And I’ve always thought that Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath shared a connection musically but I’ve never verbalized it or wrote about it.
The viewpoint came from a 1995 documentary called “History Of Rock and Roll”, which has Ozzy recalling how “Led Zeppelin I” had a huge impact on him and his bandmates.
Let’s see what kind of impact.
DAZED AND CONFUSED (1969) vs PARANOID (1970)
The authorship of “Dazed and Confused” is heavily disputed and there are various pages out there specifying who wrote what and when.
But, for the sake of this post I will focus on the Led Zeppelin version.
There is a section in “Dazed and Confused” at the 5.02 mark that sounds very similar to the Intro in “Paranoid”.
COMMUNICATION BREAKDOWN (1969) vs PARANOID (1970)
Then the verse riff in “Paranoid” has a running E pedal point played over an E5 power chord for two bars, then a D5 power chord for the third bar and the fourth bar ends with three chords G, D and E at the end.
“Communication Breakdown” has a running E pedal point playing for one bar with three chords of D to A to D played in the second bar.
The similarities here are evident. In the way the three chords are played at the end of each bar and the running E note.
It’s basically musicians influencing each other.
But if the entities who hold the Copyrights to Marvin Gaye’s music had a hold of these rights, then there would be litigation everywhere.
HEARTBREAKER (1969) vs THE WIZARD (1970) and IRON MAN (1970)
These ones are a bit different sonically but they all have a common element, which is the Minor to Major transition.
For example, if it was in the key of E minor, it would be an Em to G transition. If the key was in A minor, it would be Am to C transition.
It’s a common element and a building block for creating but I’m sure if the rights of these songs landed with the heirs of Marvin Gaye there would be a lawsuit.
Bonus – SUNSHINE OF YOUR LOVE (1967) vs NIB (1970)
Check it out and let me know.
The same elements here are also heard in the song “Cocaine” which came out in 1976.
“Sweet Elyse” was released on the solo album, “Back Where I Belong” in 1992 on Polydor. Tony Martin decided to do a solo album when his Black Sabbath project was doing its “Dehumanizer/Dio” project.
Production was done by Nick Tauber, who is best know for his work with Thin Lizzy and Marillion.
The album is not on Spotify, which irks me. But YouTube has a lot of uploads from fans, who call Tony Martin the best Sabbath vocalist ever.
And “Back Where I Belong” is not available anywhere to buy these days, unless someone’s selling a second hand copy.
The reason why it’s not available are varied. When Martin rejoined Black Sabbath, Polydor deleted the album from their catalogue and took it off the shelves.
And somehow his manager at the time owns the entire rights to this album, which gets me thinking “how the hell did the manager pull that off” and “how is Copyright protecting the artist at this moment to give the artist an incentive to create”.
But I have seen interviews and posts where Martin mentions how he wants this album re-released and the label Battlegod Productions, which is the label for his solo album “Thorns”, is in negotiations for it.
The track burns from the start and it reminds me of songs like “Highway Star”, “Burn” and “Speed King” from Deep Purple.
And I like the familiarity.
The session line up for the song is also impressive.
Nigel Glockler from Saxon pounds those drums and Neil Murray from Whitesnake is the master of the groove.
Tony Martin also shows off his guitar prowess as he, Paul Wright and Carlo Fragnito play the rhythm guitars with Richard Cottle on the keys.
There are also demos floating around the internet of this album which has Tony Martin playing all the guitars.
For the solo, Adrian Dawson brings out his Blackmore influences. And it’s excellent.
When John Kalodner met with him in 1987, Kalodner had two propositions; one was to replace all the Dutch members of the Vandenberg band with American musicians and the other was for Vandenberg to join Whitesnake.
Morally Adrian Vandenberg couldn’t do that to his Vandenberg members and he also couldn’t pass up on a position to work with a vocalist like David Coverdale.
So he chose Whitesnake.
But when he tried to resurrect Vandenberg circa 2014/15, those Dutch 80s members didn’t have the same moral conviction as Adrian did and they took him to court so he couldn’t use his own surname anymore.
Six lawsuits later and a lot of money spent, Vandenberg was allowed to use his surname again.
But while all of the lawsuits were happening, Vandenberg’s Moonkings was created and they released three albums.
Then Vandenberg returned, dropping the excellent 2020 album with former Rainbow vocalist Ronnie Romero on vocals, Rudy Sarzo on bass, and Brian Tichy on drums.
And here we are in 2023, with another excellent album called “Sin”. This time around Adrian is joined by vocalist Mats Levén, drummer Koen Herfst and bassist Randy Van Der Elsen and the album is produced by Bob Marlette.
