REVIEW: Judas Priest – Sad Wings of Destiny (1976)

Welcome to PRIEST WEEKEND! It’s a long Thanksgiving weekend in Canada, and…

Well, here’s the truth of it. I had three Judas Priest reviews lined up and needed a spot to schedule them. A three day weekend worked. That’s how much thought went into the scheduling of this Thanksgiving theme.

Enjoy PRIEST WEEKEND starting with their immortal second album…

JUDAS PRIEST – Sad Wings of Destiny (1976 Gull)

It’s quite a shame that Judas Priest haven’t regained the rights to their first and second albums. Too many fly-by-night labels have done shoddy or half-arsed reissues of the albums and Sad Wings is no exception. This one, on Snapper, isn’t too objectionable. It’s funny to see “digitally mastered” on the front sticker, as if this is some kind of selling feature. All CDs are digitally mastered! Remember that old AAD, ADD, DDD logo that used to appear on CDs? The A and D refers to analog or digital processes: recording, mixing, and mastering. Every CD is at least AAD. The “informative liner notes” (by somebody called “Krusher”) is just a blubbering general history essay on the band.

Fortunately, no matter how it’s packaged, the music is exceptional.

“Victim of Changes” defines “epic”, and probably remains Judas Priest’s definitive word on the epic song. This is actually a mashup of two earlier songs called “Red Light Lady”, written by Rob Halford, and “Whiskey Woman” by original singer and founder, Al Atkins. That’s how it came to be that Halford shares a writing credit with his predecessor, an unusual circumstance indeed! The finished song “Victim of Changes” has everything: the concrete heavy riffs, the drama, the melody and the unearthly screams! It takes its time, but it simply lays waste to the landscape. By the time Rob nails his final scream, you may find yourself hard of hearing. As if that wasn’t enough, “The Ripper” (a shorty) contains even more screams-per-minute than “Victim”. Priest seemed to take a turn away from blues, towards metal on Sad Wings of Destiny. The first two songs are as sharp and devastating as anything else in the Priest canon.

Although they are often separated on compilations and whatnot, “Dreamer Deceiver” and “Deceiver” are more or less one song. One sounds incomplete without the other. “Dreamer Deceiver” is an airy, acoustic number about some sort of ethereal being. It is as entrancing as its title character:

“We followed the Dreamer through the purple hazy clouds,
He could control our sense of time.
We thought were lost but, no matter how we tried,
Everyone was in peace of mind.”

Rob’s vocal performance on this one ranges from the deep and dramatic, to the wails that Priest fans crave. It is the blueprint for similar early Iron Maiden tracks such as “Remember Tomorrow”. Even the guitar solo is a well-composed piece of music, but this is just the beginning. Morphing into “Deceiver”, the acoustic plucking has changed to an electric chug. This time the guitar solo blazes rather than cries. “Deceiver” burns out quick, ending the first side.

Side two begins, as it obviously should, with a piano instrumental! Glenn Tipton wrote and performed “Prelude” which is really just another track meant for you to let your guard down…before being ploughed over by the evil “Tyrant”! He is the destructor, and every man shall fall! The way Rob screams it, you believe it. This is straight up the alley of prior tunes, like “Ripper” and “Deceiver”: fast, lean, and heavy as balls!

“Genocide” is a change of pace, a leaning towards the mid-tempo ground that Priest would find great success with later. There is a Priest stamp to it: a simple 4/4 beat, a couple of cool riffs, verses, chorus and solo…but I like the slow middle section best. “Sin after sin…I have endured, but the wounds I bear, are the wounds of love.” Sin After Sin was used as the next Priest album title. Then, another surprise. “Epitaph” is a piano ballad with Rob singing with a Queen-like backdrop of vocals. Only piano and vocals, that is it. Once again this is a Glenn Tipton song, and even though Priest let on that they had quiet tendencies, this is still a bit of a shocker. “Pretty” is an appropriate word. It is a tour de force for Rob, who performed some very intricate singing.

Chugging off to into the horizon, “Island of Domination” is the final track on a purely excellent heavy metal album. Multi-layered Halford screams usher in the final assault. Rocking both heavily and intelligently, the mighty Priest finished the album with a blitzkrieg, taking no prisoners. From gallop to groove, “Island of Domination” has a bit of everything Priest did well.

What an album. Do you like heavy metal music? Then you need Sad Wings. Period. Exclamation point!

5/5 stars

#442: Oktoberfest

GETTING MORE TALE #442: Oktoberfest

Gemütlichkeit and willkommen! Love it or hate it, it’s that time of year again: Oktoberfest!

Based on the original 200 year old Bavarian festival in Germany, Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest attracts thousands every year to bask in our glorious beer, Polka music, sausage and fall weather.

