GiGinJapan Artwork of Japanese CDs (mostly) Saxon / Newcastle 1984 / 2CDR / Shades
Newcastle City Hall, Newcastle, England 13th February 1984
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In 1984, SAXON released the controversial work “CRUSADER” and was struggling to open up new horizons. A new excavated live album that conveys the true value of unknown dark history will be urgently released!
What is inscribed in this work is “February 13, 1984 Newcastle performance”. This is a super-excellent audience recording that vacuum-packs the whole story. Even in the entire history of Hero SAXON, the “CRUSADER” era is a period that is rarely overlooked. This is a good opportunity to take a look back at an overview of our activities at the time.
《“CRUSADER” released in February》
・February 4th – 26th: UK (19 performances) ←★Here★
・February 28th – March 14th: Europe (12 performances)
・March 30th – May 22nd: North America (39 performances)
This is SAXON in 1984. The style of CRUSADER gives the impression that it is aimed at America, but its activities are split between Europe and America. The tour started from his home country of England, and the Newcastle performance of this work was the 8th concert in the middle.
This work recorded at such a show is a very thick and recent sound. This is a new master that was released very recently, but it was created by the master “Nelly-Duke”. He is a person who has released many masterpieces of 80’s metal such as IRON MAIDEN, AC/DC, SCORPIONS, METALLICA, MEGADETH, etc., and recently he also released Ozzy Osbourne’s press masterpiece “REDCAR 1988 (Zodiac 625)”. Nelly-Duke’s work.
And this work lives up to its name as a master… no, it’s a work that makes its reputation shine even more. Anyway, the extremely thick core is thrust right in front of you without any sense of distance, and the outline and details are extremely clear. “Newcastle City Hall”, which was the venue, is a venue similar to Shibuya Public Hall or Sky Hall in Japan, but even if you listen carefully with headphones, you can hardly hear the hall sound components. If you were told that it was an FM broadcast, you would have believed it without question.
What is depicted with such a thick and neat sound of FM broadcast quality is a full show that includes delicious songs such as “CRUSADER”. There are also official videos such as “LIVE” in 1983 and “LIVE INNOCENCE!” in 1985, but this work is from “1984” in between. Here, let’s organize the set while comparing it with the two official works.
●Crusader (4 songs)
・Just Let Me Rock (★)／Crusader／Sailing To America (★)／A Little Bit Of What You Fancy
●Classics (15 songs)
・Wheels of Steel: 747 (Strangers In The Night)／Wheels Of Steel／Stand Up and Be Counted
・Strong Arm Of The Law: Dallas 1 PM/Strong Arm Of The Law (★)/Heavy Metal Thunder/Taking Your Chances
・Denim And Leather: Princess of The Night/Never Surrender/And The Bands Played On/Denim And Leather (★)
・Power And The Glory: Power And The Glory/This Town Rocks/The Eagle Has Landed/Warrior
*Note: Songs marked with “★” were not listenable even when the official videos “LIVE” and “LIVE INNOCENCE!” were combined.
…and it looks like this. After all, the “CRUSADER” number is valuable and delicious. SAXON is a band that occasionally plays rare songs, so it’s not like they’ll never play them again, but they’re definitely extremely rare. “Just Let Me Rock” and “Sailing To America”, which were not included in the official video, may be heard live for the first time in this work. In particular, the sound of “Just Let Me Rock” exudes a tremendous old-fashioned sound. As for classics, you can enjoy repertoire unique to the 80’s such as “Stand Up and Be Counted,” “Taking Your Chances,” and “Warrior.”
In 1984, ahead of “SOMEWHERE IN TIME,” “ORGASMATRON,” and “TURBO,” SAXON was quickly trying to expand the realm of heavy metal. This work is a cultural heritage album that allows you to witness the forefront of such times. A miraculous new excavation master who can enjoy a full show that is interesting because of its dark history with the quality of FM broadcast and official works. Please take a closer look and experience it for yourself!
★Superb audience recording of “February 13, 1984 Newcastle performance”. This is a famous item created by the original master of the popular master Nelly-Duke, and the extremely thick core is thrust right in front of you without any sense of distance, and the outline and details are extremely clear. Even if you listen carefully with headphones, you can hardly hear the hall sound component. This is a cultural heritage album where you can enjoy a delicious full show of “CRUSADER”’s extremely rare songs with the finest sound of FM broadcast quality.
