URBAN:
'Have you heard, have you heard the news' the cross-eyed kid shouted at
the top of his lungs while trying the best to look straight at me. 'Huh? Calm down!
What are you talking about' I replied while trying my best to
jump off the swings in a big-boy manner and style (pace, lots of pace,
ouch, that hurt)
'It's about KISS. There's a picture in the magazine, they've removed all their make-up'. I was shaking my head in disbelief. Surely this must be some kind of joke on my account.
Paul
'The Starchild' Stanley, Gene 'The Demon' Simmons, Eric 'The Fox' Carr,
and new guitarist, Vinnie 'The Wiz' Vincent, were super-heroes in the eyes
of a young kid, much like the fantastic four or x-men. They would not
reveal, unveil, their true identity to anyone... no matter what.
However, the rumour spread like bushfire around the school yard. Sure
enough, even the weird looking synth-boy fan and his silly excuse of a 'pony-tail'
[literaly just a couple of longer hairs at the back of the neck - major
synth fashion statement of the time] started preaching.
'Yeah, my older brother told me about it yesterday, they look like crap, then again, they always did'. Oh shut it! I rushed home as I lived just around the corner of the schoolyard and managed to find the news paper and the picture.
'they were no longer super-heroes, merely strange looking men'.
Holy crap, it was true, they were no longer superheroes merely strange looking men. They didn't breath fire, drool blood, or wear body armour or any wicked customes at all. Unbelievable!
The main thing which basically nurtured me throughout my first couple of school years had disappeared right infront of my eyes... and I believe I even cried just a little bit ('cry just a little bit' - oh shut it friggin' shakin' stevens).
I was shattered and the
macabre premeditation to remove the grease destroyed the dream for
millions of young kids. 'Lick It Up, what the hell is lick it up? Mark
my words - things would never be the same again... and I didn't even feel
like playing any Game & Watch 'Donkey Kong 2' that day.
1983 was THE year when I first discovered hardrock & heavy metal. Actually,
I had already been a KISS fan for a couple of years (since I turned 6, I
went literaly straight from nursery rhymes to KISS on my tiny, sony,
portable, one speaker, cassette player), but it all started for size this
magical year of '83...
...when a fire at Southfork threatens the lives of all the Ewings on the season finale of Dallas.
You had to collect as many hardrock pins as possible. In other words, you bought one and nicked five others while the shop keeper looked the other way. Badges, scarfes, denim and leather (not the saxon platter). I could have been a poster boy for the weekly mag of 'metal kids warriors' in all my denim and short figure.
You kept track of all the albums you wanted for birthday, x-mas, anyday really, on the backcover of the rock mag 'Okej', and rushed down to the shop only to find out they didn't have half of all the goodies.
In
other news, Super
Swede, Bjorn Borg retires from tennis at the age of merely 27 after
winning 5 consecutive Wimbledon championships (what a tosser).
We wrote down all the bands and their past and present members in our
school books. Some collected stamps as kids, me, heavy metal acts. You
obviously copied as many vinyls as possible to tape as you couldn't
exactly buy plenty of originals when you're not even using two digits to
write down your age (pre- downloading).
'MTV ??? forgetaboutit!'
MTV? forgetaboutit! Noone had it (yet) in Sweden-land and it took weeks for hard rock news to travel.
You had to go down the local burger place to watch videos and they didn't have MTV either for that matter. Nah, instead they received weekly new music tapes on VCR, which they played repeatedly on their hanging wall TV's (they had two). Ehem, it was mostly Hall & Oates and such stuff anyhow.
I
tell ya', it wasn't easy being a metal hungry swedish kid. We had to fight
to find our music, and man, did we strike gold or what.
'Bark At The Moon' yet another reason why you simply had to be a hardrock
fan in -83. Ozzy Osbourne dressed up as a friggin' werewolf, barking mad,
barking great! Visually, it doesn't get much better than this in the eyes
of a kid. The title track with its power riff and over-the-top playing by
guitarist, Jake E Lee, got you in the heart everytime.
Randy Rhoads, who? I didn't know anything about the previous guitarist (except for his name) and let's not even talk about Black Sabbath.
They were appearantly 'Born Again' and managed to produce the most hiddious artcover since the Scorpions in the seventies. They had the nerve to hire former Deep Purple vocalist Ian Gillan as their new frontman and singer. They also included 'Smoke On The Water', plus a friggin' stonehenge set, too big to fit indoor venues in their show (Spinal Tap).
Fans from both camps went bezerk in the streets as you could compare this to Sol Campbell's much talked about transfer from Tottenham to Arsenal ('Spurs and Gunners' to any real fan out there).
