Saxon - The Eagle Has Landed Pt. III
Saxon. What a band. I was minus eight years old when they were occupying rehearsal rooms for the first time and by the time the fan base of the band chose ‘The Eagle Has Landed’ as the title track for their first live album, my parents were just thinking about having a baby. Right now, the band has recorded their third live album which comes in two disks. The first one contains songs from the 80s whereas the second one goes from the early 90s until now.
The first thing I did when I received the disk was taking a look at the recording settings. This album was recorded at nine!!! different places including the Wacken Open Air festival and three major cities in Europe (London, Paris and Berlin). So, the band must have had the desire to leave nothing to the imagination and make a classic of this record.
The sound of the album is really nice. It is clear to hear that it is a live album, yet the individual instruments are clear to hear. The vocals could be a little louder sometimes but that’s my only comment on the sound. The crowd is also pretty much present (listen to the almighty sing-a-long-song ‘Wheels of Steal’) which is a big pro for me when listening to a live album but I miss the real interaction. Maybe that’s because of the fact that the classics have been played over and over again, because Biff doesn’t work that hard to have a chat between the songs. It could be the fact that the band has chosen to put only the songs on the album but I’d prefer the real live atmosphere in order to enjoy live audio to the max.
Of course it is inevitable to have some kind of overlap with the first live album, so the already mentioned ‘Wheels of Steel’ is also on this one, as well as ‘Solid Ball of Rock' but that’s about it. So, the fans really get a lot of new material with this album. A big plus for that. Still, there are some nice songs left for a unique appearance on this album like ‘And the Bands Played On’ and ‘Warrior’. Personally I’d say you should listen to the incredible version of ‘Suzie Hold On’. Besides that, the nice album ‘Lionheart’ is also pretty much presented, of course by including the title track. So, there is nothing wrong with the set list.
The only comment I can make is the fact that, like I already mentioned, the album is focusing mainly on the songs instead of the interaction. That’s no shame, but it makes 140!!! minutes a long time. The only time Biff tries to have some kind of chat is on ‘To Hell and Back Again’ but then he makes a bad mistake by pushing it too hard instead of being funny: ‘Ok, do you want an old song or a new song? A fast song or a slow song? A square song or a round song? A good song or a fucking bad song?’ It’s a shame because it could give the album that little extra bite every live album needs.
In the end, Saxon proves that after thirty years, they are still a band to look forwards to. With a huge package of good songs and a live experience that is not to be compared with others, they managed to come up with a decent follow-up for the sequel of ‘The Eagle has Landed’. It may not be the best but it’s a pretty damn fine piece of live music. And although the music is not comparable with bands that rise up today, this album makes you appreciate the work bands like Saxon have done in order to pave the roads. At least I’ll have a few beers on that.
80/1001Details SPV
Released on Tuesday Jun 6th, 2006
Heavy Metal
Writer @CarpeSiem on Wednesday May 17th, 2006
Tags: #Saxon
Tracklisting
CD 1:
01. This Town Rocks (Stockholm 2005)
02. Backs To The Wall (Nuremberg 2005)
03. Redline (Hamburg 2005)
04. Stand Up And Be Counted (Berlin 2005)
05. Never Surrender (Berlin 2005)
06. Frozen Rainbow (Fulda 2005)
07. Suzie Hold On (Nuremberg 2005)
08. Play It Loud (Nuremberg 2005)
09. Warrior (Nuremberg 2005)
10. See The Lights Shining (Hamburg 2005)
11. To Hell And Back Again (Hamburg 2005)
12. Stallions Of The Highway (Fulda 2005)
13. Wheels Of Steel (Nuremberg 2005)
14. And The Bands Played On (Wacken 2004)
15. Crusader (Wacken 2004)
CD 2:
01. The Return (Paris 2004)
02. Lionheart (Paris 2004)
03. Man & Machine (London 2004)
04. Beyond The Grave (London 2004)
05. Searching For Atlantis (London 2004)
06. To Live By The Sword Pt. I (London 2004)
07. Unleash The Beast (London 2004)
08. To Live By The Sword Pt. II (London 2004)
09. Flying On The Edge (Paris 2004)
10. Jack Tars (Kiel 2004)
11. English Man \'O\' War (Kiel 2004)
12. Court Of The Crimson King (Kiel 2004)
13. Broken Heroes (Kiel 2004)
14. Dragon\'s Lair (Kiel 2004)
15. Rock Is Our Live (Wacken 2004)
16. Travellers Time (Wacken 2004)
17. Solid Ball Of Rock (Wacken 2004)
01. This Town Rocks (Stockholm 2005)
02. Backs To The Wall (Nuremberg 2005)
03. Redline (Hamburg 2005)
04. Stand Up And Be Counted (Berlin 2005)
05. Never Surrender (Berlin 2005)
06. Frozen Rainbow (Fulda 2005)
07. Suzie Hold On (Nuremberg 2005)
08. Play It Loud (Nuremberg 2005)
09. Warrior (Nuremberg 2005)
10. See The Lights Shining (Hamburg 2005)
11. To Hell And Back Again (Hamburg 2005)
12. Stallions Of The Highway (Fulda 2005)
13. Wheels Of Steel (Nuremberg 2005)
14. And The Bands Played On (Wacken 2004)
15. Crusader (Wacken 2004)
CD 2:
01. The Return (Paris 2004)
02. Lionheart (Paris 2004)
03. Man & Machine (London 2004)
04. Beyond The Grave (London 2004)
05. Searching For Atlantis (London 2004)
06. To Live By The Sword Pt. I (London 2004)
07. Unleash The Beast (London 2004)
08. To Live By The Sword Pt. II (London 2004)
09. Flying On The Edge (Paris 2004)
10. Jack Tars (Kiel 2004)
11. English Man \'O\' War (Kiel 2004)
12. Court Of The Crimson King (Kiel 2004)
13. Broken Heroes (Kiel 2004)
14. Dragon\'s Lair (Kiel 2004)
15. Rock Is Our Live (Wacken 2004)
16. Travellers Time (Wacken 2004)
17. Solid Ball Of Rock (Wacken 2004)
Line up
Biff Byford: vocals
Doug Scarrett: guitar
Paul Quinn: guitar
Nibs Carter: bass
Nigel Glocker: drums
Doug Scarrett: guitar
Paul Quinn: guitar
Nibs Carter: bass
Nigel Glocker: drums
Related Content
Other Related Content