Blue Oyster Cult !

[GuitarGeek]

Club Ninja was a rather bad album, though it does contain one of my fave BOC tunes, Perfect Water, which would have been right at home on one of their mid-'70s albums.

I always thought Dancin' In The Ruins was a really good song. Can't remember much else about that album except Make Rock Not War, which I'm somehow remembering as not being really good.

[GuitarGeek]

Debbie Denise and True Confessions ruin it for me.

Ohhhh, Debbie Denise is one of my favorite songs from them. I've said this a few other times when this band gets brought up, but I always felt they had a knack for coming with great songs to end the album with. Redeemed, Mistress Of The Salmon Salt, Astronomy, Debbie Denise, Nosferatu, those were all great songs. Really loved all of them.

One of the things that's really interesting about Debbie Denise is that the lyrics appear to be about a lesbian tryst. If you think about the fact that they were written by a woman (Patti Smith!), and some of the lines like "She was a she" and "I would just come", that's what it's always sounded like to me. Back in the AOL days, some of the BÖC people used to post on their board there, Albert Bouchard being one of them. When this topic came up, he said the original refrain was "I was out rolling with my man" and he said he literally told Patti, "I'm sorry, I have to change that, I can't sing that line". So he changed it to "out rolling my band".

So you've got a song, apparently being told from a woman's point of view, about her relationship with another woman, being sung by a dude. That I think makes it really interesting. And throw it that great arrangement with the acoustic guitars and mellotron, and that lovely melody and Albert's delivery. Wow, really, great way to end an album. Wish all bands put that much effort into ending their records that way (cough cough Abacab).

[GuitarGeek]

It was on the Image label, which is pretty legit, though I'm sure it was released over the bands strenuous objection (not that they were consulted at all I'm sure). The sound is beyond horrific. Think Yes: QPR. Board tape, and a bad one. But it worth seeing if you're a fan.

Well, to me, there's a difference between "legally legit" and "band approved, not-ripping-off-the-fans legit". This I think falls in the former category, but I think it's worth having. Yeah, the sound quality isn't great in places. But if you want to see some footage of 70's era Blue Öyster Cult, and you want to see the laser show that the FDA shut down, well this is the place to go.

[SteveSly]

I know that, but if everything from the first album to Some Enchanted Evening was reissued separately, why not that one?

I don't know. I have always found that odd as well.

Steve Sly

[Trane]

You didn't like Tyranny & Mutation?

Try it again.

There isn't another record in the world that sounds like that thing.

Didn't say I didn't like it.... bbut prefer Traties from that era

Although "Mirrors" is one of their weaker albums I think about half of it is really good. "The Great Sun Jester" and "The Vigil" are both great songs. The title track and "In Thee" are great little pop tunes. The album was certainly more pop oriented than most of the band's catalouge, but I still think it is worth owning.

As for the live albums. Of the 4 that the band has made I rate "Some Enchanted Evening" as the weakest. Different strokes I guess...

Steve Sly

Yeah, but BOC was already a poppier band since Agents and through Spectres, until Birch made then "Rock" again with Erectus... It's just that Mirrors is particularly bad IMHO

And yes... as I said, SEE is often demolished as a live album, because it sounds too much fextracted rom different tours... But I think it gives a much more precise earful of what BOC was in the 70's than On Your Knees... Try the expanded Legacy version, though...

Interesting………for me “Agents” has always been a bit of a conundrum. It was one of the band’s most successful albums and is highly regarded by fans. It also contains “Don’t Fear The Reaper” which is arguably one of the classic rock tracks of all time by anybody. But…….as a whole I have never really warmed up to the album that much and think it is one of the band’s weaker efforts. I just pulled it out and listened to it again recently and I still like many of the band’s other albums a lot better.

Totally agree... take away Reaper and ETI, you haven't got much left... For that matter Spectres does better IMHO

[ronmac]

the laser show that the FDA shut down, well this is the place to go.

What's the story behind that? I did see that laser show, although the facility wasn't conducive to an ideal presentation.

[jlneudorf]

Totally agree... take away Reaper and ETI, you haven't got much left... For that matter Spectres does better IMHO

Completely disagree. There is not a bad track here including "Debbie Denise" and "True Confessions". In fact, the former is one of my favourite songs, the vocals are outstanding. "The Revenge of Vera Gemini" is another highlight in an album of many. In my opinion of course.
I do agree that Spectres is very good.

Regards,
Jon

[ronmac]

Completely disagree. There is not a bad track here including "Debbie Denise" and "True Confessions". In fact, the former is one of my favourite songs, the vocals are outstanding. "The Revenge of Vera Gemini" is another highlight in an album of many. In my opinion of course.
I do agree that Spectres is very good.

Regards,
Jon

There are few tracks "crunchier" than "Tattoo Vampire."

[SteveSly]

What's the story behind that? I did see that laser show, although the facility wasn't conducive to an ideal presentation.

