1312. Stormtrooper of Death / Speak English or Die! 1985. 4/5

Is Stormtroopers of Death the most unlikely band project to ever release an album? That is probably too long a bow to draw, but it is true that the coming together and recording and release of this particular album is fantastical in the extreme. And it all comes to pass from the band Anthrax, who in June of 1985 were finishing off the recording of their second studio album “Spreading the Disease”. The story is told that, after finishing his guitar tracks, Scott Ian would draw pictures of a character that he named Sargent D, who took the form of an undead, cigar-chomping G.I. He would then compose slogans for Sargent D such as "I'm not racist; I hate everyone" and "Speak English or Die". Ian began to write lyrics about the character and about his thoughts. Once Anthrax had completed the recording of their new album there was still some studio time left, and so Ian decided to use it to have some fun. He pulled aside his Anthrax bandmate Charlie Benante to play drums. Now they needed some other personnel, and they knew just where to go. Former Anthrax bass guitarist Danny Lilker was out and about trying to get his new band, Nuclear Assault, up off the ground, but when Ian called him to see what he was doing he had a gap in his schedule, and he came down to the studio. Also on the call list was another friend Billy Milano who was lined up to do some vocals.
On July 1, 1985, the four recorded what could loosely be termed a demo tape in the studio. Titled “Crab Society North”, it was recorded by plugging a Walkman into a speaker, and then just cutting loose with their material. The demo tape was 14 minutes and 21 seconds, and contained 63 songs, ranging in length from 1 second to 58 seconds. Very little was eventually used from this one day jam, but one thing that did stick was coming up with the name of the band – Stormtroopers of Death, or simply S.O.D.
For the next four days, from July 2 to 5 1985, the four members of the newly named band put together the 21 tracks that would form what would be known as their debut album, and recorded and mixed it. Upon its release it was instantly controversial due to their deliberately offensive explicit lyrics. Scott Ian said from the outset that the songs were written as a big inside joke, adding: "Some people thought we were racist, and those people are stupid”. Even more remarkable, this album, completed in four days at the end of the sessions for Anthrax’s “Spreading the Disease” album, actually beat that album to its release by two months. And in its own way went about creating its own genre, with the joy and amusing anecdotes that was titled “Speak English or Die!”

When it comes to this album there are a couple of things that have to be addressed. The first is the lyrical content on many of the songs, controversial topics and opinions sprouted in songs such as "Pre-Menstrual Princess Blues", "Pussy Whipped" and "Fuck the Middle East", addressing homosexuality, women and foreign cultures. Dan Lilker stated at the time that "The lyrics were never intended to be serious, just to piss people off. Furthermore, in an interview with Songfacts in 2014, when asked "If Speak English or Die came out today, do you think that because of the political correctness of today, it would go over the same?", Lilker responded, "It probably would have had a harder time just because people seem to be more uptight now. Nevertheless, it was what it was, which is saying it is what it is, but back then. And I don't regret it. Maybe minor aspects went overboard with certain lyrical things, but then again, we didn't really mean them. Perhaps if people realise that, then it's just more funny”. And this is worth considering if you are new to the album. The lyrics may not be politically correct but they are not the serious thoughts of those who wrote them. They were written to gain a reaction and to be considered as a running joke commentary. Not all of course will see or take it that way.
That comes from the first track, following the instrumental opening of “March of the S.O.D” introduces us to the man himself “Sargent D and the S.O.D”, who takes all in his wake, espousing “Their cause is justified, their reason is clear, the word "revenge" is all that they hear. They'll make you wish that you didn't exist cos Sargent "D" is coming and you're on his list”. A great stomping track, that continues into “Kill Yourself” with inspiring lyrics such as “You're a loser, there's nothing left for you, A worthless loser at everything you do. Kill yourself now!”. “Milano Mosh” gives lead vocalist Billy Milano the chance to stomp around a bit himself. “Speak English or Die” lives on that threshold. “You come into this country, you can't get real jobs, boats and boats and boats of you, go home, you fuckin' slobs”. Let’s face it, real opinions such as these are still sprouted in the modern day by Joe Public, let alone those who are somehow voted into our governments. Every extremity has been covered by the band in the opening four songs.
Without trying to cover the entire range of the 21 tracks that cover the almost 29 minutes of this album, there are some really great pieces on this album. “United Forces” is a beauty, another real stomping track with a great riff and easy singalong lyrics. The short, sharp attitude of “Chromatic Death” punctuates and enlightens along the way. “Freddy Krueger” is just a brilliant thrash hardcore track that combines the best of both world and throws it into the mix perfectly. A ripping moshing song. “Milk” is perfect in the same way, expressing the disappointment that one can’t have a normal breakfast because Mum hasn’t bought milk. I imagine my 17 year old son would probably think exactly what this song expresses whenever he has drunk all the milk in our house.
Every other track, from the 2 second and 5 second squats to the lengthy 80 seconds bursts, all make for a fabulous listening experience, one that combines anger and angst with moshing and a good time.

