling on Ronnie; you can hear it in his voice. It's not as powerful, confident or brash as it used to be. At least the cycle is broken though, as the title (and second) track is a fast enough rocker, not a cruncher. Quite a lot of “Caught in the Middle” from Holy Diver on it I feel however. Surprisingly, this is the very first Dio album to have a proper, assigned ballad, and I have to say, it's been worth waiting five years for! “All the Fools Sailed Away” is a fantastic, powerful, emotional and moving song which easily stands out as the best track on this album, and while in general that's unfortunately not saying a lot, it even stands quite easily shoulder to shoulder with Dio standards like “Rainbow in the Dark”, “Don't Talk to Strangers” and “Egypt” as one of the very best songs this band has produced. A pity it's not matched by the rest of the album, or indeed, Dio's output for the next few years following this. Nevertheless, while one song does not an album make, and you can't really make a case for buying an album for one track, if you were thinking of getting Dream Evil and just needed a reason, then this is it: it really is worth the price of purchase alone. Other than that though, I can really only recommend “I Could Have Been a Dreamer”, with the rest of the songs just okay, but not I think up to the usual Dio standard. He does surprise at the end, because with a title like “When a Woman Cries”, you're definitely expecting a ballad and it's just, well, not. But as I say there's not too much to recommend this fourth album, and sadly that would not only continue to be the case, but worsen as the years wound on. |
Part IV: Fading colours
More members of the band departed before the release of the next album, three years later. In fact, everyone who had been in the original lineup left, leaving Ronnie with the job of finding replacements for Vinny Appice (who had helped him found Dio) and Jimmy Bain, as well as keyboard player Claude Schell. Craig Goldy, who had been brought in to replace Vivian Campbell for “Dream evil”, left soon after that album was finished and was replaced by Rowan Robertson, but he would only last for this album. Lock up the wolves --- Dio --- 1990 (Reprise) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...pTheWolves.jpg And again we run the familiar formula! Fast rocker to open in “Wild one”, then things slow down for the obligatory rock cruncher, this time it's “Born on the sun”, then for once the spell is broken as we remain rock crunchin' for “Hey angel”, heavy, pounding drums and a gravelly vocal from Ronnie, but it's still hard to see anything new, or indeed, progressive, about any of the songs here. Which is a pity, as they're all great in their own right, just a little too ... predicatable. “Between two hearts” opens with the chingling guitar seen in “Don't talk to strangers”, but in fairness it doesn't speed up as that track does, but stays heavy and slow, providing another surprise, and surprise is something I normally tend not to associate with Dio. The album does contain the longest Dio composition ever, the title track, which comes in at a massive eight and a half minutes, and opens on proggy synth and keys, then guitars hammer in alongside drums and we get something more akin to “Stargazer” or “Gates of Babylon” from Rainbow than anything else. Incidentally, before any Dio know-it-all raises his or her hand and points out that the closing track on 2000's “Magica” is over eighteen minutes long, I should point out that I discount that, as it has no music and is essentially a long spoken monologue. “Evil on Queen Street” has a very Black Sabbath feel to it --- more Ozzy era than Dio, truth be told --- and I'm starting to notice that this is a very slow, heavy, grinding album: I've hardly heard, since the opener, any fast rockers at all. At least the status quo is being challenged, which is a good thing always, but this is becoming very heavy going, almost like trudging through thick mud in flimsy sandals, and I'm beginning to feel bogged down. And here comes a helping hand, at last! Now I'm climbing out of the mire as “Walk on water” rocks the speakers and kicks everything up the arse, finally. About damn time! Slow and crunchy and ponderous is all very well if you're listening to a sludge metal album, but the very least I expect out of Dio is to rock! Great guitar solo here from the new boy (who would soon be replaced) but we're soon back to the slow rock crunchers with “Twisted”, though there's a decent push as the album comes to a close with “Why are they watching me” rocking along nicely, and the powerful “My eyes”, with its often almost acoustic passages and its semi-medieval flavour harking back to Ronnie's days with Rainbow. I don't think I can recall an album before or since by Dio which was so weighted on the side of slower, heavier, grinding power crunchers, and I think perhaps it's this that marks this album as a failure in my book: I miss the fast Dio rockers of the last few albums, and if this was an experiment to change the sound of the band (which I don't know) then it didn't work. Not for me, anyway. After this, Dio basically broke up the band when invited by Geezer Butler to get back together with him and the guys in Black Sabbath. This explains the curious hiatus in Ronnie's involvement with Sabbath (ten years between albums) and is, I think, unique in heavy metal. I can't remember any vocalist working with a band, leaving and then coming back again so much later. Even Bruce Dickinson was only away from Maiden for seven years, even though that seemed like an eternity! Dehumanizer --- Black Sabbath --- 1992 (IRS) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ehumanizer.jpg Would it be a good idea, this getting back together with Sabbath after so long? Would Ronnie take the band back to the heyday of “Heaven and Hell”, injecting some needed epic and progressive tones into their music, or would he, indeed, eschew the very themes that had mostly driven his own band, abandoning the fantasy themes to concentrate on more straight-ahead heavy metal? Well, there's no doubt that “Dehumanizer” (must assume they were targeting the American market, with the spelling) is a heavy album, so heavy it's almost thick and impenetrable. It's the Sabbath of old, really, sans Ozzy, and the opener “Computer god”, despite its attempt to drag the seventies metallers into the nineties really just comes across as someone, as Blackadder once opined, “stragetically shaving a monkey and forcing it into a suit”. It's a good song, no doubt, and there are elements of the old, “classic” Dio in there, but the boys have, since Ronnie's departure, reverted to their heavier, darker side, such as was seen on albums like “Parnoid” and “Volume 4”. Tony Iommi can still play a guitar as well as ever though, and he puts in some blistering solos. Ronnie was also reunited with the estranged co-founder of Dio here, as Vinny Appice occupies the drumstool, indeed bringing the whole thing full circle really. Geezer Butler is, well, Geezer Butler, and Ronnie of course is in powerful voice, but on the whole you have to wonder what the point of this “mini-reunion” was. It's not like they intended to stay together for any more than one album. “After all (the dead)” has a lot of “Iron man” in it, with Ronnie even, perhaps unconsciously, emulating Ozzy's vocal style without the falsetto of course, while “TV crimes” gets things rocking in no uncertain fashion, but everything's back slow doomy and crushing with “Letters from Earth”, and Butler's bass figures heavily (in both senses of the word) on “Master of insanity”, then there's some welcome keyboard relief in “Time machine”, though it doesn't last. This is not a bad album, and I have to admit that post “Mob rules” I have heard nothing of Sabbath's catalogue, with the exception of the awful “Born again” (which in itself was pretty instrumental in my coming to the decision not to proceed any further with Sabbath after Ronnie left), so I can't say if this album is representative of their usual output during the nineties and beyond, but it all kind of goes by in something of a blur for me. It's Ozzy revisited again for “Sins of the father”, again very heavy and with a lot of feedback, and you would definitely get the impression, whether accurate or not, that Ronnie was regretting his decision to hook up again with the boys from Sabbath, and was already thinking of getting Dio back together and composing songs for his forthcoming sixth album. Nevertheless, there's a rather lovely ballad --- what? No, you heard me: a ballad. A nice, almost acoustically driven slow song, which at least slams the brakes on for a few minutes. Okay, so it doesn't remain a ballad for too long, and “Too late” may be a prophetic title, but then, I don't actually hate this album: I just don't see the need for it. But for what it is it's quite enjoyable, if you like your metal at the grungier, crunchier end of the spectrum. Definitely making a bid for the shortest song title ever, “I” is a decent rocker and the album closes on a pretty appropriate Sabbath title, “Buried alive”. So after briefly revisiting his past and dipping his toes once more in the steaming, murky waters of Black Sabbath's music, Ronnie decided it was time the world heard from Dio again. Trouble was, he had lost all of his original lineup. So he had to find replacements. Again. Would Vinny Appice be coaxed back into the band, having worked alongside Ronnie again? Seems he would, and Ronnie soon found able replacements for guitar keyboards and bass, thus leading to the release of his next Dio album. Strange highways --- Dio --- 1993 (Reprise) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...geHighways.jpg Deciding to go with a more straightforward approach lyrically, concentrating on modern issues rather than fantasy