How cool is the cover art?
Once again, created by Adrian, he wanted to show an actual destination for the flying sharks who made their appearance on the “Heading For A Storm” album.
Instead of flying over a road in the desert, they are now flying into New York, the city of sin.
Thunder And Lightning
This is a person writing songs for the love of it. No pressure to write hits and no pressure to conform.
For those who grew up in an era of driving with the window down and cranking the music from the stereo, well this song is perfect for it.
Vocally, Mats Leven is channeling David Coverdale. Musically the song channels the spirit of Eddie Van Halen and the Euro blues rock of Michael and Rudolf Schenker.
Stick around for the guitar solo.
House On Fire
Heavy palm muted arpeggios start it all off with Leven singing in a low bass/baritone. Then it goes into a sleaze like riff.
This is a straight ahead rock and no one is doing it better in 2023 than Adrian Vandenberg.
Sin
This sounds so good. Vandenberg rewrote “Judgement Day” and I like it?
Then again “Judgement Day” is heavily based on “Kashmir”. And I still like it.
Alot of legacy artists keep saying “what is the point in writing new music as no one cares about it”. Tell that to Vandenberg.
Light It Up
Love the swagger on this.
Walking On Water
Ooh, that guitar intro and the vocal. Very 70s Free like.
And stick around for another masterful guitar solo.
Burning Skies
The album keeps going, sounding different from cut to cut. Like “Back In Black”. This one feels like a classic Scorpions cut.
Hit The Ground Running
It’s all about the vocal.
This one has Leven channeling Coverdale and the groove sits nicely on your lap.
Baby You’ve Changed
It’s intimate.
A ballad that rolls along like “Is This Love” and “The Deeper The Love”. But it’s not a copycat.
Out Of The Shadows
The arpeggio riff in the Intro reminds me of Coverdale/Page and their song, “Whisper A Prayer For The Dying” but the song is nothing like that.
It’s got this classic 70s Rainbow Dio era vibe and I like it.
It’s just 9 songs clocking in at 41 minutes. Like old school albums, pre CD.
Mats Leven is one hell of a vocalist. A journeyman like so many other vocalists from the late eighties and early nineties.
He came to my attention with the band Swedish Erotica in 1989.
He has then performed (just to name a few) with Treat, Yngwie Malmsteen, Candlemass, At Vance, Firewind, Trans Siberian Orchestra and Therion.
By doing so and picking up whatever work he could get, he found a way to survive the wastelands of the 90s and early 2000’s which were not very kind to hard rock vocalists. Jeff Scott Soto and Johnny Gioeli are two others that come to mind.
Finally, Adrian Vandenberg is 69. He still rocks as hard as he did when he was 29. He hasn’t mellowed out at all. He’s actually gotten heavier and he is free to write the music that he wants to write.
If you want to read my review of Vandenberg’s recorded output up to a certain point in time (it was up to 2014 and the first Vandenberg Moonkings album), you can read it here.
Disaster. That’s how the American magazines described this album.
Released in 1985, the album never stood a chance.
It was fighting for our attention along with a lot of other things.
Like.
The trilogy of Mutt Lange albums were outselling everything else AC/DC put out during this period.
The Sunset Strip gave the charts and MTV a major shake up and sales followed.
The British had invaded the U.S again with Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, a solo Ozzy Osbourne and Def Leppard cementing themselves as arena acts.
The Germans also invaded via a hurricane called The Scorpions.
And finally an underground Speed Metal scene in San Francisco was slowly taking over the U.S.
But in Australia we remained true. Never wavering. And we made it triple platinum.
But let’s go back in time.
The success of “Back In Black” in 1980 showed the labels that their was an appetite for hard rock music. And the labels wanted more of the same.
So it’s no surprise that by 1985, most of the label rosters had a lot of “hard rockers” on the books. But these rockers wore everything that wasn’t denim and their hair kept hair dressers employed for decades.
Even acts from the 70’s started to participate in this new look so they could remain relevant. But AC/DC didn’t change. They stuck true to their denims and Angus still wore the schoolboy outfit.
And the critics found them irrelevant while they still sold out arenas.
Fly On The Wall
The music is infectious and the vocals indecipherable.
Sign me up.
Shake Your Foundations
It was the only song that got a pass back in the day.
How good is that intro and the Chorus is iconic?
Plus it got decent radio play in Australia.
First Blood
Musically, it’s typical of AC/DC.
Lyrically, Brian Johnson is indecipherable and hard to understand.
Danger
“Come Together” comes to mind when I hear this.