This being my first Sabbath experience, I couldn't care less, and why should kids care anyhow???
'You Can't Stop Rock'N Roll' - not even if you dress-up as poorly as Dee
Snider and the lads'.
'You Can't Stop Rock'N Roll' - not even if you dress-up as poorly as Dee
Snider and the lads. Again, a good thing kids just don't care, whom else
would gladly support a bunch of cross-dressers without even thinking about
their image. Just play it loud, mutha!!! I recall watching the video and
got immeditely hooked.
They even had a song named 'The Kids Are Back', wicked! I also recall listening to the first track from 'Kill 'Em All' and hated it with a passion.
I didn't pick up another Metallica album until 1989 when my urge for more 'brutal' stuff became more intense. I guess you could simply be too young to understand the greatness about tunes such as 'Seek And Destroy'. They basically scared the s**t outta me in -83. I understood their music later on and thus why it's a top-10 album of the year in my books and list.
'The
mad looking frontman in camouflage outfit and Dr.Martin boots'.
I did however play Accept's 'Balls To The Wall' over and over again. The
mad looking frontman in camouflage outfit and Dr.Martin boots,
didn't look the part though. However, Udo Dirkschneider is a funny name and
the hysterically high-pitched vocals and dual guitars made them a
household name at my block.
Meanwhile, another German with a funny name, Nazi war criminal 'Klaus Barbie' is arrested in Bolivia.
'Bang Your Heads' sang Kevin DuBrow as they sold five million copies of a thing called Quiet Riot and broke all the records for a metal album in the states. How the hell did that happen anyway? They were surely not the best act of the year.
Iron Maiden's 'Piece Of Mind', Motley Crue's 'Shout At The Devil', Def Leppard's 'Pyromania', not to mention the little elf's first solo album, 'Holy Diver'. My God, 1983 just had to be THE best year ever for classic hardrock and heavy metal. Well, at least until the following year '1984' anyhow.
In 'Cold War News' on September 1st: Korean Air Lines Flight 007 is shot down by a Soviet Union jet fighter when the commercial aircraft enters Soviet airspace and all 269 on board are killed.
Gary Moore wrote the superb 'Murder In The Skies' about the above 'Cold War' subject and Flight 007 (included on the 1983 album release by the former Thin Lizzy guitarist ' Victims Of The Future').
'Time was
running out for all on board...'
AOR - the wimpy stuff? I personally didn't listen to any major acts of the
genre as a very young kid. I discovered Journey, Foreigner, Night Ranger, Asia, and
all that fluffy stuff during the dark ages of metal (late 90's)
Michael Bolton's self-titled release had some great AOR tunes (prior to his mature hausfrau period).
I-TEN recorded their one and only album, 'Taking A Cold Look', before they moved on to writing music for pop artists (Cyndi Lauper, etc). The album included songs later re-recorded by the likes of Heart (Alone), Honeymoon Suite (the titletrack) and REO Speedwagon
The Genesis wannabees of Marillion, released their debut LP, 'Script For A Jester's Tear', and Raven released their by far best album, 'All For One'.
One of my heroes died this year though (Herge' - creator of Tintin comics), Michael Jackson did the 'moonwalk', the famous Apple Macintosh advertisement is released, and I was playing 'Mario Bros' on my Game & Watch Nintendo.
By the way, KISS didnt look like super heroes anymore in -83, but they knew still how to kick arse - A Million To One!!!
Choose a year:
[ 1983 ]
[1980] [1981]
[1982] [1983]
[1984] [1985]
[1986] [1987]
[1988] [1989]
Alan,
Bandi, Kimmo, Martien, & yours truly, Urban of RockUnited.Com have been spending weeks,
months, wading
through a bunch of weird looking artcovers and albums of the eighties!
Indeed, not an easy task, tracking back in space and time, especially
since some of us were almost still in diapers (sticky) at the early
days of this era of grand and fantastic music. Check out the left-side
border for our yearly write-up in 'black', and this is RockUnited's official
'Best-Of-Album Chart of 1983', calculated from the individual charts. No live-ones, EP's or
compilations are included, merely studio albums. You can find them all and
complain about our personal taste (or rather the complete lack of it) further down this page!
This is merely our humble and tiny celebration of the hairmetal days or
daze for that matter. Enjoy or not - this is the eighties: 1983.
THE ALBUMS OF
THE YEAR: 1983
50.
