bl5150's Top 50.........TOP TEN ...#1

[bl5150]

Welcome to my fogey-riffic Top 50! .....first albums up over the weekend



....... and apologies in advance for the longwinded intro .......(if you're not interested in a bit of background and how I went about it all then don't waste your time.  It's a bit tl:dr.)

I must say I'm constantly amazed at the diversity of taste of many of the forumites here on DTF but in my case  it ain't no box o'chocolates – you know pretty much what you're gonna get style wise –  mostly rock and metal  with a focus on the  80's and 90's sound , big melodies, big guitars  and most often big musicianship....and maybe the odd surprise to keep things interesting. There will not be any post punk ambient space sludge mathcore revival   or anything of the sort  - just  plenty of rocking metal with some metallic rock thrown in for variety.

I spent 15 years of my life living and breathing the guitar too , so above average guitar playing is generally a prominent component of music I like.  The only thing I don't  tend to connect with in the rock-metal spectrum (aside from "growly" metal) is lighter/classic prog rock . Having said that there's a small , but amazing,  sweet spot where rock and prog meet that generally involves a bit more in the way of heaviness ,melody  and hooks where I'm very ,very happy.

I'm also very much a melody/music person first and foremost – lyrics/concepts are of little interest to me if the musical side doesn't grab my ear pretty quickly first and even then....... to this day I don't know the exact lyrics to some of my favourite songs. So while I sincerely marvel at the analytical efforts of many forum members in their top 50's in terms of lyrical content(both albums and DT songs)  I never really go into such a depth of analysis.   So the write ups here will be more general/conversational/trivia related rather than some sort of analytical breakdown .

Needless to say it's been a task to cull 3000+ albums from 1300+ artists spanning mid 70's to current  (the majority of which I rate highly)  down to 50 (about 1.5% ) so I'll do my best to explain how I've gone about it.  Compromises have had to be made and in the end it's turned out a bit more like a top 50 most influential artists (with my fave album listed) rather than my absolute top 50 albums as of right now.

The main challenges in finalising the list were :

-   My top 6-7 or so artists are my top by quite some way , so a simple Top 50 albums risked turning into a discography of those few artists 

-   After those top few artists the next hundred or so artists/albums are so close it would be hard to feel like I've done a list any list justice without mentioning way,way more than 50 albums.


I've read a number of the old Top 50's and taken some inspiration from others that have listed one album per artist and also TAC/Nick who listed some closely associated albums/honourable mentions alongside etc... and have come up with my own mix to try and maximise content without it being  information overload (hopefully). 

The rules I imposed on myself initially in order to whittle the list down were as follows:

-One place  per artist  (I have tried to have a single album for each artist but on six occasions I have a tie - the albums are either by the same artist or a related project).

-Huge weight has been given to bands and albums that really played a big part in my life ,– so there has been lots of thinking back to the amount of time I spent listening to/obsessing over various bands and albums in order  to get some sort of ranking. As a kid –and even today -  I tended to fall in love with a great album and play nothing else for weeks or even months.   Lots of deserving albums missed out because of this rule but it needed to be done to have a hope of getting anywhere near 50.

In the end I managed to cut it down to my favourite 125 artists (<10% based on my collection) using the above criteria before it got really difficult. Numbers 1-30 are pretty much set in stone but 31-125 are so close it's not funny , so in order to help decide the final 50 I have added a further  filter:


-When in doubt  go with a style that is most representative of my current taste– which is generally trending heavier and more progressive.  Simple exercise.....what would I rather listen to right now?
   
The structure I settled on is broken down into the following elements (choose to ignore whatever part you like – or the lot    )

1)   The Top 50 albums according to the stated criteria.  I will aim for at least  7 albums listed per week  to keep things humming but still allow time for discussion.

2)   In the process of doing this very gradually over 7-8 months , and changing numbers 31-50 countless times , I did write ups for 75 albums.  It seems a shame to waste that work so I will have 25 runners up which will be listed with  comments  in the opening "runners up week"  (5 posts per day across  5-7 days) . It'll be a bit of work but I want to get this bit done quick so it's there for people to refer to but doesn't drag out for weeks and exhaust everyone before the main Top 50 list.  Feel free to ignore this if only interested in the top 50.  I would encourage you not to though as there's some good obscure and less obvious stuff in there.    After the runners up I will begin the proper top 50 .