“Here come old flat top” is what my ears are expecting when the song begins.
It’s no surprise that the Young brothers are referencing Chuck Berry here as his fingerprints are all over the riffs the Young’s write.
Sink The Pink
The music clip comes to mind here.
Seeing the band playing in a pub/bar again and that pesky fly from the cover getting a hard on (via its nose going from limp to hard) when a women dressed in pink enters the pub.
But it’s the music that seals the deal and Brian Johnson sounds better in the video than the recording.
I like the musical reference to “For Those About To Rock” and The Who’s “Won’t Get Fooled Again”. So I was hooked.
“Sink the pink, it’s all the fashion”
It has so meaning meanings.
The Urban Dictionary tells us, sink the pink means to “have sexual intercourse with a virgin, and to pop her cherry”.
But the Urban Dictionary didn’t exist in 1985 and my young impressionable brain saw it as a song about drugs.
And thanks to the Internet, I believe it is.
Welcanol was known during the eighties as the South African Heroin (Pink Heroin). It could be obtained via a Doctor prescription and it came as a pink tablet.
So before OxyContin there was Pink Heroin.
“Drink the drink it’s old fashioned”
I’ll take an old fashioned drink any day.
Playing With Girls
I love the music and the groove here.
But I hate the title and the fact that Johnson is mixed low and indecipherable.
Definitely a missed opportunity here.
Stand Up
I like this song. It’s defiant and it rocks.
If you just listen to the Chorus you would think it’s about standing up and facing the world, but when you read the lines in context with the verses, well, it has a different meaning.
Hell Or High Water
A 4/4 groove and we are off.
But it’s pointless as Johnson is buried in the mix and the song is ruined.
Back In Business
A deep cut. It reminds me of ZZ Top and I like it.
Send For The Man
Musically it rocks but the buried Johnson chainsaw like vocals ruin it.
It’s not a perfect album, then again most of the albums released in 1985 are far from perfect. In other words, the era of more filler than killer was well and truly in motion.
But I would say, it’s an underrated album from a band that enjoys doing their thing without over obsessing about it.
The U.S tour had controversy. It all took place underneath the censorship discussions concerning rock music. Religious groups tried to ban certain shows while city officials wanted to rate each show and give the shows a movie style rating, which would then exclude fans from going. Fire officials would also get in on the act and limit or stop any pyrotechnics.
But the band went on.
In the vinyl album sleeve of the “Fly On The Wall” re-release from 2020, Angus sums up the tour like this;
“This tour’s a little like a series of wrestling matches with the loonies. But what’s the fun of life without an occasional tussle”.
All at once in 2004, Dream Theater dropped three bootlegs under the sub headings of DEMO, COVER and LIVE.
The DEMO release was reviewed here, and it covered the “When Dream And Day Unite” period between 1987 and 1989.
The COVER release is their play through from start to finish of the “Master Of Puppets” album and will be reviewed next.
This review is on the LIVE release and as I’m writing this review it has not been re-released as part of the Inside Out re-releases/new releases.
So all we have at the moment is the Ytse Jam Records release.
The full 2 hours and 20 minutes, recorded live on the run of shows used to promote the “A Change Of Seasons” EP.
This is from October 28th, 1995 at NHL Hall, Tokyo, Japan.
The band is John Petrucci on guitars, Mike Portnoy on drums, John Myung on bass, James LaBrie on vocals and Derek Sherinian on keys.
Intro
There is a tape intro that goes for about 1 minute. It’s got a clock ticking and the sad piano lines from “Space Dye Vest” are played.
Then there is a voice over, some backwards sound effects and the octave notes from “Under A Glass Moon” kick in.
Under A Glass Moon
I like the surrealist title.
The verse riff on this song with the keys playing Chords over it. Perfection.
Stick around for the solo as it’s one of Petrucci’s best.
The Mirror
It’s a heavy song with Petrucci deploying the 7-string. Its intricate arrangements and dynamic shifts are interesting.
Lie
It goes together with “The Mirror” as some musical sections appear in both songs. This was a single from the “Awake” album, however it didn’t have the same success as “Pull Me Under” from the album previously.
The mix of heavy riffs and melodic moments, highlights their versatility.
Petrucci as usual delivers a few killer solo sections.
Lifting Shadows Off A Dream
It starts off like a slow jazz blues fusion jam before it goes into the well recognized bass intro.
It feels like a cross between U2, ballad like Marillion and 80s synth Rush.
Instrumental Medley
You get to hear “The Rover” from Led Zeppelin, “Killers” from Iron Maiden, “Damage Inc.” from Metallica, “In The Flesh” from Pink Floyd and “Heart Of The Sunrise” from Yes.
