I love the variety and experimentation. 10cc-esque with Epitaph, and Last Rose of Summer setting the template for all the wanky 80s West Coast band ballads with the b&w sitting on stools in big hats nonsense. They had it all going on & STILL managed to grow again w Stained Class & Killing Machine.
Hmm, not sure I've properly listened to the remaster of RR. I actually rather like the dingy, decrepid sound of the original. Was obsessed with those first three albums when I first got seriously into music.
Run Of The Mill is just incredible, and as someone had to point out to me, Epitaph is essentially a Peter Hammill ballad complete with choral backing (Rob being a bit of a PH fan).
I've always dug my Rocka Rolla vinyl (with the Melyn cover) but blasting the remaster on my car stereo gave it a lovely new sonic dimensionality. I'll always enjoy both though. 'Orses for courses.
Have you heard the Hero, Hero mixes of the RR tracks by Chris Tsangarides? They're quite different from the originals, trying to heavy them up in a very '80s metal stylee...
It's been largely ignored as it doesn't fit the metal template. I only really got prompted to properly check it out when I first saw the footage of them on The Old Grey Whistle Test after it was included on a DVD about 25 yrs ago. All silk and embroidery and flares and big hats. Magnificent.
My eldest and I listen to a discography in its entirety on his (now very long) drive to college. For the past two weeks we’ve been doing Priest. Absolutely agreed - for a while they were almost the Genesis of heavy and then *bang* - absolute unashamed metal. Fascinating transition.
In the words of a mate; ‘leather was the best thing that ever happened to the Priest. Especially Rob, who here looks like Jacqui McShea from Pentangle’
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