It’s also the time of year that parts of the downtown gets closed to traffic, and congestion increases to an undesired, maddening level. With all the construction and destruction this year, Oktoberfest 2015 will be the hardest yet to navigate with your vehicle. I dread my daily commute in and out of town. Add in the potential for drunk drivers and you have a great old time lined up, right? Approximately one million people will show up for the celebrations here, the second largest Oktoberfest in the world.

The climax of the movie Strange Brew was filmed and takes place at Kitchener Oktoberfest. “Take the 401 to Kitchener,” says Doug McKenzie in this clip.

It’s not all bad. Sausage and schnitzel on a bun is always a treat, but people don’t come all this way for anything except the beer. Sample one of the many, many brews while you are here…just don’t make an ass of yourself while you do it. As a local, I’ve never been fond of this time of year. I don’t drink beer anymore so there is very little to draw me to the downtown core during Oktoberfest. However, there are plenty of draws for the rest of you.

Polka music and dancing! If that’s your thing, then put on your lederhosen and dirndls! Get ready to do the Bird Dance and check out the accordion of Walter Ostanek. Sometimes there are some good Oktoberfest shows to be seen, such as the year I Mother Earth played (with Ostanek!). There are beer exhibits and dining experiences. There’s Onkel Hans, Tante Frieda and the tapping of the keg. There’s Miss Oktoberfest and the annual parade.

Actually, forget it – I don’t care about any of these things! I’ve gone to the parade before, but it’s always so cold that you wished you stayed home and watched it on TV. I have done my fair share of Polka dancing. In fact, Polka dancing was compulsory in grade school. Learning such cultural cornerstones as the Bird Dance was deemed important enough to justify teaching kids about a beer festival in grade school. While my opinion is certainly not held by all residents, I was burned out on Oktoberfest before I was even old enough to drink.

By the way: There are plenty of safe transportation options for drinkers, including free busses from the festhallen, free soft drinks for designated drivers, and the excellent company Over the Limit Designated Drivers (1-888-594-9144), who will drive you and your car home safely.

Working the Record Store days, I always hated the seasonal requests for Polka or “Oom-pah-pah” music. Our used Polka CD selection (filed under World Music) rarely had anything in it, and when it did, it would be snapped up long before Oktoberfest. Once, Walter Ostanek came into the store himself looking for Polka music. When I responded that we had nothing in stock, he handed me his card and said, “If you need any, let me know.” I responded, “Hey, I know you! You’re the guy who won all those Juno awards.” He paused and looked at me gravely. “They were Grammies,” he corrected me. Whoops!

Oktoberfest 2015 runs from October 9-17. Come to the festhallen and biergartens, get your Polka on, and get pissed. But please, don’t drink and drive. Use one of the options listed above to make sure everyone gets home safely.

Walter Ostanek

Hans Haus on Benton street

REVIEW: Gillan & Glover – Accidentally on Purpose (1988)

IAN GILLAN & ROGER GLOVER – Accidentally on Purpose (1988 Virgin)

Shit LeBrain’s Customers Said

I was playing this album in-store one afternoon in the 90’s. A customer walked up to me and asked what I was playing.

“This is a side project by Ian Gillan and Roger Glover from Deep Purple,” I answered

He responded, “Roger Waters from Pink Floyd?“

What…? No! No! You got just two words of that right: “Roger” and “from”!

Deep Purple’s The House of Blue Light was an incredibly difficult album to make, especially for Ian Gillan. A working vacation was in order, so he and Glover took off for the Caribbean. They settled in to Sir George Martin’s recording studio AIR Montserrat, to record whatever they felt like. The result was the light and tropical Accidentally on Purpose, an album that Gillan says has become the favourite record for a number of his friends. He is very proud of it, especially since it came on the heels of a terrible creative experience in Deep Purple. It would not have been born if not for the gloomy Purple process. Many guests contributed to the jovial sessions, such as Dr. John, George Young, and Andy Newmark.

Jump in your TARDIS, and travel back in time to 1987. Your destination: a tropical island with plenty of rum, beaches and a recording studio. Can you picture it? Can you hear the sounds of the late 80’s in your mind? Then you can imagine what Accidentally on Purpose sounds like.

There are no “Clouds and Rain” in the images in my mind, only boats and surf and sand. Glover plays bass and keyboards, Newmark is on drums, while George Young contributes a light sax solo. This is not for most Deep Purple fans, most assuredly. This is for those who want to open their minds and have a trip into the clouds and sunshine. This is about as light as light rock gets, but there is a quality to it above the pop morass.

Hard hitting electronic drum beats back “Evil Eye”, a much edgier track. Still, don’t expect guitars, solos or Ian Gillan to scream his ass off. If you enjoy the kind of pop rock that Robert Plant was doing in the 80’s, you’re in the right ballpark for this. It’s blatantly commercial compared to Deep Purple, but at the same time it’s not because there are musical challenges to be found here.