Press play to hear the way they fuse all these different songs into one cohesive track.
Innocence Faded
It’s in a major key. While it rocks it does have pop sensibilities.
But it’s the outro that you should listen to.
Because if you worship at the altar of guitar gods then the outro is for you. Even James LaBrie screams “John Petrucci” when it starts.
If you can’t find this track, then any other official live version or even the studio cut will suffice.
A Change Of Seasons
You get the full 23 minutes.
The way this piece is written is that each part can be played separately in the set list amongst other songs or it can be played as one song, like it is here.
And like all multi-part epics, it serves as the grand centerpiece of the show, displaying their songwriting prowess and technical skills in a live setting.
Lost Without You
“Lost Without You” was officially released in 2005 on John Petrucci’s solo album “Suspended Animation”.
But here it is, live in 1995.
Its an intimate and introspective moment within the setlist, very blues/jazz fusion like and I’m all in.
Petrucci nails it and the emotion drips from the strings.
Surrounded
The “Images And Words” album is all killer.
And this song is largely out of the conversation, however the band does a stellar job playing tracks from the back catalogue in the live setting.
After the piano intro and verses, the song picks up. Listen to how Petrucci decorates.
Derek Sherinian Keyboard Solo
I’m not a huge fan of solos in concert like this, but this one actually rocked and kept me interested.
It was a mixture of ragtime, blues, classical and cinematic/video game like music.
Erotomania
Mike Portnoy takes over the middle of the song with a drum solo.
But at least they go back into the song and to one of my favorite instrumental sections.
Voices
This is another song that seems like it’s out of the conversation when it comes to Dream Theater songs.
But it’s a classic
The Chorus is arena rock.
And that solo is what guitar heroes are made of.
The Silent Man
It’s a great acoustic song.
And they bring the 70s Classic Rock vibes (which is known as Country Rock these days) to it live.
Pull Me Under
Closing the main set with their most recognizable hit, leaves the audience energized.
The 1st Encore begins with a cover.
Perfect Strangers (Deep Purple cover):
The Deep Purple cover sounds like it came from the minds of Dream Theater.
You can hear the fun in the music and they definitely jam it out.
The 2nd Encore begins with the last two tracks of the “Images And Words” album. And for a 1995 set list it’s perfect.
Wait For Sleep (Acoustic version)
An acoustic version of “Wait For Sleep” is excellent.
Learning To Live
The grand finale. The whole song is a masterpiece.
And then that outro section. Wow.
In summary, its raw as a bootleg should be.
The setlist is diverse and it showcases their instrumental virtuosity and ability to navigate complex musical compositions.
There are mistakes and pitch issues but hey, if I wanted the studio recordings I would play them.
The inclusion of covers and acoustic moments also adds depth to the overall concert experience.
They got some traction with the single “Don’t Tell Me You Love Me” from the “Dawn Patrol” album in 1982. The future looked bright.
Then their record label “Boardwalk” went under.
But they had a believer in former Boardwalk vice-president Bruce Bird, who organised a deal with Irving Azoff to sign the group to MCA. Night Ranger would be the first signing to Bird’s new imprint under MCA, Camel Records Inc.
“Midnight Madness” came out in 1983. Check out the ages of the guys in the band.
Jack Blades is 29, Brad Gillis is 26, Jeff Watson is 27, Kelly Keagy is 31 and Alan Fitzgerald is 34. These are seasoned pros, who have paid their dues in other bands since the start of the Seventies.
And in 1983, fame came to them in the form of music television.
MTV would turn regional club acts into arena acts instantly on the back of a song, and “Sister Christian” along with “(You Can Still) Rock In America” became the songs that launched Night Ranger across North America.
While the album has alot of good songs my favorite is the first song on Side 2.
“Touch of Madness” is written by Jack Blades.
The eerie music box gets your attention immediately.
Then a heavily palm muted arpeggio single note riff kicks in before, all hell breaks loose with the blues slide rock riff from the 19 second mark.
The playing is excellent.
At the 42 second mark, the verse groove comes in. It’s groove Rock and Kelly Keagy thunders on the kit.
Blades delivers a stellar vocal,
The lyrics suggest a feeling of being drawn to someone who has a captivating and mysterious quality.
She say “I get high when I want to Don’t ya think you need it too” I need a touch, I need a touch of madness
All of the religious leaders in the 80’s got it right, that the youth of the world had been seduced by the devil’s music. We liked to get high when we wanted to and Mister Juana was a favourite.
