Tag Archives: Hard Rock

A to Z of Making It, Classic Songs to Be Discovered, Copyright, Music, My Stories, Unsung Heroes

The Week In Destroyer Of Harmony History – December 5 to December 11

4 Years Ago (2017)

1983

The final blog post of my devotion to the year known as 1983 involved an eclectic bunch of artists.

Like “Modern Love” from David Bowie,
“One Of The Few” from Pink Floyd, “Sirens” from Savatage and “Cuts Like a Knife” from Bryan Adams.

“Alpha” from Asia which sold a lot but it was still seen as a failure by the record label because it didn’t match the sales of the debut album a year before.

“Head First” from Uriah Heep, another 70’s act that had to re-establish itself in the 80’s MTV world. So it was no surprise the band delivered a very pop sounding 15th album.

“Nemesis” from Axe was also on the list. Remember “Rock ‘N’ Roll Party In The Streets”. It’s from Axe’s 1982 album “Offering”. The name “Axe” didn’t really market the band to its full potential.

Axe was touring with Mötley Crüe in 1984 when their guitarist was killed in a vehicle accident. Another member was badly injured and the band broke up after the accident.

Michael Bolton was a rocker first and a balladeer later. He was in a hard rock band called Blackjack with Bruce Kulick between 79/80, so it was no surprise to see Bruce Kulick on lead guitar when Bolton went solo on his self-titled debut. Even Bruce’s bro, Bob Kulick makes an appearance. Another favourite guitarist of mine, Al Pitrelli replaced Kulick for the tour which was cancelled after four shows.

U2 and the “War” album was on the list along with Divinyls and the “Desperate” album. The song “Boys In Town” was all over the TV and the radio in Australia.

Eurythmics had me hooked with “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)”, “Here Comes The Rain Again” and “Who’s That Girl”.

Being the long haired lout I was, I hated the way Spandau Ballet looked, but man they could write a good pop tune that worked well in a rock context. “Pleasure”, “Gold” and “True” are such songs. Great to re-interpret on guitar for a rock setting and it was interesting learning sax solos for lead guitar.

Elton John along with Bernie Taupin wrote pop songs that worked well as rock songs. “Kiss The Bride” and “I’m Still Standing” are two such songs I covered in various bands I was in.

Jim Steinman moved from Meatloaf to Bonnie Tyler. Big production, big songs and a lot of piano lines ripped off from classical music. But the best song on the album is “Have You Ever Seen The Rain” a cover of a Creedence Clearwater Revival song.

“90125” from Yes was album number 11 and the band was a very different beast from its Seventies incarnation.

SAYING ONE THING AT A TIME

If an artist is creating songs and making those songs difficult to get, the audience would surely move on to something else.

If a person talks for 70 minutes we will hear nothing. If an artist releases 70 minutes of music, we will remember some of it and forget the rest.

Most of my favorite albums lasted between 30 to 40 minutes in total.

All new music is competing with the history of music, plus TV shows with movie budgets, plus blockbuster movies, plus technologies and social media, plus AI created news stories and the history of print.

Maybe music is better when it is released frequently and when an artist tries to say one thing at a time, instead of 10 different things at once.

8 Years Ago (2013)

SALES

Spotify came into the market with the idea that they need to compete with free. And compete they did. The service even started to break artists to the masses, something that the record labels couldn’t do or were clueless to do.

But the mass media still focuses on the sales in the first week and the chart position. This is so old school and not a great measuring tool of reach or success, especially for new acts starting out.

But we get headlines like this.

Loudwire: Dream Theater’s new DVD ‘Live At Luna Park’ recently entered at No 1 on the Soundscan music DVD chart.

Loudwire: Volume 2 of Five Finger Death Punch’s ‘Wrong Side Of Heaven; lands at No. 2 on Billboard 200.

Blabbermouth: “Wretched and Divine: The Story of the Wild Ones” sold 42,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 7 on The Billboard 200 chart.

DOES A BAND HAVE CUSTOMERS OR FANS?

“Our audience are fans first and customers second. We really try not to annoy them.”
The above quote is from Stefan Mennerich, Bayern Munich Director of New Media, Media Rights & IT.

So how can a band turn fans into satisfied customers that keep on coming back, again and again?

DREAM THEATER

My favorite tracks from the DT album are still…
“The Bigger Picture” and “Illumination Theory”.

MEGADETH

Megadeth was in the news sections of the metal and rock websites a fair bit back then.

Regardless of what people think about Dave Mustaine or Megadeth, they can never take away the historical fact that Megadeth were early web pioneers.

Does anyone remember their old “Megadeth, Arizona” site that was launched in 1994 and then re-designed and re-launched for the “Cryptic Writings” release two years later?

Apart from the normal pieces of information, it was also a place for fans to check in, hang out and interact with the band along with other fans. Something that social media has built on and improved.

2013

Well the year was almost over and it was time to look back at the albums that connected and hit the mark for 2013 for me.