themes, Dio embarked on a three-album spree that would see them alienate many of their fans, who had grown used to the more progressive songs and themes used on previous albums, and indeed those who had followed Ronnie through Rainbow and Sabbath. The album kicks off solidly enough, certainly, with a good fast rocker, however the title could have caused some worry, though really “Jesus, Mary and the Holy Ghost” is hardly that much further than “Sacred heart” or indeed “Holy diver”, and Ronnie had courted, or at least attracted controversy from the outset, so should have been more than able to deal with it. It's certainly a very metal start, then we're into the usual slow crumcher, though I think Ronnie was experiencing something of a hangover from his time with the boys from Sabbath, as this sounds more like it belongs on one of their albums than his. The title track then is another hard stomper, grinding along like the best of Sabbath and Dio combined, with an almost palpable sense of menace, then “Hollywood black” keeps it heavy and slow, like a low growl rippling through the album so far. New guitarist Tracy G seems to have fit right in, and though there's not at this moment a lot of keyboard work, new keysman Jeff Pilson is kept busy anyway, as he's doubling on bass, as Jimmy Bain did originally. Seems there's to be no letting up on the slow, heavy crunchers, as “Evilution” (see what he did there?) ;) takes the stage, and again I can hear Ozzy in the chorus: whether that's a conscious effort on Ronnie's part to poke fun at the Black Sabbath vocalist he replaced and is known not to have rated, or just an involuntary thing I don't know, but he's definitely taking a lot from his Sabbath-ical (!) --- sorry! --- from Dio and putting it into his music here. This could almost be a Black Sabbath album. Strange highways, indeed! There are at least some really weird and odd electronic sounds, presumably made by Pilson on the synth, which leavens out the thick heavy metal a little, and some siren sounds on the guitar from Tracy G do lighten the mood a little, but this is still pretty heavy stuff. I'm not holding out too much hope that a song titled “Pain” is going to go anyway towards redressing the balance here between heavy, grinding metal crunchers and fast metal rockers, and indeed it would seem that hope would indeed have been in vain, as we're hit with basically the same sort of song again. I don't so much feel I'm listening to this album as being bludgeoned over the head with it, and that's not a feeling I enjoy. “One foot in the grave” is not, as some might expect, a musical tribute to Victor Meldrew, but is instead yet another heavy crunching doom-laden song that falls just this side of black metal really. If I had to choose one word to describe this album, I think it would be monotonous. It's all so similar, at least thus far, and unrelentingly dark and grinding, that I find it tends to get me down. I don't like the way Ronnie growls and scowls at me from behind the mike, almost as if daring me not to listen. This is not what I've come to expect from Dio, and even the last two albums notwithstanding, this is the worst I've heard from him to date. I know of course that there's worse to come, as I have had the displeasure of sitting through the frankly awful “Angry machines”, which is the album he released after this, so sadly no respite on the horizon. Unless this can change things? A nice little gentle guitar line and a relatively easy drumbeat looks like it might be introducing a ballad, of all things. Could it be? Well, “Give her the gun” starts off very promising, does kick into a harder rocker a little way in, and I don't think we're in ballad territory here after all, but it does release the almost incessant pressure that's been pushing me down since the album began. Well, since the second track anyway. So we head towards the end of the album, with “Blood from a stone” retaining the basic theme and rhythm the album has maintained throughout almost exclusively, until finally “Here's to you” kicks out the stays and Dio floor the pedal, a great fast rocker which takes us up to the closer. “Bring down the rain” though shows that Ronnie is unable to resist going back to the tried-and-trusted formula, slowing everything down for another rock cruncher which sets the seal on an album I personally don't like, and which alienated many of his fans, kickstarting a period that would last seven years before he would go back to the fantasy themes and melodies that had made him famous and earned him legions of fans. Angry machines --- Dio --- 1996 (Mayhem) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...y_Machines.jpg With Scott Warren now on keys and Jeff Pilson concentrating on bass, Dio released their seventh studio album, which I personally regard as their worst. “Angry machines” made me angry! How could Ronnie have recorded such a sub-par album? I know he was trying to move away from his old image of wizards and elves etc., and had achieved a measure of distance from those themes with the last album, but this one just went over the top. The signs are not good, right from the beginning, with a real Sabbath-style grinder, “Institutional man”, which is pretty hard going, but at least the tempo kicks up for “Don't tell the kids”, with a rocker in the vein of “I speed at night” and “Stand up and shout”, and a very decent guitar solo from Tracy G, though he gets a bit confused and messy on “Black”, which is just, well, terrible. Even Dio's singing grates on the nerves, and the idea in the song is so thin there is no way it can be expected to last even the three minutes plus that it runs for. Okay, maybe it's meant to sound mechanical and alien, but even so... “Hunter of the heart” has at least a decent, atmospheric guitar intro and a sassy little bassline before it gets going, but unfortunately when it does it's nothing new, just the same old ideas rehashed and used till they're paper-thin. Good interplay between bass and guitar, and some driving drumming from Appice, but not really enough to hook your attention for any length of time. It's followed by the longest track, another Sabbath clone which runs for just over seven minutes. “Stay out of my mind” again recalls the vocal style of Ozzy, and I don't know why Ronnie was doing this, or if he even realised he was. There's a nice kind of blues idea to the guitar riff in it, which is good to hear, and to be completely fair, there's a lot more thought put into this than previous tracks, indeed, albums. There's a really quite cool strings section about halfway through, which gives way to an extended hard guitar section, and it works very well in not only filling out the song but in upping the tension and maintaining the suspense. I'd have to say, given what else I've heard on this album, this would be the standout. Could be the one decent track on the whole thing, the exception to the rule. Certainly a whole lot better than “Big sister”, which follows in its wake, its inferiority only underlining how good Dio could be when he wanted to be, but how he often --- at least, here --- took the path of least resistance and ended up with substandard songs. The only good thing about “Double Monday” is that it's the shortest track on the album, just under three minutes, then “Golden rules” opens with the nursery rhyme “Twinkle, twinkle, little star”; sadly that's about the only good part of it, as it's largely unremarkable. “Dying in America” has at least a bit more heart about it, with some powerful grungy guitar and a pretty good solo, then we close --- and it's nowhere too soon --- on “This is your life”, which certainly surprises, turning out to be a piano ballad, with beautiful strings arrangement. I would probably go so far as to say this is close to Dio's best ballad, even notwithstanding “All the fools sailed away” from “Dream evil”. It's the more frustrating that it comes at the end of a really disappointing and sub-par album, still regarded by me at any rate as his worst ever. At least though it leaves you with a more tolerable taste in your mouth, and you're left humming a decent tune at the end. The first proper live Dio album then comes during the tour for this album, released in 1998. Oddly, but thankfully, there is little of the “Angry machines” album on it, and it consists mostly of music from the debut “Holy diver” and “The last in line”, along with some Black Sabbath material from Ronnie's time with them, and a few Rainbow tracks. It's a double album, and therefore more representative of the full Dio catalogue, and yet, it is quite restricted. Inferno: last in live --- Dio --- 1998 (Mayhem) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...LastInLive.jpg I suppose the fact that only two tracks off “Angry machines” are featured on this live outing is telling: Ronnie obviously realised that the album had not sold well and was not going down well generally with the fans, so he fell back on his standards and classics, the crowd-pleasers. So you get “Holy diver”, “Don't talk to strangers”, “We rock”, “Rainbow in the dark” as well as “Heaven and Hell”, “Long live rock and roll” and a medley composed of “Catch the rainbow” and Blackmore's old Deep Purple song “Mistreated”, but generally speaking the expected batch of songs. There's also one track off “Strange highways”, but that's about it. |
Part V: Dio resurgent