The “touch of madness” is the irresistible allure of someone’s unpredictable and exciting nature.
I need a touch, a touch of madness
The lead break is Randy Rhoads-esque. Building on a simple motif and embellishing it with fast scalar runs.
I like how you get another verse, pre and chorus after the solo section. It’s the reason why it clocks in at 5 plus minutes.
All the music here has been released before circa 2003 when the band remastered their albums on their own Motley Records label.
But let me highlight how many issues of the album they have done recently.
In 2022, they released a Limited Edition, Reissue, Black/Clear Split Vinyl edition.The music on this edition was just the normal album.
In 2018, they released a Limited Edition, Reissue, Remastered, Clear With Red Swirl Vinyl Edition. The music on this edition was just the normal album.
In 2016, they released a Limited Edition, Reissue, Remastered, Red With Black Swirl, 180g Vinyl edition. The music on this edition was just the normal album.
In 2011, they released a Limited Edition, Reissue, Remastered, Mini Vinyl Replica edition. The music on this edition was just the normal album.
Again in 2011, they also released a Reissue, 180g, Gatefold edition. And again, the music on this edition was just the normal album.
Between 2003 and 2023, they also released various CD versions of the album with wording like, HDCD, Club Edition, Limited Edition, Enhanced, Reissue, Remastered and SHM-CD (for Japanese Releases). Apart from the 2003 edition, it’s been the same album re-released.
But, it’s selling for $370AUD. It looks like a nice collectors piece and if you don’t have this album, you’ll be thinking “why not”, but at that price I would have expected something to be included that hasn’t been released as yet.
Take a cue from Mr Coverdale, who puts the effort in with his evolution compositions, different jams/rehearsals of the songs and live recordings.
STEVE JOBS
At 12 years old Jobs called Bill Hewlett (the co-founder of Hewlett-Packard) to ask for spare computer parts.
Jobs got the parts and a summer job working the assembly line at Hewlett-Packard.
Steve Jobs, believes asking is the single thing that “separates the people that do things from the people that just dream about them.”
METALLICA
Brian Slagel is putting together the Metal Massacre compilation album.
Slagel met Lars Ulrich a year ago at a Michael Schenker concert. Lars calls him up and asks him, “if he puts together a band can he be on the record?”
BON JOVI
It’s 1982 and Jon Bon Jovi has just finished writing and recording “Runaway”.
He shopped it around and couldn’t get a record deal. He couldn’t get a band together to play live because original bands didn’t make enough money.
Luck would have it that a brand-new radio station would open in New York. It was so new it didn’t have a receptionist so nobody was there to stop Jon from walking straight to the DJ and asking him to play “Runaway”.
The song quickly gained traction and Hobart entered Bon Jovi into a contest the radio station was running for the best unsigned band.
Jon won, he got his Mercury deal and by the summer of 1983, the song had become a huge hit.
It’s amazing what could happen from asking.
SONG ON REPEAT
“Crime Of The Century” by Revolution Saints.
That Chorus hook is undeniable. It’s from the new album “Eagle Flight” which has Joel Hoekstra and Jeff Pilson joining Deen Castronovo.
Check it out.
BONUS SONG I’M LISTENING TO
“Burn For Me” by The Night Flight Orchestra. It’s the Bowie “Modern Love” feel which hooks me in and then that feel gets put in the TNFO blender and what comes out is an infectious AOR Rock song.
I remember the kids asking me around 2019, if The Night Flight Orchestra (TNFO) would ever tour Australia as they are massive fans but they couldn’t come as it was an over 18s gig.
I said to them that Bjorn Strid as part of Soilwork tours here, so it’s a possibility but it all depends on a promoter who wants to bring them out and it also depends on fans. Streams and sales are key here.
Fast forward 4 years later, TNFO arrived on our shores. Hardline Media was the promoter who got em out here. I’ve purchased stuff from the site before and Doug does a great job/deed for Metal and Rock music in Australia.
Their first gig was at Brisbane, on Thursday 3rd August at a venue called “The Zoo”.
And on Friday, 4th August, they had their show in Sydney at a venue called “Crowbar”.
Their final show was on Saturday, 5th August in Melbourne at a venue called “Max Watts”.
It’s like waking into a time warp and coming out 40 years ago when you enter “The Crowbar”. The pub was formerly known as “The Bald Face Stag” (it was a venue I played with one of my former bands) and in 2018, it relaunched as “The Crowbar”. The furnishings are still very 80s retro, it’s painted black and I like it. Plus their is a decent selection of boutique beers on tap and in cans. Their is also a decent sized live room inside the pub, which they utilize for live music.