  1. Protest The Hero – Volition
  2. Avenged Sevenfold – Hail To The King
  3. Five Finger Death Punch – The Wrong Side Of Heaven And The Righteous Side Of Hell Vol 1
  4. Killswitch Engage – Disarm The Descent
  5. TesserAcT – Altered State
  6. Trivium – Vengeance Falls
  7. Coheed and Cambria – The Afterman – Descension
  8. Five Finger Death Punch – The Wrong Side Of Heaven And The Righteous Side Of Hell Vol 2
  9. Volbeat – Outlaw Gentlemen and Shady Ladies
  10. Alter Bridge – Fortress

Notable Mentions

Audrey Horne – Youngblood
Mutiny Within – Synchronicity
Hearts And Hands – My Own Machine
Love and Death – Between Here and The Lost
Sound Of Contact – Dimensionaut
Faith Circus – Turn Up The Band

Final Notable Mentions

Due to my kids overdosing on the music I placed on their iPods certain classic rock albums have come back into my life.

Twisted Sister – You Cant Stop Rock N Roll
Twisted Sister – Stay Hungry
Kiss – Lick It Up
Kiss – Asylum
Kiss – Destroyer
Deep Purple – Machine Head
Bon Jovi – Slippery When Wet
Survivor – Eye Of The Tiger
Europe – The Final Countdown

CRY FOR FREEDOM

White Lion had the balls to tackle the subject of apartheid.

The Eighties mainstream Metal and rock had degenerated into a state of generic and clichéd derivative lyrical themes and subjects involving sex, partying and drugs.

When bands branched away from that, it was very hit and miss.

White Lion fell into that crowd of misses as the label “Atlantic” would still push them as pop metal or pop rock.

The tours and marketing had White Lion sandwiched amongst bands like Motley Crue, Skid Row, Kiss, Whitesnake, Alice Cooper, Blue Murder and Badlands.

RANDY RHOADS

Randy Rhoads is a huge influence.

My first introduction to Randy Rhoads was the “Tribute” album and the tablature book that came with it formed my bible for a long time.

He was just unique.

Rhoads formed Quiet Riot when he was 16 years old however as good as Randy Rhoads was, the band couldn’t get a record deal in the U.S and they ended up releasing two albums (QR I and QR II) in Japan. Of course this incarnation of Quiet Riot was a totally different line up that sang “Cum On Feel The Noize” which in turn brought metal to the mainstream.

Most people know his musical legacy from the two landmark albums he made with Ozzy Osbourne.

The post covers my Top 10 songs from Randy Rhoads.

And that’s another wrap for another week.

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The Record Vault: Deep Purple – Come Taste The Band

It took Deep Purple seven years to make it to the top and two years to break up. The air is thin at the mountain top.

Deep Purple had lost their lead singer Ian Gillan and bassist Roger Glover in 1973 and replaced them with David Coverdale and Glen Hughes. This MK3 version recorded two albums and then guitarist Richie Blackmore left at the start of 1975. This was weird as Deep Purple was seen as “his” band. And from looking at it, it’s like the owner of the house vacating their premises for the guests to take over running the house.

But Deep Purple would soldier on, replacing Blackmore with a young guitar hero from the U.S. known as Tommy Bolin. Rounding out the band is the rest of MK3, David Coverdale, Glenn Hughes, Jon Lord and Ian Paice.

And MK4 was created.

“Come Taste The Band” came out in 1975. It’s the usual production team of the band and Martin Birch.

The name Tommy Bolin came into my life because of Motley Crue. The Crue covered the song “Teaser” for a Compilation album and they also released it on a Raw Tracks CD made for the Japanese market, which I got my hands on. The song is so good and sleazy it sounded like a Crue original and I was curious to hear more from Bolin.

So as I was going back into the career of David Coverdale because of Whitesnake’s attention grabbing 87 LP, I was doing the same for Tommy Bolin.

So I got my hands on the “Teaser” and “Private Eyes” album first and imagine my surprise when I came across an album that had both Coverdale and Bolin on it.

Comin’ Home

Written by Tommy Bolin, David Coverdale and Ian Paice with vocals provided by Coverdale.

This song rocks out of the gate paying homage to the fast rock sounds of Deep Purple MK1, MK2 and MK3. But it was more Grand Funk, like “We’re An American Band”.

Lady Luck

Written by Jeffrey Cook who co-wrote songs with Bolin for the “Teaser” record with lyrical contributions from Coverdale.

Vocals are provided by Coverdale. In didn’t really do much for me.

Gettin’ Tighter

Written by Bolin and Hughes with vocals provided by Hughes.

This song is funky out of the gate, and sleazy once the whole band comes in.

Dealer

Written by Bolin and Coverdale with vocals provided by Coverdale and Bolin.

It’s very Hendrix “Purple Haze” like in the riff departments with a Beatles like Folk Rock interlude which Bolin sung.

I Need Love

Written by Bolin and Coverdale with vocals provided by Coverdale.

I like the groove on this, and the way the verse riffs are played out with the heavy synth from Lord.

Drifter

Side 2 begins with this song written by Bolin and Coverdale with vocals provided by Coverdale.