“She Took My Breath Away” is a sweet love song, similar musically to the brightness of “Clouds and Rain”, but relying too much on electronics. Then they get goofy on “Dislocated” which sounds like Ian Gillan having a blast. (I recognize one of the keyboard voices on this song from our old Yamaha back in the day!) Glover’s enjoying himself too; he plays some brilliant bass parts, very different from Deep Purple. “Via Miami” ended the first side with an old time rock and roll party! It’s the first significant guitar rocker, and it sounds like something the Honeydrippers could have gotten away with. (In fact Plant would sound brilliant singing this.) Bring on the sax!

There is plenty more guitar on “I Can’t Dance to That”, which unfortunately is not a good song. It is not different enough from Deep Purple rawk, but not good enough for Deep Purple. The old blues classic “I Can’t Believe You Wanna Leave” is incredible, giving Ian a chance to sing something different, and he does it with lung power! Dr. John on the keys lends it that funky N’awleans drawl. If you were to make a mix tape of Ian Gillan’s finest vocal performance, then this song should be on it. The skippable “Lonely Avenue” only has synth to back it; largely forgettable. Synth-rocking to “Telephone Box” is more fun; it’s probably the best rocker on the album. Cool female backing vocals make Gillan sound even more suave. He breaks out his trusted congas on it, and truthfully you could imagine the Deep Purple of today performing a song like this now.

The last tune on the record was “I Thought No”, rocking bluesily along to the end. If you want a drunken, laidback jam session with scads of harmonica to go, then “I Thought No” will deliver the right thrills. Just open a bottle and dive in…but the CD offers three more bonus tracks! The cool rockin’ blues of “I Thought No” is contrasted by the most nauseating track, “Cayman Island”. Ian’s done some kind of Jamaican twist to his accent. Pure synth, with all those keyboard presets I remember from the 80’s, that’s “Cayman Island”! And I love every second of it, as terrible as it is. No matter how much you hate “Cayman Island”, you have to be a real hard hearted bastard if you don’t like “Purple People Eater”. That’s exactly the song you think it is, and who better to do it than the guys from Purple? You want a golden oldie performed by the guy who loves the golden oldies the most? I sure do so fuck off if you don’t! It’s brilliant, and you just gotta dance. The last song is a synth throwaway called “Chet”, which references a boat called the Carrie Lee; Gillan also name-dropped the vessel in Cayman Island.

Accidentally on Purpose probably kept Ian and Roger sane at the time. That has to be why it sounds so gleeful. They needed this. Does a Deep Purple fan “need” this? No. But they’d find some good times here regardless.

3/5 stars

REVIEW: Aerosmith – Jaded (2001 EP)

AEROSMITH – Jaded (2001 Sony EP)

It’s not unfair to suggest that I might be a little J-J-Jaded when it comes to 2000-era Aerosmith. People ask me when I think the decline hit. I answer, the abomination that is “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing”. Nine Lives was a good album. It might not be an Aerosmith classic, but it was good, no two-ways about it. By the time Aerosmith hit 2001 with Just Push Play, the co-writers and love ballads had taken over completely.

That said, the first single from Just Push Play, “Jaded”, was a pretty good song. Joe Perry didn’t write that guitar hook, but it’s more the drum part that I am drawn to. Joey Kramer was capable of turning crap into class (not that “Jaded” is crap), he is so talented. “Jaded” boasts both catchy verses and choruses, and is firmly ensconced in acoustic-electric-pop land. I think it’s a great track actually, but in the context of its album, it was one of very few. You can handle something like this as a commercial track on a single. On an album where each song is more sold-out than the last, “Jaded” was a very minor victory.

But wait, there’s more! There is an acoustic and a “guitars mix” of “Jaded” as well. The stripped down acoustic version is pretty cool although it lacks punch. If you want to hear the song taken back to the basics without embellishment, here it is, and it’s still a good song. It just misses the soft/loud contrast of the album version. The guitar mix is the opposite. It’s the album track with the electric guitar parts turned up in lieu of the strings. So with the three tracks, you kind of get it in the full spectrum, from the light to the heavy. (Incidentally, there’s also a radio remix of “Jaded” out there, on a 2 CD version of Just Push Play from Japan that I don’t have.)

“Angel Eye” is a non-album track from the Charlie’s Angels soundtrack, saving you from buying that CD for one song. Thankfully it’s a heavy song, but without any serious hooks. The guitar riff is devastating, but once again, Joe didn’t write it. When it comes to this aeon of Aerosmith, perhaps we should just be grateful for a heavy song, period?

The final track is a bit of a throw-away at a mere 1:00. “Under My Skin” sounds like an album outro, or a piece of incidental music recorded for a soundtrack. I guess it’s a teaser for the full-length song that appeared on the album? Too bad because “Under My Skin” is one of the most irritating songs on Just Push Play. I don’t recognize this bit from the song, but I also don’t really want to investigate any further.