I first came across this album as we began the new decade. As avid listeners to this podcast will know, I very recently spoke about Anthrax’s album “Persistence of Time”, and the fact that the band opened their tour for that album in Australia, which I got to see. As a lead up to that I had tried to gather together as much music from the band as I could, which had included the “I’m the Man” EP as well as being directed to this album. And it is fair to say that it struck a chord from the outset. It merged in with other band and albums that I was beginning to be introduced to at that time and over the next couple of years. Part of the Anthrax mantra had been to have a fun, corny time with their music on stage, and this certainly melded in with that.
Did I care about the fact that it used language and spoke about controversial subjects? No, not in the slightest. It would be easy to say that I wasn’t offended by anything on this album because none of those things affected me. But the truth is that it was all obviously in jest, in creating a storm by expanding these things in a greater context. If people are offended by anything here – either 40 years ago or in the present day, where offence seems more prevalent – then simply don’t listen to it.
I’ve had this album out again over the past couple of days, and it is as enjoyable as I have always found it. For me it will always be a novelty, something that is fun to put on every now and then and enjoy it for what it is, and then send it back to the shelves to wait until the next time. I am more likely to reach for an Anthrax record than I am an S.O.D. album, for no other reason than the substance of the songs.
S.O.D. toured in support of the album in 1985, opening for Motörhead and The Plasmatics, among others. They had apparently planned a follow-up titled USA For S.O.D., which was ultimately scrapped and never recorded. After their tour ended, Lilker carried on with the band Nuclear Assault while Benante and Ian continued with Anthrax. Milano formed the spin-off band Method of Destruction, known as M.O.D. It was not the end of the S.O.D. story but it doesn’t pick up again for a few years down the track.

1311. Black Sabbath / Tyr. 1990. 4/5

Following the decision of Ronnie James Dio and Vinny Appice to leave the band in 1982, the remainder of the 1980’s decade was a tough time for the band Black Sabbath, and moreso for its one remaining bastion, guitarist Tony Iommi. Through countless band member changes and record company changes and management changes, Iommi had to fight endlessly to keep the Black Sabbath name alive. Those different lineups had included multiple lead singers, bass guitarists and drummers, and while each of “Born Again”, “Seventh Star” and “The Eternal Idol” had its good moments, in general it was hard to keep up with what was happening with the band.
Better news came with the release of the album “Headless Cross” in 1989. Retaining the services of Tony Martin on lead vocals gave the band some credibility, and the recruitment of legendary drummer Cozy Powell an experienced musician to help compose and record with. The album was a return to form, and had featured a guest slot from Iommi’s mate Brian May as a part of the process. Despite reaching 31 on the UK charts, the band’s tour of the US was cancelled after just eight shows due to poor ticket sales. The European and Japan tours were more fruitful, while a 23-date tour of Russia with Girlschool gave them the distinction of being one of the first western bands to tour the country.
The band looked to strike while the iron was moderately warm and get back into the studio to record the follow up. Neil Murray, who had done some of the touring for the previous album, was now on board as a member of the band, and along with keyboardist and longtime Iommi friends and music partner, completed the line up for the new album. What was to come was something out of the box, and almost complete change of mindset. “Headless Cross” had arguably been the heaviest album by the band since the early 1980’s, and with lyrics that followed along that path. On the album that became “Tyr”, the music does not have the doom environment that the band had formerly invented. Here is an album that eschews much of that process for songs that have a far more keyboard oriented sound, almost reaching for a sound that mimics power metal without the speed or express synth sound that genre pertains to. And while this beckoned to turn off what remained of the Black Sabbath fan base from the outset, for those that hung around to see what it might hold, it became an album that held far more substance that what most fans know.