It’s got a great Intro which reminds of “You Really Got Me” or “American Woman” and check out the groove that comes in once the drums and bass kick in.

Coverdale’s bluesy voice is a highlight.

At 2.36 there is just a bass and keys section over a drum groove. It reminds me of things that Rush would do.

Then Bolin comes in, with volume swells and a solo begins. The drums and bass become busy as they build it up, and the vocals come back in. Its brilliant, it gives me goose bumps all the time, so press play just to hear that.

Love Child

“Heartbreaker” anyone. Press play and listen to the intro.

Written by Bolin and Coverdale with vocals provided by Coverdale.

The verse groove and riff are my favourites even though the whole “love child driving me wild” lyric didn’t set the world on fire.

At 1.50, they go into a progressive rock style groove and Lord solos over it.

This Time Around / Owed to ‘G’

Written by Hughes, Lord and Bolin with vocals provided by Hughes.

It’s very progressive sounding, like ELO and it moves into a great instrumental jam over a 12/8 groove with excellent lead guitar from Mr Bolin himself.

You Keep On Moving

Written by Coverdale and Hughes with vocals provided by Coverdale and Hughes.

This is the standout track. Its haunting and melancholic and it was written during the “Burn” sessions but not used.

Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Holland, Czechoslovakia and West Germany all got behind this version of the band. The Japanese still loved em and New Zealand loved em even more.

But.

The classical progressions and jams had been replaced with groove, soul and funk. It could be seen as an early Whitesnake album, as a few tracks have “Love” in the title, which is similar to every Whitesnake album.

Also in 1975, Tommy Bolin had two records competing against each other, which probably wasn’t the best scenario for Deep Purple however I have seen “Teaser” album pictures with a sticker on em that said “Guitarist Of Deep Purple”. Since most of the songs were written by Coverdale and Bolin, the project could have been billed as Coverdale/Bolin.

After the tour for this album finished in March, 1976, Deep Purple MK4 was no more. Glen Hughes was already having issues and was in and out of rehab. David Coverdale would form Whitesnake and get Jon Lord and Ian Paice into the project. And Tommy Bolin by December 1976, was dead from drug intoxication as morphine, cocaine, lidocaine and alcohol were all found in his system.

But the music lives on.

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The Record Vault: Deep Purple – Stormbringer

“Stormbringer” came out about 9 months after “Burn”. In the space of a year, Deep Purple were busy writing and recording frequently.

What a novel idea.

Try and tell that to a lot of acts, who want to record an album every three to five years. And the usual argument of ‘no money from recordings’ doesn’t work, because even back in the 70’s, the acts were getting ripped off on the sales part. So they had to tour to make coin. Then again it was normal in the 70’s to release an album a year. It was expected.

The album cover also has a story, about a tornado in a U.S town during the 1920s which was photographed and added to the Copyright free archives, which allowed the image to be used.

And the same photograph was used for Miles Davis’ album “Bitches Brew” in 1970.

And Siouxsie and the Banshees’ album “Tinderbox” in 1986.

MK3 Deep Purple is Ritchie Blackmore on Guitars, David Coverdale on Vocals (except “Holy Man”), Glenn Hughes on Bass and Vocals (except “Soldier of Fortune”), Jon Lord on Organ and Keys and Ian Paice on Drums.

Its Produced by Deep Purple and Martin Birch again.

Stormbringer

Another thunderous opener written by Blackmore and Coverdale.

If there wasn’t a Heavy Metal movement before, well there was one now. By 1974, each major rock act like Led Zeppelin, Free, Bad Company and Black Sabbath had a heavy song or two on each album that young blue collared youths would take and run with to create even heavier tracks.

I like the exotic flavouring in the solo. It’s not fast, but goddamn, it sounds progressive.

Love Don’t Mean A Thing

Written by Blackmore, Coverdale, Glenn Hughes, Jon Lord and Ian Paice.

This is the whole funk blues soul jam that Glenn Hughes brings. In saying that, the riffs here work so well within the Deep Purple sound.

Holy Man

The Bad Company/Free brand of hard rock had caught on and suddenly Deep Purple was doing a cut that wouldn’t be out of place on the first two Bad Company albums or Free albums.

If the intro sounds familiar, it should, as it’s a common progression used throughtout the 70s, but it went missing a bit in the 80s and came back in the 90s.

I recall Motley Crue using it for “Misunderstood”.

And Blackmore was not the main writer anymore as this song was written by Coverdale, Hughes and Lord.

Hold On

The funk blues rock in the verses grooves and the Chorus is like Soul Rock Music. Blackmore again is missing from the song writing credits, with Coverdale, Hughes, Lord and Paice listed as the writers.

Coverdale and Hughes share vocal duties here and Blackmore brings out his rockabilly Chuck Berry licks which gives way to a Jon Lord solo.

Lady Double Dealer

It’s that fast blues rock that Deep Purple was known for and something that David Coverdale would do a fair bit with the early versions of Whitesnake.

There is a cool Blackmore solo as well.