Although I never saw them during the laser days, they used to do things like shoot lasers directly into the crowd and into mirror balls which would also go into the crowd. The fear from OSHA at the time was that this could cause eye damage to people in the audience. It got to a point in some cities the were not allowed to use the laser show due to OSHA rules. It was also the early days of lasers and the equipment was bulky to carry around and not always reliable to work during the shows. The band eventually just dropped using them due to a combination of OSHA regulation and the fact that using the lasers was just too big of a hassle from a logistical and reliability standpoint.

For anyone who is a BOC fan, I would highly recommend Martin Popoff’s book “Blue Oyster Cult Secrets Revealed”. It is a great read and had participation by almost every member of the band. They have certainly had an interesting career.

Steve Sly

[ronmac]

Although I never saw them during the laser days, they used to do things like shoot lasers directly into the crowd and into mirror balls which would also go into the crowd.

Yep, that's exactly what they did. I figured it was something like that.

[SteveSly]

Well.......this thread has re-ignited my BOC jones and I just ordered the box set. I found it new for $60 on Amazon.

Steve Sly

[JIF]

Well.......this thread has re-ignited my BOC jones and I just ordered the box set. I found it new for $60 on Amazon.

Steve Sly

Don't you mean used new? Brand new from Amazon is $107.

[Jay G]

Here is what I remember from the set last week. I think I got them all just not the correct order.

RU Ready to Rock
Golden Age of Leather
Burnin for you
Shooting Shark
Me262
Perfect Water
Black Blade
Then came the last days of May
Godzilla
Reaper
Cities on Flame
Summa Cum Laude

[Plasmatopia]

If you read the fine print here it says you can get new ones for about $60.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Complete-C.../dp/B008S80OU2


I'm thinking about going for it. I still don't have Tyranny & Mutation, On Your Feet..., Club Ninja, or Revolution by Night (although I had the latter on LP).

Some Enchanted Evening will always be my favorite as I discovered it around the time I started playing guitar and some of my musician friends had learned just about every note of that album which was pretty inspiring to me.

My studio favorites are Secret Treaties, Agents of Mercy, Cultasaurus Erectus, Imaginos, and Fire of Unknown Origin...and I also like the latter day albums like Heaven Forbid and Curse of the Hidden Mirror. I only bought Spectres for the first time about a year or two ago and haven't listen to it much.

My coworker just bought a 1 watt blue laser and he's dangerous with that thing. We burned a hole through a piece of paper with it. To do this we drew a black dot on the paper with a Sharpie. When the laser was not directly on the dot the reflection of the laser off the white paper was blinding. I saw spots for a few minutes afterwards.

[SteveSly]

Don't you mean used new? Brand new from Amazon is $107.

No it is new, but from a retailer in the UK through amazon. The used prices were actually higher.

Steve Sly

[GuitarGeek]

What's the story behind that? I did see that laser show, although the facility wasn't conducive to an ideal presentation.

In addition to what Steve say, there were also reports of people actually being temporarily blinded by the lasers, though to this day I'm not sure if that ever actually happened or if those are just urban legends. One of the plot points of the comedy movie The Stoned Age hinged on a character who "saw God" after getting hit in the face by a laser at a BÖC show.

BÖC weren't the only band pointing lasers into the audience, but I guess they were the band that ended up on the FDA/OSHA's radar because of it. I think a lot of bands got hassled about lasers. This was during the 80's, but I remember Kevin DuBrow once talking about how Quiet Riot toured with "lasers that didn't work, and even when they did work we couldn't use them half the time because there was some stupid ordinance".

[SteveSly]

In addition to what Steve say, there were also reports of people actually being temporarily blinded by the lasers, though to this day I'm not sure if that ever actually happened or if those are just urban legends. One of the plot points of the comedy movie The Stoned Age hinged on a character who "saw God" after getting hit in the face by a laser at a BÖC show.

BÖC weren't the only band pointing lasers into the audience, but I guess they were the band that ended up on the FDA/OSHA's radar because of it. I think a lot of bands got hassled about lasers. This was during the 80's, but I remember Kevin DuBrow once talking about how Quiet Riot toured with "lasers that didn't work, and even when they did work we couldn't use them half the time because there was some stupid ordinance".

I think it is urban legend. If anyone actually had been blinded the band would have been sued big time, and I have never seen any reports of that happening that I can remember. Yes there were other bands using lasers, but BOC was one of the first to use them on a large scale in the mid-70's. By the end of the 70's a lot of bands were using them (I remember seeing Kansas in 1979 and they had a great laser show), but BOC started using them about 5 years prior when they were a brand new technology.

Steve Sly

[GuitarGeek]

By the end of the 70's a lot of bands were using them (I remember seeing Kansas in 1979 and they had a great laser show), but BOC started using them about 5 years prior when they were a brand new technology.