When it came to this album, the title, along with the name of several of the songs on the album, are based around Norse mythology, which led to many critics and fans believing that this was a concept album, something that Neil Murray discounted in an interview in 2005. He was quoted as saying that while some of the songs appear loosely related it was never written nor intended to be a concept album. However, the album’s departure from the darker lyrics of Headless Cross was discussed by Tony Iommi in his 2012 autobiography Iron Man, where he said this: “For our next album, Tyr, we went back to the Woodcray Studios in February 1990, with me and Cozy producing it again. On ‘Headless Cross’, Tony Martin had just come into the band and he assumed, oh, Black Sabbath, it’s all about the Devil, so his lyrics were full of the Devil and Satan. It was too much in your face. We told him to be a bit more subtle about it, so for Tyr he did all these lyrics about Nordic gods and whatnot. It took me a while to get my head around that”. It has been said that the album was originally intended to be titled “Satanic Verses” but for the same reason was discarded.
The album opens with “Anno Mundi”, a song that channels different versions of the band through its history. It is true that this doesn’t sound like that pure Iommi heavy styled riff from the original iteration of the band, but there are moments when you can almost believe that it harkens from the Dio years. It probably doesn’t harm this thought because of the similarity in voice between Dio and Tony Martin, but the song itself is of an epic type that that era of Sabbath wrote. It acts as a terrific way of drawing you in to the album from the outset, the soaring Martin vocals dominating throughout. This is followed by “The Law Maker”, a more traditional heavy song with the up-tempo speed and vibe, highlighted by Iommi’s riff and solo and Martin’s vocals showcasing his ability to adapt to whatever is thrown at him. The solid rhythm held together by Powell and Murray make this a simplified song but by no means an average one. “Jerusalem” has a very choir backed feel to the track, it sounds almost like it should be being listened to in a church, or at the very least a cathedral. It has that style and substance about it, replete with multi-layered vocals backing. “The Sabbath Stones” continues in the direction that “Anno Mundi” travels in, a heavier and perhaps more traditional epic track that still holds true to what the album opener was pushing as the album’s theme, with the quiet melodic breakdown in the middle of the track before building again to its conclusion. Martin’s vocals again showcase their best qualities while Cozy’s heavy hitting drumming powers forth.
The instrumental open of “The Battle of Tyr” opens the second side of the album by segueing into “Odin’s Court”, in itself a short quiet clear guitared moment that acts as the segue into “Valhalla”. Treating this three song set as one track is probably how most fans would approach it, with the first four minutes of “The Battle of Tyr” and “Odin’s Court” mostly forgettable, and “Valhalla” itself actually proving to be a far more inspiring song. And that is not to say that that four minutes is wasted space or clear air – it's just that even when listening to the album now, you are just waiting for the entrance of “Valhalla” to get the second side of the album to kick into gear. And then, we have what follows.
It is interesting that the band, in particular Tony Martin, has come out as saying that they do not regret putting the song “Feels Good to Me” on the album, and that they indeed like the track itself, but that it is quite different from everything else on the album. In an interview some years later, Martin was quoted as saying that the record company pretty much demanded that they include a song that was of a particular... standard... in order to release as a single. And indeed, that is exactly what it sounds like. It is composed to be a single release. It has practically none of the characteristics of every other song on the album. It doesn’t fit the sound at all, and as a result it sticks out like a sore thumb. It is hugely reminiscent of “No Stranger to Love” from the “Seventh Star” album, another of the top five most unlikely Black Sabbath tracks of all time. Could they not have just released this as a stand alone single? Or the B-side of another song, and let the radio stations just play the B side? Anyway. I don’t hate it, but it is so noticeable every time you play the album, for the wrong reasons.
The album then concludes with “Heaven in Black”, a closing song that lifts the tempo and mood of the album back to where it deserves to be, a faster paced effort that returns the energy to the album to end on a far more enjoyable note.
It may seem like an easy line to draw, but one of the reasons this album has a different sound from what many would consider to be a Black Sabbath sound is the absence of Geezer Butler on bass guitar. That is no slight on Neil Murray who is a brilliant bass guitarist and composer and plays terrifically on this album, but the songs do not sound as heavy because they do not have Geezer’s guttural distinctive tones underneath Iommi’s licks and riffs. It also indulges far heavier in Geoff Nicholls keys than other eras of the band. Now Iommi and Nicholls had been mates for years so it was probably a no brainer that they would eventually have this greater influence in the music, and this era was the best opportunity to do that, as even though the band has the name of Black Sabbath hanging over it, the music that is produced is in a different phase than what most would expect. Yes, Iommi’s recognisable riffs are here, but in the same way that Dio era Sabbath is different from Ozzy era Sabbath for obvious reasons, the same is echoed here.