You Can’t Do It Right

Play that funky blues music white boys.

High Ball Shooter

I like the Intro as it always reminds me of another song which I can’t thing off right now.

The Gypsy

The riffs on this are metal like, but the way Blackmore delivers em, it’s almost progressive like, with a fusion of blues, southern rock and metal like grooves.

Soldier Of Fortune

A great acoustic ballad to end the album, something which David Coverdale would recreate with “Sailing Ships”.

The long jam sessions from the past had disappeared. Replaced with a more structured song arrangement. It’s a bridge between this album and their next album.

Blackmore obviously didn’t like this new direction and left after the tour. And he wasn’t one to keep his thoughts to himself, so he publicly declared his dislike for the funky direction the band was taking and made it clear that was the reason why he left.

But Scandinavian Melodic Rock and Metal was being born with the MK3 albums as they did big business in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland. Austria and Germany also liked this era, along with the UK, France and the U.S.

Check it out.

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A to Z of Making It, Copyright, Influenced, Music, My Stories

The Week In Destroyer Of Harmony History – November 28 to December 4

4 Years Ago (2017)

OUR BEST WORK

When you create your most important work, it could be ignored by the audience because it’s ahead of its time. It requires people to change their thoughts and beliefs. But all important work ends up rising above the noise.

Black Sabbath’s debut album didn’t reach platinum in the U.S until October 13, 1986. Yep 16 years later, the most influential heavy metal album had moved a million units in the U.S.

But their tours sold out, which goes to show that people didn’t always buy recorded music.

You could be an artist creating work which is popular, and it resonates with the audience who already like what you do. “Dr Feelgood” was always going to be Motley’s best seller. They spent 7 plus years building an audience with each release and tour.

In addition, it spawned a new production sound that would become known as the “Black” sound after Metallica’s self-titled album destroyed our senses and the charts.

Our best work is the heart of what we do and sometimes getting it out there is a long difficult journey full of scams and rip offs, highs and lows, good and bad people, rejection and acceptance.

But you will not get there if you quit. It’s what you do in the dark, which will make you shine in the light.

8 Years Ago (2013)

CONCERT ATTENDANCES

The highs of success and fame are brief. The air at the top of the mountain is thin, so you’re not expected to hang around for a long time.

Vince Neil

On July 6, 2013, Vince Neil played a solo show in Mexico City.

The venue was Jose Cuervo Salon.

The capacity of the venue is 1,500. The attendance was 64 people.

That’s right, less than 5% of the total venue size.

Total Gross sales for the night was $2,286.

Does anyone really care about Vince Neil outside of Motley Crue?

Based on the ticket sales, Mexico sure don’t.

What a hard truth that is.

His debut album “Exposed” celebrated 20 years in 2013, but Vince went out and played Motley songs.

Power Metal Rules In Europe

On April 18, 2013, Helloween, Gamma Ray and Shadowside played a Power Metal feast in Hamburg, Germany. The venue was the Docks.

The capacity of the venue is 1,500. The attendance was 1,171.

Total Gross sales for the night was $51,299.

The thing with power metal bands is that they know the size of their audience. It is a niche and it has a hard core and devoted fan base.

The Black Crowes still do good business

On July 19, 2013, The Black Crowes, Tedeschi Trucks Band and The London Souls played a show in Nashville, Tennesse.

The venue was the Woods Amphitheater at Fontanel.

The capacity of the venue is 4,056. The attendance was 3,273.

Total Gross sales for the night was $215,641.

In the end there is plenty of money available in music and the more people that have access to recorded music means more fans that could turn into customers.

COPYRIGHT TERMS

In Australia (and a lot of other countries) a copyright for a sound recording lasts for the life of the creator + 70 years after death.

If the creator lives to 80, then the Total Copyright is a 150 year term.

And since the large Corporations control a lot of the copyrights, a 150 year term benefits them.

Keith Richards famously said that you can’t copyright the blues.

The acts from the Sixties and Seventies, brazenly borrowed and built upon songs that already existed.

And didn’t we got a lot of glorious music.

RED DRAGON CARTEL

As a fan of Jake E. Lee and the work he did with Ozzy and Badlands, it was cool to hear that he made the decision to record music again.

Frontiers Records signed the project.

Are there any Classic Eighties metal/rock bands or stars that Frontiers haven’t signed?

And “Feeder” was doing the rounds and i didn’t like it because there was no classic riff that stuck around forever to haunt my eardrums.

The expectation that most artists have is that since they have talent, can write a song and love what they do, they should be able to charge people to listen.

The reality is that there are thousands of artists trying to reach the same fans that are very careful with the money they spend on music.

Music is never a sure thing.

LOYALTY PROGRAM

We live in a world of loyalty schemes. If you shop at any major retailer there is a pretty good chance that you have signed up to their loyalty scheme and after you spend a certain amount of dollars with them, you get a discount or some other reward for your next purchase.

So why isn’t this happening in the music business.

THE BATTLE FOR QUEENSRYCHE

Back in 2013, two Queensryche bands did the rounds.