Two more years would pass before Ronnie would return to the studio, to start work on what would be his eighth Dio album, and the first that reverted back to the old fantasy themes, moving away from the more modern ideas expressed through the last two studio albums, which had generally proven unpalatable to many Dio fans, and led to sliding record sales. For this album, Craig Goldy would return, to replace the departed Tracy G, and Jimmy Bain would again take up the bass duties. Magica --- Dio --- 2000 (Spitfire) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...-DioMagica.jpg With a new label, and disappointing record sales for both “Strange highways” and his most recent album, “Angry machines”, Ronnie decided it was time for a change. The new, science-fiction themed lyrics had not really worked, and the whole sound of the band was in danger of descending into a bad parody of Black Sabbath, so Ronnie declared this album would be a concept album, follow a storyline, and be much more progressive metal than previous albums. With some past members returning, it became one of Dio's most successful later albums, and was largely seen as their comeback. It opens with a computer voice intoning the introduction, less than a minute which goes under the name of “Discovery”, then keyboards and heavy guitar usher in “Magica theme”, and right away you're punching the air and exclaiming YESSS! THIS is what Dio is all about, and it's great to hear them finally getting back to basics and giving us something to anticipate. Great guitar intro from the returning Craig Goldy, then “Lord of the last day” gets all heavy and grungy again, but with more keyboard backup this time to keep it from getting too bogged down, while “Fever dreams” has a lot more energy and excitement about it, and low, humming synth is used to very dramatic effect while Goldy channels Gilmour on “The Wall” before “Turn to stone” gets going. No, it's not the old ELO song, fool! A good upbeat rocker, with Ronnie sounding more on song than he has for years in my opinion. The computer voice seems to link the songs, making comments and reports at the end of some of them, and “Feed my head” is preceded by one such, and is itself a powerful but mid-paced rocker, with some more great solos from Goldy and not so much of the keyboard work this time. “Eriel” follows something the same line, the deeper, muddier tone of slow songs from previous albums somehow lightened this time around, mostly by some fine keyboard work courtesy of Scott Warren. “Challis” is a real uptempo metal rocker in the style of “classic” Dio, with great guitar solos, Ronnie singing his heart out and smooth keyboard fills from Warren. It's followed by a heavy guitar-led ballad, “As long as it's not about love”, then an almost Irish jig opens “Losing my insanity”, with some flutes and fiddles before the song bops along at a fine pace, with a lot of energy and enthusiasm. Things continue well with “Otherworld”, very dramatic, ominous and with some fine strings or possibly synthesiser strings, till we run into “Magica (reprise)”, less than two minutes long but some of the best music on this album since “Magica theme”, and it's followed by “Lord of the last day (reprise)”, another short track but I would have preferred the previous one to have been the closer. Technically, neither are the last track, as that's eighteen minutes plus of Ronnie relating the story of Magica, with no music, and it's called “Magica story”, but as there's no music to speak of it's not really worth including in the review here, but worth listening to if you didn't get the idea of the concept behind the album, and also interesting to hear Ronnie's voice when he's not singing. Like many bands, and indeed, many rock bands, Dio's lineup constantly shifted and changed, and after some differences of opinion between he and Goldy, the guitarist left the band (again) and was replaced for their ninth album with Doug Aldritch. Killing the dragon --- Dio --- 2002 (Spitfire) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...gTheDragon.jpg Continuing the return to form that had been seen on “Magica”, Dio produced what I consider to be one of their best later albums, right up there with “Holy diver”. Keyboards again feature heavily in the mix, and this time Ronnie takes elements from the ideas that informed “Angry machines” and successfully melds them with the older themes like those from “Magica” and Rainbow's “Rising”, to create what was pretty much the best of both worlds on his penultimate studio album. The opener, and title track, leaves you in no doubt as to what to expect, and new guitarist Aldritch is eager to prove his chops, racking off solo after solo. Then, just when you think he's going back to the old formula, with another heavy cruncher as the second track, “Along comes a spider” rocks along at a good pace, a real bopper, with some really sharp guitar riffs and powerful drumming, then “Scream” is a heavy cruncher, but more along the lines of “Egypt” or “The last in line” than some of the really heavier tracks that characterised some of the more recent albums. Then we're off and blazing again with another fast rocker --- something that has been missing from the last few Dio albums --- with “Better in the dark”, featuring some blistering fretwork from Aldritch. That familiar “Kashmir” sound returns for the simply titled “Rock and roll”, really punchy and anthemic, a real powerhouse, then “Push” kicks everything back up into high gear as it hurtles along, followed by “Guilty”, which keeps up the pressure, a little less frenetic and a little more grungy admittedly, but still a great song. “Throw away the children” is a big, heavy, crunching pounder sung with a lot of passion and fervour by Ronnie, with a superb guitar solo in the middle, and following in the footsteps of Pink Floyd and Richard Marx, Ronnie enlists the aid of a children's choir on the chorus, giving the song added impact. “Before the fall” gets things rocking again, with a really proggy keyboard solo by Scott Warren that recalls the heyday of Rainbow, and “Cold feet” closes the album well on a mid-paced rocker with a very catchy hook, the underlying and overpowering message here: Dio are back! Master of the moon --- Dio --- 2004 (Sanctuary) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...rOfTheMoon.jpg To have been followed, in due course, by volume two, and three, of “Magica”, this was in the end the final album released by Dio. It marked the return of Craig Goldy on guitar, as well as Jeff Pilson on bass, this being the first time the two had played together on a Dio album. It opens with the prophetic “One more for the road”, a fast hard rocker that continues the return to form seen on “Killing the dragon”, with another slow cruncher following in the shape of the title track, with some grinding guitar from Goldy, bringing us into “The end of the world”, another hard cruncher with some deep, throaty bass from the returning Pilson. “Shivers” is a more mid-paced hard rocker, while things slow down for the intro to “The man who would be king”, then it ramps up on the back of Scott Warren's powerful organ, probably the first I've heard his keyboards on this album up to now. It's very much in the vein of “Egypt”, a slow, stomping beat that plods on like a golem, but with some great melodic ideas. Some unwelcome vocoder work as “The eyes” begins, and unfortunately it continues through the track, giving the unsettling idea of a rock track mixed with pop or dance. Yeah, I hate vocoders. Good song though: another slow one, very heavy but so far I find this album lacking the immediacy and spontonaeity of “Killing the dragon”. The guys do a passable “Iron Maiden chant” at the end of this song though, which is fun to hear. Things finally speed up again for “Living the lie”, but then it's back to the rock crunchers for “I am”, marching along with fierce determination until “Death by love” presses down hard on the pedal again and the Dio machine goes rocketing off for one last time, Ronnie namechecking a few older songs in this one, album titles too. We end then on a metal cruncher, growling guitars and thumping bass taking “In dreams” to its position as the last ever Dio track recorded, and the album closes strongly enough. For the final Dio album I find this a little lacking. Of course, Ronnie had no idea he would not get to record another after this, but it is a pity that it doesn't provide a stronger, more representative example of the music Dio could produce, and as a swansong --- even if unintended --- by the band, it's a little weak. After the release of “Killing the dragon” the band went on tour, and from that tour came two live albums, a year apart. In 2005 they released “Evil or divine: live in New York City”, which pretty much essentially reproduces the tracklist on the “Inferno” live album, with the addition of a few tracks off the last album and one off “Magica”, and a few bits and pieces here and there. Evil or divine: Live in New York City --- Dio --- 2005 (Spitfire) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...EvilDivine.jpg Of far more interest was “Holy Diver live”, released the following year. On this album, the band performed the entire album “Holy diver” in sequence, and the second disc of the live set was basically taken up by mostly Rainbow and Sabbath material Ronnie recorded while with them, such as “Sign of the southern cross” and of course “Heaven and Hell” from Sabbath, as well as “Tarot woman” and “Gates of Babylon” from his Rainbow days. Holy Diver Live --- Dio --- 2006 (Eagle) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...yDiverLive.jpg At least there are no medleys with Rainbow songs this time, but you would still wonder why the only songs he took from the Black Sabbath era (or, at least, were included on the album) were those two, as there were better songs he could have chosen. Nevertheless, this basically is the last live Dio album, other than one which would be released in 2010 but recorded in the late eighties. Ronnie then linked up again with Black Sabbath members Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler, and reunited with his former Dio/Sabbath bandmate Vinny Appice once again. The four entered the studio in 2007 to work on their first project together since 1992, a compilation of the work of Ronnie with Black Sabbath. While I normally don't take note of compilations, this one is worth looking at as it features three new songs which were essentially the first ones written by the new band which would come out of this collaboration, and result in a full album and tour. |