Venom - At War With Satan
49. AC/DC - Flick Of The Switch
48. Prism - Beat Street
47. Arc Angel - Arc Angel
46. Europe - Europe
45. Kansas - Drastic Measures
44. Mercyful Fate - Melissa
43. Eric Martin Band - Sucker For A Pretty Face
42. Black Sabbath - Born Again
41. Manowar - Into Glory Ride
40.
Vandenberg - Heading For A Storm
39. Yes - 90125
38. Asia - Alpha
37. Raven - All For One
36.
Lita Ford - Out For Blood
35. Quiet Riot - Metal Health
34. Robert Plant - The Principle of Moment
33. Stan Bush - Stan Bush
32. Joe Perry - Once a Rocker, Always a Rocker
31. Survivor - Caught In The Game
30.
Wildlife - Wildlife
29. Easy Action - Easy Action
28. Preview - Preview
27. Alcatrazz - No Parole From Rock N Roll
26. Saga - Heads Or Tails
25. Night Ranger - Midnight Madness
24. Magnum - The Eleventh Hour
23. Aldo Nova - Subject
22. ZZ Top - Eliminator
21. 38 Special - Tour De Force
20.
Thin Lizzy - Thunder & Lightning
The
twelfth and final studio album by Thin Lizzy. It's easily their heaviest
sounding platter, perhaps a tad too much influenced by new boyo and
guitarist, John Sykes (Tygers Of Pan Tang). The band suffered from a
massive drug addiction by now and this would turn out to be the end of the
line. Highlights, the cracking single, 'Cold Sweat'.
19.
Saxon - Power & The Glory
Saxon
found themselves on the verge of becoming a major act in the states, due
to their US tour of the year with support act, Accept. It never quite
happened though and they would become more and more desperate to please
the states with each following release. Thus why, this is pretty much the
last of the original sounding Saxon albums.
18.
Accept - Balls To The Wall
The
fifth studio album by the mad Germans and a real heavy metal classic in my
opinion. Originally released in Europe, December -83, while America had to
wait until January -84. The title track is regarded as one of the most
classic metal anthems. The album is jam-packed with aggressive vocals and
ditto guitarwork. Their best-selling album.
17.
Twisted Sister - You Can't Stop Rock N Roll
Nope,
you certainly can't stop rock 'n' roll. Not even if you dress-up as poorly
as Dee Snider and the lads. Too twisted for America as they had to travel
to old England to receive a record deal. They appearantly loved 'em over
there as the single, 'I Am (I'm Me), reached #19 on the UK single chart. 'The
Kids Are Back', Play It Loud, Mutha!!!
16.
Rick Springfield - Living In Oz
'Living
In Oz' was yet another successful album release by Rick Springfield.
Mostly and perhaps even, merely, popular in the states and Australia
though ('Oz' = slang for 'Australia'). It reached #9 on the US Billboard
200 and Rick was nominated for a Grammy Award for 'best male rock vocal
performance' for the single, 'Affair Of The Heart'.
15.
Kiss - Lick It Up
They
appeared on MTV for the first time without make-up on the day of the
album's release. To quote myself in the left-side story: 'they were no
longer super-heroes, merely strange looking men', end quote. Vinnie
Vincent first and only appearance as full-time member of the band. Peaked
at #7 in the UK and #24 in US. Not too shabby.
14.
Gary Moore - Victims Of The Future
'Time
was running out for all aboard'. Moore wrote the song, 'Murder In The
Skies' about a political and true story which took place during the year
of '83 (see left-side story for more info). Here you can find the first
and original version of 'Empty Rooms' (also included on 'Run For Cover').
A great collection of hard rock anthems and slower stuff.
13.
Rainbow - Bent Out Of Shape
Bent
Out Of Shape? There's no need for that. This is Joe Lynn Turner at his
very best together with the old man in the hat (Blackmore). It's very much
still the sound of AOR (like the previous two albums by Rainbow). The
video for the song, 'Street Of Dreams', was banned by MTV due to its
controversial hypnotic clip(?). Underrated release.
12.
Ozzy Osbourne - Bark At The Moon
The
comeback after a disasterous year in '82. Ozzy bit the head off a bat,
took a piss at Alamo, as well as mourned the death of Randy Rhoads. New
guitarist, Jake E. Lee, had a difficult task ahead of him. But, he managed
somehow to deliver the goods and the title track became Ozzy's first hit
single in the UK. Werewolf's sells. Classic!
11.
Michael Bolton - Michael Bolton
Believe
it or not, but there was a time when Michael Bolton did great hard rock
albums. Sure, it's soft, AOR, in the vein of Touch, Aldo Nova, Journey,
but it's way more fun than his hausfrau music of the past 15 years.
