Saxon - Heavy Metal Thunder

Year of Release: 2002
Label: SPV/Steamhammer
Catalog Number: 7448
Format: CD
Total Time: 86:27:00

Saxon is yet another great British Metal band that I never discovered during the 70's. They got their start in 1977, and now 25 years later they are celebrating their strength of remaining together to record music. Their sound reminded me of Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, their fellow metal counterparts.

On Heavy Metal Thunder, they recorded all of their classic songs once again to give their loyal fans an updated cleaner sound of the tracks. Disc 2 is an official bootleg of live material and one video. The live recording is a bootleg and it sounds like one, too. The sound is muffled, actually terrible in comparison to the studio material on disc one. After listening to the tracks recorded in the studio, which are crisp and to the point in their entirety, the live material is a major disappointment. Do not let that factor take away anything at all from what you will hear on disc one, which is some incredibly good rock music and something you should not miss out on.

Simplistic as this music can be it still resonates and stays with you long after it is finished. This may not be the best collection to pick up if you are amongst the uninitiated but if you are part of their longtime faithful followers then you will surely appreciate this rousing tribute to their legacy. Like I said, I am new to this band, but I loved every minute of this material. This music rocks hard and steady. Sometimes that is all you need to get your heart pumping and that adrenaline in high gear. It certainly affected me that way.

Tracklisting:
Disc One: Heavy Metal Thunder (4:13) / Strong Arm Of The Law (4:25) / Power And The Glory (5:59) / And The Bands Played On (2:53) / Crusader (6:40) / Dallas 1PM (6:18) / Princess Of The Night (4:11) / Wheels Of Steel (5:54) / 747 (Strangers In The Night) (5:02) / Motorcycle Man (3:47) / Never Surrender (3:37) / Denim And Leather (5:21) / Backs To The Wall (3:07)

Disc Two: Broken Heroes* (4:10) / Dragon's Lair* (6:38) / The Eagle Has Landed* (5:52) / 20.000 Ft.* (3:45) / Crusader* (4:24) / Killing Ground (Video Track Live at Wacken 2001)

*all live tracks, recorded in San Antonio, Texas USA 2002 - Offical Bootleg

Musicians:
Fritz Randow - drums
Biff Byford - vocals
Nibbs Carter - bass
Doug Scarrett - lead guitar

Discography:
Saxon (1979)
Strong Arm Of The Law (1980)
Wheels Of Steel (1980)
Denim & Leather (1981)
Eagle Has Landed (1982)
Power & The Glory (1983)
Crusader (1984/2002)
Greatest Hits (1984)
Innocence Is No Excuse (1985)
Rock The Nations (1986)
Destiny (1988)
Rock 'N' Roll Gypsies (1990/2002)
Solid Ball Of Rock (1991)
Forever Free (1992)
Anthology (1992)
Best Of Saxon (1994)
Dogs Of War (1995)
Unleash The Beast (1997)
Live At Donnington (1997)
A Collection Of Metal (1997)
The Eagle Has Landed, Vol 2. (1998)
BBC Sessions (1998) Metealhead (1999)
Live At Donnington, 1980 (2000)
Burrn! Presents Best Of Saxon (2000)
Killing Ground (2001)
Coming To The Rescue (2002)
Live In The Raw (2002)
Heavy Metal Thunder (2002) Lionheart (2004)
The Eagle Has Landed - Live - Part III (2006)
The Very Best Of Saxon - 1979-1988 (2007)
The Inner Sanctum (2007)
Live To Rock (2008)
Into The Labyrinth (2009)
Call To Arms (2011)
Sacrifice (2013)
Battering Ram (2015)
Eagles And Dragons (boxset) (2016)
Let Me Feel Your Power (2016)
Thunderbolt (2018)
The Eagle Has Landed 40 (Live) (2019)

Live In Nottingham (VID) (1983)
Live Innocence (VID) (1985)
Power And The Glory - Video Anthology (VID) (1989)
Greatest Hits Live (VID) (1990)
The Saxon Chronicles (DVD) (2003)
Live Innocence - The Power And The Glory (DVD) (2003)
To Hell And Back Again (DVD) (2007)
Heavy Metal Thunder - Live - Eagles Over Wacken (DVD) (2011)

Genre: Traditional Metal

Origin UK

Added: February 1st 2003
Reviewer: Keith "Muzikman" Hannaleck
Score:
Artist website: www.saxon747.com
Hits: 2498
Language: english