Best Albums Of '78

Avenger · Post by **Avenger** » Wed Feb 17, 2010 8:18 am

Yes, another list thread, I know, but these types of threads are very informative and are often a good way to spread the word and discover stuff that others have potentially never heard before. The idea is to eventually have a complete range of threads for each year of Metal that this website/forum is dedicated to. We'll start here and work our way up the years once each thread starts to lose steam. I chose 1978 because it's arguably the year when the NWOBHM began and solidified as a movement.

We'll stick to LP/MLP/EP/Single format. Sorry, no demos guys, because that would get too hectic. All sub-genres can be covered. This is not really an issue for the earlier years, but come the mid 80's Metal became a lot more varied.

Also, keep in mind that this is a thread based on OPINIONS and no one is wrong. Feel free to comment that you disagree, but we don't need any more shit-flinging wars based on personal tastes.

Let the madness begin...

GJ · Post by GJ » Wed Feb 17, 2010 9:43 am

Hard year when it comes to metal.

Some obvious ones:
Judas Priest - Stained Class and Killing Machine/Hell Bent for Leather
Scorpions - Tokyo Tapes
Rainbow - Long Live Rock'n'Roll

then there's (on a less metallic level, but still important and great)...

Starz - Coliseum Rock
Rush - Hemispheres

I kindly leave HL to someone else (Why yes Plato) to mention.

Why yes Plato · Post by **Why yes Plato** » Wed Feb 17, 2010 11:49 am

How 'bout Heavy Load's Full Speed At High Level? One of the earliest Swedish metal albums and an endearing take on Judas Priest. I also really like David Feinstein - Midnight Lady/Ship On A Stormy Sea, which not only has Dio's cousin, excellent organ playing ala really fast Uriah Heep but Joey deMaio laying down some pretty sweet bass lines as well.

Avenger, excuse my ignorance, but were there really that many demos out in '78?

GJ · Post by GJ » Wed Feb 17, 2010 1:55 pm

Ted Nugent - Weekend Warriors

The people at Metal Archives must be complete idiots - not having an article about this man. His playing must be as important to Heavy Metal as that of Richie Blackmore and Tony Iommi. No kidding here - I got the feelin'...

pzman · Post by **pzman** » Wed Feb 17, 2010 5:13 pm

Zarpa - Los Quatro Jinetes Del Apocalypsis.

Keir · Post by **Keir** » Wed Feb 17, 2010 5:52 pm

Why yes Plato wrote:I also really like David Feinstein - Midnight Lady/Ship On A Stormy Sea, which not only has Dio's cousin, excellent organ playing ala really fast Uriah Heep but Joey deMaio laying down some pretty sweet bass lines as well.

Hell yes!

Here are 2 of my other favorites, albeit on the lighter side:
Magnum – Kingdom Of Madness
Thin Lizzy – Live And Dangerous
UFO – Obsession

Also, AC/DC – Powerage is probably worth mentioning just for “What’s Next To The Moon”.

DMR · Post by **DMR** » Wed Feb 17, 2010 7:19 pm

Why yes Plato wrote:How 'bout Heavy Load's Full Speed At High Level? One of the earliest Swedish metal albums and an endearing take on Judas Priest.

I love that album! My favorite from the '70s by far.

The only other '78 albums I like are obvious ones: Long Live Rock 'N' Roll, Stained Class, Hemispheres... and the Misfits' Static Age, although it wasn't released then and isn't metal.

Avenger · Post by **Avenger** » Wed Feb 17, 2010 10:16 pm

Why yes Plato wrote:Avenger, excuse my ignorance, but were there really that many demos out in '78?

Not to my knowledge, but this is just a general guideline for all of the threads that will eventually emerge. All years will be covered.

Zherneboh · Post by **Zherneboh** » Wed Feb 17, 2010 11:59 pm

Van Halen - the very same!

bigfootkit · Post by **bigfootkit** » Thu Feb 18, 2010 12:59 am

Some good suggestions there, kudos for pointing out the genius of TED NUGENT's "Weekend Warriors" (Espescially the godlike "Venom Soup") and STARZ's "Coliseum Rock".
Here are a few of my favourites from '78, not all "Metal", but hard enough to merit inclusion:
ROSE TATTOO - Rose Tattoo
AXIS - It's A Circus World
ACE FREHLEY - KISS Solo Album
and i realise i'm probably in the minority here, but i still like
BLACK SABBATH - Never Say Die, (espescially "Junior's Eyes")

Why yes Plato · Post by **Why yes Plato** » Thu Feb 18, 2010 1:16 am

What's the general feeling about Granmax and their excellent second album Kiss Heaven Goodbye? To me it embodies all the greatness and excesses that was metal in the seventies, but post-eighties revisionism seems to exclude this kind of sound from the canon. "Prince of the Southern Ice" makes me want to jump into a Frank Frazetta painting, ride sleds drawn by polar bears and wave around crudely forged weaponry

GJ · Post by GJ » Thu Feb 18, 2010 9:41 am

Why yes Plato wrote:What's the general feeling about Granmax and their excellent second album Kiss Heaven Goodbye? To me it embodies all the greatness and excesses that was metal in the seventies, but post-eighties revisionism seems to exclude this kind of sound from the canon. "Prince of the Southern Ice" makes me want to jump into a Frank Frazetta painting, ride sleds drawn by polar bears and wave around crudely forged weaponry

Of course! Thanks for reminding of this one - weren't sure about year of release actually.