The runners up will be labelled numbers 75-51 but the numbering is just arbitrary.

All of the 75 albums above will have artist, album name, album year with anywhere from 2 to 4 of my favourite tracks linked.

3)   As in Nick's list I will note an honourable mention as part of each of the top 50 – it will be at the bottom of the post and will consist of just  a band name, album name and year only with a one sentence comment if they're not well known to give a hint as to the type of music.  I will hyperlink this to one track that I feel  is worth a listen.   I know at least a couple of you are interested in some of my more obscure (wimpy) melodic rock/AOR faves and this is where you will find a number of those listed – many of which suffered at the hands of the "when in doubt, go current taste" rule.  Although a number of those may not have aged as well as the metal stuff, EVERY album listed anywhere in this thread has been very highly regarded at some point and played a big part in my life.

Doing this list has been a real trip down memory lane  and I hope you'll enjoy reading it as much as I have enjoyed judging and writing  it.   I have pre-prepared (almost) everything  a bit at a time since my name hit the waiting list November 2013 ........ so I can now sit back, post at my leisure and enjoy it with you rather than trying to write to a deadline as I go. .    I am hoping  that most  followers will  discover plenty of new bands to check out too. There's a good mix of classics and obscure gems + plenty of links to make it easy to check out some samples. Funny thing is , after months of listening to nothing but great music while doing this , I'm over it and missing trawling through a whole load of worthless gravel hunting for the odd gold nugget.

Hopefully a few will "follow and shit"    Pretty much all the albums listed were bought around the year of release unless noted – I was born 1974 so that gives you an idea of my age at the time of purchase if that's of interest. 

And away we go.....................

[Shadow Ninja 2.0]

I'll be following. Expecting to see some avant-garde jazz fusion deathprog.

[Bolsters]

I'll be following. I listen to some AOR but not as much as some others here, and most of what I listen to is very recent (there are some exceptions of course), so I have especially neglected the older stuff - the exact kinds of albums and artists I expect to see listed here. So this top 75 is probably going to cost me a bit.

[bl5150]

I'll be following. I listen to some AOR but not as much as some others here, and most of what I listen to is very recent (there are some exceptions of course), so I have especially neglected the older stuff - the exact kinds of albums and artists I expect to see listed here. So this top 75 is probably going to cost me a bit.

Plenty of stuff in the list isn't easily obtained - I've had to set up a Youtube account just to provide samples for a few -  so let me know if you need assistance with anything that's impossible to find. 

[ThatOneGuy2112]

If there's no post-industrial blackgaze, I'm going to be severely disappointed.

[jjrock88]

Its extremely difficult for someone to win me over with their musical tastes as I'm the most closed minded person on earth when it comes to music.  But Brent, you get an A plus.  Following, this will be a good one.

[bl5150]

Thanks jj - hopefully I don't disappoint.  Feeling the pressure now 

Here we go with the first 5 runners up ...........most of the links are Youtube , but if you want better sound quality Grooveshark is often better. Hopefully I've done a decent job linking - I have no idea what I'm doing - will double check them later tonight.



#75 Great White: s/t
Released: 1984


   Great White carved out a nice little niche for themselves with their bluesy rock and reached peak popularity in the late 80's with their cover of Once Bitten, Twice Shy which went #1.   From there the descent was pretty steady , as it was for many of their peers. The two albums from around that time (what else) -  Once Bitten........  and  ........Twice Shy were quality releases for that style but what a lot of people (and plenty of Great White fans) don't realise is that there was a debut self titled album in 1984 that was as "metal" as anything being done at the time by bands like Motley Crue .  The guitar sound used by Mark Kendall was quite unique for that style (almost bluesy metal) – it had a metal crunch but an earthy sound and I wish they'd persisted with it.
   
    Their touring activities are a good indication of how things went over time – at their commercial peak in the late 80's they toured in support of Bon Jovi , in 1984 behind this album they toured in support of Judas Priest.
   
