Solid Ball of Rock
Solid Ball of Rock is the tenth studio album by heavy metal band Saxon released in 1991. Five of its 11 tracks were written by new bassist Nibbs Carter. "For our audience – and without an audience there is no band – our focus returned on Solid Ball of Rock…" noted singer Biff Byford. "Since we've been right on it." SaxonBiff Byford – vocals, engineer Graham Oliver – guitar Paul Quinn – guitar Nibbs Carter – bass guitar Nigel Glockler – drumsProductionKalle Trapp — producer, engineer
Virgin Records
Virgin Records Ltd. is a British record label founded by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, musician Tom Newman in 1972. It grew to be a worldwide phenomenon over time, with the success of platinum performers such as George Michael, Paula Abdul, Janet Jackson, Roy Orbison, Tangerine Dream, Keith Richards, the Human League, Culture Club, Simple Minds, Lenny Kravitz, dc Talk, the Smashing Pumpkins, Mike Oldfield and Spice Girls, among others. After its acquisition by Universal Music Group through its purchase of EMI in 2012, UMG absorbed Virgin's British operations to create Virgin EMI Records in March 2013. Today, the operations of Virgin Records America, Inc. the company's North American operations founded in 1986, are still active and headquartered in Hollywood and have operated under the Capitol Music Group imprint owned by UMG, since 2007. The US operations have taken on the name Virgin Records. A minor number of artists remain on Virgin Records America's roster, mostly occupied with European artists such as Bastille, Circa Waves, Corinne Bailey Rae, Ella Eyre, Walking on Cars, Seinabo Sey, Prides.
Branson and Powell had run a small record shop called Virgin Records and Tapes on Notting Hill Gate, specializing in "krautrock" imports, offering bean bags and free vegetarian food for the benefit of customers listening to the music on offer. The first real store was above a shoe shop at the Tottenham Court Road end of Oxford Street. After making the shop into a success, they turned their business into a fledged record label; the name Virgin, according to Branson, arose from Tessa Watts, a colleague of his, when they were brainstorming business ideas. She suggested Virgin – as they were all new to business – like "virgins"; the original Virgin logo was designed by English artist and illustrator Roger Dean: a young naked woman in mirror image with a large long-tailed serpent and the word "Virgin" in Dean's familiar script. A variation on the logo was used for the spin-off Caroline Records label; the first release on the label was the progressive rock album Tubular Bells by multi-instrumentalist Mike Oldfield, discovered by Tom Newman and brought to Simon Draper – who persuaded Richard and Nik to present it as their first release in 1973, produced by Tom Newman, for which the fledgling label garnered unprecedented acclaim.
This was soon followed by some notable krautrock releases, including electronic breakthrough album Phaedra by Tangerine Dream, The Faust Tapes and Faust IV by Faust. The Faust Tapes album retailed for 49p and as a result allowed this unknown band to reach number 12 in the album charts. Other early albums include Gong's Flying Teapot, which Daevid Allen has been quoted as having never been paid for; the first single release for the label was Kevin Coyne's "Marlene", taken from his album Marjory Razorblade and released in August 1973. Coyne was the second artist signed to the label after Oldfield. Although Virgin was one of the key labels of English and European progressive rock, the 1977 signing of the Sex Pistols reinvented the label as a new-wave outpost, a move that plunged the record company into the mainstream of the punk rock era. Under the guidance of Tessa Watts, Virgin's Head of Publicity, the Pistols rocketed the label to success. Shortly afterwards, the Nottingham record shop was raided by police for having a window display of the Sex Pistols' album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols in the window.
