DEF LEPPARD – Pour Some Sugar On Me / Rock of Ages 2012 (iTunes exclusive single)
As the title suggests, Def Leppard have re-recorded two of their biggest hits, “Pour Some Sugar” and “Rock of Ages”. This obvious move was made to capitalize on that new Rock of Ages movie that I have no desire to see. Also, the songs coincide with a summer tour.
Apparently, you can’t get Def Lep’s studio versions on iTunes for contractual reasons with the label, and the band didn’t want to miss the window of opportunity afforded by the movie. So they re-recorded both songs and put them up on iTunes.
These will never replace the original songs in any universe, but they’re actually not bad. Both tracks are very, very close to the originals. Knowing Def Leppard I am certain that this was intentional and done with surgical precision. Aside from some additional guitar parts and sounds added to “Pour Some Sugar On Me”, the recordings are nearly identical. This surprised me particularly on “Rock of Ages” since you don’t hear Joe do the high voice that often anymore.
For $1.29 a piece, I’m not going to complain too much. I doubt I’ll listen to this very often, but the obsessive compulsive collector in me is glad to have these recordings. I’d advise serious music fans to just buy the original two albums, Hysteria and Pyromania. Both albums are loaded to the gills with hits so you can’t go wrong, plus I believe songs are best enjoyed in the context of the albums.
Having said all this, I hope some kind of limited edition physical release is forthcoming. The collector in me would like that.
When the first single from Clockwork Angels was released in 2010 (!!!) I wasn’t too into the new songs. “BU2B”/”Caravan” were heavy and stomping but to me, not memorable.
Then the band went on tour and finished the album and that’s why you’re reading this today.
Alex, Tom, Meat, Geddy
Like all Rush albums, Clockwork Angels is a grower. I feel a bit like a jackass for even trying to review it after only listening to it thrice. However, they were good listens: Twice at home and once in the car. Surprisingly, because Rush aren’t always this way, Clockwork Angels sounded best in the car.
To me, this album combines the “classic” 1970’s progressive sound of Rush with the classic-nouveau of 1993’s Counterparts. At times it sounds like the band are ripping themselves off, but who cares? This is the Rush album that many fans have been wishing for, before they went to bed each night.
Now, this is a concept album, but I don’t pretend to have penetrated the lyrics yet. They are striking, and yet on the surface straightforward, the story easy enough to follow. I am sure I will get more out of it I go deeper. For example I found a reference in the text portion of the story to Neil’s late drum instructor, so who knows what is in there?
All I can tell you for certainty is that there is a fantastic world of steam powered airships that take our protagonist on a odyssey across a strange and familiar land. There is some sort of Watchmaker that seems to run the show with clockwork precision. I know I have heard the word “watchmaker” as a metaphor for God in the past so I wonder if Neil had that analogy in mind.
There are a lot of bright spots to this album and not a lot of lows: I count “The Anarchist” as having some of the best Rush riffage of all time, for catchiness and simultaneous complexity. I think “The Wreckers” would make a most excellent third single. “Headlong Flight” is one of the best songs, and probably the most traditionally Rush sounding, with tempos careening to and fro. “Halo Effect” has a shimmery guitar part that reminds me of Snakes and Arrows.
Even “Caravan” and “BU2B” sound fresh to me. I am certain they are freshly mixed, so hang on to your old single, collectors!
Most importantly, you can hear the sheer joy in the playing. Geddy, Alex and Neil sound like they are playing for nothing more and nothing less than their own enjoyment. It’s a truly inspiring sound and I think the album will continue to grow on me, as it stays in my car deck all week….
I even rank Hugh Syme’s artwork as among his best. Each page leaps with messages hidden and obvious, a symbology with multiple meanings. Although truthfully, I can’t stand the front cover. I don’t think it captures the many colours and textures within.
As with everything released these days, there are multiple versions:
Stardard digipack CD
Classic Rock Fan Pack (no bonus tracks though, just the magazine)
Holy crap! Part 60 already? I hope you’ve been enjoying the Record Store Tales so far. For this sort-of-but-not-really-special edition, I’m going to take you back to the start.
Marko Fox asked me today, “LeBrain, how did you get to be LeBrain?” Well, it was a unique set of circumstances Marko.
1. Obsession. Ever since I was a kid I think I was an obsessive-compulsive collector. I had to have every Star Wars figure, I had to have all their names memorized, I had to have it all.
2. Rock Magazines. The first rock magazine I ever bought was an old Circus special on Kiss. All my friends seemed to know all the important details about bands: Which guy was the bassist and which played guitar, the names of the members, the brands of the guitars. I decided to needed to catch up and so I started reading magazines.
3. The Power Hour. This MuchMusic show ran for an hour, twice a week. Two hours of pure rock a week! I taped them religiously and never missed one until I got my first part-time job.
