Month: March 2022

Kiss – “Beth” – 7″ Single (The Kiss Review Series)

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I’m always out searching for Kiss music that I don’t have on vinyl and right now that is mostly singles. The latest time I was out digging, I came across a 7″ Single for the song “Beth” off their 1976 classic ‘Destroyer’. The original single for this album was “Detroit Rock City” as the A-Side and “Beth” as the B-Side. When that went out to the radio stations, the DJ’s ended playing “Beth” which quickly became the most requested songs on a lot of stations.

After that, the decision was made to reissue the single with “Beth” as the A-Side and “Detroit Rock City” as the B-Side. That is the copy I have. It was released in August 1976. Now, my version I found doesn’t have a picture sleeve as shown as the header. I used that to make the post more enticing. My version actually just came in a plain white sleeve but the original at least would’ve had the Casablanca Sleeve that would’ve looked something like the above picture…If I find any singles out there with that sleeve I will buy it (regardless if it is Kiss or not just so I have the correct one).

Continue reading “Kiss – “Beth” – 7″ Single (The Kiss Review Series)” →

Skrapp Mettle – ‘Sensitive’ (1991) – Album Review (The Jeff Scott Soto Series)

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I think most people know of the band Steel Panther. A band that parodies the 80’s rock scene but has lyrics that are filthy, dirty and yet funny…to a point. Back in 1991, we actually had a band that did that exact same thing. That band was Skrapp Mettle. However, they weren’t a parody of the 80’s rock scene because they were still in the 80’s rock scene. They did have the naughty lyrics and let me tell you, they are raunchy and raw. It is pretty telling about how the metal scene was already laughable before it was even over and tells you how far it had fallen.

The one thing about this band and that is they don’t take themselves very seriously. And if you don’t believe me, look at the name of the band members:

  • Spunk – lead vocals
  • Nasty Gerbil – keyboards
  • Snuff Buzzsaw – guitars
  • Beef – bass
  • Pounder – drums
  • Dirk Vespucc – special vocal effects

And if that wasn’t enough, their scumbag lawyer is Richard Bagg from Sleezem, Greezem and Scuzzem. Mangement is Sleeze E. Wadd for Slime Time Management. Oh, and Satanic Marketing was done by Bill Z. Bubb. You see, the band, or anyone for that matter, didn’t use their real names because this was for fun and some were afraid their career would be hurt if anyone found out they were in it. Jeff Scott Soto only agreed to do this if his name was left off the album jacket and by the way, he is Spunk.

Continue reading “Skrapp Mettle – ‘Sensitive’ (1991) – Album Review (The Jeff Scott Soto Series)” →

My Sunday Song – “Halls of Valhalla” by Judas Priest

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For My Sunday Song #291, we are kicking off a 10 Song Set of Judas Priest songs with “Halls of Valhalla” off their 2014 album, ‘Redeemer of Souls’. The album came out on July 8, 2014 in the U.S. and debuted at #6 making it their first album to debut in the Top 10…ever!! That would get topped with their next release ‘Firepower’. “Halls of Valhalla” was not a single, but it was the standout track for me so I thought it was as good a place to start as any.

The song was inspired by the TV Show ‘The Vikings’. The got Rob Halford thinking about Scandinavia, the North Sea and all the mythology of that part of the world. The word “Valhalla” came to mind at 4 in the morning and that turned in to the focus of the song. The song is about sailing around the North Sea searching for the Halls of Valhalla. According to Songfacts…

In Norse mythology Valhalla is a giant hall, where the souls of warriors slain in battle are taken by the Valkyries. A form of heaven where they are ruled over by the god Odin, the fallen combatants spend their days fighting safe in the knowledge of never being permanently harmed.

This song for me might be the shining achievement of the ‘Redeemer of Souls’ album. The dramatic guitar opening is then filled with a brutal guitar riff and Scott’s thundering drum. Rob comes screaming in and that classic Priest piss and vigor is back. A cross between old Priest and Black Sabbath, we are treated to brilliant metal masterpiece. Rob really stretches his vocal range giving it a full workout and that is all we want to hear. He goes from a guttural growl to the highest of highs almost effortlessly. When I hear the mention of Asgard in the lyrics, I expect Thor to show up or hell, even Loki, but that doesn’t happen.

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You Pick It! – Which Album to Review in April?

