I know I just put out 2 of them yesterday, but this time is special. 1 year ago this November, legendary drummer Phil “Philthy” Animal Taylor of Motörhead passed away, and in December, the almighty Lemmy Kilmister’s life ascended to heavy metal heaven (Nice U.D.O. reference, don’t you think?). I had been waiting to do an overview of this band for a long time, and considering the circumstance, I feel it was only appropriate. Not only do I consider this to be an overview, but I consider this to be a tribute to a pinnacle of Heavy Metal. However.....
With 23 albums to their name, this was a monumental task. The band is so prolific with their music, that it would take up a large space. On top of that, you be seeing 2 to 3 “Best Track” points throughout this overview, making for even more stuff to read. So for just this rare time, I will be splitting up my look at a band. Today will begin with their prime, the 70s & 80s, so without further delay, here’s my first look at the iconic Motörhead. Enjoy!
Motörhead (1977)
With these 3 individuals together, the classic lineup of Motörhead congealed, they finally began work on their self-titled first record. Recorded from April the 27th to the 29th of 1977, Motörhead was officially released on August the 21 of that same year. Though it was only a minor chart success, as Alex Ogg of Allmusic states:
“Motörhead patented the group's style: Lemmy's rasping vocal over a speeding juggernaut of guitar, bass, and drums...no wonder the punks liked them”
Best Track? Bit of a tie between the title track, and the ode to drugs that is White Line Fever. These tracks don’t come across as Heavy Metal, but more of a mix of punk & hard rock. I’m normally not a fan of punk (Personal reasons), but the band manipulates that genre to great effect on these song. Not to mention the record in general.
Motörhead
White Line Fever
Worst Track? The worst thing you could say about Motörhead’s inaugural album is how old it feels & sounds. Make no mistake, I’m not calling this album bad. Far from it! This a great album for a party, and the potential for headbanging is definitely high! That said, you can definitely tell this comes from the infancy of Heavy Metal. The vibe & sounds of that genre still had to walk a few steps before it could finally get it’s footing. All things aside, Motörhead is a great first record. If you like this band more on the punk & hard rock side of things, then this will be that fix. Next album!
Overkill (1979)
Best Track? Right away, the title track of this album hits my mind like 1000s bricks. Phil Taylor’s drumwork is out of this world, as it planted the seeds for Thrash Metal & Speed Metal to come out of the ground. Lemmy’s raspy vocals, along with his Rock-N-Roll style of guitar play, created the fierce attitude that Motörhead would be know for. Eddie Clark plays right along side Mr. Kilmister, and the two’s work is practically inseparable as the song goes on. Even if you listen to the first few second, the beat will stay in your mind forever!
Overkill
Apart from that, practically everything on Overkill is phenomenal. From hard rock, to blues-style croonings, to early Heavy Metal, nothing on this album is bad! The worst thing you could say is that it kinda come across as old, but this would only be a point for the most pickiest of music listeners, metal or otherwise. I simply cannot recommend this record enough, as more than likely you’ll be immediately brought into the Motörhead fold. Next album!
Bomber (1979)
“..I wish we'd played the songs onstage first, like we did with the Overkill album, if we could've played them for three weeks on the road it would have been less slick.....Listen to the way we play them live and compare that to the album..”
The issues didn’t end there: Jimmy Miller was suffering from an increasing heroine addiction. Some he would be half a day late, and other times it would be worse. As Lemmy said in his autobiography:
“..Overkill was supposed to be something of a comeback album for Jimmy Miller, which is exactly what it turned out to be for him. He had gotten very heavily into heroin (which likely began when he was working with the Stones) and he had lost it for a couple [of] years...but months later, when we were working with him on Bomber, it was sadly clear that he was back on smack..”
He elaborates further:
“..[Clarke] had been bitching that I was getting all the limelight, but he wouldn't do anything about it. I got sick of him complaining, so I said, 'Right, you're gonna fucking sing one on this album'...he hated it, but really, he was a good singer, Eddie..”
It was this environment that Bomber was created. Among Motörhead fans, it was regarded pretty well. Among reviewers & critics, it was more of a mixed bag (Past & Present). Jason Birchmeier of AllMusic wrote:
“There are a couple killers here, namely "Dead Men Tell No Tales", "Stone Dead Forever," and "Bomber," but overall, the songs of Bomber aren't as strong as those of Overkill were. Granted, this is somewhat of a moot point to raise, as Bomber is still a top-shelf Motörhead album, one of their all-time best, without question.”