     The record was (unfortunately) a commercial failure and as a result of pressure from their label their next album Shot In The Dark saw a clear move towards the more laid back bluesy rock that became their signature sound.  I sometimes wonder what they could've been as a hard rock/metal act as this debut is a classic and Jack Russell was a great vocalist for this style.   The lyrics in songs like Stick It (one of my all time favourite rock tracks) are rather childish in retrospect but typical of the 80's and at the time it was a cool song.  I'm not big into lyrics anyway so I still really enjoy it today.  I like pretty much everything on it and their cover of Substitute is great fun too.  The ballad – the 500,000th song titled "Hold On" – is a great rocking ballad too.   A neglected classic.

Favourite Tracks:  Stick It ,  Substitute ,  Bad Boys ,  Hold On





# 74 Wildside : Under The Influence
Released 1992

What we have here is a must have for fans of "hair metal" – it probably deserves a spot for the cover alone but these guys really were about the best example of a band that were about to hit the big  time if not for a dose of the flannelette flu.  They had the looks, the sound and the talent and had a lot of hype around them as they worked their way up via the Hollywood club scene.

Everything about this record was done right. They have a sound that I would describe as Skid Row meets Ratt with a sprinkle of early GnR.  The production is mindblowing- the record was actually produced by Andy Johns and recorded in large part at Van Halen's 5150 studios – the first "outside' band to do so. So there was really no expense spared and that's understandable seeing as they were the subject of a bidding war between Capitol and Polydor that was resolved  with a seven figure 5 record deal with Capitol (one of the biggest in years at the time) .  The album is chock full of attitude , great songs and is very well played.   The couple of more commercial songs are also great and the anthemic So Far Away was on heavy rotation in my late teens.

Unfortunately it all unravelled fairly quickly.  By the time of release (May 92) the scene was on its last legs and despite their reasonably successful tour with Babylon A.D. they (along with anyone else with hair and talent) were  dropped like  a hot potato , presumably along with their rock solid 5 year deal , and replaced at Capitol with Blind Melon and various  assorted shite. 

Favourite Tracks:  Hang On Lucy , So Far Away ,  Clock Strikes



#73 Megadeth : Rust In Peace
Released 1990

       
I've managed to squeeze 3 albums from my Big 5 of thrash into the Top 75 and here's the first .  The Big 5 for me are Metallica, Megadeth, Anthrax, Annihilator and Testament.  Each of these bands , for the most part , really only nailed the sound I like (well writtten,heavy but melodic/hooky) across a whole album once and in the case of Megadeth I feel Rust In Peace is the best example.

I like tracks off most of their albums but , even though there's the odd filler,  this is the only one I would listen to without  thinking too much about the Skip button.  I also don't think Marty Friedman ever came close to repeating the brilliance he showed here......within Megadeth anyway.

Truth be told I've never been much of a fan of Mustaine's vocals either but here they really suit much of the subject matter - "next mistake..............NO MORE MISTAKES!" As I indicated there's really only 4 or 5 albums I rate as thrash classics and this is one of them - as an added bonus the production here is crystal clear.  The addition of Marty Friedman and his exotic playing really added a new dimension to Megadeth and I was a bit disappointed in what followed given the great start here.

Favourite Tracks: Tornado of Souls , Hangar 18 , Holy Wars...The Punishment Due




#72 Glory : Positive Buoyant
Released 1993

       
This album is rare ,little known and most people who do know of it (established Glory fans – who have fan club catch ups in a telephone box) don't tend to like it. There's a big wrap for ya!  Well I do like it !

Glory  were fairly solid Scandi rock in the vein of Treat and at least two of their albums (Danger In This Game and 2 Forgive is 2 Forget) are solid affairs.  This album was originally going to be branded as a solo album for guitarist Jan Granwick , who like all the better players of the era does have his "own sound". For some reason it was released under the Glory name at the last minute.  It features roughly two thirds instrumental tracks (which is what upset the traditional fanbase) and the rest are vocal tracks with Goran Edman of Malmsteen (and just about everyone else) fame.