2/5 stars

#441: Help Wanted!

GETTING MORE TALE #441: Help Wanted!

Back in the Record Store Days, hiring seemed to go in waves, with the students. Periodically we’d lose some of our best people as they moved on to further their educations. We’d go on hiring binges, looking for 3-4 good solid new people. This was done by putting out ads.

Paraphrasing our old print ads, we would advertise that we were looking for the following:

Hours: 15 hours a week, evenings & weekends. Looking for long-term commitment, not a seasonal position. Duties include buying and selling of used CDs. Retail experience is helpful but not required. Superior musical knowledge a plus. Apply in person only.

Then we would have set hours for them to apply (usually between 2 and 7), during which I (and other managers) would be working. People didn’t always like that “apply in person only” part, but it was there for a reason. It was so the store manager (me) could gauge whether you were flaky or not. Even though store managers were not involved in hiring, we could at least offer our impressions of the applicants when they came in to apply. Were they polite? Were they dicks? Were they high?

Like anywhere, we occasionally ended up with a few bad apples. If I were to make an “honest” hiring ad based on the number of times we’d been burned before, here is what it would probably look like.

Don’t get me wrong – we hired lots and lots and lots of great people with the standard ads. But I think mine is better!

More:

RECORD STORE TALES Part 94: Staffing
RECORD STORE TALES Part 185: Staffing 2.0

DVD REVIEW: Black Sabbath – Children of the Sea – Live in Brazil ’94

BLACK SABBATH – Children of the Sea – Live in Brazil ’94 (Disc Media)

The Cross Purposes tour was not a happy time in Black Sabbath. Geezer Butler had felt that this band (featuring himself, Tony Iommi, Tony Martin, and new drummer Bobby Rondinelli) should have had a new name and not been billed as Black Sabbath. Rondinelli left mid-tour, so Tony and Geezer called up the original Sabbath skinsman Bill Ward. With this historic lineup, 3/4 of the original band were intact (the same ratio as today’s Sabbath). They went to South America to play five shows. Then Butler quit after a furious standoff with Iommi.

This broadcast footage is all that remains of this very short-lived lineup of Black Sabbath.

The set opens with “Time Machine”, a Dio-era song that neither Tony Martin nor Bill Ward originally appeared on. The sound is pretty horrendous, coming in slightly better than bootleg quality. The crowd noise is too high, and the backing keyboards of Geoff Nicholls actually drown out the lead guitar. Nicholls’ backing vocals are also more audible than they should be. As a frontman, Martin does his best, which involves spreading his arms wide and shaking his hair. A long haired Ward has a completely different rhythm on this track than Vinnie Appice gave it. Another Dio number is next, “Children of the Sea”. Ward at least played on this Heaven and Hell classic. Haters would be critical of Martin’s version of Dio songs, but Dio quit. Ozzy wasn’t ready to come back. Iommi carried on, and that’s how it went down. Martin had to sing the old songs to the best of his talents and he helped keep the ship afloat during these difficult years. Having Bill Ward on this track lends it a required authenticity.

There are certain songs that Sabbath has never dropped from the set, that are very difficult for most singers to perform. “Black Sabbath” is top of the list. Ozzy’s possessed original can never be duplicated or imitated. A big part of that, however, is that Bill Ward’s primitive drum fills were such a big part of it, and Bill’s back on this one. With 3/4 of the original Sabbath there, this version actually works out. It’s one of the most true to the original of the versions released by any post-Ozzy lineup of Black Sabbath…except it is edited! It halts abruptly at the half-way point, to awkwardly go into “War Pigs”. This concert was clearly cut down to fit into a one hour (with commercials) time slot. Why half of “Black Sabbath” was sacrificed instead of something else, I don’t know. Shoddy. At least “War Pigs” is intact, with Bill (shirtless now) providing the loose backbone it always had on album. It acquires a jazzy feel during the slow outro.

Iommi gets a guitar solo (could have edited this out instead of “Black Sabbath”, but what do I know?) which has shades of “Too Late” from Dehumanizer. Then it’s “Paranoid”, with Bill behind the beat as it should be. Martin bites into every word, doing a fantastic job of it. I have several live versions of Martin doing “Paranoid”, but this one is the best and most true.

When it’s time for “Headless Cross”, the rhythm section are not the ones who recorded it (Lawrence Cottle on bass and Cozy Powell on drums). It’s weird to think of Bill Ward playing drum parts that Cozy Powell wrote. Geezer sounds more at home, and is able too bring his trademark slink to the bass. Offstage, Geoff Nicholls quite obviously provides the high notes in the chorus that Tony Martin can no longer hit, whether by voice or sample I do not know. There’s another awkward edit into “Iron Man”, a song most singers except Ozzy struggle with. This could have been excised. We finally blast into “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath”: better, even though nobody can hit the unholy notes that Ozzy did on the studio version.