Motörhead biographer Joel McIver has this to say in 2011:
“Some think that the effort of writing two killer albums in the space of a year was too much for Motörhead at this early stage, and that Bomber – released on October 27, seven months after its predecessor – couldn't hope to match up to Overkill”
Best Track? Bit of a tie between the title track, and the Blues Metal style croonings of Step Down. Step Down is unusual in the fact that Lemmy Kilmister isn’t singing, but it’s Eddie Clark at the vocal helm. Strangely, Eddie’s vocals complement the instrumentation well. Whenever this track comes on, you’re transported to a seedy bar: there’s roguish individuals all over the place, carefully sipping their drinks, and keeping an eye on each other. Songs like this always manage to put a smile on my face.
Bomber
Step Down
Worst Track? Bomber’s only flaw is it’s strange sequencing of it’s songs. You know an album has a weird track listing when the title track.....is at the end! Later re-releases of Bomber would have different listings, but for simplicity’s sake, I’m going with the original 79 listing. Despite this one flaw, Bomber is a nice little album, and acts as a bridge from their origins in the 70s, to the titanic album that was to come.
Ace of Spades (1980)
“..I like Iron Maiden and Saxon out of the new mob, and that's about it, really...We were too late for the first metal movement and early for the next one...Motörhead don't fit into any category, really. We're not straight heavy metal, because we're a rock 'n' roll band, which no-one knows how to market anymore..”
Despite this, Ace of Spades was received in a overwhelmingly positive light. It has since been described as "one of the best metal albums by any band, ever"and has become a significantly influential hard rock classic. Even though they called themselves a rock ‘n’ roll band, Ace of Spades (The album & title track) is considered by most to be Motörhead’s definitive anthem. You ultimately know you’ve got a classic album when it’s listed in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, which is a book I have to pick up.
Best Track? Ace of Spades in it’s entirety is nothing short of perfection, so picking an individual song to hold above the others is practically a crime. There’s Thrash Metal, Speed Metal, Blues, Rock, and a good dose of Punk in this entire record. So, for maybe just once in this 3-part series, I’m gonna say that this entire album is the so-called best track.
Worst Track?.....I am about to commit Heavy Metal blasphemy by saying this, but if Ace of Spades had any fault to it, it would be how incredibly......overrated the album is. Make no mistake, there’s no bad track in sight on this record. From top to bottom you’re being treated to a sonic assault, and one in which still sounds awesome here in 2016. That being said, just the sheer reputation of this record has practically elevated it above much of Motörhead’s discography. Even the title track is spoken about more that other songs (On this album & others) that the band has created. In fact, even Lemmy himself at one point was sick of Ace of Spades. Don’t believe me? Here’s something he said in his autobiography about the track:
“..I used gambling metaphors, mostly cards and dice — when it comes to that sort of thing, I'm more into the slot machines actually, but you can't really sing about spinning fruit, and the wheels coming down. Most of the song's just poker, really - 'I know you've got to see me, read 'em and weep, Dead man's hand again, aces and eights' - that was Wild Bill Hickock's hand when he got shot. To be honest, although "Ace of Spades" is a good song, I'm sick to death of it now. Two decades on, when people think of Motörhead, they think "Ace of Spades." We didn't become fossilised after that record, you know. We've had quite a few good releases since then. But the fans want to hear it so we still play it every night. For myself, I've had enough of that song..”
Ace of Spades. Maybe it has a over-bloated reputation, but at the same time this reputation seems to be deserved in some way. Listen to this record (Title track & all), or hand in your Metalhead card to the nearest shredder. Next album!
Iron Fist (1982)
Iron Fist also marked the last time that Eddie Clarke played with Motörhead. Bad feelings between him & Lemmy had actually been simmering for a while, but what finally set Clarke over the edge was Lemmy deciding to record a cover of the Tammy Wynette country classic "Stand By Your Man" with Wendy O' Williams and the Plasmatics. In his 2002 memoir, Lemmy had this to say:
“..actually, Eddie used to leave the band about every two months, but this time it just so happened that we didn't ask him back. We didn't try to persuade him, which is why he stayed away - that surprised him a bit. But we were just tired of him because he was always freaking out and he was drinking a lot back then. He's become much better now since he stopped...Looking back - and I must say, hindsight is 20/20 - it was good for us that we fell apart when we did. We wouldn't have been going now if we had carried on getting more and more famous. We would have wound up a bunch of twats with houses in the country and gotten divorced from each other. So it was just as well, I think, for Motörhead's morale overall. It's important for a band to be hungry because that is the motivation that makes all bands work. And if anyone knows about being hungry for long periods of time, it's me..”
