Release Date: May
19, 2017
Label: Legacy
Rob
Halford is The Heavy Metal God. I don’t think too many people would dispute
that claim. Although there are a few others like Ozzy that can stake claim to
that title however he is the self-proclaimed prince of darkness. Halford has
made his mark with the legendary band Judas Priest and he did have a remarkable
solo career for several years. He is on his second long term stint as their
front man and doing very well indeed.
I never got into his band Fight before and this was a great
opportunity to do so. I really enjoyed the four recordings that are part of
this box set. Even the K5: The War of
Words Demos were good. And as far as demos go I would have to say
excellent.
Halford put together a young and energetic band that really
knew how to bring down the house. All you need is a good band and Halford
fronting it, and you the perfect recipe for heavy metal mayhem.
When Resurrection and
Crucible came out I remember being
very anxious to hear them. I was wondering without Judas Priest if the man
would lose his core sound and command in songs. Well that thought was dispelled
quickly as those two releases cemented his solo career once and for all. We are
all glad he went back to Priest but he did carve out an excellent solo career.
It’s all about talent and chemistry and those two elements blended well on
those excellent releases.
Live
Insurrection is one of the better live albums I have ever
heard. For my metal tastes, it ranks right up there with Deep Purple’s Made In Japan and Uriah Heep Live, both 70s classics that I played all the time. The
only qualm I have with this box set is the inclusion of two other live albums,
which are good but they don’t touch Live
Insurrection. I really don’t think there was a need to have three live
albums in one box set. More rarities would have been appropriate for this type
of career spanning release.
Two was an
experiment and it doesn’t sound like it belongs in this set at all but it was
one of Halford’s solo projects. Halford
III: Winter Songs was a novelty and now he can say he did a Christmas
album. I thought it was a waste of time when he released it and it is the one
blemish on his otherwise incredible career. Halford
IV: Made of Metal would get him back on track again although it was not one
of his best it was a good listen. He reclaimed his title as the heavy metal god
once again and moved on to make some incredible music with Judas Priest (and
they are working one another album presently).
So, take away two live albums and the Christmas album and
what you have is various shades and levels of heavy metal music with one of the
best voices in the history of the genre. Those three releases could have been
replaced easily for us hungry metal fans with other recordings in the vaults.
Perhaps that will be for another day though.
When you hear the scream like a banshee on “Resurrection”
you know there is nobody that did it like Rob Halford. So just crank it up and
enjoy. I started every day off for a week listening to this music on my morning
drive. Metal and a cup of joe always set me right.
Check out the amazing solo career of Mr. Rob Halford. His
work with Judas Priest continues to be excellent and what he did on his own
certainly made a statement as well. He can hang his head high knowing his music
represented Heavy Metal in the best way possible.
4/5 Stars
Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck
July 2, 2017
Founder of:
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Rob Halford The Complete Albums Collection
Albums:Fight
K5: The War of Words Demos
War of Words
Mutations
A Small Deadly Space
2wo
Voyeurs
Resurrection
Live Insurrection
Crucible
Live in Anaheim
Halford III: Winter Songs
Halford IV: Made of Metal
Rob Halford The Complete Albums Collection
Albums:Fight
K5: The War of Words Demos
War of Words
Mutations
A Small Deadly Space
2wo
Voyeurs
Resurrection
Live Insurrection
Crucible
Live in Anaheim
Halford III: Winter Songs
Halford IV: Made of Metal