4. Columbia House. Remember them? Buy 11 CDs for a penny, get 2 free, and only have to buy 8 more at regular club prices within the next two years? We got Columbia House when I was in grade 11, my sister and I, and we split it evenly. I read the Columbia House catalog cover to cover every month. So that meant I not only knew who Iron Maiden was, but also Miles Davis, Bell Biv Devoe, and Alan Jackson.
Those four factors sealed into my brain and endless stream of musical knowledge and listening experience that has only grown with the the birth of the Interweeb.
Jump-cut to 1994. It is July. I just started at the record store a few days ago. My boss is having me file discs to get to know the inventory. He is shocked that I know where to file Miles Davis. He is surprised that I know which Alan Jackson album has “Chattahoochee” on it. He asks me how I know this stuff? I tell him, “Columbia House!”
It wasn’t too long before I was teaching him things, too. I remember I bought a disc for stock by Pigface (Fook). The next day he took me aside, holds up the CD, and says, “What is this that you bought? You paid $4 for this?” I said, “Yeah. Side project of Ministry.” That was when I became known as the guy who knew the side projects from just about everybody.
He was more than happy to stock something if I told him I know it would sell. With him knowing what was going on with the charts, and Trevor knowing what was happening with new rock, we were a formidable force.
So there you go, Marko. That is how LeBrain became LeBrain. You’ll note that two of the four contributing factors don’t exist anymore, so perhaps there could never have been a LeBrain if not for the 80’s!
Nothing could. That movie and soundtrack made me laugh so hard I thought I was going to go into cardiac arrest. But Rize of the Fenix is a close, close second.
There are no vocal cameos by anyone else, just JB and KG and a slew of studio musos. (Dave Grohl is back on the skins.) There are only a couple skits, the rest is all music.
The lyrics have never been more self-referencing. From the Pick of Destiny bombing, to “Hollywood Jack” becoming a big movie star, if you love the “D” then you will love this. The songs are more epic than ever and the joke is still funny.
I particularly enjoyed “Roadie”, an ode to those who keep the show going on. From stringing guitars in the shadows to testing the mic, the roadie’s work was unrecognized, until now. But what will happen when a pretty young thing wants a backstage pass so she can hook up with Kyle Gass? What then, roadie? Listen and learn.
Another classic: “Deth Starr”, arguing that we should really build a hundred of ’em. And let’s not forget the musically epic “The Ballad of Hollywood Jack and the Rage Kage” which takes Jethro Tull and turns them up to 11.
And finally, there is “39”, JB doing his best Neil Diamond. This is a sentimental ballad, a ode to a girl who’s 39. Just lovely, sentimental balladeering. Lovely.
Best Buy has two bonus tracks: “Quantum Leap” which compares the “D” to Moses, Leonard Nimoy and François Truffault. They also have the brief “Rivers of Brown”. Worth having this edition for “Quantum Leap”. (Also, I will note: The Best Buy edition has the real album cover, and is not censored.)
iTunes had a song called “5 Needs”, a little hippy ballad about what we need to survive (such as air, food and rock). However they don’t have it anymore. Pre-order only.
Any way you slice it, buy whatever version you like — but do not buy the censored. What’s the point?
I’m going to publish reviews of every Kiss album, including compilations, gearing up for the 2012 release of Monster!
KISS – Kiss (1974)
KISStory began in 1973 when Ace Frehley joined Paul Stanley, Peter Criss, and Gene Simmons. The band rose from the ashes of Wicked Lester, a 5-piece band featuring Stanley and Simmons who cut a record for Epic. The record was never released but some of the material here originated in the Wicked Lester days.
Produced by Kenny Kerner and Richie Wise (as was the next album, Hotter Than Hell), Kiss lacks that “oomph” of guitar that the band would become noted for later on. Most songs, even powerful fast ones like “Deuce”, rely on rock-and roll-guitars with a little more jangle to them. The tempos are often a bit slower than the versions the band would play (see: Alive!) but the spirit is there in this basic rock recording.
The first song, “Strutter” introduced Kiss to the record-buying public. Everybody knows “Strutter”, just as strong today as in 1974. “Nothin’ To Lose” is next, one of my all time favourite Kiss songs and is sung by Gene, Paul and the catman himself Peter Criss. It’s a rock-and-roll song made special by the three vocalists, a gimmick which I wish Kiss would have used more often. “Firehouse” follows this, complete with sirens, and is quite a bit slower than live versions and plods a bit. Ace’s song “Cold Gin” is next, sung by Simmons, a man who never gets drunk which always struck me as an odd pairing. It’s another classic, again a bit slower than live versions but with that great riff intact. Side 1 ends with one of Paul’s earliest songs “Let Me Know”. It was previously known as “Sunday Driver”, which features in the first line of the song: “Let me be your Sunday driver, let me be your Monday man.” Gene sings the verses and Paul sings the bridge. It features a coda that Kiss often played live attached to other, later songs such as “She” or “Watchin’ You”.