How many people were actually keeping up with what the band Black Sabbath was doing after 1983? I am assuming not many. But given that my foray into the heavier side of music did not commence in earnest until the final months of 1986, I guess I was one of them. Because I pent 1986 and 1987 going backwards through their discography, that included those albums. I have one of my best friends from high school who eventually became my brother-in-law to thank for getting around to listening to “Seventh Star” and “The Eternal Idol”, because he bought those albums and I was then able to borrow them and tape them to a C90 cassette. “Headless Cross” and “Tyr” however passed me by at the time of their release. There was a LOT of music I was still discovering at this time, and those albums didn’t make the initial cut.
I was eventually gifted a CD of “Tyr” from a friend who decided he wasn't interested in it at all and gave it to me rather than hang onto it for no reason. This was in 1993, a year after “Dehumanizer” had been released, and before “Cross Purposes” was thought of. I remember thinking “Well, The Eternal Idol was good with Tony Martin on vocals. This should be good too!” So by now we had had the onset of grunge, and also that marvellous “Dehumanizer” album... so MAYBE my hopes were too high for this album?...
As it turned out, I enjoyed the album. It has lots of good moments. It just wasn’t one that I thought of to go back to very often. Eventually, it wasn’t until a few years later, when I had wearied of the 1990’s and much of its musical wares, that I began to go back to albums such as this and give them a more thorough workout than they received the first time around.
In amongst the ridiculously great and amazing albums that have popped up in this 2-3 week period I am currently reviewing and preparing podcast episodes for you lovely listeners, I have also had this one out and on rotation. And as I found almost 30 years ago when I first took this album seriously, I have truly enjoyed reliving it once again. OK, so maybe I don’t play it as much as I should, but every time I do, I do enjoy it. A couple of songs excluded. When the remastered vinyl collection came out last year I was the first in line to buy it so I could enjoy it on my turntable as well. And as I’ve already covered, there is a lot to enjoy here. Tony Martin’s vocals are still terrific to the ear, Cozy Powell's drumming is still as brilliant as always, and Neil Murray’s bass guitar is just so underrated. And who doesn’t want to listen to Tony Iommi play guitar any day of the week? Yes, these songs are so different to what has come on albums prior to this, but I don’t think there is any doubt that the band itself sounds marvellous. It may sound facetious to say, given how utterly brilliant “Dehumanizer” is as an album, and that although the reformation of the Mark III lineup of the band didn’t go on to record more albums, it is also a shame that this line up of the band didn’t have more moments in the sun, the chance to write and record a follow up to this album at that time rather than after the “Dehumanizer” effect. The music world changed too quickly at this time, and perhaps it wouldn’t have worked. We’ll never know. All I know is that despite the subtle change to the music and structure with “Tyr”, it is a most enjoyable album, and does present this lineup in the light they deserved to be in. If you listen to this album, and the others that have Iommi and Martin as the basis of the band, under the name of, say, “Headless Cross” instead of “Black Sabbath”, and not have the legacy that that name forces you to think with, then this works better, in the same way that the Iommi/Hughes albums “The 1996 DEP Sessions” and “Fused” work. Headless Cross, the new band with Tony Iommi and Tony Martin, Cozy Powell and Neil Murray, and their album “Tyr”. No expectations of doom and heavy metal. Just a band with the great Tony Iommi and other great players, doing something that doesn’t sound like Black Sabbath. Try it. You might like it.