That’s the last track.. The back cover claims that “The Hand that Rocks the Cradle” is next, but there is no such track. Bastards! To compound the error, they got the song title wrong by just having “The Hand that Rocks”. Not that this is the only mistake on the track list. “Babbath Bloody Sabbath” is pretty funny, especially since this title carried over to the song menu on the DVD!

Wardrobe wise, I like Geezer’s sweater with the crosses on it; that’s nice. Tony Martin has a cool, steel plated leather jacket, which looks as if raided from Rob Halford’s closet. Iommi sports silver cross center-chest, while Bill Ward is right out of 1975 with the long hair and track pants.

There are issues with the audio sync on this DVD, probably originating from the broadcast but carried over even though it would be easily fixed. Sloppy release. I’m sure that this is ripped from a VHS recording of the broadcast, due to the obvious spots where commercial breaks are edited out.

Maybe the original uncut tapes are out there somewhere. If so, somebody should release them. This concert could have been a great little DVD release, but the various audio and editing flaws make it a difficult viewing.

2/5 stars

DVD REVIEW: AC/DC – No Bull: The Director’s Cut (1996)

AC/DC – No Bull: The Director’s Cut (originally 1996, DVD 2008 Sony)

The Plaza de Toro in Madrid is an incredible looking venue. “Nice place you got here!” understates Brian Johnson. To film a concert video here seems an easy decision. A crane and giant wrecking ball dominate the scene. The ball swings and bowls over the backdrop! Enter: Angus Young!

“Back in Black”* is a natural opener: Everybody knows it, and the groove is impossible to ignore. Johnson’s voice is ragged and weak compared to the old days, although I think Brian sounds better in general today. A pre-crystal meth Phil Rudd dons spectacles, and hammers out the beat that, truthfully, he invented and does best. Having Phil back for that period of the band was a coup. It’s back to the Bon Scott years then, with “Shot Down in Flames”. Now Brian sounds more in his element, somehow seeming more in control on a Bon song. As if it took them one song to warm up, everything feels in gear now. Then, “Thunderstruck” is an interesting take, because Phil didn’t play this song before. Chris Slade was in the band at that time, and Phil doesn’t even try to imitate his style. He plays “Thunderstruck” his own way, which is fine. There’s a live version, with Slade, on AC/DC Live. With Phil on the kit, “Thunderstruck” is no longer filled with nervous energy, but is more in the pocket. It’s an interesting evolution. Contrast this with any live video of the current lineup playing the song with Slade today.

“Girls Got Rhythm” is an easy classic, which warms the crowd up with a newbie: “Hard as a Rock”*, the single from Ballbreaker. All but instantly, it sounds like a familiar classic. This is high quality rock, with Johnson’s voice in full shred. Colourful lights illuminate the stage, but only Brian and Angus are really mobile. Cliff Williams and Malcolm Young rock steadily, sticking to their respective sides, and stepping up to the mic for the big chorus. The crowd goes nuts when Angus himself speaks. The stage is huge, but Brian Johnson runs across every inch, interacting with the massive crowd as a veteran frontman can. Then AC/DC knock ’em down (down down) easily on “Shoot to Thrill”. There is a rock and roll purity to this show: A bunch of guys in jeans (Angus excepted), playing hard rock and roll, but contrasted with that is the massive stage. AC/DC can do it because people love the personalities of the band. Angus doesn’t miss a note, no matter where he’s running off to next.

Phil smokes a cigarette during the blues number “Boogie Man”. Starting sluggishly, “Boogie Man” nails it as soon as Brian gets screaming. I’m sure AC/DC can play this kind of thing in their sleep! Angus has an extended solo during which he gets the crowd riled up and ready with his strip-tease moment. When he finally drops his drawers, his undies have the Spanish flag on them. Madrid eats every bit of it up. AC/DC clustered a bunch of new songs close to each other at this point, and “Hail Caesar”** is next. It’s time for a heavy prowler, and Caesar brings it on.

When the bell tolls, you know what’s happening. “Hell’s Bells”! Songs like this, “Dog Eat Dog”** and “The Jack” require no commentary. The sight of Johnson descending from a giant iron bell is pretty cool.

Last newbie of the night is “Ballbreaker”* itself, a blast of “shut the fuck up and listen t0 this” right in the face. This time, Brian is swinging from the wrecking ball, singing the whole time, kicking his feet in the air. AC/DC have crushed it…but there’s still lots more to go. “Rock and Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution”, “Dirty Deeds”, “You Shook Me All Night Long”**, “Rosie”*, “T.N.T.”…it’s all a good time, and you know them all. The only real critique is there is a gap in the setlist, with no songs from 1983-1988 appearing anywhere.

