Great Rock Albums of 1982: Blackfoot- Highway Song Live

What is the most logical thing to do after your band has put out three very good studio albums? Well, in the case of Blackfoot, the answer is to put out one hell of a live album. That is exactly what they did in 1982 with the album recorded live in London. If it hadn't been for the fact that I happened to visit London in the summer of 1983, this album would have past me by because I never saw it on sale at any of the record shops in New Jersey and that, to me, would have been a damn shame.

Why is this live album so good? The answer is pretty obvious to any Blackfoot fan. At this particular concert, they played some of their finest material off their previous three albums, "Strikes," "Tomcattin'" and "Marauder." If I were to have produced the album, I would have done little different except ask the band to play "I Got a Line On You" from the "Strikes" album but that's a personal thing. The album is fine as it stands. Things open with two songs from "Tomcattin,'" "Gimme, Gimme, Gimme," which is definitely a great concert opener, especially at the beginning when Rick Medlocke announces "All right London, it's boogie time!" You get little time to rest after the opener because Medlocke gets the crowd going by saying, "If someone messes with your queenie, you're gonna mess up their god damn nose!" Then they launch into "Queenie, Every Man Should Know." If the crowd isn't fully up by now, then the almost thrash sounding, "Good Morning" definitely gets them there.

"Good Morning" is the first of three songs from the "Marauder" album. The other two songs that follow, "Dry County" and "Fly Away" sound much better live than the versions on the album and there was nothing wrong with those. It's just the raw energy this concert gives that takes things up several levels. One note, in between "Dry County" and "Fly Away," Blackfoot play their own version of John Lee Hooker's "Rolling and Tumbling" and I will say that they put their own unique stamp on that song quite nicely.

The rest of the album/concert is dominated by songs from the "Strikes" album. "Road Fever" for all the Scotland rock and roll maniacs as how Medlocke introduces the song, rolls things along very well. After they play "Trouble in Mind," Blackfoot take the show up on an enormous high with the two best songs from that album, "Train, Train" and of course "Highway Song" and both are cases of the live version being way above the studio version. This leads me to realise that if Blackfoot can improve on songs from great studio albums when played live, they are definitely a band to be reckoned with.

Track Listing:

1. Gimme, Gimme, Gimme

2. Queenie, Every Man Should Know

3. Good Morning

4. Dry County

5. Rolling and Tumbling

6. Fly Away

7. Road Fever

8. Trouble in Mind

9. Train, Train

10. Highway Song

11. Howay the Lads

[caption id="attachment_1316" align="aligncenter" width="215"] Blackfoot[/caption]

Rickey Medlocke- guitar, lead vocals

Charlie Hargrett- guitar

Greg T Walker- bass, backing vocals

Jackson Spires- drums

I think back to that time in 1983 and thank God that I was in London and saw this album in a record store. Otherwise, I would have missed it. Then again, each time I listen to the album, I become pig sick at not having ever seen them live. Trust me, "Highway Song" will make you feel that way.

Next post: Rossington/Collins- This is the Way

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Great Rock Albums of 1982: 38 Special- Special Forces

Southern rock hit its highest point in 1981 but it hadn't descended down the summit in 1982. There were still Southern Rock bands making some great albums and getting their songs played on the radio, even up North. One of them was 38 Special whose single "Caught Up in You" from the 1982 album "Special Forces" got into the top ten in the pop singles charts. I have said many times before that I normally didn't pay too much attention to the singles charts but whenever I see that a good rock or metal band I like has a song that gets in there, I find it a cause for celebration.

Hit single aside and "Caught Up In You" follows the trend in 1982 of leading off the album, the rest of the album is the brand of Southern Rock I have always liked about the previous 38 Special albums. There are some great riffs in the likes of "Back on the Track" and "Breakin' Loose" as well as some great rhythm and harmonies on the tracks "Back Door Stranger" and "Take 'Em Out." As usual, Donnie Van Zant and Don Barnes do a magnificent job with the vocals on the album singing the songs that play to their strengths. The track I find most fascinating, though, is "Chain Lightning." It starts off with an acoustic riff and at first sucks you into thinking of a possible ballad but then the guitars slam in and the song totally rocks out. Jeff Carlisi reminds me on the song why I consider him very underrated among guitarists. And if you think "Chain Lightning" sounds good on record, you should hear it played live. I got that opportunity in 1984 and it was totally kicked ass. They do sneak another single in and I have to admit, I prefer "You Keep Running Away" to "Caught Up In You" even if chart history dictates otherwise. I have never considered "Special Forces" to be a totally mind blowing as "Wild Eyed Southern Boys" or "Rockin' Into the Night," it isn't really that far below them. A good solid album that kept Southern rock in the spotlight in 1982.

Track Listing:

1. Caught Up in You

2. Backdoor Stranger

3. Back On the Track

4. Chain Lightning

5. Rough Housing

6. You Keep Running Away

7. Breakin' Loose

8. Take 'Em Out

9. Firestarter

[caption id="attachment_1691" align="aligncenter" width="249"] 38 Special[/caption]

Don Barnes- guitar, lead and backing vocals

Jeff Carlisi- lead guitar

Larry Junstrom- bass

Steve Brookins- drums

Jack Grondin- drums

Donnie Van Zant- lead and backing vocals

Additional Musicians

Jimmy Barnes- harmonica, harp

Terry Emery- piano

Steve McCray- keyboards

Lu Moss- backing vocals

Carol Bristow- backing vocals

38 Special achieved the double in 1982 by putting out a great album and breaking the top ten in the singles charts. This was a a great time for the band but what nobody saw back in that year was that the one achievement would have a detrimental effect on the other one with their future albums and attitude towards music.

