Are there any Motorhead fans in the theater tonight?

[GuitarGeek]

So I've been kinda binging on Motorhead this week. I dunno, I guess I lost my mind and ended up putting in two different orders to Amazon, which resulted in me netting the double CD reissues of the following albums:

Overkill (40th Anniversary edition)
Bomber (40th Anniversary edition)
Ace Of Spades (40th Anniversary edition)
Iron Fist (Expanded Edition)
Another Perfect Day (Expanded Edition)
Orgasmatron (Expanded Edition)
Rock 'N' Roll (Expanded Edition)

That's FOURTEEN Motorhead CD's I'll be listening to before I'm done with this. Actually, I also played the double CD edition of No Remorse, so it's actually 16 (and I could make it 17 by throwing in No Sleep At All, and I might even be able to dig out my old cassette copies of No Sleep Til Hammersith and 1916).

The first three in that list, the 40th Anniversary Edition ones, I guess came out in the last couple years, each one has the respective album on one disc, and a live show on the bonus disc. Overkill has a show at Friars Aylesbury (which I always understood to be a prog rock haven, though I guess they had some "down and dirty" rock n roll also, apparently), the Bomber show was recorded in Le Mans, and the Ace Of Spades show in Belfast.

Orgasmatron has a show from 84 (plus the B-sides to the Deaf Forever single, one of which is a track called On The Road, which appears to be an early version of Built For Speed, with different lyrics), and Rock 'N' Roll has a show from the 86 Monsters Of Rock festival at Castle Donnington.

Iron Fist and Another Perfect Day haven't arrived yet, but Iron Fist appears to have another B-side, plus a show from Toronto, while Another Perfect Day has a show from Manchester Apollo and yet another B-side.

I'm mildly bummed about those 40th ANniversary Editions, though, because I thought I was buying the Deluxe Editions from 2005 (which seem to be what Iron Fist and the post-Fast Eddie albums are). In particular, the 2005 Deluxe Edition of Overkill has, among it's bonus material, their single of Louie Louie (yes, the Richard Berry classic). I do have a version of Louie Louie on the No Remorse CD, but apparently it's not the one that was actuall on the single. So I'm gonna have to figure out what I'm gonna do about that.

And yeah, I know I shouldn't have spent all this money all at once, but it's kinda weird when you make up in the morning, and you ask yourself, "Why don't I have Overkill or Orgasmatron on CD?!".

[NogbadTheBad]

Hell yeah, great band, saw them around half a dozen times in the 80's. Never got to see the classic line-up but they were always killer live. Overkill is probably my favorite of theirs though No Sleep Til Hammersmith is probably the definitive album of those I've heard.

[groon]

... Overkill has a show at Friars Aylesbury ...

The March '78 one? I was there. Girlschool played support, as I recall.

Also present was an old chap (well, probably the age I am now) whom we identified as Lemmy's Dad, a former clergyman of course, standing just off stage, watching his boy do his stuff. I think Lemmy referred to him at one point; it was a rather touching moment amid the sonic mayhem. Did that make it onto the recording?

[Zappathustra]

Count me in the theater, and first row. The best rock'n'roll band that ever was for me - and I mean the classic trio format. Maybe Stooges as well.

Overkill is my favorite, but Bomber, Ace of Spades - and the highly underrated Another Perfect Day are close to the same top.

[SteveSly]

I did not get into Motorhead until sometime in the 00's, so I had to go back and explore their back catalogue. One of a kind band for sure, who kept doing great albums until the end.

[Halmyre]

Saw them twice (or possibly three times?) at the Glasgow Apollo in the late 70s/early 80s. Probably explains the tinnitus merrily ringing in my ears as I type.

[lazland]

Saw them at Deeside Leisure Centre in 1980. Incredible night.

[GuitarGeek]

re: Overkill bonus disc show, from Fryars Aylesbury,

The March '78 one? I was there. Girlschool played support, as I recall.

Also present was an old chap (well, probably the age I am now) whom we identified as Lemmy's Dad, a former clergyman of course, standing just off stage, watching his boy do his stuff. I think Lemmy referred to him at one point; it was a rather touching moment amid the sonic mayhem. Did that make it onto the recording?

Liner notes says its' from '79, but yes, it's from March, and Girlschool do appear to be the support band. Or at least, Lemmy mentions them during the set. He says something about how great they are, and Fast Eddie chimes in with, "Lemmy's in love with the guitar player, that's why 'e's saying that!", Lemmy then says, "Well, I am in love with her, but they're a great band besides that!"

As a side note, one of those metal history things VH-1 did about 10 or 12 years ago, there's a bit where Lemmy's talking about Girlschool, and how male guitarist would say that Kelly Johnson was "good for a girl", and Lemmy would say, "She plays fucking better than you, mate!".

I can't remember if they mentioned Lemmy's dad or not. I'd have to go back and listen again.

I did not get into Motorhead until sometime in the 00's, so I had to go back and explore their back catalogue. One of a kind band for sure, who kept doing great albums until the end.

I don't think I knew they existed during the Fast Eddie years, as I don't thikn I had heard of him until Fastway was already underway. Then Creem magazine did this big dual article on both Motorhead and Fastway. My introductino to the band, really, was that Young Ones episode they appear in, where the freshly minted quartet lineup mimed to a re-recording of Ace Of Spades. Later on, when I realized that wasn't the original version, I wondered why they re-recorded it, just for that, but then I heard that there was some union rule where by even if a band was miming on, say, Top Of The Pops, they had to go into the studio and do a new version, just for that purpose.

Anyway, so I ended up getting a bunch of their albums on cassette, back when I was walking around everywhere a Walkman (or a reasonably facsimile there of). I think I had Overkill, Bomber, No Sleep Til Hammersmith, Orgasmatron, No Sleep At All, and 1916. That was when I was in high school.

For a long time, I actually preferred the quartet lineup, with Wurzel and Phil Campbell, over the classic Fast Eddie era trio, I guess just because the quartet was the first version of the band I heard. But you can't go wrong with either.

[GuitarGeek]

Motorhead also played a notorious show at the Variety Theater in Cleveland, I guess back in 80 or 81, something like that, where the ceiling plaster started flaking off due to the high volume.

[Vic2012]

I have a cheapo, Motorhead compilation. Favorite tracks are: We Are The Road Crew, Eat The Rich.

[GuitarGeek]

I have a cheapo, Motorhead compilation. Favorite tracks are: We Are The Road Crew, Eat The Rich.

I remember seeing the video for Eat The Rich on MTV back in 87 or 88, and they literally bleeped the word that rhymes with Rich during the choruses. About a decade later, I saw the video again on VH-1, and it was still being bleeped. And I remember, with the VH-1 airing, it was weird, because when VH-1 started it was intended to be like the "easy listening" or "soft rock" or whatever version of MTV. I believe in the early days of VH-1, I saw videos for people like Neil Diamond, and I also remember their New Visions show, which focused on new age, fusion and smoooooooth jazz artists. So, watching Motorhead on VH-1 made me think, "Where are the Neil Diamond fans gonna go for their video fix now?!".

Oh and thanks to the mods for moving the thread to the proper forum. I didn't mean to post it on the main board.

[Sputnik]

I know it's not well regarded, but I've always had a soft spot for Another Perfect Day. Love One Track Mind, and I actually appreciate the (relative) melodic sensibilities on this record overall.

Otherwise, I have great respect for Motorhead, but can only take their music in small doses.

Bill

[Joe F.]

I saw them on the Ace of Spades tour opening for Ozzy in Seattle in '81 and then another time in the late '90s. Both were fun shows. I have a few of their earlier albums.