Jan Granwick is an interesting player – perhaps a bit like Ralph Santolla , in that quite I often  feel that his studio playing comes off as sloppy/unrehearsed and then he'll do something that drops my jaw and all is forgiven.
Anyway – sample some of my highlighted tracks and see what you think. I really got into this album big for a while there (90's) – it's a shame nobody else seemed to.

I've linked two instrumental tracks and one vocal (in that order)

Favourite Tracks:  Forbidden Fruit ,  Different Voices ,  Get A Good Thing Going




#71 Balance of Power : Book of Secrets
Released: 1998


This is Balance of Power's second album – the first had been recorded with a different vocalist and was just average.  The story goes that the band were shopping their 2nd album's music around for distribution (ex a vocalist) and one of the labels happened to be Nightmare Records .  Nightmare Records was owned and founded by Lance King who replied "not only do you have a record deal but you have a singer – me!"   After recording three strong albums with Balance of Power , Lance left and later resurfaced in Pyramaze who might be a bit more familiar to some of you.
My one concern is with the rather computer generated drum sound – I read in an interview somewhere that much of the music for this album was recorded in a tiny home (flat) studio where there wasn't enough room for a full drum kit , so in that context the sound on this album is a bit of an achievement.
The album concept is loosely based around a book called The Bible Code – I think something to do with the Dead Sea Scrolls but don't quote me on it. There are short little interludes within and between songs with a booming British voice quoting from the book.  The music is big , bombastic and melodic heavy rock/metal with soaring vocals - Lance King sounds a bit like Harnell/Tate/Labrie with a Harnell like range.  To be honest sometimes it sounds like he's doing it a bit too easy , such is his range.

Favourite Tracks:  Book Of Secrets , Miracles and Dreams , Walking On Top Of The World

[jjrock88]

Stick It is a great tune for sure.  Its too bad Great White is always going to be linked with that tragedy in Rhode Island

Megadeth is of course great.

Everything I've heard from Balance of Power is very good; always meaning to check them out further.

Not familiar with Wildside or Glory, will have to check them out.

[Bolsters]

Just listened to everything. Rust In Peace was the only one I was familiar with, so there was a bit to go through. I'm not really much of a Megadeth fan but they have a handful of songs that I do like, Hangar 18 being a particular favourite of mine.

Glory is a maybe. I liked the third track but I'm not a fan of instrumentals in general, those were so-so to me, so I'll listen to more of that album next week.

Great White is a maybe awell. Didn't mind what I was hearing but my interest wasn't piqued much at all. I'll probably listen to the album anyway, though.

Wildside and Balance of Power fared a little better, I might be interested in those. I'll look into streaming those albums next week aswell.

[CrimsonSunrise]

Following...











and shit..... 

[King Postwhore]

Pops a few Geritol and follows.

[Podaar]

Pretty cool list and write-ups. I be following with great interest. 

[Lowdz]

Following, as if you didn't know  I'm looking to find some stuff I don't know in her and we're off to a good start.
I'm a fan of Blues-y Great White but haven't heard the S/T other than Stick It and Substitiute. Will give it a go when I can get n Youtube after work.

Megadeth I like some of, maily when Marty was on guitar. Half of RIP is awesome.

Wildside I think I've heard but don't remember much about.

Not sure i've heard of Glory but they sound like I might like them.

BoP are... ok. Not a band that grabbed me particularly.

Anyway, good luck mate.

[Big Hath]

I'm looking to find some stuff I don't know in her

tell me more

[bl5150]

Thanks for following guys - appreciate it and all your -uh - "experience"    We should have plenty of cool discussion once I get to the classics.

If there's no post-industrial blackgaze, I'm going to be severely disappointed.

I'll be following. Expecting to see some avant-garde jazz fusion deathprog.

  Don't hold your breath.

I'm looking to find some stuff I don't know in her and we're off to a good start.

I've got a few tricks up my sleeve but , given we're talking the cream of the crop , I expect you to know the vast majority.  Hopefully you'll be spending a little and for Bolsters............check out the honourable mentions in the Top 50 - also a few little known AOR classics in the main list.