I purchased two VIP Meet and Greet packages.
This included:
early access to the show and merch stand,
a photo on my phone/device with the band
an Australian tour poster to get signed by the band
exclusive VIP lanyard/laminate
plus I was able to bring along 3 personal items to get signed.
And the prices at $160 each were reasonable.
I was thinking of what merch to take for signing. And I settled on the vinyl album, “Sometimes The World Ain’t Enough”. It’s a gatefold album, with a massive picture of the band on the inside, so it would be cool to get them to sign it. Plus I had two copies of the albums as I forgot I purchased it and then purchased it again.
The meet and greet was very relaxed. They signed our items including the tour poster and then we got the photo.
The band is Sharlee D’Angelo on bass, Sebastian Forslund on guitar, percussion and congas, Anna Brygard on backup vocals, John Lonnmyr on the keys, Bjorn Strid on vocals, Asa Lundman on backup vocals, Jonas Kallsback on drums and Rasmus Ehrnborn on guitar. In the middle, ruining the photo is yours truly.
Midnight Flyer
It was the first song recorded for the “Amber Galactic” album and the first single released to promote the album.
It’s a great opener.
Then again so is “Siberian Queen”, “Sail On”, “This Time” (which sounds like the twin of “Midnight Flyer”), “Servants Of The Air” and “Violent Indigo”.
I remember reading an early interview from the band that Deep Purple’s “Made In Japan” and “Made In Europe” are favourites.
And I can hear it in “Midnight Flyer”, how it builds from the keyboard intro, similar to how “You Fool No One” builds on the “Europe” live album or “Speed King” on the “Japan” live album.
I’m not leaving I’m just going somewhere else Far from the sighs and whispers And the weakness of myself Now is not the time To think of all I’ve lost There are skylines left to conquer There are oceans left to cross
The work ethic of the TNFO members is high. Multiple bands means more touring, more time in recording studios, more time song writing and lots of champagne. Meanwhile they are all trying to keep relationships going.
I’m a midnight flyer rushing through the storm I got lost without your loving and I can’t find my way home
Such a great lyric for the Chorus hook.
They went straight into “Sometimes The World Ain’t Enough” and we were moving and singing.
That keyboard Intro is from what David Coverdale calls “Hook City”, a mythical place of arena-like choruses and riffs.
And I love the drum beat which I call the “Deuce” beat. I know other 70s acts did this kind of beat, but I’m a Kiss fan so I’ll associate it with Kiss.
Every song TNFO played got us moving. My order of the songs is wrong compared to the live show, but here they are.
“Divinyls” rocked. It grabs your attention as soon as the guitar intro starts and it builds nicely with the drums. Rasmus Ehrnborn filled in for TNFO when Dave Andersson couldn’t tour. Now he is the guitarist in the band.
“Gemini”, “Paralyzed”, “White Jeans”, “Burn For Me”, “The Sensation”, “If Tonight Is Our Only Chance” and “Satellite” all followed with lots of grooving, people dancing and some head banging.
“Something Mysterious” (which reminds me of “Burning Heart” from Survivor) was dedicated to guitarist Dave Andersson, who passed away in 2022. For those who are not aware, Andersson was a co-founding member of TNFO along with vocalist Bjorn Strid. A lot of the TNFO songs have his riffs and lyrics. He also wrote this.
They closed the set with the 9 minute long “The Last Of The Independent Romantics”. As Bjorn said in the Intro, let’s go on a journey. And we did.
The band went off stage and we went into a football chant.
It was encore time.
“Josephine”, “Stiletto” and “West Ruth Avenue” closed the night.
“West Ruth Avenue” deserves special mention as Bjorn got a decent Conga Train happening which resembled a circle pit. Instead of people running, people were dancing.
It was also this song from the debut album which made me a fan. And the tempo was slightly increased. Which I like.
I am biased but this gig is a 10. They never let up on the energy and the setlist was perfect.
Moving forward, current single “The Sensation” is doing the rounds. A new album is expected in April/May 2024 and I’m looking forward to adding it to the collection.
Hopefully another Australian tour as well. They put down some roots here so let’s see what grows.
The actors have joined the writers in taking industrial action, because they want streaming giants to agree to a fairer split of profits and better working conditions.
And a recent Black Mirror episode has made em all worried about digital replicas, so they want further protection in this area.
Mark Ruffalo went on to say that while actors and screenwriters have “made great content”, the business brains behind them had “created an empire of billionaires”, who are “laughing like fat cats” and “believe we are no longer of value”.