Best Track? Definitely the title track: echoing the title song of the previous record, Iron Fist tells the tale of a angry deity, smiting anyone who displeases him, and conquering all lands in his vision. Much like Ace of Spades the song, this track goes by in a flash, but the impression it leaves definitely doesn’t go away. No wonder’s it’s become an anthem for Motörhead fans.
Iron Fist
Worst Track? Iron Fist’s only fault is that it comes across as somewhat similar to their previous record, Ace of Spades. I don’t necessarily have a problem with this: Ace of Spades is a iconic release, and anything following suit would have been seen as a adequate follow-up. Iron Fist is indeed that follow-up, but I swear I was listening to Ace of Spades 2.0, not a different record. Granted, this vibe I felt was more in certain places rather than the album as a whole, but it was enough that I could tell something was off.
Iron Fist. Maybe a little similar to Ace of Spades in places, but for the most part remains it’s own thing. If their previous record was a little too intense, then this might suit your taste. Now as I said above, “Fast” Eddie Clarke left the band, breaking up the original lineup of Motörhead. Without a guitarist, it seemed like the band would breakup. Little did they know, a momentary savior would arrive, and that savior would be........
Another Perfect Day (1983)
“..[the sound] changed a little now that Brian's joined the band; I think it's gotten more musical..”
However, these positive vibes would change drastically once they entered the studio. Quoting from the documentary The Guts and the Glory:
“..Recording Another Perfect Day was fucking torture. Brian, he'd take seventeen hours doin' a guitar track. It fuckin' took so long compared with the other albums. And then when it was released everybody fucking hated it..”
Things got even worse & stranger when they were on tour, as the contrast of clothes made for an awkward environment on stage. Lemmy once said:
“..Brian's fashion sense continued to shock and horrify fans throughout the tour of Europe at the end of the year. Let's face it, ballet shoes and Motörhead do not mix!..”
In a interview with Classic Rock magazine, Lemmy made light of the situation:
“..All that shit about being dressed differently; all the wearing of stupid shorts, it was just to get at me. Or make sure everybody knew he wasn't in Motörhead, just a featured guest artist, doing us a favour from the great heights as a Thin Lizzy guitar player..”
In his memoir, Lemmy brought the album into perspective:
“..We had to get another guitar player fast so we could continue the tour, and we chose Brian Robertson, who had been in Thin Lizzy. Technically, he was a better guitarist than Eddie, but ultimately he wasn't right for Motörhead. With Robbo our slide downwards began to pick up speed, which was unfair really, because the record we made with him, Another Perfect Day, was very good... Another Perfect Day stood the test of time - a lot of fans have recanted now and come to like it. But that didn't help us back then..”
It was this environment that one of Motörhead’s most misunderstood albums was produced. Release on the 4th of June, 1983, Another Perfect Day marks the first & only time....that the band went prog. Well, not completely prog. The band was still rock, punk, and metal, but with Brian Robertson on their team, the Progressive Rock stylings of Thin Lizzy come through on much of the music. Those who are fans of Motörhead but not necessarily interesting in prog would do well to focus on this album, as there enough prog to satisfy your urge, but not so much that it’s not overwhelming.
Best Track? While the entire album is great, my personal favorite comes in the form of One Track Mind. A bluesy little number, One Track Mind is one of the very few songs to not really contain much prog at all. This tune falls more into the rock side of things as well, but there’s a metal edge that cuts things just right as you listen. A great bar song if there ever was one.
One Track Mind
Worst Track? Really the nature in how Another Perfect Day was recorded could be considered bad. There was definitely potential when Brian Robertson first joined, but it all immediately seemed to go to hell, thanks in part to Brian’s immense ego & self-importance. They say one-bad apple can ruin a whole bunch, and in a sense that’s what happened here. Luckily, it didn’t ruin the album, as it’s stood the test of time, and Motörhead fans have come to appreciate it since it’s release.
Another Perfect Day. A downright odd album in Motörhead’s discography, but it’s that oddity that seems to make it a fun experience. Those who walk on the prog side of town, this is that album for you. Next!
Orgasmatron (1986)
Released on August 9, 1986, Orgasmatron came from a rather chaotic time: Brian Robertson was way over his head when he joined the band. His ego, combined with his perchance for clashing clothes & egging on Lemmy, ultimately left Motörhead. Phil Taylor left the group as well to pursue personal projects, but that didn’t end so well (More on this in a sec). This ultimately left Lemmy as the sole remaining member of the band, but this didn’t last long, as he would recruit new members to carry on it’s name. For the drummer, Lemmy called upon the service of Saxon drummer Pete Gill. Lemmy would remain in his position, but finding a guitarist was something of a challenge. There were 2 that Lemmy had an eye on: Phil Campbell from the horrifically Persian Risk, and Michael Burston, who went by the stage name of Würzel.