Another one: Alkana - Welcome to my Paradise An album which I found out about last week or the one before from some people here discussing the greatness of the song The Tower. Found a rip on the net. I had never heard about it before: The have Jack Rucker (Damien King I) as vocalist and a sound occasionally very reminicent of Warlord (you'd almost expect Bill Tsamis to have written some of their stuff).

While at it I have to mention Prism - See Forever Eyes and Asia (US) - Asia, both whom are great records deserving your immediate attention. Damn you false metalheads!

Oh, and Motörhead - Overkill (the single) apparently was released in 1978!

great_knuthulhu · Post by **great_knuthulhu** » Thu Feb 18, 2010 4:32 pm

GJ wrote:
Why yes Plato wrote:What's the general feeling about Granmax and their excellent second album Kiss Heaven Goodbye? To me it embodies all the greatness and excesses that was metal in the seventies, but post-eighties revisionism seems to exclude this kind of sound from the canon. "Prince of the Southern Ice" makes me want to jump into a Frank Frazetta painting, ride sleds drawn by polar bears and wave around crudely forged weaponry
Of course! Thanks for reminding of this one - weren't sure about year of release actually.

Another one: Alkana - Welcome to my Paradise An album which I found out about last week or the one before from some people here discussing the greatness of the song The Tower. Found a rip on the net. I had never heard about it before: The have Jack Rucker (Damien King I) as vocalist and a sound occasionally very reminicent of Warlord (you'd almost expect Bill Tsamis to have written some of their stuff).

While at it I have to mention Prism - See Forever Eyes and Asia (US) - Asia, both whom are great records deserving your immediate attention. Damn you false metalheads!

Oh, and Motörhead - Overkill (the single) apparently was released in 1978!

That Granmax album is a bit patchy, but when it hits it's stride, it really gets going. Mistress of Eternity is a classic IMO.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dChfXok-Ldk

Alkana is pretty good, but that song, The Tower, is amazing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgYqFgoTFWU

Not too sure about Prism as I feel it's a little lightweight, but Asia is very, very good. There's one on Youtube from their second album, which is also quite good.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rnn0mwt0-hs

Zon's Astral Projector is not very heavy, but a really good pomp rocker. Their second album is a bit of a stinker though. I also like both the Sinister-Soldiers-Sorcery and the Stunt Rock one. Ram Jam's Portrait of the Artist as a Young Ram is pretty good album, better than their debut. Swedish band Rhapsody had an uneven, but still pretty good album out too. It's been reissued on CD and should be easy to get.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKdd6wDRAqg

anthares · Post by **anthares** » Thu Feb 18, 2010 5:32 pm

Zherneboh wrote:Van Halen - the very same!

Nonseinormale65 · Post by **Nonseinormale65** » Thu Feb 18, 2010 6:30 pm

Some good album from 1978(though it is wholly inappropriate to define them totally HM,most of them are pomp/hard rock etc. but they kick asses!!!)

Triumph -- Just a game
Krokus -- Painkiller(issued as "Pay it in Metal" in the U.S.A.)
The Godz -- Same
Legs Diamomd -- A diamond is a hard rock
Helix -- Breaking loose
Teaze -- Tour of Japan
Magnum -- Kingdom of Madness
AC/DC -- Powerage
Blue Oyster Cult -- Some Enchanted Evening
Boston -- Don't look back
Max Webster -- Mutiny Up My Sleeve
Quiet Riot -- Quiet Riot I
Teaser -- Same(Adrian Vandenberg on guitar)
Plus --- Same -- from Argentina,this was their second album,(typical
hard rock a la Led Zeppelin/Bad Company)note that Saul Blanch
(some years later with Rata Blanca in their debut album)was the lead singer.

Black Spirit -- Same (recorded in 1973 but published in 1978,
extremely rare with gatefold cover,
this band was formed by italian members but they all lived
in Germany,heavy doom inspired by Black Sabbath;reissued on cd and
lp with different cover in 1993/1994).

Janus -- Al maestrale(extremely rare,but reissued many times,
this is a very strange but good italian stuff,hard rock
with medieval influences).