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Jailbreak was such a peak that it was inevitable that its follow-up would fall short in some fashion and Johnny the Fox, delivered the same year as its predecessor, did indeed pale in comparison. What's interesting about Johnny the Fox is that it's interesting, hardly a rote repetition of Jailbreak but instead an odd, fitfully successful evolution forward. All the same strengths are still here -- the band still sounds as thunderous as a force of nature, Phil Lynott's writing is still graced with elegant turns of phrase, his singing is still soulful and seductive -- but the group ramped up the inherent drama in Lynott's songs by pushing them toward an odd, half-baked concept album. There may be a story within Johnny the Fox -- characters are introduced and brought back, at the very least -- but it's impossible to tell. If the album only had an undercooked narrative and immediate songs, such digressions would be excusable, but the music is also a bit elliptical in spots, sometimes sounding theatrical, sometimes relying on narration. None of this falls flat, but it's never quite as gripping as Jailbreak -- or the best moments here, for that matter, because when Johnny the Fox is good, it's great, as on the surging "Don't Believe a Word" or the elegiac "Borderline." These are the reasons why Johnny the Fox is worth the extra effort, because it does pay off even if it isn't quite as good as what came immediately before -- or immediately afterward, for that matter.
© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo
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Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Brian Downey, Drums, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1976 Mercury Records Limited
Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Brian Downey, Drums, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1976 Mercury Records Limited
Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Will Reid Dick, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Brian Downey, Drums, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1976 Mercury Records Limited
Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Will Reid Dick, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Brian Downey, Drums, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1976 Mercury Records Limited
Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Will Reid Dick, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Brian Downey, Drums, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1976 Mercury Records Limited
Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Will Reid Dick, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Brian Downey, Drums, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1976 Mercury Records Limited
Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Will Reid Dick, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Brian Downey, Drums, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1976 Mercury Records Limited
Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Will Reid Dick, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Brian Downey, Drums, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1976 Mercury Records Limited
Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Will Reid Dick, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Brian Downey, Drums, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1976 Mercury Records Limited
Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Will Reid Dick, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Brian Downey, Drums, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1976 Mercury Records Limited
DISC 2
Phil Lynott, ComposerLyricist - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 2011 Mercury Records Limited
Phil Lynott, ComposerLyricist - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 2010 Mercury Records Limited
Tony Wilson, Producer - Bill Aitken, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Brian Downey, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1976 BBC
Tony Wilson, Producer - Bill Aitken, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Brian Downey, Drums, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1976 BBC
Tony Wilson, Producer - Bill Aitken, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Brian Downey, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1976 BBC
Tony Wilson, Producer - Bill Aitken, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Brian Robertson, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Phil Lynott, Bass Guitar, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Brian Downey, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1976 BBC
Phil Lynott, ComposerLyricist - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1977 Mercury Records Limited
Phil Lynott, ComposerLyricist - Brian Downey, ComposerLyricist - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, ComposerLyricist - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1976 Mercury Records Limited
Phil Lynott, ComposerLyricist - Brian Downey, ComposerLyricist - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, ComposerLyricist - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1977 Mercury Records Limited
Phil Lynott, ComposerLyricist - Brian Downey, ComposerLyricist - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, ComposerLyricist - John Alcock, Producer
℗ 1977 Mercury Records Limited
Phil Lynott, ComposerLyricist - Thin Lizzy, MainArtist - Scott Gorham, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1977 Mercury Records Limited
Album review
Jailbreak was such a peak that it was inevitable that its follow-up would fall short in some fashion and Johnny the Fox, delivered the same year as its predecessor, did indeed pale in comparison. What's interesting about Johnny the Fox is that it's interesting, hardly a rote repetition of Jailbreak but instead an odd, fitfully successful evolution forward. All the same strengths are still here -- the band still sounds as thunderous as a force of nature, Phil Lynott's writing is still graced with elegant turns of phrase, his singing is still soulful and seductive -- but the group ramped up the inherent drama in Lynott's songs by pushing them toward an odd, half-baked concept album. There may be a story within Johnny the Fox -- characters are introduced and brought back, at the very least -- but it's impossible to tell. If the album only had an undercooked narrative and immediate songs, such digressions would be excusable, but the music is also a bit elliptical in spots, sometimes sounding theatrical, sometimes relying on narration. None of this falls flat, but it's never quite as gripping as Jailbreak -- or the best moments here, for that matter, because when Johnny the Fox is good, it's great, as on the surging "Don't Believe a Word" or the elegiac "Borderline." These are the reasons why Johnny the Fox is worth the extra effort, because it does pay off even if it isn't quite as good as what came immediately before -- or immediately afterward, for that matter.
© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo
About the album
- 2 disc(s) - 21 track(s)
- Total length: 01:13:26
- Main artists: Thin Lizzy
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: UMC (Universal Music Catalogue)
- Genre: Metal Hard Rock
© 2010 Mercury Records Limited This Compilation ℗ 2010 Mercury Records Limited
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