“Let There Be Rock” is, as usual, extended to epic length with Angus’ brilliant solo. First of all, it’s incredible that Angus still has this much energy after playing and stomping through a show this long. What’s really amazing is that everybody in the band is fully fueled for this full-speed song. Malcolm sips from a water bottle — that’s the key, folks. Hydration.

The cool part here is when Angus departs the stage (band playing on), to re-emerge atop the massive shoulders of a bodyguard and taken to a flying platform in the middle of the crowd! Many thrills later, Brian says goodnight, but you know he’s teasing. “Highway to Hell” commences with explosions, flames and Angus’ devil horns. And then, finally,the cannons” “For Those About to Rock” is the salute to Madrid , who witnessed an absolutely incredible AC/DC concert.

The DVD bonus features are cool, as you should expect. The “Angus Cam” versions of four songs is plenty fun, by focusing solely on Angus in the edit. It’s quite incredible to just watch the man play, because it seems as if he is entranced, on auto-pilot, but totally in command. If there wasn’t a guitar around his neck you might think he’s having a seizure! Then come the moments when he looks the crowd in the eye, and the playing only gets more intense! Like I said: this is plenty fun.

Then we have two bonus tracks not included in the Madrid set: “Cover You in Oil” (Sweden) and “Down Payment Blues” (Florida). “Cover You in Oil” is raw and sweaty. I don’t think the song is particularly strong, sounding a bit like a Blow Up Your Video outtake. Still, it’s always nice to get another new song on the DVD, since it’s doubtful a track like this will ever re-enter the setlists. The stupid music video footage that is edited into the tracks is annoying, however. Instead of watching Angus take a solo live, I’m watching him doing it in a music video. Bad editing decision. I like how Brian introduces “Down Payment Blues”: “This is from one of the albums…back in the 70’s…” Shit, he doesn’t know, he wasn’t there! But he gets the job done anyhow. And guess what? Brian Johnson is wearing the same damn blue shirt and hat at every show! His snarl adds to this version of the song.

What’s with the “Director’s Cut”? It seems the original 1996 VHS release (which I never saw) was rushed out for the Christmas season to the dissatisfaction of award winning director David Mallet. He did a new edit, and new stereo and 5.1 mixes for the DVD release.

4/5 stars

*Indicates this version is available in audio form on the 2 CD edition of Stiff Upper Lip.

**Indicates this version is available in audio form on the deluxe Backtracks box set.

#440: What’s the Best Concert You’ve Ever Seen?

GETTING MORE TALE #440: What’s the Best Concert You’ve Ever Seen?

What’s the best concert you have ever been to? Maybe it was that band that was always on your bucket list. Perhaps it was a group who puts on an incredible spectacle, or perhaps even your first show. Maybe you’ve seen so many shows that you don’t even know where to begin!

I’ve had a lot of memorable concerts in my years.

In 1983, my dad took me to see Johnny Cash at the Center in the Square in Kitchener. My dad worked for Canada Trust, and Johnny was doing a promotional deal with them and their new “Johnny Cash” money machines. In light of that, Johnny introduced himself at the start of the show as “I’m Johnny Cash, 24 hour money machine.” Canada Trust even printed their own “Johnny Cash” money. I wish I still had some. Cash played all his classics such as “Orange Blossom Special” and “I Got Stripes”. June Carter kicked off her shoes. Not a bad first concert experience at all.

In ’87 I finally saw my first rock show. At the same venue, Helix rolled into town headlining for their new Wild in the Streets album. Opening for them were a so-so pop rock band from Prince Edward Island called Haywire. Their big hit was called “Dance Desire” and the girls were going nuts for them. They were all going ga-ga for the singer Paul MacAusland. (Years and years later I actually dated a cousin of his.) I thought they sucked. The guitar player Marvin Birt was good, but MacAusland’s idea of stage moves involved him lying down flat on his face!

Helix stormed the stage with “No Rest for the Wicked” and put on an incredible show, involving Brian Vollmer climbing the scaffolding into the loges. He then ran from there onto the mezzanine, right past us, as I was too shy to hold out my hand for him to slap! Then drummer Greg “Fritz” Hinz mooned the crowd…all backed by high octane Canadian rock and roll. Every time I have seen Helix, Vollmer has been an energetic mobile threat. Helix showed us that a rock show was about the on-stage energy rather than lights and explosions.

Best show I’ve ever seen? No, but it’s in the top ten.

Sometimes it’s the smaller shows that matter most. In the late 90’s I went to see local Cambridge band The Candidates. I believe it was a CD release party. They were playing hard, and drummer Robbie Hancock busted his drum pedal mid-song. After the show, I told him I thought it was actually their best performance yet. He didn’t agree, but I told him, “The drum pedal stuff, that doesn’t matter. The reason it broke is that you were playing so fucking hard, and that’s why the show was so good!”