The Geoff Tate version is on Cleopatra Records and the Todd LaTorre version is on Century Media Records.

And there wasn’t a demand for two versions of Queensryche?

Then again demand for Queensryche was diminishing since Chris DeGarmo left.

And that’s another wrap for another week.

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Australian Method Series; Airbourne – Black Dog Barking

“Black Dog Barking” is album number three, released in May 2013 via Roadrunner Records.

By now, everyone knew that Airbourne sounds like AC/DC.

But on this album, they amped up the AC/DC sounds with a bit of 80s rock like Cinderella and the first two albums from Def Leppard along with some Euro Metal like Scorpions.

And those backing vocals.

The Personnel for the album is Joel O’Keeffe on Vocals and Lead Guitar, David Roads on Rhythm Guitar, Justin Street on ass and Ryan O’Keeffe on Drums.

Producer Brian Howes has worked on the slick productions with Nickelback and Puddle Of Mudd, but on this album he captures the energy of the band performing live.

Ready to Rock

The blast out of the gate with it. It’s loud, aggressive and it feels like a circle pit punch up in a pub.

Animalize

I think of Kiss and Paul Stanley singing this tune.

No One Fits Me (Better Than You)

A take on “Let Me Put My Love Into You”.

Back in the Game

This one is the best song, bringing that Acca Rock and Euro/80s Rock vibe. There are Whitesnake, Cinderella, AC/DC and Scorpions influences.

Firepower

This one reminds me of “Let It Go” from Def Leppard in the verses and I like it.

Live It Up

The whole Intro is Acca Dacca with that open string acting as a pedal point while a melodic riff is played on the other notes. Think of the Intro to “For Those About To Rock”.

Woman Like That

This could be on a Bon Jovi album or a Cinderella album and not be out of place.

Hungry

Another favorite, which borders on speed rock.

More WASP like and it has a cool Spanish like guitar lead,

Cradle to the Grave

Crank it and enjoy. While the verses are stock standard hard rock, the Chorus has some of that Euro arpeggios.

Black Dog Barking

It closes with the barking and aggressive title track.

Airbourne does what they’re good at, the same way that AC/DC does what they’re good at.

Its better produced and the songwriting is concise, as the album is done in under 38 minutes.

This is rock’n’roll, the way it should be. Loud, aggressive, dumb and no ballads.

And Joel O’Keeffe gets a lot of credit for his vocal chops, i also believe that his Lead Guitar playing should also get some notice.

Because the dude can play.

Crank it.

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The Record Vault: Deep Purple – Burn

When a band loses members, no one really knows what would come next. Will the band break up or will they continue with new members?

When bands lose their lead singers, the uncertainty is even higher.

But when Deep Purple lost Ian Gillan and Roger Glover, Richie Blackmore stepped up even more to push the band forward. As far as Blackmore was concerned, he was the driving force behind the band and this grit and determination would lead him to find not one but two vocalists who would assist him in moving forward with the massive riffs he was coming up with.

“Burn” is the eighth studio album, released in February 1974, and the first to feature an unknown David Coverdale on vocals and Glenn Hughes, from Trapeze, on bass and vocals.

The album was recorded in Montreux, Switzerland, in November 1973, with the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio.

Deep Purple MK3 is Ritchie Blackmore on Guitars, David Coverdale on Vocals, Glenn Hughes on Bass and Vocals, Jon Lord on Keyboards and Ian Paice on Drums.

Production was still listed with the band as Producers and Mixers (but all they had to do was just say yes or no to the takes and mixes), with Martin Birch doing the bulk of the work capturing the sounds and actually mixing the album.

Burn

It owes some of its thought and structure to “Highway Star” as the DP guys wanted to have another high energy song to open the show and new album with.

It also has structured organ and guitar solos like “Highway Star”, around Bach like sequences which Lord and Blackmore worked out.

Coverdale mentioned in the “The Purple Album Track By Track”, that “Burn” was the first song that he started working on with Richie Blackmore, which he called sounded like “Symphonic Rock”. He also wrote four different lyrical versions for the song, with the Sci Fi version being selected by the guys in the band as the one to use.

David Coverdale loved the riff so much, that “Children Of The Night” from the 1987 self-titled album was the result. I would add that part of “You’re Gonna Break My Heart Again” also has some of the “Burn” feel.

And as good as all of the riffs and solos are, Ian Paice behind the kit, just brings the power and the pace. As soon as his drums come in, the foot is tapping and the head is moving.

It’s my favourite Deep Purple song which gets performed at Whitesnake or Glenn Hughes or Yngwie Malmsteen concerts instead of Deep Purple concerts because of the singers.

Might Just Take Your Life

The Jon Lord organ riff to start it off is from “Woman From Tokyo”.

Jon Lord was the primary writer for Deep Purple on the first couple of albums until Richie Blackmore had enough and started to become the primary songwriter from “In Rock”.

The melodies came from a relaxed jam session that Coverdale and Lord were having.

Overall it’s got that British blues rock feel.