Afterwards they signed other new wave groups: Public Image Ltd, Culture Club, Gillan and the Italians, Human League, Skids, the Motors, the Ruts, Shooting Star, Simple Minds, XTC. After modified versions of the twins label came the red and blue design introduced in 1975, which coincided with the height of punk and new wave; the current Virgin logo was created in 1978, commissioned by Simon Draper managing director of Virgin Records Limited. Brian Cooke of Cooke Key Associates commissioned a graphic designer to produce a stylised signature; the logo was first used on Mike Oldfield's Incantations album in 1978 and by the Virgin Records label until other parts of the Virgin Group adopted it, including Virgin Atlantic, Virgin Mobile and Virgin Money. In 1983 Virgin purchased Charisma Records, renaming it Charisma/Virgin later Virgin/Charisma, before folding the label in 1986 and transferring its remaining artists to Virgin. In the process they acquired comedy group Monty Python; the Charisma label was reactivated in the US in 1990 and enjoyed success with signings such as Maxi Priest, Right Said Fred, 38 Special and Enigma.
When this Charisma label was retired in 1992, all of its artists were, as before, transferred to Virgin. In 1987, Venture Records was created for new age and modern classical artists including Klaus Schulze, associated with Virgin since the early 1970s. 10 Records Immortal Records Delabel Caroline Records was a budget label used from 1973 to 1977. The name and
Steve Dawson
Steven "Dobby" Dawson is an English bass guitarist and a founder of Saxon. Dawson was the inspiration for Harry Shearer's Spinal Tap character Derek Smalls. Saxon Wheels of Steel Strong Arm of the Law Denim and Leather The Eagle Has Landed Power & the Glory Crusader Innocence Is No Excuse Rock the Nations BBC Sessions Live at Donnington 1980 Victim You Re://Landed It's Alive The Second Wave: 25 Years of NWOBHM Motorbiker Pandemonium Circus Oliver / Dawson Saxon Official website
Biff Byford
Peter Rodney "Biff" Byford is an English singer best known as the lead singer of the heavy metal band Saxon. Byford sang and played bass with a band called Coast from around 1973 to 1976 along with drummer Al Dodd and future Saxon guitarist Paul Quinn, when he formed Saxon with guitarists Graham Oliver and Paul Quinn, bassist Steve Dawson and drummer Pete Gill; the band was called Son of a Bitch, but changed to Saxon in 1978. They released their self-titled debut album in 1979, became part of what was known as the new wave of British heavy metal, which included bands like Iron Maiden and Judas Priest; the band had commercial success as well, charting eight UK Top 40 albums and five Top 40 singles between 1980 and 1986. At the end of the 1980s, the band declined in popularity, Oliver and Dawson formed a new band with the same name, though they were forced to change it to Oliver/Dawson Saxon. Saxon maintained a recording and touring career centred on Germany for much of the 1990s, before coming back into broader attention with 2007's The Inner Sanctum.
In April 2007, Byford released his autobiography, entitled Never Surrender after the Saxon song of the same name. Gigwise.com reported on 18 January 2010 that Byford was launching a campaign to have Britons declare heavy metal as their religion in the United Kingdom Census 2011, inspired by the Jedi census phenomenon. With Saxon with Air PavilionKaizoku – vocals on "She's Hot Stuff"with FastwayBad Bad Girls with Freedom CallTaragon – narration on "Tears of Taragon"with DestructionInventor of Evil – vocals on "The Alliance of Hellhoundz"with HelloweenGambling with the Devil – spoken word on "Crack the Riddle" 7 Sinners – spoken word on'Who is Mr. Madman?'with DoroCelebrate – The Night of the Warlock – vocals on "Celebrate" with AvantasiaThe Mystery of Time with The Scintilla ProjectThe Hybrid Never Surrender, 2007 Official Biff Byford Facebook Page Never Surrender Google Books entry Biff Byford at imdb.com
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s in the United Kingdom. With roots in blues rock, psychedelic rock, acid rock, the bands that created heavy metal developed a thick, massive sound, characterized by amplified distortion, extended guitar solos, emphatic beats, overall loudness; the genre's lyrics and performance styles are sometimes associated with machismo. In 1968, three of the genre's most famous pioneers, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and Deep Purple were founded. Though they came to attract wide audiences, they were derided by critics. During the mid-1970s, Judas Priest helped spur the genre's evolution by discarding much of its blues influence. Beginning in the late 1970s, bands in the new wave of British heavy metal such as Iron Maiden and Def Leppard followed in a similar vein. Before the end of the decade, heavy metal fans became known as "metalheads" or "headbangers". During the 1980s, glam metal became popular with groups such as Mötley Crüe.
