BBC SESSIONS RECORDINGS

Though they quickly changed their name from Son of a Bitch to Saxon, little was done to temper the band's ballsy rock thrust. From Biff Byford's often-shrill, always-commanding, bombastic vocals to the clean-lined, powerful twin lead and chord attack of Graham Oliver and Paul Quinn, Saxon expanded on AC/DC's testosterone- and humor-fueled roots rock/metal, added some velocity and exaggerated themes, and upped the ante on soaring viking leads and vocals. Hence, alongside Def Leppard, Diamondhead, and Iron Maiden, the New Wave of British Heavy Metal was born. Saxon was a clear early contender who later -- through bad timing and deals -- missed their mark. However, these BBC sessions -- recorded live between 1980 and 1986 -- demonstrate a hard-working rock band at the peak of their craft. Amped up on what seems to be rocket fuel, Saxon is going for it to the death on these tracks, absolutely flying down the sonic road, over-confident and abundantly aware that they were creating some of the greatest and most-enduring -- even if not terribly well-known -- anthemic metal to be committed to tape. Consider the case of blazing tracks like "Motorcycle Man" and "Stallions of the Highway": both are testosterone-soaked paeans to speed and living hard, executed with due fury and wildness. A great band who unfortunately missed early, then attempted to make up for that loss by altering their image and sound -- like Whitesnake -- to attract commercial prospects. Didn't work. ~ Patrick Kennedy|