Next post: Blackfoot- Highway Song, Live in London

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Great Rock Albums of 1982: Dire Straits- Love Over Gold

When I visited Dire Straits' previous album, "Making Movies," I mentioned that when I saw them live in 1985, how disappointed I was that they did not play my favourite song from that album and my number two Dire Straits song of all time, "Skateaway." To add to that disappointment and my total perplexity on this, they did not play the biggest single from their 1982 album, "Love Over Gold," "Industrial Disease" either. What was strange about that was even three years later, that song still got the occasional play on the radio.

"Industrial Disease" isn't only the best known song on the album but it is the only track less than six minutes in length. The others are nearly seven or more and the opener, "Telegraph Road," is just over fourteen minutes long. The opener sets the tone for the entire album. Normally, I view songs over ten minutes in length with both optimism and pessimism. Either the song is going to rock out with interludes of great solos and combined musicianship or just be boringly repetitive. Fortunately, "Telegraph Road" follows the former. While, Mark Knopfler's vocals aren't too intelligible on the track, he makes up for it with some sound guitar work in different points of the song. It helps that he has assistance from some polished keyboard work, compliments of Alan Clark. If Knopfler's vocals aren't intelligible in the opener, they are even less so on the next track, "Private Investigations" but like the first track, it is more than made up for with some fine instrumental work. "Industrial Disease" takes the middle slot of the album and we get more of same quality blend of progressive rock and blues based lead guitar with the title track and a very worthy closer. "Love Over Gold" might only have five tracks stretched out over forty minutes but they are definitely ones to remember.

Track Listing:

1. Telegraph Road

2. Private Investigations

3. Industrial Disease

4. Lover Over Gold

5. It Never Rains

[caption id="attachment_1856" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Dire Straits[/caption]

Mark Knopfler- lead vocals, lead guitar

Hal Lindes- guitar

Alan Clark- keyboards

John Illsley- bass

Pick Withers- drums

After thirty years, I remain dumbfounded as to why Dire Straits never played "Industrial Disease" on their 1985 tour. I can only speculate that maybe they were advised not to play too much of their early stuff on tour because they were pushing their most commercially successful album then. Still, it would be a shame because there are five really good tracks on the "Love Over Gold" album and the longer tracks tend to sound much better live.

Next post: 38 Special- Special Forces

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Great Rock Albums of 1982: Toto- IV

When I listen to the fourth album by Toto, I find myself pining for what could have been. Three years prior, they came rocking into the world with the heavy rock sound of "Hold the Line." Those riffs are still catchy within my own mind and back in 1979, that song was an island that refused to be flooded in the sea of disco that was around at the time. "Toto IV" is a total departure from the sound in the song I have already mentioned. It follows subsequent albums in going into a more progressive, pop oriented sound. None of the songs on this fourth album come close to sounding like "Hold the Line."

This doesn't mean the album is bad, it's not. The members of Toto are all talented musicians and it shows on the album. Take the opening song and like many albums of 1982 thus far, the biggest single on the album. If "Rosanna" had been done by some fly by night, 80s synth pop group put together by the likes of Stock, Aiken and Waterman, then it would have totally sucked. Sure, it might have been a top ten single but quickly buried and forgotten. The reason why "Rosanna" appears on a number of rock compilation albums is the good musicianship behind it. Hearing the lyrics does make me want to say "Oh God" but then comes a cool keyboard solo and later a decent guitar solo. They make the song and probably why it has stood the test of time. Other songs on the album are in the same vein. Eight out of the next nine songs are mellow out progressive jazzy blues sounding songs which are great to sit down and listen to but I won't be listening to them on my way to Amon Amarth in a couple of weeks. The only song that goes anywhere near hard rock is "Afraid of Love" but that song is let down by a keyboard interlude where a cranking guitar solo should be. Still, the musicianship of Toto carry the songs through.

The closer, "Africa," is more of the same but probably my favourite song on the album. Like the previous nine songs, the closer is definitely a strong progressive song. Unlike "Rosanna," the lyrics for me are more listenable and the quality musicianship remains but I think they could have used a better instrumental break than the one in the song, perhaps a guitar solo. Still, it is the best song on the album for me.

Track Listing:

1. Rosanna

2. Make Me Believe

3. I Won't Hold You Back

4. Good For You

5. It's a Feeling

6. Afraid of Love

7. Lovers in the Night

8. We Made It

9. Waiting for Your Love

10. Africa

[caption id="attachment_1266" align="aligncenter" width="224"] Toto[/caption]

David Paich- keyboards, lead and backing vocals, all horn and orchestral arrangements

Steve Lukather- guitars, lead and backing vocals

Bobby Kimball- lead and backing vocals

Jeff Procraro- drums, percussion ,tympani

Steve Procraro- keyboards, lead vocals

David Hungate- bass

"Toto IV" is probably the reason why Wayne Campbell of Wayne's World fame put "anything by Toto" as the number two party killing song. I have to disagree somewhat here. While I wouldn't listen to the album on my way to a metal concert, I would still listen to it at more appropriate times. This is a good easy listening album, with some decent songs and quality musicianship.

Next post: Dire Straits- Lover Over Gold

To buy Rock And Roll Children, go to www.strategicpublishinggroup.com/title/RockAndRollChildren.html

Also available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Froogle and on sale at Foyles Book Shop in London