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You, my reader, are going to pick an album for me to review each month.  It is really simple…first, I will give you 5 albums to choose from and second, you will tell me which one of those you would like to see reviewed on the site.  See…simple! Now, if you want to cast more than one vote, comment on the Twitter and Facebook post and you could get up to 3 votes on your favorite pick.

There are a few simple rules I have put in to place in my selections.  They are…

  • One has to be a new release (within the last month)
  • One has to be one I have never heard before (new releases don’t count for this one)
  • One has to be from a genre I don’t normally listen to at all or very often
  • And the last two are choices from my collection that I haven’t reviewed before

What are the 5 albums you ask?  Funny you should ask because I have those right here…

  New Release – Bryan Adams – ‘So Happy It Hurts’

  Never Heard Before – George Harrison – ‘All Things Must Pass’

  Not My Normal Genre – Gnarls Barkley – ‘St. Elsewhere’

  From My Collection – Oasis – ‘(What’s the Story) Morning Glory’

  From My Collection – Harry Connick Jr. – ‘Blue Light, Red Light’

Let me know which one you would like to see and sometime in April, I will post a review of the album that gets the most votes. You have one week to decide and from there I will start listening to the album and do a review.

Thanks for participating!!

“SNOW” AND TELL: ROCK AND ROLL COLLECTIBLES ON TONIGHT’S LEBRAIN TRAIN WITH JOHN AND HARRISON

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Tonight, I will be guesting on The LeBrain Train while we do some “Show & Tell”…or what Mike likes to call it…”Snow & Tell”. Catchy, I know! See what else Mike has to say below and we will see you tonight at 7pm!!

This is a show that people have been wanting for a long time! So what do we do? We give the people what they want!

The LeBrain Train: 2000 Words or More with Mike & Friends

Episode 102 – “Snow” and Tell: Rock and Roll Collectables

Tonight on the LeBrain Train, Mike will be joined by John Snow of 2Loud2OldMusic fame once more, to compare collectibles!  “Show and Tell” shows are always casual and fun, and this one will be special!  While our collections are modest compared to some, they aren’t too shabby and should be more than enough to keep you entertained on a Friday night.  We will be joined by Harrison the Mad Metal Man who has a couple cool things to show off as well.  What will we see?  Action figures, Funko Pops, tour programs, ticket stubs and lots more!  (Personally, I hope to see the world’s only Blaze Bayley bobblehead.)

As for me, I intend to tear apart my music room live tonight, to show you everything I can!  Some items, like my Spinal Tap and Beatles figures, are in storage.  There’s still plenty here to enjoy!  I have old newspaper clippings and all sorts of cool stuff to rediscover here.  Grab a beverage and settle for a fun Friday with us tonight!

https://youtube.com/watch?v=JzF6Bxrjko4%3Fversion%3D3%26rel%3D1%26showsearch%3D0%26showinfo%3D1%26iv_load_policy%3D1%26fs%3D1%26hl%3Den%26autohide%3D2%26wmode%3Dtransparent

Friday March 18, 7:00 PM E.S.T. on YouTube, Facebook and also Facebook!

Friday New Releases – March 18, 2022

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Happy Friday! Thank goodness the weekend is upon us. And thank goodness we have a ton of releases again this week. I have some I might check out, but nothing I am running out and buying right away…it is stream first, maybe purchase later this week for me. I am sure you will be able to find something to listen to this week even if it is a stream first, but later proposition for you as well. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!

  • 81PDHnsMcYL._AC_UY436_FMwebp_QL65_  Ronnie Atkins – Make it Count – (Frontiers Records)
  • 911SiwLHHDL._AC_UY436_FMwebp_QL65_  Charli XCX – Crash – (Asylum Records / Warner Music)
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Aerosmith – ‘Pandora’s Box’ (1991) – Album Review (The Aerosmith Collection Series)

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Columbia Records was taking full advantage of the band’s new found popularity on Geffen Records. Even though they lost the band to another label, they still could release Aerosmith material for everything they had rights to and that was quite a bit. They kicked off with two live releases ‘Classics Live!’ and ‘Classics Live! II’ as well as compilation called ‘Gems’. The cool things about those releases is there were no repeats from old live albums or greatest hits collection. It made it enticing for collectors. And this was no different. Released on November 19, 1991, this was a 3 CD compilation full of the bands greatest hits (while under Columbia) with a ton of previously unreleased material. That alone makes this worth getting. There are 31 previously released cuts and 21 unreleased consisting of live, alternative mixes and pure rarities.