Part VI: The last in line
Black Sabbath: the Dio years --- Black Sabbath --- 2007 (Rhino) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...SabbathDio.jpg As I say, this album is only noteworthy for its inclusion of three new tracks, featured below, and also for being the springboard for the new band, Heaven and Hell, which would emerge from these sessions. Other than that, it's a standard compilation, which I generally do not review. The devil you know --- Heaven and Hell --- 2009 (Roadrunner) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...rt_Work%29.jpg After the perhaps unexpected success of the new tracks recorded for the retrospective album, Iommi, Butler and Appice decided to broaden their project and entered the studio to record their first album, which would ultimately be not only their last, but also the last studio work Ronnie would produce before his untimely death. As the guys were still in Sabbath at the time, the new band was christened Heaven and Hell, and they released what would be their only album, “The devil you know”, to worldwide acclaim. The album starts off quite Black Sabbath-heavy, with “Atom and evil” (see what they did there?) with some fine guitar as ever from Tony Iommi, and Vinny Appice sounding happy to be back in the fold, as it were. One year before his death, Ronnie's voice sounds as strong as ever on this, his last studio recording. “Fear” takes things up a gear slighty, a bit faster, a bit more of Dio the band shining through, then “Bible black” is a nice little gentle almost acoustic intro, with some lovely soft guitar from Iommi, and Ronnie on the keyboards, but about a minute and a half in it stops pretending and reveals itself to be a heavy mid-paced rocker with the guitar cranking up several notches and the powerful drumming of Appice thundering in. Great bass intro from Geezer Butler to “Double the pain”, and it's another mid-paced rockin' headbanger, while “Rock and roll angel” is a bit more stately in its pace, but no less heavy, with a really nice little guitar solo from Iommi, and another really lovely classical guitar outro, then we're into “The turn of the screw”, which romps along nicely on hard riffing guitar and steady bass. Listening to this now, it's hard to understand or indeed accept that we're listening to a man who would be dead the following year. There's certainly no outward signs of the illness that would take Ronnie from us in just under one year. The guys all seem to be gelling well on this album too, all having a good time, and there's no indication of any discomfort or in-fighting, although original Sabbath drummer Bill Ward did turn down the invitation to participate, leaving the door open for Appice to return. “Eating the cannibals” flies along on rails of rock and metal, and is great fun, then Ronnie's ominous organ chords provide the backdrop for Iommi's snarling guitar to open “Follow the tears”, a hard rock cruncher with real bite and a very Sabbath sound. As the album approaches its end, things gets rocking in no uncertain fashion with “Neverwhere”, recalling the best of early Dio, Ronnie's voice in full flight, Iommi's guitar blazing like a comet, and the final studio song recorded and released by Ronnie James Dio is again strangely prophetic, and perhaps says a lot about his attitude to life, and even death. A very appropriate title, “Breaking into Heaven” is a heavy, pounding, grinding closer worthy of the most classic Black Sabbath, a final, defiant punch of the air with a spiked fist, almost as if Ronnie is proclaiming and promising that he won't go down easy, won't let go of life without one hell of a fight. After the tour to promote Heaven and Hell in May, Ronnie was diagnosed with stomach cancer, the treatment for which put paid to both the rest of the tour and his plans for the next Dio album, which was to be “Magica II” as well as another Heaven and Hell album intended for 2010. Ronnie fought the cancer, with his wife Wendy by his side every step of the way and well-wishers from the world of rock and heavy metal praying and hoping for his recovery, but he sadly lost his battle with the disease, two years ago today. There was one more album to be released --- well, two --- both posthumously. One was a live album recorded on the “Holy diver” and “Dream evil” tours, and was released six months after Ronnie's death. The other was a live album compiled from the Heaven and Hell tour of 2009 and released the same month, November 2010. But as these were both released after Ronnie's death I prefer not to feature them, seeing “The devil you know” as the final album to feature this remarkable musician. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ve19831987.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...htsCDcover.jpg Ronald James Padavona, whom the world had come to know and respect as Ronnie James Dio, died with his wife by his side May 16 2010 at 7:45 AM CDT at his home. At the memorial service held for him, former Dio and Black Sabbath personnel attended, with some giving performances and a video documentary chronicling Ronnie's life running on a huge video screen. On his passing, Ronnie's wife Wendy set up the Ronnie James Dio Stand Up And Shout Cancer Fund, to research a cure for this horrible malignancy that plagues the human race even in the 21st century. To date, over half a million US dollars has been raised. Like many other a rock musician gone before him, Ronnie left behind not only a legion of fans, and new bands inspired by his music, but a huge catalogue to stand testimony to his time on this Earth, including ten studio and five live albums with his own band, three with Black Sabbath and three with Rainbow, as well as three with Elf and one with Heaven and Hell. During his time he played with some of the greats, eventually rising to their level so that he could, at the end, stand proudly shoulder to shoulder with these men who had carved their own place in music history. A rocker, a singer, an innovator, a kind-hearted human being, a dreamer, a tireless worker and perfectionist, and an inspiration for generations of rockers who came after him, Ronnie James Dio certainly gave the best years of his life to rock and roll. He was one of a kind, and perhaps it is to the greatest writer the planet has produced that we should leave the final word: ”He was a man, take him for all in all. I shall not look upon his like again.” |
|
http://www.trollheart.com/dailyworm3.jpg
Following in the famous footsteps of his late father, this is Julian Lennon, with a great song entitled “Saltwater”. |
Donna Summer, 1948-2012
https://encrypted-tbn1.google.com/im...pgmluttxOPS24A Just like to add my regrets and condolences on the passing of one of disco's finest divas. Donna Summer died today after a long battle with cancer. May she rest in peace. |
|
http://www.trollheart.com/dailyworm3.jpg
The worm is also responsible for letting a day slip by without featuring his daily tune! Oh dear! Trollheart would probably fire the worm, if he did in fact pay him! Anyway, this is Texas, with a great song called “Say what you want”. Today's selection up next! |
|
http://www.trollheart.com/dailyworm3.jpg
There's something the worm likes about this weird little chart-topper from M/A/R/R/S... |
http://www.trollheart.com/meanwhile.jpg
I'm getting a new appreciation for Finland, I must say. This country has already introduced me to Human Temple and Stratovarius, and now there are two new albums I want to look at over the next few weeks. Both come from the progressive rock/metal area, and as usual I had heard of neither before I came across these albums. This is in fact the full debut of the band I want to check out here first, although they have had some EPs released prior to this. Perhaps troubling though, that having been formed in 2003, it's taken them nine years to get to the point of releasing their first album. Or maybe it's just that damn good it'll have been worth waiting for. To protect our way of living --- Fadeout --- 2012 (Secret Entertainment) http://www.metal-archives.com/images...33926.jpg?3012 So, what do I know about this band? Well, precious little --- what else is new? --- though their style is described on the website Encyclopaedia Metallum as “Groove Nu Metal”. Personally, I've never been one for sub-sub-sub-genres: I think if a genre or style is compartmentalised too much then the music tends to lose its meaning and becomes just a subset of another, larger genre. I listen to rock, I listen to metal. I listen to progressive sub-genres of each, and I know enough of my own tastes to avoid certain other sub-genres, like speed/doom/black/depressive etc. But what I've heard in the runup to this album hasn't seemed anything like any of those, and in general it's impressed me, so let's dig deeper and see what these guys are all about. Certainly doesn't start off very metal, with chingling guitar and sax, wouldya believe? The vocals of Marko Pajula are clear and distinct, no roaring, growling, and for a Finn his English is impeccable, with little or no accent, at least on opener “Solar lights”. I can understand the “groove” part of the tag all right, as there's a real tunefulness about this song, very commercial sounding and I would venture to say not really much in the way of metal at all. Mariachi-style trumpet gives the further lie to this categorisation of Fadeout as any sort of metal band, and the song romps along nicely, breaking into a run here and there but never losing its shape, with some nice tasteful guitar