Considered as a hidden gem since most rockers would not touch a CD with
his name printed on it. Catchy and fun.
10.
Y&T - Mean Streak
Produced
by Chris Tsangarides (Thin Lizzy, etc.) the band tried to give the old 'Yesterday
& Today' style the sound of the eighties. It didn't quite work out
though. Not a very popular move in America as they screamed for a more
commerical sound. However, the title track and 'Midnight In Tokyo', are
two of their all-time best songs.
9.
I-Ten - Taking A Cold Look
The
one off project by the later famed songwriter team of Tom Kelly and Billy
Steinberg. Some of their better known songs are: 'Like a Virgin'
(Madonna), 'Eternal Flame' (The Bangles), 'True Colours' (Cyndi Lauper). This
is however hi-tech AOR, featuring songs later covered by Heart (the smash
hit, 'Alone), REO Speedwagon, Honeymoon Suite.
8.
Bryan Adams - Cuts Like A Knife
The
blue collar Canadians' breakthrough album in the states as it peaked at
number eight on Billboard 200. It hardly didn't chart at all in Europe as
it would take yet another year for us Europeans to recognize the talent of
Bryan Adams. And to be honest, it's a good album, but it's no match to the
following ('Reckless'). - Straight From The Heart.
7.
Marillion - Script For A Jesters Tear
Originally
named after J.R.R. Tolkien's book 'Silmarillion', the name was shortened
to avoid any sort of copyright conflicts. It's actually rather 'typical',
British, soft-prog, definied by Fish's poetic and introspective lyrics. In
a retrospective look, 'Script For A Jesters Tear', heavily inspired by the
sound of Genesis in the 70's. Great stuff though.
6.
Metallica - Kill 'Em All
Not
quite the instant classic among average metal fan of '83. For example, it
didn't chart anywhere, and they got booed off stage on several occasions.
They were still underdogs. Angry young men that wrote angry young metal
tunes. Thrash Metal had arrived in the shape of Metallica and the hard
rock genre would never be the same again. Classic !
5.
Iron Maiden - Piece Of Mind
The
1983 effort by Iron Maiden. Not quite as impressive as the previous and
following one. There's a couple of minor hickups on this platter. Still,
miles ahead of most releases of the year (thus why it's #5). Most songs
reflects their interest in books and films. You can find everything from
Tennyson to Alistair MacLean. Yup, it's yet another classic album.
4.
Dio - Holy Diver
DIO's
first and best work. The little elf and drummer, Vinnie Appice, decided to
abanndon the flagship of Black Sabbath in '82 (due to disagreements over
the mixing of 'Live Evil'). 'Holy Diver' set sails to conquer the world,
less than a year after their Sab' departure. Stunning guitar work by Viv
Campbell and classic songs, makes this a milestone in metal.
3.
Motley Crue - Shout At The Devil
'It
has been written, those who have the youth - have the future. So come now,
children of the beast. Be strong and shout at the devil'. The warning
sticker ' may contain backward messages', surely helped, as they sold more
copies than w/o. 'Looks That Kill' and 'Too Young To Fall In Love', turned
this motley crue into a winning concept. Great!
2.
Journey - Frontiers
The
2nd best selling Journey as it reached #2 on the Billboard chart. The song,
'Seperate Ways' (Worlds Apart), possible the best uptempo AOR anthem to
this very day. This could have been an even bigger and better release, if
not for the last minute removal of two of their best songs, 'Ask The
Lonely', 'Only The Young'.
1.
Def Leppard - Pyromania
'Rock!
Rock! Till you drop. Rock! Rock! to the top'. 'Pyromania', a vast
transportation that brought the Sheffield lads all the way to the top. It's the second best-seller in the states (only Michael Jackson's
'Thriller' sold more copies). It would sell more than 10 million copies,
and producer 'Mutt' Lange, did it, again. The #1 album of 1983 in the
RockUnited.com chart. (all album comment nonsense
by: Urban)
INDIVIDUAL LISTS OF 1983 *Personal Stuff* | |
|
Urban:
1. Def
Leppard - Pyromania 11.
Rainbow - Bent Out Of Shape 21. Prism
- Beat Street |
Alan:
1. Journey - Frontiers |
|
Martien: 1. Metallica Kill
'Em All
|
Kimmo: 1. Def Leppard - Pyromania
|
|
Bandi: 1. Journey - Frontiers
1983: Songs of the year: Billy Idol - Rebel Yell |
Urban
(Wally): POP/Rock albums of the year: 1. U2 - War 80's
Pop Rules !!!
|
|
|
|
