NWOBHM

Heavy metal seems to be..

       Heavy metal seems to be a thing that is traded constantly across the UK to the US and back again. Both countries seem to feed from each other, incorporating different bands and styles, into one musical mix. It matters little which country or town metal acts are from, such is the spirit of the rock and roll that is all about the attitude and inner feeling, than where you come from.

       Having said that, the UK has spawned a whole host of deeply influential metal acts. In the beginning there were Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple, the big three. Their emergence on the scene led to the birth of a whole new genre in which spiralled across the world, and ever since the planet has not stopped rocking.

       Ozzy Osbourne needs little introduction into the heavy metal hall of fame. Having been sacked from Black Sabbath he went on to create his own particular mayhem with his own band, though none of the line-ups were surely as genius as the first, featuring the naturally talented guitarist Randy Rhodes, who would die young in a freak plane crash.

       Bands like Iron Maiden, Motorhead and Judas Priest are vastly important bands to come out of the NWOBHM (New Wave of British Heavy Metal) and are still going strong today. Iron Maiden have just released their incredible new album, A Matter of Life and Death, in which personally I think is their best yet. Motorhead have never stopped touring since 1975, and are likely to go on and on it true metal style.

       Another top British metal act which doesn't get the credit they deserve are Diamond Head. Diamond Head are another band which are still going strong today, and have been a hugely influential element to the birth of Metallica. Metallica even went as far as releasing a cover album and as a result covered more Diamond Head tracks than any other band. Do yourself a favour and listen to this band.

       AC/DC are another influential rock/metal act that truly put the fun into the whole show. Though some would argue that they are more rock than metal, it would still seem highly inappropriate not to mention them in a British heavy metal collection. Tracks like "Back in Black" and "It's a long Way to the Top if You Wanna Rock and Roll" and "Highway to Hell" have become must have tracks. Party on.

       Def Leppard were another band who came out the NWOBHM, their early albums, in particular High and Dry, featured the spirit and commitment of heavy metal, but unfortunately for this band the latter albums seemed to "sell out" into the popularity of the 90's that zapped many a metal act into looking at chart successes, as opposed to living life the Motorhead way. Shame.

       Saxon are a small but important old style metal band that definitely deserve a mention. They are a band that have been working away in true metal fashion, and are an incredible live act.

       Of course this is by no means an exclusive list, there are many British bands out there that need investigating, the truth is it is all about discovering them for yourself, on a wet and windy night rocking live with a group of friends, then reading about them in an article.

       But for what it is worth here is my opinion of the "must have" tracks for each of the groups I have mentioned:

       Black Sabbath: Well it is truly impossible to pick three for this hugely important band which are rightly credited as been responsible for creating the whole genre, and as a result I simply can't restrict myself to selecting just three tracks. So the essential "must haves" are the first six albums: Black Sabbath, Paranoid, Master of Reality, Vol 4, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, Sabotage, oh and the albums featuring Dio on vocals, Heaven and Hell and Mob Rules. Sorry but this band is simply that big.

       Led Zeppelin: These are almost as influential as Black Sabbath, well I suppose it depends on who you listen to. Robert Plant has gone on to inspire many artists to pick up a guitar, and it is because of this band that we have many of the bands today as we have (and the same is obviously true of

Sabbath). So the three "must have" tracks for me are: "Stairway to Heaven," "Kashmir," and "Whole lotta love".        Deep Purple: There can not be many people in the world who have not played air guitar to the likes of "Smoke on the Water," here are the other two tracks in which are essential listening: "Child in Time" (a real screamer) and "Black Night".

       Ozzy: It has to be three featuring the classic guitar shredding of Rhodes: "Mr Crowley," "Crazy Train," and "Over the Mountain," RIP Randy.

       Iron Maiden: This band had churned out albums like they have well and truly gone out of fashion, and as a result I could pick fifty worthy tracks to mention, but if I am forced into naming three it would be: "Different World," from the new album and my favourite Maiden track, two others would be "Fear of the Dark," and "Phantom of the Opera".

       Motorhead: Everybody knows (and surely loves) "Ace of Spades," but you should also check out "Bomber" and "Killed by Death".

       Judas Priest: I am not a huge fan of Priest so you should take my suggestions with a pinch of salt, but try out "Breaking the Law," the Priest classic and "Painkiller," and "Rising".

       Diamond Head: A very under rated band as I said earlier try listening to these killers: "It's Electric," "Am I Evil," and "Helpless". Wow!

       I have already given my suggestions as the AC/DC tracks, so the next on the list is Def Leppard and Saxon. For Leppard I would suggest the single "High and Dry" and for Saxon "Princess of the Night" or "Crusader".

       Of course these are just my suggestions of who and what to start with, and no doubt others will have completely different views from me. The most important thing is to get out there and to be free in the spirit of metal in which these bands play with and live under. In the words of AC/DC, "for those about to rock, we salute you," and for anyone embracing the power and full-on commitment of metal music, I do the same. Rock on.

Written by John Gray