1310. Rainbow / Stranger in us All. 1995. 4/5

When Ritchie Blackmore and Roger Glover, who made up two-fifths of the band Rainbow in its then-current form in 1983, decided to go ahead with the proposed reformation of Deep Purple’s Mark II lineup, leading to that band’s first album in nine years, it left Rainbow dead in the water. Rainbow of course had been Blackmore’s initial vehicle to get OUT of Deep Purple back in 1975, the story of which you can find in the very recent episode of this podcast that is dedicated to the debut album by the band. With his departure the band came to an unceremonious conclusion, never to see the light of day again. Famous last words as it turned out.
Deep Purple released “Perfect Strangers” to worldwide acclaim and followed it with “The House of Blue Light” which did not receive quite the same acclaim (but which I absolutely adore). It surprised no one at the time that the simmering tension that had often abounded between Blackmore and lead vocalist Ian Gillan had continued into this reformation, and that after just two albums it had Gillan quitting once again. The recruitment of Joe Lynn Turner as his replacement then saw the excellent “Slave and Masters” album released, one that almost sounded like a Rainbow album, which given that three-fifths of this iteration of the band had been in Rainbow should not make that a surprise. As the band began preparations for the follow up, there was a huge push from their record company for the band’s 25th anniversary – but they (along with the rest of the band apart from Blackmore) wanted Gillan back in the lead vocals role as a part of this. Despite the tension that still existed, Blackmore insisted and received $250,000 from the record company for this to occur, and Gillan returned for “The Battle Rages On” - the album title not the actual battle... though as it turned out, it was also accurate in the band! The differences between the lead singer and lead guitarist plummeted further, until eventually mid-tour it was Blackmore who pulled the plug and quit, never to return.
Free to now move into a new sphere of his career, Blackmore’s intention was to go out and record a solo album, one where he would be free to create whatever style he desired. Unfortunately, as so many artists who have been in successful bands find out when they are looking to do a solo project, the record company was having none of it. His label BMG more or less insisted that what Blackmore should be doing is recording an album under the name of that other band that he used to be in... what was it... Rainbow? Yeah that was it! How about another Rainbow album! No matter that it had been 12 years since that particular bands last album. Let’s resurrect it and go with that! Despite no doubt being pushed into that decision, Blackmore at least made the decision not to reform that band lineup. Going back to Turner on vocals would have been an interesting step, considering he had just worked with him on a Purple album. Instead, he recruited a whole new band, more or less young gunslingers to team up with the grizzled veteran gun shooter. And as a final statement he made sure that the band took on the name that had originally been the moniker when the band began – Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow. With the new band on board, they went into uncharted territory to come up with the eighth – and final – album of the band’s career, “Stranger in Us All”.