Talking of money .............whenever I was struggling to get myself up for typing up an entry for this list , I tried to think about the prospect of sending Chad totally broke and it gave me another burst of energy 

[TAC]

That's a great shot if you and the Mrs in the OP!

Definitely following. Nothing wrong with the first Great White album if only for nostalgic reasons.

Rust In Peace

[Lowdz]

I'm looking to find some stuff I don't know in her

tell me more

Whoops. That's what happens when your excitement gets the b etter of you and you rush. Not making it any better am i? 

And Brent, don't worry about Chad's wallet. He seems minted!

Re Great White, I absolutely love Hooked. That's their best for me. They were great live too.

[King Postwhore]

Chad has one of those George Costanza wallets.  You should see it.

[Lowdz]

Just realised I have that Great White album on vinyl. I'm sure it was with a different cover with the band on it and maybe a slightly different track list which GW did alot back then. Shot in The Dark and Once Bitten had different tracklists in the UK.

edit here it is

[Lowdz]

ok so I've had a listen to the links now.
The Wildside is excellent - so good I was going to buy it until I saw how much it was going for!

Glory - I had a listen and found it a bit hit and miss. That first instrumental was irritating. Hated those trills in the melody. He doesn't sound a good enough player to be doing instrumental stuff.
Listened to the track Vodka And Ice and it grew on me, mainly when Goran stopped singing. I really don't like his voice. It was sort of ok though. I liked some of the other tracks I found from other albums. 2 Forgive Is 2 Forget was very good. No Goran Edman to ruin things there! Worth investigating if I can find any.

edit - wow, another expensive album. Oh well.

edit 2 - Listened to the Balance Of Power now. I said originally they were ok... I hadn't heard this album because its a cracker  I could really do without the voice overs but otherwise a great album.

And these didn't even make the top 50. Holy shit we're in for a ride 

[wolfking]

Definitely following this one, but my wallet will probably regret it.

Only familiar with Megadeth in those first 5.  I never really took the time to check out Great White, and not familiar with the rest.  Here we go.

[TAC]

Chad keeps a large wallet so his back pocket compensates for his small .. um..front pocket. 

[King Postwhore]

Just realised I have that Great White album on vinyl. I'm sure it was with a different cover with the band on it and maybe a slightly different track list which GW did alot back then. Shot in The Dark and Once Bitten had different tracklists in the UK.

edit here it is

I saw Great White on tour with Judas Priest on the Defenders tour for this album.  I remember they had a shirt that said, Stick It with a big middle finger and they did a cover of the Who's, "Substitute".

[Sacul]

Will definitely follow this, even if I don't not know a quarter of the artists.

[Lowdz]

Just realised I have that Great White album on vinyl. I'm sure it was with a different cover with the band on it and maybe a slightly different track list which GW did alot back then. Shot in The Dark and Once Bitten had different tracklists in the UK.

edit here it is

I saw Great White on tour with Judas Priest on the Defenders tour for this album.  I remember they had a shirt that said, Stick It with a big middle finger and they did a cover of the Who's, "Substitute".

That cover (Substitute) is on this album.

And Kade, GW did bluesy hard rock well. As I said earlier, Hooked is their best for me.

[bl5150]

ok so I've had a listen to the links now.
The Wildside is excellent - so good I was going to buy it until I saw how much it was going for!

Glory - I had a listen and found it a bit hit and miss. That first instrumental was irritating. Hated those trills in the melody. He doesn't sound a good enough player to be doing instrumental stuff.
Listened to the track Vodka And Ice and it grew on me, mainly when Goran stopped singing. I really don't like his voice. It was sort of ok though. I liked some of the other tracks I found from other albums. 2 Forgive Is 2 Forget was very good. No Goran Edman to ruin things there! Worth investigating if I can find any.

edit - wow, another expensive album. Oh well.

edit 2 - Listened to the Balance Of Power now. I said originally they were ok... I hadn't heard this album because its a cracker  I could really do without the voice overs but otherwise a great album.

And these didn't even make the top 50. Holy shit we're in for a ride 

Thanks again everyone - I'm glad you like the BoP and Wildside Paul.    I do agree with you about the Glory (as hinted in my write up) - that album made it more because I knew it had been important to me at the time , even though I'm not such a huge fan now. I recently rated it at <85% which is the lowest of any to be mentioned in this thread.   2 Forgive IS 2 Forget is definitely their best vocal album as you've noted.

