1976 was the year when Thin Lizzy started to find their feet. After the initial wanderings as a trio with Eric Bell, Phil Lynott and Brian Downey had settled on the deal guitar attack of Scott Gorham and Brian Robertson, and while they were certainly not the first to bring the twin leads into a hard rock environment they were hugely influential. ‘Jailbreak’ was their sixth studio album, and the first to get real success, giving them their first gold records. A subsequent tour had to be cancelled due to Lynott contracting hepatitis so while in the hospital he worked on new songs and the band were back in the studio quickly, releasing ‘Johnny The Fox’ just six months later, which also went gold. Like many, my first inkling about this band was when they appeared on Top of the Pops that year performing the hit single from ‘Jailbreak’, “The Boys Are Back In Town”. I soon had the album, and ‘Johnny’ and literally wore out ‘Bad Reputation’, which of course led to the mighty ‘Live and Dangerous’, still one of the greatest live albums of all time.
Although there were some highlights after that, for me this was the golden years with the premier line-up, and to find it was being honoured with a special 5CD/1Blu-Ray set was well worth investigating. Here we have the two original albums, plus new stereo mixes (which also bring to life some of Phil’s asides not audible on the originals). There are also unreleased versions from the band’s vault, radio sessions, demos and an unreleased Cleveland, Ohio show recorded May 11th, 1976. The Blu-Ray contains an Atmos mix of both albums as well as the new stereo mixes and remastered versions of the original albums. The new mixes have been undertaken by Richard Whittaker, overseen by Scott Gorham and mastered by Andy Pearce. It is housed in a 10 x 10 box with a 40-page hard-backed book with sleeve notes by renowned music writer Mark Blake and packed with rare photos, but for me this is all about the music.
The first hard rock album I ever bought in my life was by Thin Lizzy, and I became quite skilled at drawing their logo on school desks (and getting in trouble for it), and they were the backdrop to my teenage years. While it was good to reacquaint myself with the original albums, I can’t see myself playing them again as the remixes provide way more depth and power. The guitars really crunch and it is possible to hear way more of what Downey was doing in the background, as he is a far more acclaimed drummer than he ever gets recognition for, being overlooked by Lynott and the guitar duels. The demos are also fascinating as we hear the band trying their way, while the slowed down acoustic version of “Romeo and the Lonely Girl” shows the band in a very different light indeed. I also enjoy the instrumental take on “The Kid Is Back In Town” which allows us to clearly hear everything which is happening when there are no vocals.
This is undoubtedly an essential purchase for anyone interested in Thin Lizzy, and unlike many sets where the remixes do not add much to the originals or the unreleased versions will be played once and never again, here we have a set which has taken the majesty of Lynott, Downey, Gorham and Robertson to new heights and with 84 songs at 5:47 in length, this is a heck of a release.
Rating: 10/10
Links:
https://www.thinlizzyofficial.com/
https://www.universalmusicrecordings.com/
