Other Great Metal Influences: Part 7, Thin Lizzy

Like T-Rex, Thin Lizzy was one of those great rock bands from the 70s which I didn't fully appreciate until the 1980s. Sure, I loved the song "The Boys Are Back In Town" when I first heard it on the radio, back in 1977. Also, I would see their albums advertised, but think nothing more. But that was down to me and nothing to do with this great band.

For me, it seemed when I began to really expand my musical horizons in the early 80s, it seemed only natural that Thin Lizzy would be part of that. Their music seemed to fit right in with much of the metal going on at the time. I really began to get into their earlier material as well at that time. Therefore, it is no surprise that many of the metal acts of the 80s cite Thin Lizzy as one of their influences, with some acts even releasing covers of Thin Lizzy songs. I have heard Bon Jovi's cover of "The Boys Are Back In Town" and only a few years ago, the great Metallica released a copy of "Whiskey In a Jar." However, I am still waiting for a cover of my personal favourite Lizzy song, "Jailbreak" as long as they do the song justice.

An old friend of mine, (I haven't seen him in over 27 years) saw Thin Lizzy play what was then to be their last ever gig back in 1983. My reaction to that is "You lucky ****." Reports were, they were a great live act and not seeing them is a regret for me.
The death of Phil Lynott in 1986 marked an end of an era for Thin Lizzy fans. The way he died made many rock stars at the time rethink their life style and live cleaner. However, his spirit lives on in the music, just ask any true Thin Lizzy fan. Thin Lizzy was definitely a big influence on heavy metal.
Next post: Rainbow
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Other Great Metal Influences, Part 6; T-Rex

Last August, I drove to Bloodstock Open Air Festival for a great weekend of metal. For the two hour drive on the way, the in flight entertainment was provided first by a CD comprising of two bands fronted by former Yngwie Malmesteen vocalist Jeff Scott Soto, Kuni and Panther. That CD did a great job helping me through a traffic delay. The second CD was one I'll be commenting on much further down the line, an album called "Rise" by a band called Hair of the Dog. It is one of my favourite metal CDs of the 2000+ era. Already riding on a high as I pulled up to the entrance to the car park, I was expecting the next CD to be Thunder's first album "Backstreet Symphony." Instead, I had inserted another CD into that slot on my 6 disc player. It was a compilation album whose first song was "Children of the Revolution" by Marc Bolan and T-Rex. I figured that it was the will of the gods of metal and drove into the car park with the song blasting through the speakers. It fit the mood perfectly.

T- Rex was one of those great bands from the 70s that influenced the metal of the 80s. Their hard rock style wowed a generation of rockers and the flamboyant style of Marc Bolan gave many acts since ideas about glam and make up.

The best thing about T-Rex was that any one of their songs could have been on my car stereo that evening and it would have had the same effect. From 1970 to 1976 when his life was tragically cut short in 1977, he  and T- Rex had a string of top twenty hits such as "20th Century Boy."  One thing that no one can say about their music is that it's dated. Many metal bands since T-Rex and a few non metal ones, (I remember the version of "Bang A Gong, Get It On" by Powerstation back in 1985) have recorded cover versions of many T-Rex songs.

Even though Marc Bolan has not been with us for over thirty years, T-Rex still continues to be a great memory to the music of today. In fact, after three days of rocking at Bloodstock, I hit the back button on the car CD player and listened to "Children of the Revolution" on the way out of the concert. I thought it was only fitting.
Next post: Thin Lizzy
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Other Great Metal Influences, Part 5; Queen

        Wayne: I think we'll go with a little Bohemian Rhapsody gentelmen.
        Garth: Good call.

Yes, "Bohemian Rhapsody" is one of the greatest rock songs of all time, always finishing in the top ten in any given rock countdown list and on many occasions, reaching number one. In the 70s, Queen were a dominant force in rock music combining a hard rock sound with operatic style vocals and harmonising. The string of successful albums and singles throughout the era bear testimony to their brilliance.

There is little I can say that hasn't already been said about this band. I can only reflect on my own memories as a teenager in the late 1970s hearing their now classic songs, "Killer Queen," "Somebody to Love" and my personal favourite, "We Are the Champions." Of course, there are many other songs I can name here as well. I couldn't help not liking their music, even though back then I was suspicious of Freddie Mercury's sexual orientation. This was during my days as a staunch born again Christian. However, the singer did little to disguise it with his wild stage outfits. I still have memories of the candy striped hot pants.
Apart from Mercury, one thing I have to point out is guitarist Brian May. Not so much in Britain, but definitely in America, he is a very underrated guitarist. His riffs were groundbreaking and can be heard in the playing of many metal guitarists he has come to influence since.

