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ROCK AND ROLL! => Black Sabbath => All Other Eras => Topic started by: KiloDeltaCharlie on February 08, 2021, 02:12:47 PM
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We come to the second Martin album, Headless Cross. For the longest time this has been a contender for my least favourite Sabbath album. The thing is I always really liked three of the songs, but in recent years I've grown to really like a fourth track. So I'm now in a position where I like more than half the album, it's not going to challenge as one of my favourites, but I suspect it won't be close to my least favoutrite when all is said and done.
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We start the album with The Gates of Hell / Headless Cross. These two are not among the 4 I really like! I think Gates of Hell is the last ambient intro that Sabbath have done, and again I don't really see the point of it, it adds nothing. Then we get onto the title track Headless Cross. This is the "best of the rest", not actually bad, but it has some flaws not least of which are the corny lyrics. Musically it has a traditional Sabbath sound, but that doesn't save it from mediocraty.
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So we move onto what I would call Sabbaths lamest and leanest years packed with stale & generic cheesy songs
Speaking of, “The Gates of Hell/Headless Cross” begins the album and straight off we’re eased in with some spooky cartoonish keyboard sounds before a generic slow tempo 4/4 drum beat loaded up with 80”s reverb kicks in. Iommi then launches into an equally generic but still kinda powerful and catchy riff. But any hopes of the opening being rescued by Iommi is soon dashed when Tony Martin begins to sing the opening verses. This is where the song fully nose dives into an all out bland & predictable affair which it never recovers from. The lyrics throughout are corny, more accentuated by Martin’s delivery, while the main repeating chorus “ at the headless cross, at the headless cross” is just flat out unimaginative, and what’s the go with those cheesy backing vocals? Very unSabbath like...
Usually I could say at least Iommi’s guitar solo is great but I can’t, it’s not bad or anything but its kinda just lacklustre by his standards and doesn’t seem to flow well with the song.
Besides Iommi’s somewhat catchy riff there’s nothing I find good in this song and along with “The Illusion of Power” is hands down the worst opening song to any Sabbath album and by far the worst title track.
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Headless Cross is an absolute classic. Right up there with Heaven And Hell or The Mob Rules and most certainly the best and most known track of the most underrated era of any band in history.
The drum beat from the late great Cozy Powell sets the tone for the song and is followed by the heavy and doomy main riff from Tony which leads into the quieter yet sinister main verse.
The song has gone through it's fair share of Sabbath-like tempo changes even before it hits the first verse.
Tony Martin's brilliance in vocal melodies comes evident right off the bat. As well his uncanny vocal abilities. He tuned down his vocals somewhat from what they were on the Eternal Idol where he was just copying Ray Gillen which is a great thing as this delivery fits better for Sabbath's style anyways.
Headless Cross might very well be one of the most underrated songs in history....
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I think what this shows is it splits opinion... BIG TIME! ;)
I have seen elsewhere a lot of praise for the title track though.
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This album gives me a "sellout" vibe. But looking beyond that, the opener does a good job setting the tone for what's to come. If this set had been released by anyone else other than Black Sabbath I don't think anyone would be talking about it today.
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It has been so long since I last gave this album a play, I might as well be listening to it for the first time.
Instrumentally, it's very much the same tone as a Judas Priest track from around the same time, Iommi's solo excepted. And then Cottle hits some runs that remind me of another jazz player, Tony Franklin, who played in The Firm. Odd mix there.
Anyway, I'm not moved by the opening tracks. They're competent, but I'm lacking the fire that I felt from Eternal Idol.
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Next up is Devil & Daughter. I don't know what it is about this song but it really is the worst track on the album IMO. I've never liked it. It's not Changes bad, but it doesn't match the rest of the album.
This album doesn't start well...
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Devil & Daughter is another one of my favourites.
Got a nice riff and good vocal melody...Tony said once that this is the highest vocals he's ever done and that's probably very true and honestly that is the one thing that I don't like about the song. I think he goes bit too high for this one.
Other than that I have no complaints. Good Sabbathy lyrics...