Next on the list: Deep Purple, 1996, Purpendicular tour. T-Rev, Iron Tom Sharpe and I trekked to Toronto to catch the new lineup featuring Ian Gillan, Steve Morse, Ian Paice, Roger Glover, and of course Jon Lord. Playing a set of personal favourites including “Fireball” (the opener) and “No One Came”, we all left exhausted and satisfied. Opening act: Wild T & the Spirit. Incredible and indelibly scorched into my memory, Purple proved that age does not matter one lick.

In 1997 I scratched Rush off my list. This experience was commemorated in Record Store Tales Part 70: Canada Day Weekend Rush. Seeing Rush on the most patriotic weekend of the year was a perfect experience. The played all of 2112 live, an experience not to be missed. It was also my first time meeting such friends as Tyler (from Tyler and LeBrain fame), and rock god Dr. Dave Haslam.

The final concert on this list would have to be Helix, once again, opening for Alice Cooper in 2006. The venue was the trusty old Center in the Square, and this time we were in the second row. Alice Cooper was on his Dirty Diamonds tour, a killer record and a great live set. Helix were in the midst of working on a new EP to be called Get Up, and they played the instantly catchy title track live. This time, when Brian came down to the seats, I succeeded in shaking his hand. He must have noticed the guy in the front who knew every word….

Honorable mentions: Blue Rodeo and “Weird Al” Yankovic. I’ve seen Blue Rodeo so many times that I could almost make a list of the best Blue Rodeo concerts I’ve ever seen. As for Weird Al, what’s not to like? He has a crack band that can play anything.

Conspicuous by their absence on this list: Kiss. This experience was recorded in Record Store Tales Part 8. Not only did Iron Tom make us miss the first few songs, but it was a boring by-the-numbers setlist. That would have been fine except for the after-concert shenanigans that didn’t see me getting home until 4 am the next day…with a 10 am opening shift at the Record Store. Good times? Not!

Of these shows, I really don’t know which was the best. Maybe they were all the best! What’s yours?

REVIEW REDUX: Ted Nugent – Shutup & Jam! (2014)

TED NUGENT – Shutup & Jam! (2014 Frontiers)

Physical CD acquired. The original review can be found here, but this one is about 50% brand-new. The CD is sonically superior anyway.

Some rock fans have a love/hate thing with Ted Nugent. He’s a proud hunter (“kill ’em and grill ’em”), but a conservationist. He loves the right wing of the political spectrum and has nothing but loathing for the left, all the while taking great glee in offering his opinions. The second amendment is sacred to him…but so is rock and roll. It’s hard to outright hate a guy who has rocked so damn hard over the years, and non-stop at that. You gotta give him credit for the tunes.

Upon first listen, it is clear that the years have done nothing to Ted. The opening title track is faster, meaner and more fun than 99% of the flock. The great Gonzo still shreds a chaotically perfect solo as if the studio is Cobo Hall. “There just comes a time when you just gotta rock,” he sings. Sounds good to me Ted, I’m on board for that! Ted keeps it rolling with a vicious riff on the excellent “Fear Itself”. What a killer song. The message is pretty straightforward: he got nothing to fear but fear itself. “I get up every day, with a smile on my face, happy to be alive and I’m back in the race.” Ted offers no apologies, but tries to keep it positive. “Positive energy makes me smile,” he sings, but “victory makes it all worthwhile.”

Old pal Derek St. Holmes lends lead vocals to “Everything Matters”. A whole album of Ted’s shrieking has never been easy to swallow, so I’m always glad to hear Derek’s smooth pipes. By the slippery bluesy rock, you might think it’s ZZ Top. Early ZZ Top, at that! Somehow, Derek and Terrible Ted found a time machine back to 1972 and captured the sound on “Everything Matters”!

Speaking of old friends, Sammy Hagar (who is friends with everyone, except the current members of Van Halen) shows up to sing lead on “She’s Gone”. It’s a ball-crusher of a song (basically just a variation on “Going Down”), but I road tested the guitar solo, wailing with the car windows down this summer. It passed the rock test. Sammy haters are gonna hate, but I don’t how you can hate him when he’s rocking like this with the Nuge. Even better though is the pure fucking joy in the riff for “Never Stop Believing”. Ted has been quite a riff merchant over the years, but “Never Stop Believing” is another triumph, as big as ever. Strap on your air guitars, folks: you’re gonna need ’em. The song ends on some really nice laid back picking from Ted, reminding me that he is one of the most underrated players from the classic rock era.

“I Still Believe” indicates to me that Ted really wanted to get his point across when he said he’d “Never Stop Believing”. The opening riff apes “Helter Skelter” shamelessly, but the rest of the track is pure Ted…with twang. I like that Nuge is singing fairly tame things like “I still believe in America” and “I believe in liberty” rather than “fuck the Democrats”. The sentiments are more inclusive.