But press play to hear Coverdale and Hughes harmonize in the Chorus.

Lay Down, Stay Down

It’s got that blues rock feel from the “Who Do We Think We Are” album and that sound and riff is something that Blackmore would come back to with his Rainbow project.

Ian Paice again showcases his drumming abilities.

Sail Away

Its got that “Superstition” and “Play That Funky Music” funk rock groove that Blackmore came up with.

Its sung by both Coverdale and Hughes however both could have done the song justice if only one of em just sang it.

This song and “Mistreated” sums up what Coverdale brought to the Purple sound on this album.

Press play to listen to the funky bass playing from Glen Hughes. Hughes was also a co-writer, but he wasn’t credited due to being tied to another recording contract at the time.

The 30th Anniversary release fixed that.

You Fool No One

Coverdale and Hughes doing dual harmonies.

Ian Paice also showing his love of John Bonham and coming up with a definitive drum groove which formed the basis of the track for Blackmore to build on.

The middle solo section is almost Jazz Rock fusion, progressive like.

Press play and just enjoy.

What’s Goin’ On Here

A fun blues song based around a Jimi Hendrix song called “Highway Chile”.

Mistreated

It’s listed as being written by Blackmore and Coverdale.

Coverdale (who calls himself a “Domestic Guitar Hero) wrote a riff on Blackmore’s White Strat, in the Crypts of a Castle they were rehearsing at and when Blackmore heard it, instead of playing the riff with the Coverdale chords, Blackmore played the single notes.

And “Mistreated” was born.

And that opening vocal “I’ve been mistreated” is iconic.

This version is my go to version but on the Purple album from Whitesnake, Reb Beach takes the solo spotlight and creates a fresh and emotive blues shred lead.

‘A’ 200

An instrumental.

Coronarias Redig

It’s a B-side and if no one had heard it in the 70s, it appeared on the “30th Anniversary Edition” as a bonus track.

It’s a blues Rock song but those Hammond Organ chords give it a soul gospel feel.

And press play to hear Blackmore’s leads.

In Australia, the M3 version of DP went to number 5 on the charts. In Austria, Denmark, Germany and Norway it went to number 1. In Canada, Holland, Finland, France, UK and US it was a Top 10 album.

In other words people liked it.

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1996 – Part 4.1: Black Crowes – Three Snakes And One Charm

The problems began with a project tentatively titled “Tall”. This project was being produced by Chris Robinson, which his brother Rich objected to. And as brothers do, they got into a huge fight.

The reason for the fight was that Chris wanted to strip back the sound of the Black Crowes. More horns and percussion and less guitars. But his bro, Rich is the guitarist.

In the end, Rich won the argument and the result of this project are the re-recorded songs that Rich Robinson predominantly wrote, which made up the “Amorica” album. This pissed Chris off as his songs were ignored.

So it’s no surprise that during the “Amorica or Bust” Tour of 1995, the relationships within The Black Crowes soured even further, and the Robinson brothers basically hated each other.

But they made it through somehow.

And the band began planning their fourth album in 1995. “Three Snakes and One Charm” was eventually released in July 1996. Recorded in a house that they shared together, the album captures a relaxed band, ready to plug in and jam with friends.

The Black Crowes for this album are Chris Robinson on Vocals, Rich Robinson on Guitar, Marc Ford on Guitar, Johnny Colt on Bass, Steve Gorman on Drums and Eddie Harsch on Keyboards.

The Dirty Dozen horn group appears, along with banjo players, pedal steel players and various backing vocalists. Basically some of the stuff that Chris Robinson wanted to implement earlier was being brought in.

Under A Mountain

I like the exotic Zep vibe on this.

Good Friday

I disliked this song when I first heard it and when I covered The Black Crowes in The Record Vault post a while ago, I ignored it, but goddamn, time passes, moods change and suddenly the Country Soul Rock vibe of the song is hooking me in.

Nebekanezer

If the title doesn’t capture me, I’ve already formed a bias against the song. And while the song has a sludgy Blues groove with a little bit of a Beatles influence in the vocals, there isn’t enough meat to satisfy.

One Mirror Too Many

The Yardbirds, The Rolling Stones and the psychedelic 60’s and 70’s are re-incarnated into this song.

Blackberry

Soul Rock was big around this time in Australia because of the movie “The Commitments” which came out in 1991.

Girl From A Pawnshop

It was my favourite track when I first heard the album and it still is today.

The whole country ballad rock vibe just connected with me and the vocal delivery from Chris Robinson is excellent.

Only Halfway To Everywhere

With the horns, guest vocalists and Chris Robinson bordering between BB King and Steven Tyler vocally, this song feels like a group of musos getting together and having a jam session, with a lot of booze flowing.

Bring On, Bring On

Like other songs on this album, it’s the Led Zep acoustic influence which shines through on this track that hooks me in.

How Much For Your Wings?

The reddest of lights shine on you, young man, let God be with you..

And the acoustic guitars start and there is something about the vocals when Chris Robinson sings, “how much for your wings?” that captures me.