問題作『CRUSADER』を送り出し、新たな地平を切り拓こうともがいていた1984年のSAXON。知られざる黒歴史の真価を伝える新発掘ライヴアルバムが緊急リリース決定です！
そんな本作に吹き込まれているのは「1984年２月13日ニューカッスル公演」。その一部始終を真空パックした超極上オーディエンス録音です。英雄SAXON全史でも『CRUSADER』時代はなかなか顧みられることのない時期。良い機会ですので、当時の活動概要から振り返ってみましょう。
《２月『CRUSADER』発売》
・２月４日ー26日：英国（19公演）←★ココ★
・２月28日ー３月14日：欧州（12公演）
・３月30日ー５月22日：北米（39公演）
これが1984年のSAXON。『CRUSADER』の作風からアメリカ狙いのイメージもありますが、活動としてはヨーロッパ／アメリカが半分ずつ。ツアーは母国イギリスからスタートしており、本作のニューカッスル公演はその中盤８公演目にあたるコンサートでした。
そんなショウで記録された本作は、極太なド直近サウンド。ごく最近になって公開された新マスターなのですが、手掛けたのは名手「Nelly-Duke」氏。IRON MAIDENやAC/DC、SCORPIONS、METALLICA、MEGADETH等々、80年代メタルの名作を数多く発表している人物でして、最近でしたらオジー・オズボーンのプレス名盤『REDCAR 1988（Zodiac 625）』も「Nelly-Duke」氏の作品なのです。
そして、本作も名手の名に恥じない……いや、さらに一層名声を輝かせる業物。とにかく極太な芯が距離感なく目の前に突きつけられ、輪郭もディテールもえらく鮮明。現場となった“Newcastle City Hall”は、日本で言うところの渋谷公会堂やスカイホールくらいの会場なのですが、ヘッドフォンで耳を澄ませてもホール鳴り成分がほとんど分からない。それこそ「FM放送です」と言われたら何の疑問も持たずにすんなり信じ込んだ事でしょう。
そんなFM放送級の極太＆端正サウンドで描かれるのは、『CRUSADER』の貴重曲も美味しいフルショウ。1983年なら『LIVE』、1985年なら『LIVE INNOCENCE!』といった公式映像も残されていますが、本作はその間の「1984年」。ここでは２つの公式作と比較しながらセットを整理しておきましょう。
●クルセイダー（４曲）
・Just Let Me Rock（★）／Crusader／Sailing To America（★）／A Little Bit Of What You Fancy
●クラシックス（15曲）
・ホイールズ・オブ・スティール：747 (Strangers In The Night)／Wheels Of Steel／Stand Up and Be Counted
・ストロング・アーム・オブ・ザ・ロウ：Dallas 1 PM／Strong Arm Of The Law（★）／Heavy Metal Thunder／Taking Your Chances
・デニム・アンド・レザー：Princess of The Night／Never Surrender／And The Bands Played On／Denim And Leather（★）
・パワー・アンド・ザ・グローリー：Power And The Glory／This Town Rocks／The Eagle Has Landed／Warrior
※注：「★」印は公式映像『LIVE』『LIVE INNOCENCE!』を合わせても聴けなかった曲。
……と、このようになっています。やはり貴重度で美味しいのは『CRUSADER』ナンバー。SAXONは時たまレア曲をやるバンドなので「二度と演奏しない」というわけではないのですが、激レアには違いない。公式映像になかった「Just Let Me Rock」「Sailing To America」は本作で初めて生演奏を聴くという方も多いのではないでしょうか。特に「Just Let Me Rock」はエレドラの音がもの凄い時代臭を発散している。クラシックスにしても「Stand Up and Be Counted」「Taking Your Chances」「Warrior」といった80年代ならではのレパートリーが楽しめます。
『SOMEWHERE IN TIME』や『ORGASMATRON』『TURBO』に先駆けた1984年に、いち早くヘヴィメタルの領域を広げようとしていたSAXON。本作は、そんな時代の最前線に立ち会える文化遺産アルバムです。黒歴史だからこそ面白いフルショウをFM放送やオフィシャル作品ばりのクオリティで楽しめる奇跡の新発掘マスター。どうぞ、刮目してご体験ください！
★「1984年２月13日ニューカッスル公演」の超極上オーディエンス録音。話題の名手「Nelly-Duke」氏の大元マスターから起こされた銘品で、とにかく極太な芯が距離感なく目の前に突きつけられ、輪郭もディテールもえらく鮮明。ヘッドフォンで耳を澄ませてもホール鳴り成分がほとんど分からない。FM放送級の極上サウンドで、『CRUSADER』の激レア曲も美味しいフルショウが楽しめる文化遺産アルバムです。
Disc:1 (53:35)
1. Power and the Glory
2. Princess of the Night
3. Dallas 1 PM
4. Just Let Me Rock
5. Never Surrender
6. Crusader
7. Strong Arm of the Law
8. Sailing to America
9. This Town Rocks
10. Drum Solo
Disc:2 (46:21)
1. The Eagle Has Landed
2. 747 Strangers in the Night
3. A Little Bit of What You Fancy
4. And the Bands Played On
5. Guitar Solo
6. Wheels of Steel
7. Denim and Leather
8. Heavy Metal Thunder
9. Stand Up and Be Counted
10. Taking Your Chances
11. Warrior
Biff Byford – Vocals
Graham Oliver – Guitar
Paul Quinn – Guitar
Steve Dawson – Bass
Nigel Glockler – Drums
Shades 1881