Freddie Mercury- vocals, piano

Brian May- guitars

John Deacon - bass

Roger Taylor- drums

Like many of the act mentioned before, Queen were also know as a great live act. Unfortunately for me, I never had the pleasure of seeing them live. Back then, I never could afford such things and I thought it wasn't what Jesus wanted. But that's another story. Although I never saw a live Queen concert, I did own their album "Live Killers" which gave me an insight to what they would have been like in concert. It made more regretful of not having seen them.

Although many might not want to admit it, Queen was a major influence on the metal of the 80s and beyond and their presence can still be felt today.

Next post: T-Rex

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Other great metal influences, Part 4; Rush

Whenever you ask any old rocker to name a great Canadian rock act, they won't say Bryan Adams, they'll tell you that it is Rush. For over thirty years this great band has stayed together and put out a string of albums over the years that have satisfied their audiences. While they may not quite have had the chart success of Aerosmith, they haven't had all the negative experiences either, but have been consistently solid for nearly four decades.

Rush released their first album in 1974 and while it was several years later before I actually listened to it, I can see why it helped to put Rush on the music map. It features their unique blend of rock with the guitar work of Alex Lifeson and the mistakable vocals of Geddy Lee and the hard working drumming of Neil Peart. I use this album as a counter by non metal people who say that metal musicians can only play three chords.

Geddy Lee- vocals, bass, keyboards

Alex Lifeson- guitars

Neil Peart- drums, percussion

Throught the late 70s, Rush would begin to enjoy mainstream success. Albums such as "Farewell to Kings" and "2112" would establish them as one of the major rock acts. They can also be given credit for getting record labels in America to finally look north of the border and see the other acts that Canada has come to produce.

                                                                             

In 1981, Rush put out the ablum "Moving Pictures" which would be arguably their best. Songs like "Tom Sawyer" and "Limelight" have been favourites with many Rush fans and even a few non Rush fans. Unfortunately, as was the case back in the 1980s, the album also branded Rush a heavy metal band by some ignorant American deejays who wanted to put music into categories. As a result of not wanting to be stereotyped, the Rush sound became more synthesised in the 80s, the album "Grace Under Pressure" being the point. However, Rush managed to put out synthesised albums without being accused of "selling out" by metalheads who still bought and enjoyed these albums.

One thing that can always be said of Rush over the near past four decades is that they have always been a great live act. I have never had the fortune of seeing this great band live, but everyone I have spoken to who has seen them, can confirm this. They continue to play with an energy which masks their years and their light displays of the 80s and 90s have been described as mind blowing.

Rush is another one of those great bands from the 70s which metal acts in the 80s site as an influence. However, bands from the 90s and the 00s can probably also site them as well because Rush have been and continue to be a great influence to metal.

Next post: Queen

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Other Great Metal Influences, Part 3, Aerosmith

Of all the rock bands that existed throughout the 70s and 80s, there has been no one to match the effect Aerosmtith have had. If you were to read their story without knowing them, you would be convinced that it was a totoal work of fiction. Aerosmith are the ultimate rock and roll story of fame to bust to fame again.

Aerosmith first appeared on the rock scene in 1973, with the hit "Dream On" which is still popular enough for them to play as an encore in their kick ass live shows. Throughout the mid to late 70s, they had a string of albums that established them as one of the top rock bands of the decade. For me, it was hearing the "Toys in the Attic" album which first turned me onto them and taught me that Aerosmith were for real.

Unfortuately, like a lot of great artists, Aerosmith fell into the trappings of stardom and slipped into the minefield of sex, drugs and rock and roll. By the band's own admission, by the late 70s, they were making records to pay their drug dealers. This led to their rapid decline in the very late 70s and early 80s. Of course during that time, was the infamous bottle incident where Aeromith said they would never come back to Philadelphia again.
During the period in the early to mid 80s where Aerosmith were almost banished to the realms of obscurity, they had a couple of line up changes which didn't help them either. However, in 1986, things got better for the band. First, the original line up reformed.

Steve Tyler- vocals

Joe Perry- lead guitar

Brad Whitman- guitar

Tom Hamilton- bass

Joey Kramer- drums

While the album "Done With Mirrors" did okay, it wasn't a best seller. However, it did introduce a new generation of metal heads to this classic band. It was on this tour, where I had the pleasure of seeing them live. Even though they hadn't quite forgiven Philadelphia for the bottle incident, they still played a killer show. However, their big break back to the big time came from a totally unexpected source, when they were asked by rap artists Run DMC to join them in recording a copy of the Aerosmith classic, "Walk This Way." Since then, Aerosmith have been unstoppable in their quest for world domination and stand alone on the plateau of great artists.

Many heavy metal acts since the 80s have sited these guys as one of their influences and acts still do. Aerosmith's contribution to rock and heavy metal has been beyond all comparison.

 Next post: Rush

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