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I like Devil & Daughter quite a bit. Has a good uptempo rockin feel to it with a killer riff by Iommi and great catchy vocal melody which gets back to what I’ve previously stated about Martin, that this is the sort of stuff that he’s really good at and suits him over trying to be scary doomy sinister guy. It still has a little sprinkling of cheese here and there with Martins lyrics and delivery and not a big fan of the Aaaahhhaaa Aaaahhhaaa backing vocals but it’s only a minor nitpick in an otherwise really good song which wouldn’t sound out of place on Seventh Star. Should also make mention of Iommi’s smokin solo on this track.
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Devil and Daughter is easily dateable to the late 80s straight metal sound, a la Blue Oyster Cult or Armored Saint plus a synth.
I was a little meh at first, but Iommi's solo is winning me over. Solid track, I might visit it more frequently in my days and years ahead.
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On to When Death Calls...
This one moves slowly. I do enjoy the main riff for the chorus, but it seems to take forever to get there. There's a faster part in the middle, yes, but it's also very formulaic. Brian May does a fun solo, sure, but I'm still not impressed with the overall results in the song. Others are going to like it, but I'm going to be one of those who passes on it.
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After the frankly lacklustre start to the album (IMO! ;) ), we now hit a string of good songs, starting with When Death Calls.
This is the best song on the album, a great doomy sound, great guitar work, great vocals (and better lyrics than is the norm for a Martin album), speed change. Actually this isn't just the best song on the album it's up there with the best ever Sabbath tracks.
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Looks like you and I are of different minds on this album, KDC. :)
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Looks like you and I are of different minds on this album, KDC. :)
:P
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I have mixed feelings on When Death Calls. On the one side it sounds like a cheesy 80’s metal power ballad but it also has this touch of epicness about it when it moves into the heavier parts and faster tempo changes. The lyrics are corny and Martin just couldn’t resist the temptation to reference “Satan” again, even on a ballad ::)
There’s a good lift in the chorus and I love the riff during that part but Martin unfortunately walks on it a bit with his annoying repeating & unimaginative gang style backing vocals which is a bug bearer of mine throughout this album. I would’ve particularly preferred they dropped them on this track. Otherwise I think it’s a pretty good and well constructed track with a strong vocal performance, a quite memorable solo from Brian May and great drumming from Cozy. I also think the overtly 80’s production hurts the heaviness of this song...It would’ve sounded much better and heavier live.
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Challenge accepted:
First is Russia 1989 and the second is Malta 1995. Muddy sound on the first, but also has Cozy Powell.
I'll throw in another with Tony Martin performing solo in Rio in 2008:
The backing vocals definitely work better when the crowd sings them. I actually also like the additional keyboard flavor in the 2008 track, even if it's not Iommi playing guitar.
And I will agree with Jack, this is better live, I think on all versions of this track.
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Kill in the Spirit World
Why in the world this starts off like a pop-metal torch song, I do not know. It's totally at odds with the chorus and middle and end sections. I'm just left confused by the song and I think this was the beginnings of my real problems with the album as a whole, as the memories of a distant past return to my mind.
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Kill In The Spirit World is where the album takes a sharp turn for the worse. The verses are just flat out terrible on this track and come off sounding like a cheesy Michael Bolton song. The chorus riff is ok but it doesn’t feel like it fits the song or does the weird chorus vocals, which again Martin feels the need to repeatedly highlight the title. Iommi’s solo and Cozy’s solid drumming is the only positive I can find in this song, the rest is horrendous.
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Kill in the Spirit World is my 2nd favourite track on the album, but I think I may be alone in likeing the song though ;). One of Martin's better vocal melodies (in the verse anyway) but there could have been more to the chorus. I think it could be heavier, but I still like it.
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I think I may be alone in likeing the song though ;)
Lookin' that way, KDC.
:mopey:
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You certainly have very different taste to put it politely Kilo :)
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I REGRET NOTHING !!!!!
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Call of the Wild is next. This is the one that in recent years I have come to enjoy a lot more than I used to. A nice vocal melody / performance from Martin, a good bass line, and although the guitar is somewhat lowkey the solo is rather nice.
Apparently supposed to be called Hero until they found out Ozzy had done a song by that name on No Rest....