The beautiful opening riff of Ritchie Blackmore’s guitar greets you as you put the album on, stating from the outset that this IS Ritchie Blackmore and his album. It moves into the song proper with his wonderful riff, before we are greeted with the amazing voice of Doogie White for the first time, and it is this combination here that drags you in. This is the first time for most that they would have heard Doogie White, and his entrance is spectacular. “Wolf to the Moon” is the name of the song, and Doogie sends you to the moon with his soaring vocals. But what also hits you is that here, for the first time for a few years at least, is the true Ritchie Blackmore. His guitar is the prominent instrument throughout, not sitting back and letting the organ or vocals or bass have its turn in the spotlight. Here, it is all guitar, all Ritchie. And h seems to be far more comfortable as the leader than just one of five with an equal say. “Wolf to the Moon” is a superb opening track, and is followed by a comforting similarity of days gone by with “Cold Hearted Woman”, which truly channels the last few Rainbow albums in its style and substance. Doogie also channels Joe Lynn Turner here, but this song holds its own here on the album despite any perceived Ghosts of Rainbow Past. “Hunting Human (Insatiable)” has a very different feel about it completely. Indeed, there is a doom feel about the track, that combined with the lyrical prose attached makes it almost creepy to listen to, a song that feels as though it should have a slower tempo with which the guitar is actually propelling, but is being carried by the 2/4 beat of the drums which sticks to a mid-fast tempo. It makes for an interesting track, one that will divide opinion as to its effectiveness.
“Stand and Fight” returns to the stye that Blackmore wrote for the Turner-era albums, picking up the energy and liveliness of the song, and even incorporating the harmonica into the mix. I’m not sure it was necessary or even adds to the track. (Can we mix that out?... No?... okay, just go for it I guess...). “Ariel” is co-written by Blackmore and his soon-to-be wife Candice Night, and the collaboration has similar themes as to where their partnership would take them in the future. It also channels the mystical atmosphere that the early Rainbow albums with Ronnie James Dio headed musically and lyrically. The music here is just fabulous, and Doogie again is amazing, the way he is able to bring in the emotion of the song through his voice is incredible. As the song fades out, you actually feel that there should be more. It’s an interesting glimpse of both the past and the future for Ritchie Blackmore’s music.
Sometimes you wonder just how much trouble Blackmore had in coming up with ideas for this album, and three songs in particular come to mind when you listen to the album. There are of course the final two songs on the album, but there is also “Too Late for Tears”. Now, again, this is a perfectly good song and an enjoyable song. But when you listen to it, you are immediately reminded of another song that comes from the Rainbow catalogue, a song by the name of “Can’t Happen Here”. Why? You may ask. Well, firstly it is the same chords, and the same chord structure as that song. And secondly, even though they are different lyrics, Doogie singing on this song sounds incredibly like Joe Lynn Turner, utilising the same vocal techniques and delivery on this song that Turner did on that original song all those years ago. Coincidence? Perhaps. But surely when they listened back to the finished product, SOMEONE must have noticed the similarities. No matter, it still works. In a creepy, incestuous way.
“Black Masquerade” is a great song, and every time I listen to it, I understand more fully just how influential it, and Blackmore’s music as a whole, is so influential on the power metal genre that was enveloping Europe at the time. Indeed, this song could be seen and heard to be the template for so many of those bands and artists that began to come into the music scene at the time this album was released. And Doogie’s vocals here are a massive part of that. Just a super song and one of the best reasons to come by and check out this album. “Silence” is a completely different kettle of fish, very Blackmore oriented and he gives us his best performance on the album here with some old style Blackmore soloing and riffing. Keys that mirror horns add a contemporary mix to the sound, and Doogie just wails over the top. This is almost just a jam session, it does sound as though they went into the studio and just played to see what would come out. Like I said, the Blackmore of old appears here and it is worth every cent.
The final two tracks are great, but perhaps show just where this project was before it had even been released. “Hall of the Mountain King” is a reworking of the classical piece by Edvard Grieg, one that everyone knows as soon as you hear the most famous piece in the song. Blackmore composed the arrangement for the band, while his soon-to-be wife Candice Night wrote the lyrics for the track. And it works, and it sounds great.
In the long run, it perhaps best sums up this album that by far the best track here is the final one, which is a cover song, and one that should have been better utilised when the band FIRST recorded it. Because the final song is the same one that closed out the band’s debut album 20 years earlier, the cover of The Yardbird's “Still I’m Sad”. On the debut album it had been played as an instrumental despite the band having one of the greatest singers of all time available to be on the track. Here at least the same mistake has not been made, as Doogie White absolutely bosses the vocals here, injecting it with the emotional and power that befits what a brilliant song this is. This version is a ripsnorter, from the quiet guitar doodling from Ritchie to begin the song, right through to its conclusion where he plays it out with another of his wonderful solos. Whether or not at the time they recorded this album they knew it would be the final sign off for the band, it is perhaps the best way for the 20 years of Rainbow to come to its conclusion.

