MOTÖRHEAD

1979

BMG
rating icon 8.5 / 10

Track listing:

"Overkill"
1. Overkill
2. Stay Clean
3. (I Won't) Pay Your Price
4. I'll Be Your Sister
5. Capricorn
6. No Class
7. Damage Case
8. Tear Ya Down
9. Metropolis
10. Limb From Limb

"Good N'Loud"
Live At Friars, Aylesbury – 31st March 1979

1. Overkill
2. Stay Clean
3. Keep Us On The Road
4. No Class
5. Leaving Here
6. Iron Horse / Born To Lose
7. Metropolis
8. The Watcher
9. Damage Case
10. (I Won't) Pay Your Price
11. Capricorn
12. Too Late, Too Late
13. I'll Be Your Sister
14. I'm Your Witchdoctor
15. Train Kept A-Rollin'
16. Limb From Limb
17. White Line Fever
18. Motörhead

"Bomber"

1. Dead Men Tell No Tales
2. Lawman
3. Sweet Revenge
4. Sharpshooter
5. Poison
6. Stone Dead Forever
7. All The Aces
8. Step Down
9. Talking Head
10. Bomber

"Sharpshooter"
Live At la Rotunde, Le Mans – 3rd Nov 1979

1. Overkill
2. Stay Clean
3. No Class
4. Metropolis
5. All The Aces
6. Dead Men Tell No Tales
7. I'll Be Your Sister
8. Lawman
9. Too Late, Too Late
10. Poison
11. (I Won't) Pay Your Price
12. Sharpshooter
13. Capricorn
14. Train Kept A-Rollin'
15. Bomber
16. Limb From Limb
17. White Line Fever
18. Motörhead

"The Rest Of '79"
1. Too Late, Too Late (Overkill 7" B-Side)
2. Like A Nightmare (Alternative version of No Class B-Side)
3. Over The Top (Bomber 7" B-Side)
4. Stone Dead Forever (Alternative Version)
5. Sharpshooter (Alternative Version)
6. Bomber (Alternative Version)
7. Step Down (Alternative Version)
8. Fun On The Farm (Bomber Outtake)
9. Treat Me Nice (Bomber Outtake)
10. You Ain't Gonna Live Forever (Bomber Outtake)

"No Class 7-inch"

1. No Class
2. Like A Nightmare


An inevitable step after the death of a beloved musician such as Lemmy Kilmister is the posthumous release of products pitched with the promise of paying tribute to that musician's legacy, many of which are cynical cash grabs that are essentially the music version of Malibu Stacy getting a new hat. Luckily for MOTÖRHEAD fans, the new vinyl box set, simply titled "1979", is the complete opposite of that. It is an impressive package that was obviously put together with love, reverence and many hours of care.

Yes, the set does include new masters of the group's seminal 1979 records, "Overkill" and "Bomber", as well as B-sides and alternate versions that have been contained on previous reissues. Both albums remain timeless classics and continue to showcase why the argument can be made for MOTÖRHEAD being the first crossover band that was fast enough for the punk rock kids and heavy enough for the metal kids, thanks to fan favorite tracks such as "Stay Clean" and "Damage Case". The new masters sound great sonically, to the point that every breath Kilmister takes after emitting his gravelly vocals is audible, and every bass line rumbles loudly.

The true impetus for the longtime MOTÖRHEAD fan to look into the "1979" set — and the moments where the hefty price tag earns its value — is the treasure trove of archival live performances contained herein. As heavy as MOTÖRHEAD came off on their recorded output, it was the raw power of their live performances that pushed them to their legendary status and earned lifetime fandom from its followers. There are two complete — and previously unreleased — performances contained on the "1979" set, both of them recorded within a week of the respective releases of "Overkill" and "Bomber". The untamed energy of the 1979 lineup of Kilmister (bass/vocals),Fast Eddie Clarke (guitars) and Philthy Animal (drums) is immediately evident on these performances. MOTÖRHEAD had not been established as bona fide legends just yet but took to the stage on these nights as if they had already been anointed.

A March 1979 set recorded in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England — titled here as "Good N'Loud" — features a rendition of "Capricorn" that is sinister and stripped-down and a performance of "Iron Horse/Born To Lose" that is covered in dirt. MOTÖRHEAD's cover of blues standard "Train Kept A-Rollin'" has never sounded heavier thanks to Clarke delivering a guitar performance that is overloaded with fuzz and shred. The soundboard recording of a November 1979 performance recorded in Le Mans, France — given the title "Sharpshooter" — is a bit more blasted-out and distorted in terms of sound quality, but is still worth doing a deep-dive listen if only for another infectious display of Kilmister's between-song banter, and several songs such as "No Class" come off with an extra coat of heaviness from that distortion.

Equally as immersive as the archival performances is the reading material contained within the box set. A 40-page replica magazine — mocked up to look like an era-appropriate issue of "Melody Maker" — contains recollections of the band's rise to fame and tales of their debauchery during that era from journalists, band acquaintances and fellow musicians such as Peter Hook (JOY DIVISION/NEW ORDER) and Kim McAuliffe (GIRLSCHOOL),alongside replica ads — both real and satirical. The amount of effort given to the painstaking visual detail of this is almost as engaging as the stories themselves, and along with a replica tour program/photo book, is a great way to kill the time while indulging in the live performances.

If the effort put into the "1979" set is going to be indicative of the approach taken with handling MOTÖRHEAD's legacy moving forward on future projects, there is no reason the legend of the band can't endure for at least another forty years.

Author: Jason Roche
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).