Underground scenes produced an array of more aggressive styles: thrash metal broke into the mainstream with bands such as Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax, while other extreme subgenres of heavy metal such as death metal and black metal remain subcultural phenomena. Since the mid-1990s popular styles have further expanded the definition of the genre; these include groove metal and nu metal, the latter of which incorporates elements of grunge and hip hop. Heavy metal is traditionally characterized by loud distorted guitars, emphatic rhythms, dense bass-and-drum sound, vigorous vocals. Heavy metal subgenres variously alter, or omit one or more of these attributes; the New York Times critic Jon Pareles writes, "In the taxonomy of popular music, heavy metal is a major subspecies of hard-rock—the breed with less syncopation, less blues, more showmanship and more brute force." The typical band lineup includes a drummer, a bassist, a rhythm guitarist, a lead guitarist, a singer, who may or may not be an instrumentalist.
Keyboard instruments are sometimes used to enhance the fullness of the sound. Deep Purple's Jon Lord played an overdriven Hammond organ. In 1970, John Paul Jones used a Moog synthesizer on Led Zeppelin III; the electric guitar and the sonic power that it projects through amplification has been the key element in heavy metal. The heavy metal guitar sound comes from a combined use of heavy distortion. For classic heavy metal guitar tone, guitarists maintain moderate levels gain at moderate levels, without excessive preamp or pedal distortion, to retain open spaces and air in the music. Thrash metal guitar tone has scooped mid-frequencies and compressed sound with lots of bass frequencies. Guitar solos are "an essential element of the heavy metal code... that underscores the significance of the guitar" to the genre. Most heavy metal songs "feature at least one guitar solo", "a primary means through which the heavy metal performer expresses virtuosity"; some exceptions are nu grindcore bands, which tend to omit guitar solos.
With rhythm guitar parts, the "heavy crunch sound in heavy metal... palm muting" the strings with the picking hand and using distortion. Palm muting creates a tighter, more precise sound and it emphasizes the low end; the lead role of the guitar in heavy metal collides with the traditional "frontman" or bandleader role of the vocalist, creating a musical tension as the two "contend for dominance" in a spirit of "affectionate rivalry". Heavy metal "demands the subordination of the voice" to the overall sound of the band. Reflecting metal's roots in the 1960s counterculture, an "explicit display of emotion" is required from the vocals as a sign of authenticity. Critic Simon Frith claims; the prominent role of the bass is key to the metal sound, the interplay of bass and guitar is a central element. The bass guitar provides the low-end sound crucial to making the music "heavy"; the bass plays a "more important role in heavy metal than in any other genre of rock". Metal basslines vary in complexity, from holding down a low pedal point as a foundation to doubling complex riffs and licks along with the lead or rhythm guitars.
Some bands feature the bass as a lead instrument, an approach popularized by Metallica's Cliff Burton with his heavy emphasis on bass guitar solos and use of chords while playing bass in the early 1980s. Lemmy of Motörhead played overdriven power chords in his bass lines; the essence of heavy metal drumming is creating a loud, constant beat for the band using the "trifecta of speed and precision". Heavy metal drumming "requires an exceptional amount of endurance", drummers have to develop "considerable speed and dexterity... to play the intricate patterns" used in heavy metal. A characteristic metal drumming technique is the cymbal choke, which consists of striking a cymbal and immediately silencing it by grabbing it with the other hand, producing a burst of sound; the metal drum setup is much larger than those employed in other forms of rock music. Black metal, death metal and some "mainstream metal" bands "all depend upon double-kicks and blast beats". In live performance, loudness—an "onslaught of sound", in sociologist Deena Weinstein's description—is considered vital.