I am lucky enough to have the long box version and it really is a box. It contains a book plus 3 CDs all in jewel cases with artwork. If you picked up a later version, the long box was replaced with a cardboard sleeve and the book was shrunk down to CD case size. The set I have is the one you want…in my opinion at least. The box set did real well going to #45 on the Billboard Charts and it was eventually certified Platinum on August 16, 1996. If I’m not mistaken, since the set includes 3 CDs, they only had to sell 333,334 copies to reach the 1 million sold platinum status. Someday, I might go song by song, but for now I am sticking to an overview of each disc and what I like about it each one. So let us get to it.

Continue reading “Aerosmith – ‘Pandora’s Box’ (1991) – Album Review (The Aerosmith Collection Series)” →

Cheap Trick – “I Want You To Want Me” (Alternate Version)(1996) – 7″ Single (The Cheap Trick Collection Series – Bonus Edition)

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I was at a record show back in November or December 2021 and I found this beautiful single sitting in the bin. I naturally grabbed it as it was Cheap Trick so why wouldn’t I. The fact it turned out to be a promotional copy made it even better. Back in 1996, to promote the new box set ‘Sex, America, Cheap Trick’, Epic Records sent out these promos to radio stations and stores in hopes of getting so press behind the box set release. And what a box set it is. This promo singles gives us not 1, but 2 never before released tracks. What more could you want.

The simplicity of the Single jacket is wonderful. All white cover with the band name in bold black and then on the back is the same thing but in reverse and upside down. It is a thing of beauty. So simple, so perfect. The A-Side is an alternate take of the song “I Want You To Want Me” and the B-Side is a Lou Reed penned and Velvet Underground cover “Waitin’ for the Man / Heroin” performed live and with Tom Petersson on vocals.

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Cinderella – “Heartbreak Station” – 7″ Single Promo

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The final single in the 3 I found at the Charlotte Record Show is another from Cinderella. This time around it is the 2nd single from ‘Heartbreak Station’ titled…well…”Heartbreak Station”. The song didn’t do as well as “Shelter Me”, but did got to #44 on the Hot 100 just missing Top 40 Status. On the Mainstream Rock Chart it went to #10 so all-in-all not a bad run. The song was written by Tom Keifer (imagine that as he pretty much writes everything for the band).

And like with “Shelter Me” we get another French Promo single. This one wasn’t promoting a show like the last time, just promoting the 1990 album ‘Heartbreak Station. The B-Side is another deep cut from the album called “One for Rock And Roll”. I have to admit, I think really like finding the promos as they are a little special to me and to get a French one is even cooler. Look at the labels from Vertigo, really cool lettering and styling I have to say.

Continue reading “Cinderella – “Heartbreak Station” – 7″ Single Promo” →

You Picked It! – Slaughter – “Stick It To Ya” – Album Review

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Alright…You Picked It! And this one was really close. It was back and forth most of the time with Slaughter taking an early lead then Tesla going out in front, but in the end Slaughter pulled ahead and never relented after that. Slaughter’s ‘Stick it to Ya’ was one of the ones in my collection. Here are the results.

  1. Slaughter – ‘Stick it to Ya’ – 5 votes
  2. Tesla – ‘Psychotic Supper’ – 4 votes
  3. Daft Punk – ‘Random Access Memories’ – 3 votes
  4. Eddie Vedder – ‘Earthling’ – 3 votes
  5. Kanye West – ‘The College Dropout’ – 3 votes

Thanks to all for participating. The April choices will be up on Saturday!

SLAUGHTER – ‘STICK IT TO YA’:

Slaughter owes all their success to Vinnie Vincent. A strange comment for sure but true. Let me explain. Back after Vinnie left Kiss, he started his own band with a gentleman by the name of Dana Strum. The band, Vinnie Vincent Invasion, signed with Chrysalis…okay, Vinnie had a record contract, the band really didn’t. The auditioned a lot of singers including a very young Mark Slaughter. However, Vinnie didn’t like Mark so he passed and went with former Journey singer, Robert Fleischman.

Continue reading “You Picked It! – Slaughter – “Stick It To Ya” – Album Review” →