THE GROOVEMAN'S COLLECTION

REVIEWS FROM MY VINYL COLLECTION

Tag: saxon (Page 2 of 2)

SAXON – Power & The Glory

March 11, 2022 /

Me and Saxon go way back before they were Saxon. I saw them play a few times at working men’s clubs around the Doncaster area. So when they got a deal and had success it was like one of our own had made it.

The first 5 studio albums are all must haves for me as they define a point in time – I have very fond memories of this period. This album is the last of the great Saxon albums, as the decline started to set in after this album as a certain member started to take control of the band.

There is not a bad second on the album, it’s the perfect mix of crunch and melody with big hooks and it’s what I love the most about the band – plus it’s what makes them different to all the rest of the NWOBHM bands. From the opening crunch of the title track, to the epic ending of The Eagle Has Landed, this is one hell of an album. If I’m pushed to pick a favourite then it would have to be This Town Rocks, with the double bass drum salvo of new boy drummer, Nigel Glockler.

Yes, you guessed it, every home should have one! Happy days!

10/10 from The Grooveman.

SAXON – Wheels Of Steel

May 29, 2021 /

This, ladies and hemorrhoids, is what NWOBHM was all about. To me, Saxon were the best band to come out of this period. Even though they disappeared into the wilderness for a while, they had all the songs and could write a tune. Now, I know everyone will say Maiden were the best – blah blah blah – but to me, a lad from “OOP NORTH”, Saxon were the schnizz!!! I’m from Doncaster, a working class town where the coal mines and railways were the main industries (until Thatcher destroyed them, but that’s another story) – it was also the land of the working man’s club. I remember seeing Son Of A Bitch a few times in said clubs before they were Saxon. To see one of our own making it was awesome.

There is not one bad track on this record – in fact – there were even two hit singles on this opus of awesomeness. 747 Strangers In The Night, which is a great choice for a single, and Wheels Of Steel with that repetitive riff – plus they got to play on Top Of The Pops. Opening track was an anthem for the NWOBHM movement as a whole – what a flag bearing track it is. Freeway Mad carries on the fast bike and car theme that opens side two – a belter of a track. Every song is just fantastic right up until album closer, Machine Gun, where Graham would do his tribute to Hendrix by setting fire and smashing up a guitar.

I could go into lengthy detail how one person took control of the band, which is a sad tale to tell as the heart and soul of the band was removed. The band are still rocking today, and I hold out hope for Graham and Steve that one day all hatchets can be buried and see them all on stage again. A classic.

10/10 from The Grooveman.

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