In his book Metalheads, psychologist Jeffrey Arnett refers to heavy me
Nigel Glockler
Nigel Glockler is an English musician, best known as the longtime drummer for the heavy metal band Saxon, which he first joined in 1981. His surname is sometimes misspelled as "Glockner", he began his musical career in 1980 as the drummer for the British band Krakatoa. In 1981 he worked as a session musician with the singer Toyah. At the end of that year, he joined Saxon. Glockler has been with Saxon since except for two temporary absences. Glockler first left Saxon in 1987 when he was invited by Steve Howe to join a reformed lineup of the supergroup GTR; that lineup did not release any albums though some songs appeared on albums by other GTR members. Glockler returned to Saxon in 1988. In the early-to-mid 1990s he contributed to the albums Turbulence by Steve Howe and Aqua by Asia, plus two albums by The Original Iron Men. Glockler stayed with Saxon until 1998 when he was forced to temporarily retire due to neck injuries that impeded his drumming. After receiving medical treatment, Glockler was able to play drums again, first contributing to the album Mad Men and English Dogs with Saxon guitarist Doug Scarratt in 2001.
Glockler again rejoined Saxon in 2005 upon the departure of drummer Jörg Michael, remains with the band as of 2018. In late 2014 he survived several surgeries. 1982: The Eagle Has Landed 1983: Power & the Glory 1984: Crusader 1985: Innocence Is No Excuse 1986: Rock the Nations 1989: Rock'n' Roll Gypsies 1990: Greatest Hits Live! 1991: Solid Ball of Rock 1992: Forever Free 1995: Dogs of War 1997: Unleash the Beast 2006: The Eagle Has Landed – part 3 2007: The Inner Sanctum 2009: Into the Labyrinth 2011: Call to Arms 2012: Heavy Metal Thunder – Live: Eagles Over Wacken 2013: Sacrifice 2015: Battering Ram 2016: Let Me Feel Your Power 2018: Thunderbolt 1992: Aqua 1996: Archiva 1 1996: Archiva 2 1981: Anthem 1991: Turbulence https://www.discogs.com/es/artist/285446-Nigel-Glockler https://www.allmusic.com/artist/saxon-mn0000259800 http://dedica.la/artist/Nigel+Glockler/biography#. UUYxxj6mmFE
Denim and Leather
Denim and Leather is the fourth studio album by English heavy metal band Saxon released in 1981. The album was certified Gold status in the U. K; this was the last album with the classic line up of Saxon, as drummer Pete Gill would leave the band due to a hand injury joining Motörhead. The album spawned two of their most successful singles, "And the Bands Played On" and "Princess of the Night". There are nine songs on this album. "Princess of the Night" is a song about a powerful steam locomotive and "And the Bands Played On" is about 1980 Monsters of Rock Festival - name checking several of the other acts on the bill including Rainbow and Touch. Other themes for the songs include: partying, the spirit of the music, and, like many of their songs, motorcycles. "Midnight Rider" is a song about Saxon's 1980 North American tour. The name of the album and song was inspired by the popular attire of metalheads in the early 1980s, defined by either denim jeans and jackets or a leather biker jacket; the song is seen as a tribute from the band to their fans while describing the history of the sub-culture and the rise of the new wave of British heavy metal.
The album peaked at #9 in the UK Albums Chart. The album is regarded as a classic in the band's discography, has been received positively by critics and fans. Eduardo Rivadavia of AllMusic called the opening track "Princess of the Night" an "infectiously anthemic opening statement", whilst praising the title track for being an "unqualified classic", he considered "Out of Control" and "Rough and Ready" to be strong tracks, whilst regarding "Fire in the Sky", "Midnight Rider", "And The Bands Played On" as "spectacular". Canadian journalist Martin Popoff had mixed feelings about Denim and Leather, which he considered "Saxon's stadium rock album... boppier and sillier than Wheels of Steel, but still catchy", denouncing "the band's progressively feeble song skills while gaining points for conviction." All tracks written by Saxon. Bonus tracks 12-18 recorded live on the Denim and Leather Tour, 1981. Biff Byford - vocals Graham Oliver - guitar Paul Quinn - guitar Steve Dawson - bass guitar Pete Gill - drumsProductionNigel Thomas - producer Andy Lydon - engineer Aquarius Studios, Geneva - recording location Polar Studios, Stockholm - additional recording location, mixing location