You see, actors are paid residuals. Residuals are a form of royalty paid to actors when movies and TV shows air on television after their initial run.
Residuals came into practice in the 60s and were updated to include Cable TV. But it doesn’t work for streaming because streaming shows aren’t scheduled.
Hwang Dong-hyuk, the creator of “Squid Game,” forfeited all residuals when he cut a deal with Netflix.
It earned Netflix nearly US$1 billion, but Hwang got none of that bounty.
You see, Hwang would get a large upfront fee to create “Squid Game”. It would be large enough to tempt him to forfeit all residuals. Netflix and Hwang both gambled and Netflix won.
And while some actors are paid well because they had the “old gatekeeper power” to get residuals higher, the rest struggle, while the streaming services and studios along with their CEO’s earn billions and multi-millions.
WHAT MAKES IT
Because no one knows what will make it big. Here is a snippet from a newsletter that Billy Oppenheimer writes;
Zemeckis replied with “It’s a minefield, Tom. You never know what’s good…It’s a minefield! It’s a goddam minefield! We may be sowing the seeds of our own destruction.”
There is no safety net or guarantee that things will become popular.
After Bon Jovi finished recording “Slippery When Wet”, producer Bruce Fairbairn was hoping it would get a Gold Certification, which is 500,000 sales in the U.S. Currently the album is at 13,364,000 units sold.
David Coverdale just recovered from surgery after a bad sinus infection. He had fired everyone. He was over $3 million in debt to Geffen. The music to the songs which would make up the 1987 album were recorded. All he had to do was sing.
And he hoped there was a place for Whitesnake in the market dominated by Bon Jovi, Motley Crue, Scorpions and Europe. It’s at 8 million and counting in U.S sales.
“Welcome to the Jungle” from Guns N’ Roses performed poorly in both the United States and the United Kingdom when first released in September 1987.
As the band’s popularity grew steadily in 1988, on the back of “Sweet Child O Mine” and their ferocious live performances, it became a sleeper hit in the US and reached the top 10 of the Billboard charts. It was then re-released in the UK, charting within the top 40 there.
In June 2005, it was certified Gold in the U.S.
By 2017, it surpassed 3 million in sales however it’s never been re-certified.
Nirvana’s second album “Nevermind” was released in September 1991 with low expectations, hoping to sell 500,000 copies.
The album entered the Billboard 200 at number 144.
It entered the top 40 in November.
When December rolled around, the album was selling 300,000 copies a week.
By January 1992, it replaced Michael Jackson’s “Dangerous” at number 1 on the Billboard charts.
The album has gone on to sell over 30 million copies worldwide.
When Def Leppard released “Hysteria” in 1987, they were expecting the same sales as “Pyromania”. In addition, due to the lengthy recording process, in order to break even they had to sell a minimum of 5 million albums.
After 8 months, the album had sold 3 million in the U.S and the band was preparing to wrap up their tour, take a short break and go back into the studio.
Then “Pour Some Sugar On Me” and “Love Bites” hit the airwaves. The popularity of the singles led to renewed interest in the album and the band was back on the road.
The “Hysteria” tour ended on 27th October 1988. By then the album had moved 7 million units in the U.S. It was basically moving a million units a month in the U.S from June.
By May 1990, the album was at 10 million units in the U.S. and it’s still selling today.
DO THE WORK YOU LOVE
It’s a strong mindset to work on a project and knowing that no one will possibly care about it once it’s released.
But the ones that do it, do it because it’s a need to create and they live to create. If it’s successful, the money and fame is a byproduct of their need to create.
THE JOURNEY
When Bruce Springsteen dropped “Born to Run” in 1975 he was 11 years into his journey. During those years he was in and out of numerous bands and his first two albums as a solo artist bombed.
When “Appetite For Destruction” came out in 1987, Guns N Roses were an 7 year over night success. And the album was a slow burner. It took over a year to get traction and once it did, it was outselling everyone.
During these periods, “talented” and “schooled” musicians were in their thousands. But the biggest artists didn’t come from Julliard or Berklee.
If your are not committed to the journey talent doesn’t matter.
Will people talk about Michael Schenker in 20 years time?
We all knew who Michael Schenker was from his time in UFO and Scorpions, but none of us could name his MSG tunes correctly.
He wasn’t on MTV and back in the 80s, there was no Spotify, no YouTube, no BitTorrent and no internet where we could go and look up his MSG output.
Radio in Australia never played MSG.
Basically if you didn’t own his albums or know someone who did, it’s like he didn’t exist.
But he was all over the guitar magazines. It’s how I came across him.