In the end, Lemmy picked them both, went to the studio, and on the 9th of August, 1986, released Orgasmatron. Originally titled Riding with the Devil, Orgasmatron is an extension of the prog nature of their previous release Another Perfect Day.....but it’s hallow. With the case of Iron Fist, it was understandable that it would tail Ace of Spades. But in this case? Since the leaving of Brian Robertson, there was really no need to stay prog. I can only assume that Lemmy had no idea what to do next, and simply stayed to course. Does that make the music bad? No! The music on Orgasmatron is actually pretty good. Maybe a little bloated & raised a little too high by it’s fans, but the tunes are still within the realm of Motörhead quality, as exemplified by the title track.
Orgasmatron
Really the fact that Motörhead tried to continue down their Prog Metal path without Brian Robertson is Orgasmatron’s only fault. It’s really quite unusual that the band would do this, and makes the music feel hallow in a sense, despite it being quite good overall. I’m all for prog, but only when it’s being manipulated by a master, and Motörhead is not such a master unless Brian Robertson stayed with them.
Orgasmatron. Definitely overrated, and maybe it shouldn’t have copied their previous release, but the songs themselves are good under the right circumstances. Recommended, but more as a curiosity. Next album!
Rock ‘n’ Roll (1987)
“..Peter was his own worst enemy, he was another one who wouldn't just be content in the band. He went up against me on a couple of decisions, and he was making Phil and Wurzel upset too. I got tired of him moaning, so when he kept us waiting while he hung around in the lobby of his hotel for twenty minutes while he read the paper or something, that was the proverbial last straw. I know it sounds trivial, but most flare-ups in families are, aren't they? And a band is a family..”
He went on to say that Phil Taylor, who was playing with Frankie Miller & Brian Robertson, wanted to come back for this record. Released on the 5th of September, 1987, the recording of Rock ‘n’ Roll had difficulty as well, in part of Taylor’s return. Once again from the words of Lemmy:
“.Anyhow, with Pete gone, we gave Phil Taylor his job back. It was a mistake in retrospect... things weren't the same, and I should have known they wouldn't be... Rock 'n' Roll is a fair album, but it isn't one of our best... Our biggest mistake was choosing Guy Bidmead to produce it. He was just an engineer, really, so we were pretty much producing ourselves... And (guitarist) Wurzel was having a bad time personally... In addition to all of this, we didn't have enough time to do the songs properly and when that happens you're pretty much wasting your time..”
Despite this, I rather like Rock ‘n’ Roll. It is considerably more polished than Orgasmatron, and is reminiscent of their earliest material. If anything, I think I might enjoy this more than anything that Motörhead produced in the 80s. Even more so than Ace of Spades, and that album’s great!
Best Track? Bit of a 3-way tie between the title track, the sadly obscure Blackheart, and a protest song in the form of Just 'Cos You Got the Power. The previously mentioned track is unusual in that it wasn’t included on the original release. You can only find it on the Castle Communications 1996 re-release, and the Sanctuary Records 2006 2CD deluxe edition. As for the song itself, it’s a great example of the band trying out different genres, while staying firm in their metal haven. The hard rock/punk flavor of the track makes for a great listen to, especially at a political rally.
Rock ‘n’ Roll
Blackheart
Just 'Cos You Got the Power
Worst Track? Rock ‘n’ Roll’s only fault isn’t with the music, but the people who bash it. Given how unjustifiably (For the most part) elevated Orgasmatron was, the expectations for the next album would be incredibly high. Regardless, Rock ‘n’ Roll is a great record. Absolutely buried by it’s detractors, it’s a classic example of a diamond in the rough. Dare I say it, out of every album from this part of their career, Rock ‘n’ Roll is the release you should pick up the most. Recommended to the highest degree!
And that concludes part 1 of my look at the metal icons known as Motörhead. The 70s & 80s were an important period for this group, as some of the most iconic albums of their career came out during this time. If you like your metal old-school, this is the period you’ll enjoy. I’ll see you all next week, when I’ll begin a somber 2-part memorial to one of the finest rock bands to have ever existed. See you then!
***
If you like to know more about Overkill’s history, check out my review of it below.
Album Review - Motörhead’s Overkill
On top of that, sorry about getting this one up later. I had it mostly finished, but still had some stuff left to flush out. Hope you don’t mind!
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