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Not having English as a native language and being close to mediocre in understanding texts without being able to read them to more or less detect their meaning remains a definite advantage. As a French (understand bad in other languages) I trust the voice, its melody, its phrasing, its rhythm, its power and its sensitivity. These are the reasons why I immediately loved the voice of Tony Martin. The meaning of the lyrics of many songs and bands came later, long after, thanks to you guys including Billy who allowed me to understand the subtleties of those foreign words.
The latest example is the touching lyrics of Phil Lynott: a true poet.
Without laughing, I made enormous progress through our discussions and your good words.
Back to the topic : I love Headless Cross ... and I love this place.
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You may be on your own with this song, KDC. It started out and my first thought was, "Dokken RULES!" :D
Very solid example of typical late-80s metal. Could have been the next Whitesnake with a supermodel video and some marketing from David Geffen...
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^^^
Of course it sounds like the 80s!!! It's a product of it's time, and while it has its flaws I'll take it over most of their late 80s contempories!
@Tyr66
Your English is coming along nicely... a LOT better than my French anyway! ;)
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Call of the Wild is another forgettable lame AOR style infused song which along with the previous track is the lowest point of the album. It has a kinda cool middle eastern riff on the chorus but it feels a bit out of place with the style of music in the rest of the song as do the lyrics which I have no idea are about but feature lots of references to demons, wings, lucifer, Kings etc. Again Iommi’s guitar solo is super but unfortunately everything else in this song is meh.
Thankfully the last two songs which I’m looking forward to reviewing perform somewhat of a rescue job on this album, or at least end it on a positive note.
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Not having English as a native language and being close to mediocre in understanding texts without being able to read them to more or less detect their meaning remains a definite advantage. As a French (understand bad in other languages) I trust the voice, its melody, its phrasing, its rhythm, its power and its sensitivity. These are the reasons why I immediately loved the voice of Tony Martin. The meaning of the lyrics of many songs and bands came later, long after, thanks to you guys including Billy who allowed me to understand the subtleties of those foreign words.
The latest example is the touching lyrics of Phil Lynott: a true poet.
Without laughing, I made enormous progress through our discussions and your good words.
Back to the topic : I love Headless Cross ... and I love this place.
Your command of the English language is fantastic consideredIng it’s not your native language. I really enjoy reading your posts, you have a good way with words.
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Side note: Mon French c'est very mal. :)
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Thanx guys :D :rockon: :pub: !!
I love saturday morning like this !
(https://image.over-blog.com/33lQYHrcHCTFmbfUX_j3hWzVg_Y=/filters:no_upscale()/image%2F0825364%2F20210212%2Fob_caaad3_ftumblr-f912dd8baace013fe819f9766e7574.gif)
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Judging by Jacks comment I think we may be in agreement on teh next track Black Moon.
It's a nice mid-tempo rock song, catchy chorus, quite heavy, another great (if short) solo. Actually this might be my 2nd favourite on the album, but that needs some thinking about!
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Yep Black Moon is undoubtedly my favourite track from the album and one of my favourite Tony Martin songs period. A dirty blues style song that has more in common with Whitesnake than anything Sabbath had ever done but it totally works because it’s just a fantastic song. Has a great stop/start groove to it with a simple but very catchy riff. Love the grittier approach on Martins vocals and the chorus he came up with is so incredibly catchy. I really find the rockier/bluesier/groovier style of music is where Martin really excels as a singer/songwriter and would’ve much preferred more of this style over the cheesy AOR stuff or dark doomier stuff.
All things being fair and equal Black Moon could’ve/should’ve been a hit for Sabbath at the time it came out.
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The album ends with Nightwing. After a run of good songs I find this a let down, the discordant accoustic start irritates me. Lyrics describing how awesome birds are, are a little meh to me (BCCs The Crow, Iced Earth's Raven Wing to name a couple I'm also 'meh' about!). I will say Iommi does some good stuff here which raises the song a bit.