The first MSG album came out in 1980 and it stiffs in the major U.S market. Japan however loved Schenker where his popularity remained high on the back of his Scorpions and UFO contributions.
The second MSG album came out in 1981 and it did nothing as well. Something had to change. Original singer Gary Barden was fired in 1982 and Graham Bonnet fresh from his stint in Rainbow was hired. Album number 3 came out the same year (along with the “Live at The Budokan” album) and again, it did nothing. Bonnet was fired and Barden was back in for the tour.
And here we are at album number 4 released in 1983.
Commercially, it stiffed again in the major North American market. It’s forgotten from the conversation.
But it’s a favorite.
I could have picked alot of different songs from “Built To Destroy” as it’s that good. But this time around I wanted to write about “The Dogs Of War”.
It’s written by Gary Barden and Michael Schenker.
Drums and bass start it all off. A simple groove yet so catchy with Schenker decorating the Intro with feedback, chords and leads.
It builds until the verses kick in.
Nothing worth taking, all was forsaken
A sense of loss as there was nothing of value left to hold onto or protect.
Hit on the blind side, caught in the spotlights
Exposed and vulnerable, as if suddenly thrust into the spotlight without any preparation, leaving you exposed and defenseless.
Warning came late, no chance of alluding
It conveys a sense of helplessness and a lack of options.
Shadows were long as they forged through the night
I like the way this is delivered vocally. It’s almost classical and yet it feels new wave.
The line tells me it’s about perseverance and determination amidst challenging circumstances.
Looking for signs of the day, Deep in their minds as they walked out of sight
A sense of introspection and anticipation as we search for signs of hope or a brighter future. A mindset of seeking out positive change or opportunities in the midst of uncertainty or darkness.
The line “deep in their minds as they walked out of sight” suggests that despite being physically present, our minds are occupied with thoughts, hopes, and aspirations.
Mission completed all were defeated Branded with fire, now filled with desire
“Mission completed all were defeated” suggests that a goal or objective was successfully achieved, but it came at a cost. The mention of being “branded with fire” tells me that the experience was intense and left a lasting mark. However, instead of being discouraged or weakened, there is a newfound sense of determination and passion, as they are now “filled with desire” for more.
Message came through on the wings of a prayer Feelings were high for a time
The line “Message came through on the wings of a prayer” suggests that guidance or inspiration arrived unexpectedly, perhaps in a moment of spiritual connection or hope.
“Feelings were high for a time” indicates a period of excitement and enthusiasm following the completion of the mission. Emotions are intense and elevated during this phase, reflecting the sense of accomplishment and fulfillment.
Slap on the backs for the ones who had dared To run with the wolves of our time
These lines honor those who have dared to defy conventional norms and expectations, applauding their willingness to take risks and venture into uncharted territories.
They embody the spirit of running alongside the metaphorical “wolves” of their time, showcasing their courage and tenacity in the face of adversity.
Michael Schenker embodies this spirit. At 15 he left Germany to join UFO in the U.K. Imagine that, in 2023.
The dogs of war, will bite the hand for a price, and then hear them roar
The destructive nature of conflict and the willingness of certain individuals or entities to engage in acts of aggression or violence for personal gain. The phrase “dogs of war” symbolizes those who are eager to participate in warfare or engage in hostile actions. They are portrayed as fierce and relentless, driven by their own motives and desires.
The line “will bite the hand for a price” suggests that these individuals are willing to turn against their own benefactors or allies if offered a sufficient incentive.
It implies that loyalty can be easily swayed by material or monetary rewards, and they will not hesitate to betray those who once supported them.
Their mission completed, the innocents bleeding
Overall, this phrase captures the bittersweet nature of achieving a goal or objective while acknowledging the devastating impact on the innocent individuals caught in the crossfire.
To buy someone’s freedom’ who pays?
The question challenges the notion of freedom as something that can be easily obtained through financial means. It prompts us to consider whether true freedom can be bought and whether the act of purchasing it merely shifts the power dynamics or perpetuates a system of inequality.
A lot of the lyrics in the 80s got blasted and they still get blasted by music writers as being immature.
That is the case for some songs and some acts still make a living on writing simple immature lyrics with simple rhymes, laced with sexual innuendos.
Then you get other lyricists who write with some depth and double meanings. Gary Barden is one such lyricist. He’s also pushed out the “tease/please/knees” kind of lyrics as it was a symptom of the era he was in but overall his output is a lot more mature.
And Michael Schenker. He’s a lifer and what a rollercoaster lifestyle he’s had. He didn’t top the charts as a solo artist but his impact is as large as his UFO and Scorpions career.
destroyerofharmony 