Unfortunately , as you've also noted , a lot of these albums had minimal runs and often don't come cheap on CD - or a genuine copy anyway.

I didn't realise you were so down on Edman's vocals - so you don't like Eclipse either?? Funny you mention Vodka and Ice.....I listened to that while doing this and noted a bit of malice in the lyrics and thought to myself "this could only be talking about Malmsteen", so I hunted around and sure enough I found an interview where it was confirmed that Malmsteen was ripping him of on royalties at the time.

The Great White copy you have - released as Stick It - was a re-release in the 90's I believe

That cover (Substitute) is on this album.

And Kade, GW did bluesy hard rock well. As I said earlier, Hooked is their best for me.

I mentioned Substitute in my write up and fave tracks , so the King was obviously distracted by his subjects.

I do like Hooked as well but a few of the tracks off the debut (Stick It especially) were big songs for me.


I'll try and get some more up tonight but struggling with the leg at the moment - if not , then tomorrow.

[BlobVanDam]

I'll be sure to check out this list. One of the very few lists on this forum that might actually interest me!

[jingle.boy]

.............whenever I was struggling to get myself up for typing up an entry for this list , I tried to think about the prospect of sending Chad totally broke and it gave me another burst of energy 

Chad has one of those George Costanza wallets.  You should see it.

Chad keeps a large wallet so his back pocket compensates for his small .. um..front pocket. 

The pot shots just fly when one isn't here to defend ones honor.  I see how it is.

Following... no shit.

Busy day today, so I won't be able to sample this first batch until tomorrow morning.

[King Postwhore]

 

Like Chad I need to listen to a few albums.  I never check a few of these bands out when I was a teen in this era.

[bl5150]

Welcome Chad   

Here's some more ......I expect many of these runners up (and later, the honourable mentions) won't be as well known as those in the main list , which is a big reason I did them. In many ways the releases that are least known but only just miss out on the Top 50 are likely to be of more interest to more people than the classics.

Anyway.........a few more.




#70 Bangalore Choir: On Target
Released 1992

Gets a spot in my list just for the cleavage (re-released later without the chick  ) but also because it's a damn solid album of  heavy rock with the obligatory ballad or two.  For some reason I remember exactly where I heard of this band.  I was reading one of the music mags I used to look at in my school days (probably Hit Parader) and there was mention of a Randy Rhoads benefit gig for the scholarship fund his mum had set up in his name. I was a huge Ozzy/Rhoads fan and so I read on. There were a whole load of big names playing but one name that stood out (not knowing who a band is was not allowed) was Bangalore Choir.   

Details of the gig I found ...........

https://www.nobitching.com/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=29&t=4677


Once I looked into them I sorta got the idea – I was vaguely familiar with David Reece from his one Accept album and I knew of Kurt Mitchell from Hericane Alice and I'd actually bought some of his guitar instruction cassettes  – Learn to Burn if memory serves correct.  So we have a solid lineup in prospect.  The original guitarist lined up was actually Joey Tafolla but that didn't work out for whatever reason.  Cripes – I can't remember what I did yesterday and yet I can remember this shit 

Reece used to get crap for being some sort of Coverdale clone and personally I don't get it -  sure he does the odd "Hmmm.mmmm" in DC style but he really does have quite a distinctive voice – a powerful rock/metal voice that I really like on the right music .  He's also been involved in some absolute shite like that Sircle of Silence disc Suicide Candyman which ended up as a beer coaster. 

This is pretty much by the numbers heavy rock style wise but the songwriting and playing is a big cut above most of what was around at the time.  A couple of soaring ballads but also some ballsy rockers like All or Nothing and a stonking cover (much heavier and much better) of Autograph's demo Angel In Black.   Doin' The Dance was a Bon Jovi/Aldo Nova co-write.   Supposedly Max Norman (producer) really sweetened up the much heavier demo material for this but I can't really comment on that as I haven't heard the demos.
And yes..........this is yet another band that got their timing totally wrong in that 1991-1992 time and they vanished as quick as they appeared – literally dropped from the label weeks after release.