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Nightwing closes out the album and is a bit mixed for me. It’s a power ballad of sorts with great vocals from Martin and a nice blending of electric and acoustic guitars from Iommi. However I just feel the song fails to really grab me emotionally during the soft acoustic parts and then lift me up when it transitions into the heavy electric parts the way it should. Tony’s solo’s are quite brilliant throughout though and do manage to capture that emotion but I do wish the song didn’t fade out so quickly on the song ending solo. Hearing Tony solo for another minute or so would’ve been a much grander way for it to finish. I also like the way Martins vocals are produced on this track. They are a little more natural sounding and not over-produced with that multi-layering that’s prevalent on much of the other tracks on the album. I would usually have a dig at these type of lyrics as well but I’ve always loved Owls so they shall get a pass.
I think it’s a fairly good track though and a positive way to finish the album but it just fails to connect and take take me to that place that other slow softer album closers like Spiral Architect, Lonely is the Word & Over and Over do.
So summing up Headless Cross. I find a lot of it to be bland with cheesy vocal delivery & lyrics from Martin and at times ventures too much into generic AOR stylings, while other times it tries too hard to bring a dark atmosphere but just doesn’t sound dark sonically.
Album Rating 4/10
Song Rankings
1. Black Moon
2. Devil & Daughter
3. When Death Calls
4. Nightwing
5. The Gates of Hell/Headless Cross
6. Kill in the Spirit World
7. Call of the Wild
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I think I've decided on my order:
1. When Death Calls
2. Black Moon
3. Kill in the Spirit World
4. Call of the Wild
5. The Gates of Hell / Headless Cross
6. Nightwing
7. Devil & Daughter
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Coming in after the weekend...
Black Moon - I like the grit in this song, but wish for something other than synths in the keyboard department. Either none of them would have been fine, or something less layer-y and more engaging, like a piano or Hammond. Great Whitesnake song... makes me wonder what a pairing of Iommi and Coverdale would have produced.
Nightwing - there's that jazz player bass guitar sound at the start of the track, really not what I expect in a Sabbath album. I never did get into it and I'm still not getting into it this time around. It doesn't seem to know what it wants to be. Powell's drumming, Martin's singing, and Iommi's solo contrast with the lighter touch from the keyboards, bass, and acoustic guitar. They're just not meshing well enough for me to want to stick around.
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I was just checking out my Martin era vinyls to see what pressings I have and had totally forgotten my Headless Cross vinyl is still sealed. Looks to be a US club edition.
(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/aa333/DAMAGEDsINCe85/B7A85FE5-BF4F-49FD-BF16-951D898DABF0.jpeg)
(https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/aa333/DAMAGEDsINCe85/3FDD0674-3829-42BA-A318-5E4E3488F52A.jpeg)
Shall we move onto TYR Kilo?
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We shall indeed move onto Tyr. I was waiting for Zs to complete HC (now done), I'll start it later today.
Is the fact that your Headless Cross vinyl is still sealed indicative of your dis-like for the album or is it just that it's worth more un-opened? ;)
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We shall indeed move onto Tyr. I was waiting for Zs to complete HC (now done), I'll start it later today.
Is the fact that your Headless Cross vinyl is still sealed indicative of your dis-like for the album or is it just that it's worth more un-opened? ;)
n the late 80’s early 90’s when cd’s were becoming all the rage I was buying the same album on both cd and vinyl until I totally gave on up on buying vinyl in about 92/93 due to the cost of buying both and vinyl being an old and tired format I was no longer listening to. So was just a case of not needing to open the vinyl if I had it and was listening to it on CD. In saying that, vinyl in Australia was rarely sold sealed in Record Shops. So Headless Cross was an odd one. My recollection is that I might have picked it up as an import at a record fair back in the day.
Its funny how things have come full circle now. I have totally stopped buying cd’s these days and now only buy vinyl.
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Yep, ready for Tyr but looking very much forward to Cross Purposes. Forbidden is gonna be one of those things we have to do... :P
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Its funny how things have come full circle now. I have totally stopped buying cd’s these days and now only buy vinyl.
I have recently acquired a record player, I'm sure yet how much use it will get.
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Since I fell behind on these I'm not gonna mess things up here any further but I will say that the first half of this album is pure gold...brilliant stuff...
The second half is not even close in the same league as the first half.
I'd say Black Moon is the only really good song on the second half.
Overall rating for this one is a tough one as the sides are so uneven...but the songs on the first side are so brilliant and strong based on those alone this needs to get atleast a
* * * ½
rating.