My favourite track has turned out to be the silly titled “I Love My BBQ”. I do love to barbecue, and I absolutely dig the shout-out to us Canucks: “I love my Barbeque, it’s what Canadians do, pull up a chair I’ll get a beer for you,” sings Ted in the first verse! A small minority may be offended but my mouth is drooling. But I really don’t think it’s Ted’s primary intention to upset you. He’s just being funny on this one. I mean, come on: “Tofu might just kill you babe, a tossed salad’ll make you weak.” Nudge nudge, wink wink. Poking the bear a bit. “Well the animals, they got rights…right next to my mashed potatoes, baby.” It is obviously intended as comedy, and that’s fine.

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I love my BBQ, too.

Kicking ass is Ted’s business and “Throttledown” is a full-throttle, pedal-to-the-metal rock instrumental. As always though, there is a twang to Ted’s dexterous picking. That’s what makes this different, and better, than middle of the road rock. Having said all that, I have no idea what “Do-Rags and a .45” is about. It sounds like Anvil, except for that title. Keeping the pace fast, “Screaming Eagles” doesn’t give up an inch, guitars fueled and ablaze. None of these songs overstay their welcome. Shutup & Jam features five songs in the 2 minute range in a row! “Semper Fi” is the last of these five, a stomper rather than a screamer. I come from a military family so I have no issues with Ted paying tribute to those in uniform. Some might find it all a bit too much; that’s up to you. Fear not, the song has just as much guitar shred as it does singing. Ted then tells us he’s going to “Trample the Weak Hurdle the Dead”. “War is not the answer,” sings Ted. “I only know evil has got to go.” It’s a great tune and it’s not hard to swallow. And that’s the key. All of these tunes are immensely catchy with lyrics you can sing without having to worry about being considered a right-wing radical by your neighbours.

A bluesy reprise of “Never Stop Believing” closes the album; a rough recording appropriate for the gritty blues approach. It’s a bit of a throw-away compared to the regular version, decent but not nearly as special. Ted’s playing is always the main reason to listen.

I have maintained that if only I heard Shut Up & Jam in the year 2014, it would have been a contender for the Top Five list that year. It’s not hard to understand why — it’s a killer record showing Ted is still in fine form today and hasn’t let the politics get in the way of a good rock song.

4.5/5 stars

REVIEW: Helix – B-Sides (1999)

HELIX – B-Sides (1999 Beak Records)

The occasion: It was Helix’s 25th anniversary. How about an album, and some classic returning band members, for a good time?

The title B-Sides here is misleading; a B-side is a track that appears on the flipside of a single, and is often not on the album. No tracks on this album appeared on the flipside of any singles, at least not these versions. However, the misleading title does not mar the excellent music contained within.

B-Sides contains songs written and/or demo’d for various Helix albums from 1990 onwards. Some of these have been re-recorded, such as “Love Is A Crazy Game”, which appeared as an acoustic version on the Business Doing Pleasure CD. This version is electric and is much heavier. I could imagine this version fitting right in on an Aerosmith album. “S.E.X. Rated” has also been re-recorded. It’s the only song that actually appeared as a B-side, but it’s not the same version as on that single.

Various versions of the Helix band appear on this album, but most interesting is the lineup on the bonus tracks. “Like Taking Candy From A Baby” and “Thinking It Over” are both from the sessions from Helix’s excellent first album (Breaking Loose), left unreleased until now. “Thinking It Over”, a terrific pop rock song, is a Del Shannon cover. Helix worked as Shannon’s backing band during an early 70’s Canadian tour. There are also three songs by a reunited “80’s Helix”, and it’s great to hear that version of the band again.

In a way, it’s a shame that this album was given the title and terrible album cover that it has. Brian Vollmer and Co. could have simply put this out as the next Helix album, which may have given it the respect it deserves. From the ballads to the heavy stuff, this Helix CD has a bit of everything you already liked about the band, with a modern edge. Every song kicks, there’s not a weak track in the bunch. By the time you get to the bonus tracks, Helix have already pummelled your eardrums.

Helix fans absolutely need to hear this music; not B-sides but in fact some of Helix’s best stuff. Along the way, there are appearances from pretty much every major Helix member from the indi days to the mid-90’s. You will even hear songs written and performed by Paul Hackman, the late Helix guitarist who was tragically killed in a 1992 auto accident. The major selling point of the disc was that three songs featured a reunion of the surviving members of the classic 80’s Helix. With Hackman gone, that consisted of leader singer Brian Vollmer, guitarist Brent “the Doctor” Doerner, bassist Daryl Gray, and drummer Greg “Fritz” Hinz.

Personal faves:

“Thinking It Over” which my wife thinks sounds like Sloan.
“Devil’s Gate”, hard and hammering.
“You Got Me Chained”, with killer horn section.
“Take It Or Leave It”, moody and dark but catchy as hell.

Final bonus: a booklet absolutely chock full of never before seen photos. A real treat!