This album passed me by at the time of its release, more from the fact that 1995 was a difficult year in my existence than not wanting to listen to another Rainbow album. In fact, I was quite looking forward to it, but did not actually get around to it until five years after its initial release. By that time of course Blackmore had moved on to his newest love, Renaissance and medieval music, by forming the band Blackmore’s Night with his partner Candice Night, something that held no desire of mine to become involved in. I came across “Stranger in Us All” and gave it a listen, mainly to satisfy myself that I had probably missed nothing in the intervening years since its release. What I discovered was something far more intriguing than I would have thought. There was a bit of everything on the album – I mean, harmonica was present, there was even some horns thrown in at one stage. Another interpretation of Edvard Grieg’s “Hall of the Moutain King”. And another interpretation of The Yardbirds “Still I’m Sad”. The music SOUNDED like it was based in the sound of the 1970’s, but in a more contemporary fashion. And Doogie White – my goodness, the vocals from Doogie on this album are superb. They are simply the starring role on “Stranger in Us All”. Sure, Ritchie will always be Rainbow, but Doogie here makes the album. He is the driving force of the songs.
I must say I was looking forward to dragging this album out again this week. It is like so many other bands, if I am choosing to like to an artist, there are 4-5 albums that I will favour when I don’t really want to think about what I want to listen to, and when it comes to Rainbow that does centre on the first five albums. But my memory always remembers this as a good album, one that I don’t believe I have ever been disappointed by. And I found the same thing this week. It is a very enjoyable album to listen to. I mean, like Black Sabbath’s “Seventh Star”, it isn’t a true Rainbow album. It is a Blackmore solo album, where he has brought in these young guys and they find a connection and they write and perform some very good songs. OK, so the reverting to familiar track for the end of the album might mean they ran out of ideas, or maybe Ritchie just wanted to do another version of those songs for his own method.
Whatever it might have been, this album is a worthy one. Though the legacy of the band still holds true to its eventual demise in 1983, if this is to be truly considered the final album of the band, it is a good one to go out on. Even if it is only for this scintillating version of this song that shows Doogie White at his powering best.

1309. Scorpions / Moment of Glory. 2000. 4/5

Having reached 30 years as a band, and having survived the many tumultuous changes in music that had occurred over that period, there isn’t much that the Scorpions had not been able to see off. Their popularity had been rusted on with a number of popular album releases through the 1980’s that had produced iconic songs that lived in the memory of their fanbase, and was then topped off with the worldwide success of their 1990 album “Crazy World” and the chart topping song “Wind of Change” that had tapped into the public sentiment about the bringing down of the Berlin Wall to end the cold war. It was these moments that had guaranteed Scorpions an undeniable place in their fans hearts forever.
By the end of the 1990’s however, this was beginning to be stretched very thin. 1996’s “Pure Instinct” had overindulged in the power ballad mentality in overwhelming numbers, which had seen their rock oriented fan group beginning to wonder if the horse had bolted. Following on from this had come “Eye II Eye”, which was another radical departure in that it moved towards a pop sound, an interesting choice for the late 1990’s. This album with its massive changes again alienated big portions of the fan base, despite their single “Mysterious” reaching number 26 on the US charts. It marked a decade that the band had been through a number of stylistic changes that markedly diverged from what was generally happening in the popular music scene, and while this may have been an important thing for the band to do, to continue to push themselves to be flexible with their music, it was not to the overall enjoyment of their long term fans.
So what was to come next? While they had not gone down the unplugged route – yet – the band turned their attention to again pushing the boundaries, though by the time they came to do so, those boundaries had already been given a huge shove. The decision was made by the band to try and record a collaboration with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, which was to feature rearranged songs from the Scorpions repertoire, as well as some classical interludes. Initially, English composer Andrew Powell was asked to provide the arrangements, and Michael Kaman was designated to be the lead on the orchestral material. Unfortunately for the band, Kaman left this project early on when the opportunity came to work with another band who were doing a very similar thing in regards to recording with an orchestra. That album that became S&M, was the biggest hit for Metallica in the late 1990s decade and it made them the leaders of the pack when it came to this kind of album. And despite the fact that Scorpions were doing this as a studio project whereas S&M was alive recording, eventually it was seen that they were copying this concept, when in retrospect, they had germinated the idea as early as Metallica had. Finally, they were able to come to terms with Austrian arrange and conductor Christian Kolonovits, and he proved to be the correct collaborator. Recording for the album took place between January and April of 2000, which led to the release of the final product which was titled “Moment of Glory”.

