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Who would have thought that in 1981, after a pair of limp, unfocused studio offerings, and two mixed -- at best -- live outings, that the once mighty Blue Öyster Cult would come back with such a fierce, creative, and uncompromising effort as Fire of Unknown Origin. Here was their finest moment since Agents of Fortune five years earlier, and one of their finest ever. Bringing back into the fold the faithful team who helped articulate their earlier vision, producer Sandy Pearlman, Richard Meltzer, and Patti Smith all helped in the lyric department, as did science-fiction and dark-fantasy writer Michael Moorcock. The band's sound was augmented by a plethora of keyboards courtesy of Allen Lanier, but nonetheless retained a modicum of its heaviness, and the sheer songwriting craft that had helped separate the band form its peers early on was everywhere evident here -- especially the gloriously noir-ish Top 40 single "Burning for You," written by Meltzer and guitarist Buck Dharma. Other standouts on the set include the plodding, über-riff pyrotechnics of "Heavy Metal: The Black and the Silver," and the Mott the Hoople- and Queen-influenced glammed up roots rock of "Joan Crawford." The terrifying images of desecration and apocalyptic war in "Veteran of Psychic Wars," with words by Moorcock, feature huge synth lines, dual leads by Dharma and Eric Bloom -- as well as a tom-tom orgy from Albert Bouchard -- offered a new pathway through the eternal night of the Cult's best work. Fire of Unknown Origin has aged well, and deserves to be remastered in the 21st century.
© Thom Jurek /TiVo
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A. Bouchard, Composer, Lyricist - D. Roeser, Composer, Lyricist - J. Bouchard, Composer, Lyricist - P. Smith, Composer, Lyricist - Eric Bloom, Composer, Lyricist, Vocal - Donald Roeser, Guitar, Vocal - Allen Lanier, Keyboards - Joe Bouchard, Bass, Vocal - Martin Birch, Producer, Engineer - Albert Bouchard, Drums, Synthesizer, Vocal - Blue Oyster Cult, Arranger, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Paul Stubblebine, Mastering Engineer - Clay Hutchinson, Engineer
(P) 1981 Sony Music Entertainment Inc.
D. Roeser, Composer, Lyricist - R. Meltzer, Composer, Lyricist - Eric Bloom, Vocal - Donald Roeser, Guitar, Vocal - Allen Lanier, Keyboards - Joe Bouchard, Bass, Vocal - Martin Birch, Producer - Albert Bouchard, Drums, Synthesizer, Vocal - Blue Oyster Cult, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer
(P) 1981 SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT
Eric Bloom, Composer, Lyricist, Vocal - Donald Roeser, Guitar, Vocal - Allen Lanier, Keyboards - Joe Bouchard, Bass, Vocal - Jesse Levy, Arranger - Martin Birch, Producer - Albert Bouchard, Drums, Synthesizer, Vocal - Blue Oyster Cult, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer
(P) 1981 SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT
Eric Bloom, Composer, Vocal - L. Myers, Composer - J. Trivers, Composer - Donald Roeser, Guitar, Vocal - Allen Lanier, Keyboards - Joe Bouchard, Bass, Vocal - Martin Birch, Producer, Engineer - Albert Bouchard, Drums, Synthesizer, Vocal - Blue Oyster Cult, Arranger, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Paul Stubblebine, Mastering Engineer - Karla Devito, Background Vocal - Clay Hutchinson, Engineer
(P) 1981 Sony Music Entertainment Inc.
Eric Bloom, Composer, Bass, Vocal - L. Myers, Composer - J. Trivers, Composer - Donald Roeser, Guitar, Vocal - Allen Lanier, Keyboards - Joe Bouchard, Vocal - Martin Birch, Producer, Engineer - Albert Bouchard, Drums, Synthesizer, Vocal - Blue Oyster Cult, Arranger, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Paul Stubblebine, Mastering Engineer - Clay Hutchinson, Engineer
(P) 1981 Sony Music Entertainment Inc.
A. Bouchard, Composer - Eric Bloom, Vocal - J. Trivers, Composer - Donald Roeser, Guitar, Vocal - Allen Lanier, Keyboards - Joe Bouchard, Bass, Vocal - Martin Birch, Producer, Engineer - Albert Bouchard, Drums, Synthesizer, Vocal - Blue Oyster Cult, Arranger, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Paul Stubblebine, Mastering Engineer - Clay Hutchinson, Engineer
(P) 1981 Sony Music Entertainment Inc.
A. Bouchard, Composer - Eric Bloom, Vocal - J. Trivers, Composer - Donald Roeser, Guitar, Vocal - Allen Lanier, Keyboards - Joe Bouchard, Bass, Vocal - Martin Birch, Producer, Engineer - Albert Bouchard, Drums, Synthesizer, Vocal - Blue Oyster Cult, Arranger, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Paul Stubblebine, Mastering Engineer - Clay Hutchinson, Engineer
(P) 1981 Sony Music Entertainment Inc.
A. Bouchard, Composer, Lyricist - Eric Bloom, Vocal - D. Roter, Composer, Lyricist - J. Rigg, Composer, Lyricist - Donald Roeser, Guitar, Bass, Vocal - Allen Lanier, Keyboards - Joe Bouchard, Vocal - Jesse Levy, Arranger - Martin Birch, Producer - Albert Bouchard, Drums, Synthesizer, Vocal - Blue Oyster Cult, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer
(P) 1981 SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT
A. Bouchard, Composer - D. Roeser, Composer - A. Lanier, Composer - Eric Bloom, Vocal - Donald Roeser, Guitar, Vocal - Allen Lanier, Keyboards - Joe Bouchard, Bass, Vocal - Martin Birch, Producer, Engineer - Albert Bouchard, Drums, Synthesizer, Vocal - Blue Oyster Cult, Arranger, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Paul Stubblebine, Mastering Engineer - Clay Hutchinson, Engineer - Sandy Jean, Background Vocal
(P) 1981 Sony Music Entertainment Inc.
Albumbeschreibung
Who would have thought that in 1981, after a pair of limp, unfocused studio offerings, and two mixed -- at best -- live outings, that the once mighty Blue Öyster Cult would come back with such a fierce, creative, and uncompromising effort as Fire of Unknown Origin. Here was their finest moment since Agents of Fortune five years earlier, and one of their finest ever. Bringing back into the fold the faithful team who helped articulate their earlier vision, producer Sandy Pearlman, Richard Meltzer, and Patti Smith all helped in the lyric department, as did science-fiction and dark-fantasy writer Michael Moorcock. The band's sound was augmented by a plethora of keyboards courtesy of Allen Lanier, but nonetheless retained a modicum of its heaviness, and the sheer songwriting craft that had helped separate the band form its peers early on was everywhere evident here -- especially the gloriously noir-ish Top 40 single "Burning for You," written by Meltzer and guitarist Buck Dharma. Other standouts on the set include the plodding, über-riff pyrotechnics of "Heavy Metal: The Black and the Silver," and the Mott the Hoople- and Queen-influenced glammed up roots rock of "Joan Crawford." The terrifying images of desecration and apocalyptic war in "Veteran of Psychic Wars," with words by Moorcock, feature huge synth lines, dual leads by Dharma and Eric Bloom -- as well as a tom-tom orgy from Albert Bouchard -- offered a new pathway through the eternal night of the Cult's best work. Fire of Unknown Origin has aged well, and deserves to be remastered in the 21st century.
© Thom Jurek /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 9 track(s)
- Total length: 00:39:02
- Main artists: Blue Öyster Cult
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Columbia
- Genre: Pop/Rock Rock
1981 CBS INC.
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