licks. I definitely like what I'm hearing so far. The cool, gentle, controlled sound continues into “One way track”, the vocal a little less rich, with the instrumentation a shade on the sharper side, but then filling out nicely after half a minute or so, and it's another mid-paced rocker with some really nice keys. I can hear a little more of Pajula's accent in this song, but it's still very listenable, and he has a good singing voice, almost relaxed while guitarists Ilkka Kivimaki and Topi Wiio know just when to hold back and when to come to the fore, never pushing anything but just letting the music grow and develop organically, almost as if they're not in control of their instruments, but in the best way possible. I'm definitely finding it hard to reconcile the terms of dark, depressive and doom that have been attributed to this band, but perhaps a song with a title like “Grey” will address that? Well, no. It's a little tougher, a good bit more guitar, sharper song, but in general I see nothing in the least depressive about this; a little more serious perhaps, and the keyboard playing of Teemu Salo is more progressive rock than death metal, if such a thing exists: keyboards in death metal? I don't know, as I don't listen to that sub-genre as I said, but I would be surprised. The guitar work is mostly very technical and melodic, in some ways almost Steve Hackettish, which is no bad thing at all, and the vocals are certainly top notch. I guess taking nine years to perfect your sound is time well spent in this case. If the last track can be taken as a little morose, though hardly depressive, “Shepherd and the wolf” kicks things back up a gear, with a nice uptempo guitar piece, Marko Pajula's vocal more animated in this song, and I only notice that when compared to the previous one, in which I allow that yes, he did sound a little sombre singing that. Perhaps if I delved deeper into the actual lyrics I might find a lot of soul-searching and darker themes, but as it stands I'm just enjoying the general music and sound of the band, and I certainly don't feel like they're bringing me down. This seems to come across as the first, perhaps only, love song, though I wouldn't quite call it a ballad. Beautiful guitar solo from one or other of the two guys, can't say which. The tempo is upped even more for the very radio-friendly “No more hypocrisy”, led by a really powerful keyboard line. It's quite an anthemic song, which I could see going down well once Fadeout get on the road. Some nice heavy guitar and Jussi Lahtinen finally gets a chance to cut loose on the drums, though he's quickly reined back in. Sort of reminds me a little of the Jam crossed with Lostprophets, this. Very catchy. “Puppets and dolls” starts out almost Zeplike, with a great guitar riff, then develops into a seventies prog keysfest, ripping along at a fine pace, with a big heavy chorus that again will go down well onstage. I've just found, in my noodlings around the web, that Fadeout were one of the bands who started out with a page on Soundclick.com, the very spot from where my “Treasure Chest” section is taken. Course, I've only got as far as “A”, so have well missed out their growing beyond that medium and into a proper, signed band, but even so, it shows that some great music can come from such small beginnings. As I've been trying to tell everyone. So well done, guys! “Palestine” opens on an intensive little guitar line and a passionate lonely vocal from Pajula, the guitar possibly a sitar, or made to sound like one, then sweeping keyboard chords drift in as the song rises on lovely violin. This is certainly a ballad, and there are some great female backing vocals on the song, though I can't find any credits for who sings them. The closer (already?) is a ten-minute rock stormer, where Fadeout really get to stretch themselves, the two guitarists doing their best Thin Lizzy with Marko in great voice and the whole song running into a sort of boogie groove. With the rather odd title of “Painter”, it's a great closer and considering there are only eight tracks on the album it's good that the last one is of a decent length. There's also a certain flavour of Boston in the guitar, and though halfway through and I haven't heard too much of the keyboards, I'm sure they'll be making their contribution before the song ends. Well, that's either them at the eight and a half minute mark, or the trumpet we heard at the beginning of the album, and since no brass is credited perhaps that was made on Teemu Salo's keys in the first place. And just when you feel this epic is going to fade out (hah!) they decide to end it, bringing it to a very satisfying and momentous conclusion, and taking a really surprisingly great album to its end. As I said at the beginning, I'm getting more and more impressed by what I'm hearing these days coming out of Finland, and this band definitely add to that sense. They seem to be getting big in their native country, and it can only be a matter of time surely before they break beyond the borders of Finland. Now, you know I'm going to say it, so don't complain or roll your eyes or groan. I have to say it. You understand that. Cover your ears/eyes if you want to. Here it comes. This band is in no danger whatsoever of fading out. TRACKLISTING 1. Solar lights 2. One way track 3. Grey 4. Shepherd and the wolf 5. No more hypocrisy 6. Puppets and dolls 7. Palestine 8. Painter |
|
http://www.trollheart.com/dailyworm3.jpg
Yeah well, while Stacey-Lynn is shaking her little booty to Heaven 17, the worm prefers to, well, rock! Here's Whitesnake. |
Time once again to tone down the heavier elements in heavy metal and break out the acoustic guitars, pianos and softer vocals. Yes, time once again to don the iron glove in the
http://www.trollheart.com/fist.jpg First out of the gate this time around is the US band Lillian Axe, with a track from their second album which is called “Love + war”. This is “The world stopped turning”. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...e_b%26_war.jpg Heavily classically-influenced as you would expect, this is “shred-king” Yngwie Malmsteen, from his album “The seventh sign”, and a track called “Forever one”. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...px-Seventh.JPG With my renewed respect for bands from Finland, how about Thunderstone? This is a lovely piano ballad from their second album, “The burning”, this is called “Sea of sorrow”. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...e_album%29.jpg The last album to feature Ritchie Blackmore, here's Deep Purple, from “Stormbringer”, with “Soldier of fortune”. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ormbringer.jpg And we'll wrap this up with one of my favourites, this is Bonfire, with “Give it a try”. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ks-Bonfire.JPG |
|
|
http://www.trollheart.com/blues.jpg
Although the music speaks for itself of course, it becomes a little difficult to talk about such legends as we feature here without sounding trite. Terms like “legend”, “father of the blues”, “standard” and “classic” all crop up so much that they almost lose their meaning, and the sentiments expressed here --- though meant sincerely --- become in danger of being misunderstood. So I won't write much about these selections. Better writers and far far better musicians than I have already paid much better tribute to everyone featured here, living or dead, and anything I could add would only seem crass in comparison. As Duke Ellington once said, “too much talkin' stinks up the room”. So let's open those windows and let some fresh air in... Most of us have heard “Rainy night in Georgia”, but I for one certainly didn't know it was written by a blues legend, played here by him. This is Tony Joe White, with the original, and best. Keb' Mo' may be an odd name, but there's no doubting the quality of “Am I wrong?” A great one from one of the greatest blues players, Peter Green, here with Fleetwood Mac playing “Need your love so bad”. Of course, most the artistes featured here are legends in their own right, and that's certainly true of John Mayall. This is “The supernatural”. Someone who knows all about the blues is Buddy Guy. Here he relates their first meeting... Some good advice from Johnny Winter! A legend among legends, the incomparable Muddy Waters, with “Rollin' stone”. The late, great Albert King, with “Born under a bad sign”. Then there's Elmore James, with “Every day I have the blues”. And finally, a song I first heard Rory Gallagher play, and loved, this is Sonny Boy Williamson II, with “Don't start me talkin'”. |
|
http://www.trollheart.com/dailyworm3.jpg
It's no secret we're not big fans of the Moody Blues round here, but they do have some pretty excellent songs, like this one, for instance... |
Page 65-80
Bruce Dickinson- Really enjoyed your reviews of the Bruce Dickinson albums, its been a while since I listened to any of them though, but first off they're a damn sight better than the Robert Plant and Ian Gillan discographies (which of course we already discussed:)) First off they don't suffer from either the bland hard rock or outright pop experimentation of Robert Plant's solo stuff, neither do they suffer from the out-dated jazz-fusion of Ian Gillan's solo stuff. His discography falls somewhere in-between Iron Maiden and the type of pop metal that was being put out at the time from bands like Bon Jovi and DEF Leppard and the albums I remember gradually became a bit more diverse, but never went off the rails and kept within confines of metal. All in all Bruce Dickinson was one of the best mainstream hard rock or metal frontmen that went solo. Pink Floyd- Wish You Were Here along with Darkside of the Moon are the two pearls of Pink Floyd, the songs are deep and beautiful at times, the problem is that they have been caned to death, everybody has these albums, everybody thinks they are the bee's knees, everybody thinks that to be taken seriously in music they have to love these albums, to say anything bad about the band or these albums is to be looked down upon:p: For these reasons I hardly ever listen to Pink Floyd anymore, but of course I agree they are classics. Black Sabbath- Master of Reality, well what can I say! The best metal album ever recorded! Well quite possibly and certainly in the top 10 best ever recorded. This is the most revered metal album ever recorded and along with Paranoid my favourite BS album. The obvious strengths of this album are the sludgy doom laden riffs combined with some nice quiet moments, before the whole thing is bludgeoned into oblivion! I saw that you are a fan of Vol.4 I love that album as well, so often misunderstood and under-appreciated by a lot of people, its a classic. |