I know that Paul's got this one as he really upset me a few weeks back by posting the chickless cover 

Favourite Tracks   All Or Nothing , Angel In Black , Slippin Away



#69 Glenmore: For The Sake of Truth
Released 1994


Here's another obscure album I can barely find a review or mention of on the net but they were a firm favourite of mine for a while. Like many of the hidden gems in melodic rock and metal it was released early-mid 90's (this will become familiar) and barely sold a unit , except to scavengers like me who were still on the hunt for good rock music and prepared to get their hands dirty finding it. 

Supposedly named after the whiskey of the same name they're out of Germany and played catchy hard rock/melodic metal with a slightly progressive edge – there's more meat in the musical structures than many bands of the same ilk.   I find it quite hard to compare them to other bands – there's whiffs of Heavens Gate , early PC 69 and maybe Queensryche but they really have their own sound.  Singer Jurgen Volk has a real screech on him but I don't find it too much to bear.  Good guitars and drums (Jorg Michael popping up as he has a habit of doing) and a nice clean production.  Take A Look is the attempt at a commercial song and I like it.   Give em a go and see what you think.   I love the unexpected outro riff to finish off Neverending too (same as used under the guitar solo).........always cool to see an unexpected riff/change of direction , a trait I liked in Criss Oliva's writing. 

If you like the sound of them then the debut album Materialized is almost as good ..and probably just as hard to find.

Favourite Tracks Take A Look (Inside Your Heart), Political Games , For The Sake Of Truth , Neverending , Soldier of Fortune



#68 Lion : Trouble In Angel City
Released 1989

Long before Doug Aldrich was making a name for himself in Dio and Whitesnake I was a big fan of his work in Lion , Bad Moon Rising, Hurricane and his unrecognised cameo on House of Lords' Sahara album.  I remember back in the days when you had no choice but to buy CDs that Lion's Dangerous Attraction album was one of those Ebay gems that you needed to fork out $50 or more to have a hope of getting your hands on one.

Anyhow.......I would consider Doug one of my favourite guitarists but at the same time I view him as a bit one dimensional.   He can get quite repetitive with his bluesy rock stuff as seen in Whitesnake and Burning Rain and his solos don't contain a huge amount of variety at times (I also found his solo albums rather boring) but on the positive side ; when he nails it he fucking slays it due to incredible picking and legato technique and he has a quality that I love in a rock guitarist and that's huge attack on the strings .  Guitarists will know what I mean by that – not many guitarists have it but other names that come to mind with a similar feel include Van Halen, Zakk Wylde , Jake E Lee and John Norum.

Lion had its roots in England with singer Kal Swan (ex- Tytan) and they moved to the US and recruited then young gun Doug Aldrich to record their first EP and then on to debut album Dangerous Attraction.  They followed this up with Trouble In Angel City which was a mish mash of new songs , a Slade cover (Lock Up Your Daughters) and (massively superior) re-records of songs off their earlier EP. And for me this is their best album .   Lion came to end after drummer Mark Edwards suffered a severe neck injury (bike accident) but Swan and Aldrich re-appeared soon after with the rhythm section of Bangalore Choir and with a new name – Bad Moon Rising.   Given the two key members remain I consider them essentially the same band.

Bad Moon Rising produced three albums – the first s/t was Lion style rock , the second (Blood) was far more bluesy rock (still very good) and the third was some sort of alternative crap.

Kal Swan's voice is a bit love/hate (or perhaps an acquired taste) but if you don't mind his constipated style and enjoy flashy guitar work then I can't imagine you'd dislike either of these albums.  The solo spots in Forgotten Sons and Dark Side of Babylon are big highlights and I love the groove on Blood In The Streets. In fact the solo in Forgotten Sons is mindblowing and one of my favourite air guitar moments ever.  It's a bit low in the mix unfortunately but listen carefully.