So did Yes, Genesis, The Who, Led Zeppelin and Steve Miller. I believe Zep used them at Earls Court in London, in May of 1975. According to thewho.net, The Who used them in October of 1975, apparently making them the first band to use them on tour (as opposed to an extended run at a single venue, which is what Earls Court was). Genesis used a laser on the Trick tour in the spring of 76, Yes used them on the Crab Nebula tour.

Not sure exactly when Steve Miller started using them, but I know I've heard it said he was another of the early people to use them, and I remember seeing an interview with him on TV a few years back where he had a chuckle about how they had to use a fog machine onstage to make the laser more visible. I think he said the fog machine affected the onstage humidity, which in turn caused tuning problems with the guitars.

[SteveSly]

So did Yes, Genesis, The Who, Led Zeppelin and Steve Miller. I believe Zep used them at Earls Court in London, in May of 1975. According to thewho.net, The Who used them in October of 1975, apparently making them the first band to use them on tour (as opposed to an extended run at a single venue, which is what Earls Court was). Genesis used a laser on the Trick tour in the spring of 76, Yes used them on the Crab Nebula tour.

Not sure exactly when Steve Miller started using them, but I know I've heard it said he was another of the early people to use them, and I remember seeing an interview with him on TV a few years back where he had a chuckle about how they had to use a fog machine onstage to make the laser more visible. I think he said the fog machine affected the onstage humidity, which in turn caused tuning problems with the guitars.

Good points, now that I think about it another who was using them in 1976 was Paul McCartney on the Wings Over America tour. Not sure why BOC seemed to take the most heat for it, but they did seem to be the focus.

Steve Sly

[GuitarGeek]

Good points, now that I think about it another who was using them in 1976 was Paul McCartney on the Wings Over America tour. Not sure why BOC seemed to take the most heat for it, but they did seem to be the focus.

Steve Sly

That's right, I forgot about Wings, you can see the laser in the Rockshow film.

I think the reason BÖC took more heat was perhaps because of the mirror ball (which to the best of my knowledge no one else was doing) and also because maybe even then there were rumors about being blinded, at least temporarily, at their shows. There's actually a news segment from 78 or 79 on Youtube, where the mirror ball is mentioned, so they were getting national attention for doing that, so I'm sure that caused a few people in the "health and safety" field to prick up their ears.

[Digital_Man]

I currently own three BOC albums(all on cd). They are the essential BOC(yes it's a best of), "Agents of fortune"and "fire of unknown origin"(which I had on cassette in my late teens). I admit I need to get more and plan on doing so very soon. I've always heard the first three are their best(mostly by prog fans).

[Trane]

Some Enchanted Evening will always be my favorite as I discovered it around the time I started playing guitar and some of my musician friends had learned just about every note of that album which was pretty inspiring to me.

I guess that's why I like SEE too... it was my first album of theirs... found it particularly strong, but when I got to the studio albums, I thought there was a lot of expandable stuff

Completely disagree. There is not a bad track here including "Debbie Denise" and "True Confessions". In fact, the former is one of my favourite songs, the vocals are outstanding. "The Revenge of Vera Gemini" is another highlight in an album of many. In my opinion of course.
I do agree that Spectres is very good.

Tastes and colours Jon
And I wouldn't call Spectres "very good"... just better than Agents

Good points, now that I think about it another who was using them in 1976 was Paul McCartney on the Wings Over America tour. Not sure why BOC seemed to take the most heat for it, but they did seem to be the focus.

Yup, I also heard of that urban legend, but never heard of any lawsuits against them

Well, I'd say their "evil" images made them a particularly convenient target...

[Plasmatopia]

Not sure why BOC seemed to take the most heat for it, but they did seem to be the focus.

Simple. Because "the heat from below can burn your eyes out".

[Vic2012]

Never really got into BOC. All I knew was the few radio hits (Reaper, Godzilla, and at least one other big hit). They were touring the small clubs and corn-dog events in South Florida about 10 years ago and I caught them live a couple times. Before I ever bought one of their albums I'd seem them perform and I was wearing a BOC T-shirt. I was very impressed by Buck Dharma. He's not a "god" but he has great tone and control. All he seems to play are those headless guitars. They're not pretty but they sound damn good.

The only proper album I own by BOC is Curse Of The Hidden Mirror. It's one of those latter day albums no one knows or cares about. I love it. I think it sounds great and I like/love a good 75 percent of the songs, and nothing "sucks" on it either. The only other thing I have is a cheapo "best of" which I barely play. I probably should play it just to see if all those old classic tracks have grown on me. I really didn't care for any of that old stuff like Screaming Dizz Busters (or whatever). Really, I can only recommend Curse Of The Hidden Mirror, but I recommend it highly. It is a fine, fine, hard/rock album by a fine band.

[Yodelgoat]

I see there's not much love for Cultosaurus Erectus, but its my favorite BOC album. I like every song on that album. If you like classic FM rock, its quite a nice ride.