|
http://www.trollheart.com/dailyworm3.jpg
Man oh man! We're having an extension built, and the worm's head is pounding! Let's have something nice and relaxing, shall we? |
|
http://www.trollheart.com/dailyworm3.jpg
With the memory of mechanical diggers still rebounding in his skull, the worm would like to continue keeping it nice an' easy, with Mr. Rod Stewart today. |
The City --- Vangelis --- 1990 (Atlantic)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...s-The_City.jpg A very strange album indeed, but one of my favourite Vangelis recordings. Apparently recorded entirely in a hotel room, “The City” puts to music and effects one day in the life of a city, lthough this city is never referred to by name, and could be any city in any country. The genericity (no half-pun intended) that runs through the normal events that take place during this album is certainly intentional: there are traffic sounds, people working in offices, people vending on the streets. It's a typical day in the life, but the life is not really the life of the people who bustle through the busy city streets, intent on their daily tasks and concentrating on their own worries and concerns, but more the living, breathing heartbeat and pulse of the city through which they wend their way. It opens, of course, on atmospheric keyboard and synth as “Dawn” is fittingly the first track, though some well-orchestrated trumpet adds a real feeling of loneliness to the piece, and there's a sense of something slowly approaching, the sun peeping over the flat line of the horizon and thrusting its first questing fingers across the sky, touching the tops of office buildings and striking little sharp reflections off windows, breathing on the rainsoaked streets and drawing thin clouds of steam into the air, where it pirouettes and gavottes gracefully before dissipating in the first blush of dawn. As the track fades out, we hear footsteps, then voices. One of them, apparently, is that of director Roman Polanski, who it seems was a friend of the composer's. As tannoy annoucements drone on in the background, he asks if the morning papers have arrived yet, a shake of the head and he instead asks for a sandwich. Fishing change out of his pocket, and taking the packet he walks away as breathy synth and bright piano carries “Morning papers” on a breezy little melody, a slow but steady beat mimicking the steps of a man as he unhurriedly walks along the street, perhaps glancing at streetlights or morning clouds, or squinting at the new morning sun. Nice sprinkling keyboards, possibly vibraphone or something similar (yeah, I know it's all on synth, but what am I going to say: nice synth backing to the synth that runs the main synth melody?) and some slow choral vocals with what sounds like birdsong, possibly evoking early morning memories, like walking through a park? One thing Vangelis is good at --- one of the many things --- is painting an impression of a subject, theme or scene with music. Here you can quite easily follow the progress of the city as it moves from dawn to early morning and on into, eventually, evening as it technically stops being a day. “Nerve centre” introduces hard rock guitar, grinding chords and more solid keyboards with a heavier beat as the day gets going properly, and people head to, or begin, their workday. There's a certain industrial sound about this, with hammer-on-steel type things, almost mechanical, definitely giving the impression of work being carried out. The tempo has been upped, but only very slightly, as the lazy morning gives way to the working day, and people set about their daily tasks. As the piece nears its climax high-voiced choral synths take over from the guitar, pushing their way to the fore as the music gets louder, more insistent and more powerful. The sound of a motorcycle engine revving and driving away (a courier?) opens “Side streets” and a mournful cello sound slows everything down after the fever pitch the preceding track reached. Stabbing, short synth chords, of the type Vangelis is well known for, punctuate the melody, with light, bongo-style percussion, then more choral synths which sound a little desperate, perhaps someone in a hurry to meet a deadline? Though nothing along the lines of Pink Floyd's “On the run”; kind of like the sound you make when you run too fast and your lungs can't quite keep up. The piece ends suddenly, and flows into “Good to see you”, which strolls along nicely on a relaxed beat with more cello or violin on the synth, as the working day snakes on, towards its close. Halfway through we hear one side of a telephone conversation as a girl --- Roman Polanski's wife, as it happens --- talks to (presumably) him, getting ready to wrap up for the day and head home. It's interesting, as the words are not too clearly enunciated, mostly laughter, single words --- “Yeah”, “No”, “Fine”, “Ah” and so forth ---- while the synthesised cello or violin (not sure which) continues its melody in the background. Very atmospheric, and very evocative. Then of course evening falls, as we move into “Twilight”, and there's more talk, though this time not in English and not on the phone, wind sounds and then piano and some nice classical guitar with synthy effects as everything slows down, people relax, pulling on coats and switching off computers and heading home. A very gentle and reflective piece to take us into “Red lights”, which pumps up the tension with thick synth and vocal effects, like a chant (well, really if I'm honest, like a chant of chipmunks or something) with stabbing chords and what sounds like maybe the trumpet from the opener, a nice bassline running through the piece, but I have to say the voices really put me off, and I think the track would have worked better without them. Some African style drums break in then, giving the thing further party/celebration atmosphere, and a lone horn takes us into the closer. Now this has always confused me. Nice cello melody, slow and stately, called “Procession”, but it is, and I know it is, almost identical to a track which appears on (indeed, closes) the Alan Parsons Project's album, “I, robot”. I know Vangelis has no need to copy or use anyone else's music, and it could be that the track the APP feature, which they call “Genesis Ch. 1 V.32”, is based on some existing melody, perhaps classical? However, I know of no such piece of music, and as their album came out in 1977 I have to assume theirs was the original. It's shown as being written by Eric Woolfson and Alan Parsons, like most of the APP's material, so no other credit can be inferred or ascribed. So did Vangelis use their track as a basis for this? I quite honestly don't know, and it has bothered me for a long long time. I'll probably never know. In truth, it's not all the same as the Alan Parsons Project tune, but the central theme of it is, and when it dovetails with “Genesis Ch. 1 V. 32” it's just too similar to assume it's a coincidence. For all that, it's a great piece, and a good closer, though what exactly it says about the city in the title of the album I'm not quite sure. Perhaps it's meant to symbolise the ceremonial setting of the sun on the day, as night covers the world. I really don't know, and without knowing I can't say how it fits into the overall theme, which is a pity, as it really leaves a lot of questions --- for me, at any rate --- unanswered, and kind of spoils the ending of the album. The first time I heard it I could not believe it, and almost expected to see a credit for Woolfson/Parsons, but no, all music on this album is said to be composed by Vangelis, as is usually, perhaps always the case. As a mini-concept, “The City” works really well, despite the above. You can really trace the day from its merest beginnings right through and out the other side, to the falling of evening and finally night. And as “Procession” fades away in the distance, the natural conclusion that this is cyclical, of course, and tomorrow the whole thing will begin again, is confirmed as we again hear Polanski's footsteps approach out of the new morning, in quest of again the morning newspapers. Life, in all its little innumerable and often banal facets, goes on, and on, and on. TRACKLISTING 1. Dawn 2. Morning papers 3. Nerve centre 4. Side streets 5. Good to see you 6. Twilight 7. Red lights 8. Procession |
Robin Gibb (1949 - 2012)
https://encrypted-tbn3.google.com/im...BHSDfUynyQBPaZ This has been a bad month for music. First we lose Donna Summer, then in almost the same week Robin Gibb loses his battle with cancer. The second of the Bee Gees (third, if you count the other brother Andy, who wasn't in the group) to die, he leaves the original trio a lonely man now. The Playlist of Life offers its sympathies to Barry. Another legend has passed, may he rest in peace. |
|
http://www.trollheart.com/dailyworm3.jpg
Clever song by Billy Joel, almost rap-like in its quickfire rhyming delivery, this is “We didn't start the fire”. No, it was them over there, officer... |