Let Me Share The Ride

A blues groove, but the horns give it that soul rhythm and blues feel.

Better When You’re Not Alone

More acoustic guitars and then the band kicks in. And I feel like I’m driving on the open road out of my town, hopeful and excited.

Evil Eye

It’s too psychedelic for me.

And they went on tour for this album, which took em towards the end of 1997. After this, the band got together and recorded another album with the working title of “Band”.

Which was also scrapped.

Guitarist Marc Ford was fired and bassist Johnny Colt subsequently left the group, dissolving the Crowes’ line-up of the previous three albums.

The unreleased tracks from the “Tall” and “Band” sessions surfaced among tape trading circles and were later officially released on the 2006 compilation “The Lost Crowes”.

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Classic Songs to Be Discovered, Derivative Works, Influenced, Music, My Stories

The Record Vault: Deep Purple – Who Do We Think We Are

The success of “Hush” in 1968 was more luck than anything. After that they struggled while Richie Blackmore kept evolving the band and the sound. Once the MKII version was in place, things started to change.

“In Rock” was released in 1970 and it definitely got people really interested. “Fireball” came quickly in 1971 and is often overlooked, but it kept the momentum going. “Machine Head” broke the band to a bigger audience in 1972 and in order to capture that success, the label released a live album called “Made In Japan” in December 1972.

Four albums in three years.

And then at the height of their fame, they dropped “Who Do We Think We Are” in 1973, their seventh studio album overall and fifth album in four years.

It would also be Deep Purple’s last album with singer Ian Gillan and bassist Roger Glover until 1984’s “Perfect Strangers”.

Fame is definitely a funny thing. You bust your ass to get there and then break up once you there.

Because of the touring, the album was recorded in two stages.

In July, 1972, they had some time in Rome to write and record new songs via the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio. The songs from these sessions that are known are “Woman From Tokyo” and an outtake known as “Painted Horse”.

In October, 1972, they had some time to do the same in Frankfurt, West Germany. This is where the remainder of the songs were completed.

Woman From Tokyo

It was the first track recorded in July, written about their life on the road and touring Japan for the first time. It’s also their best track from this album.

As soon as the drum groove started I was thinking of “Run To The Hills” from Maiden.

Mary Long

Ian Gillan combined the names of two people who represented things he hated in the prudish older generation of the time, which made him question how they even had sex.

How did you lose your virginity Mary Long?

It feels like a Lynyrd Skynyrd cut. But this is Deep Purple, the masters of speed, heavy and melodic rock, with a flourish of blues.

Super Trouper

It’s almost like early AOR blues rock, something that bands like Foreigner and Survivor would use on their earlier albums.

It’s short but it gets me interested.

Smooth Dancer

The comparison to “Speed King” was always going to happen.

And Jon Lord owns this track with his honky tonk piano and neo-classical Hammond organ solos.

Rat Bat Blue

I like the blues rock riff that starts this song off. A young Jake E Lee, would have been woodshedding this riff, ready to unleash it with Badlands.

Then the keyboard solo kicks in, over another groovy riff by Blackmore and suddenly power metal is born in Finland.

Place in Line

ZZ Top comes to mind here. It’s got that Texan strut, which is a bit different to the way the Brits did the blues.

Our Lady

It reminds me of The Beatles and I like it.

Actually it reminds me of the song “The Real Thing” from Russel Morris who was an Australian artist from the mid 60’s. The song was a hit in Australia and the U.S and it’s got that Beatles influence.

Painted Horse

This track was released on the Anniversary edition.

Blackmore would also use the riff from this for “Man On The Silver Mountain” with some minor tweaks.

Musically, it was a move to a more blues-based sound, and the album was criticized for its American sounding songs in the U.K, for “Super Trouper” and “Smooth Dancer”.

And when Gillan and Glover left, everyone thought the band was done. But not Richie Blackmore. He had other ideas and MK3 was about to be born.

This version would release two of my favorite albums would be released.

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A to Z of Making It, Classic Songs to Be Discovered, Influenced, Music, My Stories, Unsung Heroes

2001 – Part 4.7: Ill Nino – Revolution/Revolución

The late 90’s and early 2000’s was a time of pushing the limits of heavy metal music. From when I first came across metal albums in the 80’s, the genre had evolved so much that the bands classed as metal back then became totally unrecognisable to the new breed of bands doing the rounds.

Bands like Tool, Dream Theater, NIN, Ministry, Faith No More, Limp Bizkit, Fear Factory, Korn, Creed, Disturbed, Slipknot, Mudvayne, Machine Head and Pantera pushed the genre forward during this period. Each act bringing into their sound something that wasn’t there before. Suddenly Metallica sounded like a pop band compared to these bands.

And then I came across Ill Nino. A fusion of Latin Flamenco rhythms and percussion with metal riffs and singing which moved between aggressive screaming and melodic singing.

On September 18, 2001, Ill Niño released their debut album, “Revolution Revolución”.

The album was a commercial success for Roadrunner Records, moving over 350,000 albums worldwide in the first two years after release.