Side 2 began (on reissue versions) with the cover tune “Kissin’ Time”. This song was released as a single first, and added to the album later. It’s nothing special even though it does again feature all three singers. (Frehley would not sing a lead until Love Gun.) “Deuce”, which should have kicked off side two, is a song everybody knows. It is Gene’s signature song, a tune which Ace played as a solo artist as well, simply because he loves the song. This version is almost asgood as the Alive! version. Next, “Love Theme From Kiss”; a meandering instrumental. It was once called “Acrobat” and featured a second part known in fan circles as “You’re Much Too Young”. That part was chopped before the studio version was recorded, and later became the main riff to “Detroit Rock City”. “100,000 Years” begins with a trademark Gene Simmons bass slide, and then goes into that great groove with Paul taking the lead vocal. This is as grooviest as Kiss ever get, although again the Alive!version is superior. The album ends with the first Kiss epic, “Black Diamond”. It starts with a mellow acoustic opening, Paul’s smooth vocal, and “ooh ooh” backgrounds. Then there’s a countdown, Paul yells “Hit it!” and the whole band kicks in. Peter sings the rest of the song. It is an absolute classic and one of Kiss’s very best.
On the album cover: You’ll notice some rare things. Ace has silver in his hair, and Peter’s makeup is completely different. The reason given is that Peter had a professional do his makeup for the cover whereas the rest of the guys did their own. I’m not sure why Ace’s hair is silver but I’m sure it was impractical. If it wasn’t for these oddities, I think this cover image would be more iconic in Kisstory, because it is otherwise very cool. They were going for that iconic Meet the Beatles type of simple image, and they came close to nailing it.
The first three Kiss albums share a common “rock-and-roll” sound with less distortion and more jangly guitars. Most fans consider the Alive! versions to be superior. I would tend to agree. Still, this was the start: it’s remarkable just how many of these songs would become Kiss classics and would be played live through the years. In fact by my counting there are no less than 8 out of 10 songs here that are bonafide classics in Kisstory.
1.“This is going to be worth a lot of money, one day.” Said in regards to Elton John’s “Candle in the Wind” remake single. Yeah. He sold about a zillion of them, which people bought multiple copies of (one to play and one to keep sealed!) and now are in every bargain bin across the continent…usually at 99 cents.
2. Phil Lynott proclaimed that “Tonight there’s gonna be a jailbreak, somewhere in this town.” One day while listening to this track at work, Neil retorted: “Somewhere in this town? Maybe they should start by checking at the jail.”
3. A wave of the hand. “You don’t need to see my identification.” This Jedi mind trick was cast upon me (jokingly, I assure you) by a witty young man after I asked him for ID while selling CDs. Fortunately, I am a Headbanger. Mind tricks do not work on me!
4.“I’m buying two CD’s. Do I get a discount?” Two discs? Really?
5. I came home from work one day with a CD sized bag in my hand. My very frugal father said to me (in “that tone”), “What did you go and waste your money on this time?” I said, “Dad, it’s the new album by Kiss!” His classic response: “Kiss? Don’t you already have them?”
I don’t know why he’s flapping his arms
6. While we’re on my dad. During the Pepsi Power Hour, he used to like to stroll into the living room, heads clasped to his ears in mock agony, and say, “What’s wrong with that man on the TV? He’s screaming like he’s in pain! Does he have appendicitis?”
7. Finally, my dad has a penchant for mispronouncing the names of things he dislikes. For example, “Who is this Lady Googoo person I see on TV?”
8.A guy in a green suit carrying a briefcase walked up to the counter. “I have to go to court tomorrow and I want some music to get me psyched up. Do you have the Clockwork Orange soundtrack?” (Same guy who, another time, asked us, “Do you like the drugs?”)
9.Some questions don’t bug you so much, unless the same person asks the same question over and over again. One guy kept asking me, “Do you have Black Sabbath, 1991?” I’d tell him that there is no such album. In fact 1991 was the first year in several that Sabbath failed to release an album. “Do you have Black Sabbath, 1991?” No! Nobody has it, because that’s a made up name!
10.“Hello, it’s Matt’s mother, would Matt be available?” This perfectly innocent question was asked of one of our new guys, Chris. Chris responded, “Yeah, he’s outside having a smoke, I’ll go get him.” Problem: Matt’s mother did not know he smoked!
5. Hopefully the most obvious one. Farts! At least when the guy code named “Steven Tyler” or I were working. We ate a lot of fast food.
4. Fast Food. We were constantly eating Subway, Lick’s, McDonalds, or Burger King depending on location. Subway was and always shall be my weapon of choice, but it was BK’s Kong sized triple stacker that made the store smell like beef for days. Strangely, my addiction to fast food only got worse after seeing Super Size Me.
3. B.O. If wasn’t the customers, every once in a while, we’d get stuck with a stinky employee.
2.Rancid Coffee. One employee who shall go unnamed was prone to drink two or three of the damn things a day, and then throwing her coffee (unfinished) into the garbage (bag). And then not take out the garbage. Also, any customer carrying a Tim Horton’s cup always left their empties on the counter, or even classier, on the CD shelves.
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