http://www.trollheart.com/lest.jpg
Yeah, it's that time of the month again, when mods go screaming, running for shelter and those who have sworn off the bottle nervously eye the fridge as another glut of YouTubes heads their way! Time once again to honour and namecheck those who have gone before us into the Great Unknown; those who were associated with the music industry, whether as performers, composers, producers, entertainers or even those who operated in a more behind-the-scenes capacity. Concentrating on the more well known, and loved, these are the people who passed in May down the years. We wish them all eternal rest and hope they received their reward, having left so much joy and beauty to mark their time on this earth. The plaudits, as ever, go to BITTER SUITE BAND: official website! for their Herculean work in compiling a list which would otherwise have taken much longer, and a lot more effort. Please note: if someone you know/like is missing from this list, don't take offence, because as I've already explained it's next to impossible to feature every music performer or person connected with the music biz who died in a particular month, and I usually choose the names I see as the most famous, influential or deserving of being here. The people who I know, know of, and whose contribution to music I recognise. This does not mean that anyone left out is not rated by me, but I have to draw the line somewhere. Also, for the first time since I began doing this I seem to have overrun the character count, so I'm now going to have to split this up into two sections. Section 1 will cover the first two weeks of the month, with the last two following. Aram Khachaturian (1903-1978) Armenian composer who is best remembered for his stately adagio from the opera “Spartacus”, which was used as the theme music for the BBC drama series “The Onedin Line”, and has forever become identified with that programme. Khachaturian also composed the well-known “Sabre dance” from another of his operas, “Gayane”, and again the adagio from this was later used in the seminal science-fiction movie, “2001: A space odyssey”. Denounced by the Communist Party in 1948 with Shostakovich and Prokofiev as composing music that was seen as “anti-popular” and “formalist”, he was forced, with his fellow composers, to publicy apologise, though his heart was not in the apology. He died, May 1 1978, a few days short of his seventy-fifth birthday. Big Hawk (1969-2006) One of the founding members of DJ Screw's Screwed Up Click (SUC), Big Hawk was born John Edward Hawkins and helped form the group DEA as well as the independent rapper label Dead End Records. He played with people like Lil' Keke, Lil' Flip, Fat Pat (his brother) and Mike D. He died of gunshot wounds, May 1 2006. Adam Yauch (1964-2012) American rapper and famed member of the Beastie Boys, Adam was known as MCA within the group. He also played bass and directed many of their music videos, being a talented film director. A Buddhist, he was involved in the struggle for Tibetan independence, and was a firm supporter of other human rights movements. He died of cancer, less than three weeks ago, May 4. Marlene Dietrich (1901- 1992) With Dame Vera Lynne, one of the most instantly recognisable of the World War II entertainers, Marlene was born in Germany but became a US citizen in 1939, just as the war broke out. She starred in many Hollywood films, and toured the front lines entertaining the troops. She was a cabaret singer, an actor, a dancer and a chorus girl. She died in her sleep of natural causes, aged ninety-one, May 6 1992. Eddie Rabbit (1941-1998) One of the original country crossover artists, Eddie's songs can be heard on the Clint Eastwood movie “Every which way but loose”, for which he composed the title track, and the soap opera “Days of our lives”. He duetted with Crystal Gayle and Juice Newton, and had over twenty number one country hits, including one that crossed right over and hopped into the number one spot on the Billboard charts, “I love a rainy night”. Eddie died of lung cancer, May 7 1998. John Walker (1943-2011) Born John Joseph Maus, he found fame as part of the Walker Brothers, who had huge hits with “The sun ain't gonna shine anymore”, “No regrets” and “Make it easy on yourself”. John died of liver cancer May 7 last year. Graham Bond (1937-1974) One of the hugely influential figures in British blues music, Graham was responsible for launching the careers of two men who could go on to become Cream alumni, and massive stars in their own right, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker, when he recruited both to become part of his band, the Graham Bond Organisation. Bond's death is a matter for speculation: he died after falling under a train, but was it suicide, an accident, or possibly murder? We will probably never know, but the event that brought to a tragic and untimely end the illustrious career of this talented keyboard player occurred May 8, 1974. Neil Bogart (1943-1982) Born Neil E. Bogatz, he was credited with the rise of bubblegum pop in the seventies. A record producer, he had albums dedicated to him from both Kiss and Donna Summer. He died of cancer May 8 1982. Bob Marley (1945-1981) Without question the most famous and loved reggae star, even those who aren't fans of his music know his songs, these having been covered by, most famously, Eric Clapton who scored a hit and classic with “I shot the sheriff.” But songs like “No woman no cry”, “Jamming'” and “Three little birds” are forever etched into the musical consciousness of humanity, and there are few people who would not know that Bob Marley and the Wailers were the biggest and most successful reggae artistes ever, bringing reggae music and the identity of their native Jamaica, along with the idea of rastafarianism, to a worldwide audience. Bob died of brain and lung cancer, May 11 1981. Perry Como (1912-2001) Born Pierino Ronaldo “Perry” Como, he was the first and most successful person to have a combined singing and television career, his TV show setting the standard for shows which would follow, where a popular singer would sing, chat with guests, and often engage in the odd whimsical sketch. In the end, he had so many gold records that he refused to allow further ones to be certified, even when they had reached or indeed exceeded the requisite sales numbers. He had huge hits with songs like “For the good times”, “Catch a falling star”, “Magic moments” and “And I love you so”. He received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002, a year after his death and five years after that was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame. Perry died in his sleep, May 12 2001. Donald “Duck” Dunn (1941-2012) A legend who only died this year, Donald found fame playing bass with Booker T. and the MGs, and played with everyone from Muddy Waters to Eric Clapton, Stevie Nicks to Rod Stewart, and even played with the legendary Blues Brothers, playing himself in the cult movie. His distinctive basslines featured in classics like Otis Redding's “Respect” and Albert King's “Born under a bad sign”. Donald died in his sleep, having completed a gig in Tokyo last week, May 13. Frank Sinatra (1915-1998) The Chairman. Old Blue Eyes. Leader of the Rat Pack. Who doesn't know Frankie? No matter who you are, where you live, or what age you are, you've heard and enjoyed his music, even if it was only at the end of a disco, when “New York, New York” was played and danced to drunkenly, with everyone getting the words wrong. A supremely talented singer, actor and promoter, Sinatra won eleven Grammys, including three very special awards: The Grammy Trustees, Life Achievement and Legend awards. He starred in over twenty movies, winning awards for some, and had recorded almost sixty albums at the time of his death. He was also linked (though never proven) to the Mafia and organised crime. His many, many hits include songs such as “Come fly with me”, “You make me feel so young”, “Strangers in the night”, the seminal and often-covered “My way”, as well as of course “New York, New York” and literally dozens more. Sinatra suffered from violent depression during his life, and died of a heart attack, May 14 1998 which was the end result of his suffering from kidney and heart disease, as well as bladder cancer and dementia. |
Django Reinhardt (1910-1953)