The Personnel for the album is Cristian Machado on Vocals and Samples, Jardel Martins Paisante and Marc Rizzo on Guitar, Lazaro Pina on Bass, Dave Chavarri on Drums and Samples and Roger Vasquez on Percussion.

And seeing a person called DJ Skratch on Turntables as an additional musician will either scare people off or make them curious.

God Save Us

It’s like Groove Nu-Metal. Vocally its aggressive in the verses, with a melodic Chorus.

Check out the flamenco like interlude at 2.30.

If You Still Hate Me

It’s like Industrial Nu-Metal at the start.

But at the 2 minute mark a flamenco metal section appears and then a head banging circle pit riff afterwards. The movement between styles is why this album got my attention.

Unreal

Distorted guitars and Latin percussion working to create something unique.

Nothing’s Clear

Screaming verses and a melodic Chorus. The duality of modern American metal at the start of the new century.

And chuck in a Bridge delivered in Spanish.

What Comes Around

The most catchiest song on the album. A Nu-Metal riff kicks it off, and then an atmospheric Korn like guitar riff in the verses, while the melodic singing carries the vocal melody.

Liar

The flamenco and percussion in the intro gives way to a Disturbed meets Limp Bizkit riff.

Rumba

The Latin percussion and distorted guitars is a delightful mash up. Vocally, the screaming loses me and the melodic singing re-captures my interest.

Predisposed

I like the Intro riff on this. Its head banging groove metal.

I Am Loco

Who isn’t loco these days?

No Murder

Press play to hear one guitar play a riff on the higher registers while another plays chords.

Rip Out Your Eyes

So much violence.

Revolution/Revolución

The intro riff is head banging heavy.

With You

It’s a flamenco acoustic rock cut. Santana is not the only musician that plays this style, but he is one of the biggest crossover artists, and because of that, this song reminds me of Santana.

The next album “Confession” is a lot more melodic and my favourite but if you want to start with something, then start with this.

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A to Z of Making It, Influenced, Music, My Stories

The Week In Destroyer Of Harmony History – November 21 to November 27

4 Years Ago (2017)

For some strange reason I didn’t post anything during this period.

8 Years Ago (2013)

ZOLTAN BATHORY

If you look at the Wikipedia page for Zoltan Bathory, the earliest musical output you get is from 2004, where he played bass in the band “U.P.O”. However his story begins a long time before that, in communist Hungary.

He was basically trying to succeed in a genre that didn’t have a voice in communist Hungary.

So he comes to America.

And the first FFDP album was recorded by the band. They produced it and paid for it.

REFORMS

REFORMS and CHANGES present challenges for every business. So why should it be any different for the Music and Entertainment Business?

TV content providers and streaming services take a lot of gambles with shows, just to remain relevant.

Are the labels doing that?

The Entertainment business instead asks for laws to be re-written in order to protect their business labels.

Music is always a risk game.

No one is entitled to make it in the music business.

There is no safety net.

VOLITION

I was still listening to Protest The Hero and writing about it.

PROGRESS IS DERIVATIVE

Society today is all about multi-tasking.

My drive home from work at that time consisted of the following songs;

“Shepherd Of Fire” – Avenged Sevenfold
“Lift Me Up” – Five Finger Death Punch
“Mist” – Protest The Hero
“Live In Love” – Times of Grace
“Fallen” – Volbeat
“Bulletproof” – Evans Blue
“Be Still and Know” – Machine Head

And all of the above songs can be traced back to other songs.

Here are some examples;

“Shepherd Of Fire” – the influence of Megadeth’s “Trust” and Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” are unmistakable.

Of course “Enter Sandman” had its main riff come from a band called Excel and a 1989 song called “Tapping Into The Emotional Void.” Megadeth’s “Trust” intro was also inspired by the Pittsburgh Penguins’ entrance theme “The Boys of Winter.”

“Lift Me Up” – the vocal melody influence is from “The Ultimate Sin” is very similar.

And then the post morphed into a Bad Company review.

SALES

Dream Theater had a 5 week sale run and by week 6 the album was done.

Avenged Sevenfold was still going strong after 12 weeks.

Five Finger Death Punch was also going strong after 16 weeks.

Black Sabbath had an 18 week run before it disappeared to come back again.

Trivium had a 4 week run of sales. It was a quick spiral out of the public consciousness and a lot of people didn’t like the Draiman influence on it.

And Stryper had a two week sale run.

There is no safety net.

DOING DOUBLE

A lot of artists are doing multiple projects. It’s not all about the one band.

Jared Leto does acting and Thirty Seconds to Mars.

Corey Taylor does Slipknot, Stone Sour and book writing.

Rob Zombie does his solo project and Directing.

Nikki Sixx at the time was doing Motley Crue, Sixx: A.M. + Radio DJ, Book Author and Photographer.

Claudio Sanchez was doing Coheed and Cambra, his Prized Fighter Inferno side project and Comic / Book Author.

It’s the way to survive in the business.

And that’s another wrap for another week.

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