The album opens with the retitled and expanded glory of “Hurricane 2000”, the excellent reimagining of the band’s most famous and popular song “Rock You Like a Hurricane”. This has been particularly well orchestrated and fills it with an even more anthemic vibe than the original song contains. As a way to give the listener the best idea of the concept that the band is trying to look for here, this song does it perfectly. That opening minute that the philharmonic dominates before Schenker’s opening iconic riff comes in is superb, and from here the two combine as one to create an amazing version of this song. This is followed by a new song written especially for this album, “Moment of Glory”, which is an interesting piece as this had to have been composed with the Berliner Philharmonic in mind to add their pieces. It is very much in the expected power ballad variety of Scorpions track, and is one that has been utilised since this album’s release. And yeah... it’s fine. It morphs into the kind of track certain sections of the fan base would have been looking for.
One of the band’s amazing (if not their most amazing) power ballads “Send Me an Angel” is the next to get the treatment, and we are once again treated to an amazing vocal performance by Klaus Meine, alongside the beautiful orchestral arrangement provided as the background. This song sounds completely brilliant whenever it is performed, but this version with the enhanced acoustics it one of the best. Another of the ‘everyone in the world knows this song’... songs... “Wind of Change”, also gets its chance to shine in this environment, and yes, it too has had a makeover that brings to the fore especially Klaus’s vocals once again. But it does sound a little flat following the previous track, because the platitudes and emotion of that track well and truly outstrips that of “Wind of Change”.
“Crossfire” opens with a version of “Midnight in Moscow” which in turn was a version of the Soviet patriotic song “Moscow Nights”, a classically composed instrumental which ties in nicely to the opening of “Crossfire” itself from “Love at First Sting”, played as an instrumental track and beautifully performed. This then moves straight into the so-called “Deadly Sting Suite” which is a combination of two tracks: “He’s a Woman, She’s a Man” from the album “Taken by Force” and “Dynamite” from “Love at First Sting”. Once again here, like the previous track, this is just an instrumental performance of the combined tracks, which showcases the combining of the band alongside the orchestration, and is excellently performed by both sides of this equation. These songs allow the band to show how wonderful the music is that the band writes, and how it merges so well with the Berlin Philharmonic, without a focus on the vocals of Klaus which had dominated the two power ballads.
“Here in My Heart” is a cover of a song written by well known songwriter Diane Warren and originally released by the artist Tiffany. I’m not going to lie to you here – I don’t understand the motivation to do this song on this album. There is a nice duet between Klaus and Lyn Liechty, but apart from that it is filler. “Still Loving You” is yet another of the Scorpions massive power ballads, and it receives the same sort of care and performance as the previously performed power ballads. Then comes the increased energy of “Big City Nights”, one of the band’s best high velocity tracks, and while the backing orchestration is good, this song really doesn’t need it, it isn’t the kind of song that is going to be improved in this situation. It also has a guest vocal performance from Ray Wilson, which again seems completely unnecessary. The album then concludes with “Lady Starlight”, the final ballad on the album, one that fits the purpose of this album but perhaps misses the mark if you are someone like me who was hoping for more hard in the rock.

At the time that this was released, I was still coming to terms with bands that I had grown up with who had played the greatest of heavy metal of my generation... suddenly devolving into other methods to their music. Metallica and Megadeth, both playing acoustic sets in their concerts, was something that... let’s just say it didn’t sit well with me. Listening to them was akin to torture. And it is fair to say that when these albums began to appear with bands utilising symphony and orchestra, I felt zero need to seek them out and listen to them. It was in fact only through the tireless and endless pushing from the kids half my age I was playing cricket with at the time that I relented and listened to Metallica’s “S&M” and found that it probably wasn’t as bad as I feared it would be. The song selection though remained less than exciting. So that by the time this album was released, I felt less aggrieved by being forced to listen to such an album.
So I got the album and put it on. And the opening burst of the band’s most famous track does come across well. Well enough to deserve a few listens on its own aside from the rest of the album as it turns out. And then as you move through the album... yeah, it sounds great. The band always sound terrific and that is no different here. And the orchestra do a great job and generally fill the songs out well.
But just how often is this something that you are going pull off your shelves and listen to? Is this the kind of thing that is going to interest you enough to keep coming back time after time? I mean, to me it is still a gimmick. A clever one yes. A worthy addition, yes. But for the fan, is it something you will have a desire to revisit on a regular basis.
I have had this on again for the last couple of days, and to be fair that’s more than I would really have bothered with if I wasn’t being thorough for this episode. Once, actually, was enough. It is an enjoyable album. It has some very good Scorpions songs, moulded into shape to have them backed by this orchestra. And for anyone out there who enjoys the Scorpions and hasn’t heard this album, then certainly you should find it and listen to it, because everything about it is done wonderfully well. But this is one of those albums that I was very keen to get the script drafted for, so that I could move onto the next albums and review. Because it isn’t an album I have any need to listen to on multiple occasions back to back. It is a great one-off listen to remind you of their skills. And then, back on the shelves, until the next time.