There's a real progression you can see from the hair metal of Lion to the more rootsy hard rock of the s/t  BMR debut and then the more groove based stuff on the follow up BMR album "Blood"

So for something different I have linked to one song from each below

Forgotten Sons (from Trouble In Angel City)
Dark Side of Babylon (from BMR s/t debut)
Blood On The Streets (from BMR album Blood)






#67 House of Lords: Demons Down
Released 1992

Here we go again .............1992 , a band that had everything going for them , just about to break the bigtime with their best ever release (the prior release Sahara had charted #121)and grunge blows them off the face of the Earth before you can say "Nirvana".  They were no more only months later.

This is the last of the three albums recorded by the classic HoL partnership  of James Christian and Gregg Giuffria.   Aside from the great songs and pompy keyboards from Giuffria it's really James Christian's vocals that are the signature of the band.   The other musicians came and went but they all had one thing in common – they were far better than the average  ........everyone from Chuck Wright, Lanny Cordola, Ken Mary, Tommy Aldridge, Doug Aldrich (played almost all of the guitars on Sahara uncredited )

HoL was actually put together with that sort of thing in mind – a supergroup of sorts formed out of the ashes of the band Giuffria  with handpicked talent, top song writers and in the early stages the picking was done by Giuffria and Gene Simmons who owned the label they recorded their first 2 albums with. Christian had just missed out on the gig for Quiet Riot but the tape got him the HoL gig eventually.

All three albums (s/t, Sahara and Demons Down) are classics and it wasn't an easy choice but in the end I felt that only Demons Down nailed every aspect – the first couple had the odd extra filler and the production now sounds a bit dated/overdone.  Demons Down sounds as good today as it did then and is a bona fide classic of melodic rock.

Favourite Tracks: A shitload of them - but here's 4 ...... O Father ,  Demons Down , What's Forever For , Spirit Of Love

As an aside another very rare album that's pretty good is Rumble Tribe : Fire , Water , Earth and Stone which was heavily backed by James Christian - he produced it, did backing vox and the disc includes grittier versions of the songs Demons Down and Cold Day In Hell (from his solo album).  A sample here :  Deeper Than Black




#66 Anthrax: Spreading The Disease
Released 1985


Given my need for a particular type of melody/hook in my music it's quite common for me to adore one particular album and yet see nothing much at all in another album from the same artist that many fans consider similar or superior. Dream Theater for starters – and such is the case with Anthrax.  Among The Living seems to get the gong for the classic of Anthrax classics – for me there's only one song I ever play from that (and one song that could compete with anything on STD) and that's Indians.

In a nutshell Spreading The Disease just nails the idea of melodic  thrash and contains a number of my favourite metal songs , especially Medusa .

Favourites:  Medusa , Lone Justice, Armed and Dangerous, The Enemy

[bl5150]

Working on the links - will get the Glenmore ones up tomorrow as I need to upload them to the net myself.

[BlobVanDam]

Shame on you for mentioning Lion without mentioning their best song! (not even kidding with this, seriously)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJd_0cZtcc4

[jingle.boy]

I was just listening to Demons Down yesterday!  HoL is fantastic - DD is definitely my favorite from their first three.  Their 2000s output is just as good, and the new album this year is pretty solid.  I've got a couple of Bangalore Choir tracks from the MRR collections I have, but don't know them too well.  Anything from MRR is going to be solid though.

Guess I got 10 bands to investigate tomorrow.

[bl5150]

Shame on you for mentioning Lion without mentioning their best song! (not even kidding with this, seriously)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJd_0cZtcc4

haha - if you reckon     I suppose I could've got Stan Bush a mention out of that who recently had the huge honour of becoming part of the Transformers Hall Of Fame 

[BlobVanDam]

Shame on you for mentioning Lion without mentioning their best song! (not even kidding with this, seriously)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJd_0cZtcc4

haha - if you reckon     I suppose I could've got Stan Bush a mention out of that who recently had the huge honour of becoming part of the Transformers Hall Of Fame 

It's a metal song with a badass riff and a killer solo and high vocals, about robots fighting. If you can't see how that is clearly the greatest thing ever, then you have no right writing a top 50 list!
And Stan Bush is probably in the company of the likes of Optimus Prime and Orson-Welles-bot. That's one hell of an honour.