Jean-Baptiste “Django” Reinhardt was one of the first guitarists to push the guitar front and centre, raising it from the level of a rhythm instrument to a solo one. Brought up in a gypsy caravan in Belgium, he was a true gypsy jazz guitarist. Having lost the use of two of his fingers in an accident when young, Django compensated in much the same way as one of the men who would later cite him as an influence, Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath, did, by adapting his sound to make the loss of the fingers no impediment to his playing, and thus developing a unique style. Even the acknowledged greatest guitarist of the twentieth century, Jimi Hendrix, revered him and named his band in his honour. Django also played with renowned jazz violinist Stephane Grappelli in the Hot Club Quintet, which travelled France playing American jazz. Django died of a brain haemorrhage May 16 1953. Sammy Davis Jr. (1925-1990) Another member of the Rat Pack, Sammy was a dancer, singer, comedian and played many instruments, but due to his colour he could perform but not stay at the hotels where he played. After his superstardom outweighed the racial antagonism shown towards him and his people, he refused to play at places that practiced racial segregation, and was eventually instrumental in helping to bring an end to this practice. He has won many awards, mostly for his film career, which spanned over 35 movies. He died of throat cancer, May 16 1990. Ronnie James Dio (1942-2010) As we have already extensively covered the career of Ronald James Padavona this month in a “Rock and roll I gave you the best years of my life” special, we'll keep this short, and just state that the world of rock and roll and heavy metal lost a true gentleman and a massive talent when Ronnie died of cancer May 17 2010. (Check out my special http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ml#post1189511here) Johnny “Guitar” Watson (1935-1996) One of the most influential figures in blues music, Johnny almost single-handedly invented the idea of using feedback and reverb to enhance the sound of the guitar, and played with all the greats, including Albert King, Sam Cooke, Little Richard and George Duke. As blues became less popular and soul music began its ascension in the sixties, Johnny moved with the times and became almost as important a figure in soul as he had been in blues. He died onstage, May 17 1996 of a heart attack. Bruce Fairbairn (1949-1999) Record producer most famous for his work on Bon Jovi's breakthrough album “Slippery when wet”, he also worked with names like AC/DC, Kiss and Aerosmith. Canadian born, he was considered one of the best producers of his era. He died May 17 1999. Donna Summer (1948-2012) Another star lost to us only this year, Donna was born LaDonna Adrian Gaines, and became a huge force in the world of disco music, working with the likes of Georgio Moroder and Barbara Streisand, and having a string of disco hits, many of which have been covered by other artistes. She was the undisputed queen of disco, and became a gay icon, amassing a host of awards, including five Grammys. Donna was so universally liked, and will be so missed, that even US president Barack Obama paid tribute to her on the event of her passing. Donna died last week, May 17 2012, of lung cancer. She was not a smoker, and believed (though this is as yet unsupported) that she had contracted the disease by inhaling toxic particles after the Twin Towers attack in New York on September 11 2001. Gustav Mahler (1860-1910) Composer and conductor, Mahler was born in Austria but his music has reached beyond national boundaries and indeed those of time itself, his compositions still played and enjoyed today, over a hundred years after his death. Frequently linked with the film “Death in Venice”, many have come to believe this was based upon his life, but it was not: though the main character is a composer and Mahler's music is used in the film, the protagonist is fictional. Mahler died of bacterial endocartitis, May 18 1910. Ian Curtis (1956-1980) Vocalist and lyricist with Joy Division, he was one of the founders of that band, and despite an awkward and reserved manner gained popularity with them, particularly for his odd style of dancing. He committed suicide May 18 1980. Camoflauge (1981-2003) Born Jason Johnson, he was a rapper who found his first success with the band Crime Affiliates, and later his own solo album sold so well that he was offered a recording contract with Universal Music Group (UMG), but this offer was retracted when he was arrested for possession. Although he was acquitted, the label decided not to pursue their interest in him. He was shot to death May 19 2003. Robin Gibb (1947-2012) The most recent death in music, and a sad progression of the tragedy that has struck the famous Gibb family, Robin is the third of four brothers to leave us, his older brother Maurice having died in 2003, while his younger sibling, not in the Bee Gees but also a music performer, had passed in 1998. The Bee Gees made their name in the world of pop and disco music, their career stretching back as far as the early sixties, though their first number one did not come until 1967. After that, they had major success through the sixties though that petered out around the turn of the seventies. After they recorded the soundtrack to the movie “Saturday night fever”, however, they were again in vogue and enjoyed huge chart success through the seventies and into the eighties. One of the most recognisable voices of a generation, with his two brothers, Robin died on Sunday last, May 20 2012, reducing the surviving Bee Gees to a solitary brother. Tommy Eyre (1949-2001) Keyboard player who played with everyone from Gerry Rafferty to Gary Moore and BB King to, er, Wham! A session player highly in demand for his talents, he appeared on such hit singles as “With a little help from my friends” by Joe Cocker and “Baker Street”. He died of cancer, May 23 2001. Elmore James (1918-1963) Legendary blues guitarist who was an influence on a host of future legends, including Hendrix, Clapton, Zappa and the Fab Four. He pioneered the use of loud amplified slide guitar and played with fellow legends Sonny Boy Williamson and Robert Johnson. He died of his third heart attack, May 24 1963. Duke Ellington (1899-1974) One of the most important and revered figures in jazz, he played with some of the greats of the era in his band, including Cootie Williams and John Hodges. A piano player par excellence, he composed most of the material his jazz band performed, and is credited with bringing what was known as the “Spanish tinge” to big band jazz. He won a total of thirteen Grammy awards, four of which were posthumous, and was one of the only jazz musicians to feature on the cover of the magazine “Time”, sharing that honour with fellow legends Louis Armstrong, Wynton Marsalis, Thelonius Monk and Dave Brubeck. He died of cancer, May 24 1974. Sonny Boy Williamson II (1899? 1912? 1908? - 1965) The confusion above is due to the fact that Sonny Boy, born Aleck Miller, claimed to have been born in 1899, but census records purport to show the date as 1912, while on his tombstone the year 1908 is carved. What can't be disputed is that he was a giant among blues harmonica players, a huge figure who transformed music with his sense of timing and rhythm, and was a massive influence on generations to come. Although his publicist stole the name Sonny Boy from another blues musician, John Lee “Sonny Boy” Williamson, who was popular at the time in an attempt to cash in on the original's fame, Sonny Boy II would claim he was the first to use the name. At least the date of his birth is not in any dispute, and cancer took him, May 25 1965. Desmond Dekker (1941-2006) Before the rise of Bob Marley completely eclipsed him, Desmond Adolphus Dacres, who took the surname Dekker, was one of Jamaica's most important and well-known reggae musicians, scoring an international hit with “Israelites”, though his fame faded in the mid-eighties and he was declared bankrupt, enjoying something of a resurgence when the song was used in an advertisement and then working with the Specials in 1992. He died of cancer, May 25 2006. The Yodelling Cowboy (1899-1933) Born Jimmie Rodgers, he was the first true country music superstar, and one of the very first to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. He played guitar, banjo and of course sung in that yodelling style that had been popular in Alpine countries like Austria and Switzerland for centuries. He died of a lung haemorrhage brought on by tuberculosis, May 26 1933. Niccolo Paganini (1782-1840) Acknowledged as one of the finest and most technically proficient violinists ever to grace this planet, to the extent that some believed he was in league with the Devil, Paganini explored techniques few if any others in his field would even consider, never mind attempt. He was also an inveterate gambler and ladies' man, but it was clear that if Satan was on his side, he was certainly not helping him financially, as an attempt to set up a casino in later life bankrupted him. Due however to these perceived associations with dark powers, it was some thirty-six years after his death from cancer of the larynx before the pope of the time would allow his body to be interred in consecrated ground. Gil Scott-Heron (1949-2011) Seen as the “father of rap music”, Gilbert “Gil” Scott-Heron was one of the first popular spoken word performers, his material heavily influenced by social, topical and political issues of the time. Every generation of rappers and hip-hop musicians cites him as an influence, and owes a lot to his pioneering style. As a musician he played a mixture of jazz fusion, soul and blues with his compatriot, Brian Jackson. Although the cause of his death has never been recorded, he was HIV-positive and had been hospitalised before with pneumonia. He died May 27, almost a year ago today. Jeff Buckley (1966-1997) Guitarist, singer and composer, he became and remains a huge influence on many of today's rock stars, most citing him. His most famous --- and covered to death --- hit was itself a cover of Leonard Cohen's “Hallelujah”, but only became a hit after his death. He looked set to have a glittering career when his debut album “Grace” was lauded by critics, but it turned out to be his only studio album, as he drowned before completing his second on May 29 1997. Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) One of the giants of classical music, he was especially known for his chamber music and his symphonies, though he may never have been set on the right track, as he was originally supposed to be a priest. Discovered in a Viennese choir at age eight, he learned violin and piano, and went on to become one of the most important figures of his era. He died May 31 1809 after a long illness. Danny La Rue (1927-2009) The most famous female impersonator ever, Danny was born Daniel Patrick Carroll and was highly honoured with many awards for his services to entertainment. He even had a hit single of a sort in 1968, and was a regular at variety performances at the likes of the London Palladium. He died of prostate cancer, May 31 2009. |
| All times are GMT -6. The time now is 09:35 AM. |
© 2003-2025 Advameg, Inc.