Epic Rock Episode 32: Big Bad Moon—Joe Satriani

“Big Bad Moon” is a classic track by the virtuoso guitarist Joe Satriani. It’s known for its energetic rhythm, catchy melody, and of course, Satriani’s signature guitar wizardry. The song showcases his incredible talent for blending rock, blues, and a touch of psychedelia into a captivating instrumental piece. Satriani’s ability to create such dynamic and memorable guitar compositions has earned him a well-deserved reputation as one of the greatest guitarists of his generation.

“When the night falls, the big moon’s gonna rise
You can look right up, see it in the sky
Makes me feel like I’m going to blow a fuse
I start to shiver and shake with a strange kind of blues
…But I like it


I see it now the moon is high above
It’s got a hold on me, I just can’t get enough
Big, round, black and white, I feel the pull, I see the light
Big bad moon’s looking down on me tonight
…But I like it


When the moon comes, got nowhere to hide
It can turn your head around like it turns the tide
Man, woman, boy, child. Makes you feel like you were born wild
The big bad moon’s looking down on me tonight
…But I like it
…I like it


Talkin’ ’bout big bad moon
Ooh yeah big bad moon
Talkin’ ’bout big bad moon
Ooh yeah…




Source:

Musixmatch
Songwriters: Joe Satriani
Big Bad Moon lyrics © Strange Beautiful Music

Epic Rock Episode 31: Strange Machines—The Gathering

There are not that many good Dutch rock songs, but “Strange Machine”s by The Gathering, certainly can be called a great metal track.

It is the first song of The Gathering’s third album, the first to feature vocalist Anneke van Giersbergen. The song contains a passage from George Pal’s film version of H.G. Wells’s book, The Time Machine.

It is about the desire to construct a machine that can fly through time.

In 1995, The Gathering released “Mandylion,” their third album and first to feature lead vocalist Anneke van Giersbergen, through Century Media; proving to be their breakthrough and selling over 130,000 copies in Europe. Two singles were released from Mandylion, “Adrenaline/Leaves” and “Strange Machines”, the latter, which reached number 37 on the Dutch singles charts and helped raise the group’s popularity in Europe and the United States.

[Verse 1]
It has always been in the back of my mind
Dreaming about going to the corners of time
I always wanted to fly in strange machines

[Chorus 1]
I wanna do centuries in a lifetime
And feel it with my hands
Touch the World War II and Cleopatra
Flying…

[Verse 2]
Could it be that my dream would come true
Building a machine that would actually do
What I want it to do

[Verse 3]
Russian revolution, let’s do that in one day
Beethoven and Gershwin, I think that would be OK
More than anything I wanna fly in strange machines

[Chorus 2]
I wanna do centuries in a lifetime
And see it with my eyes
Watch Jesus rise, if he ever did
Flying…
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Eléanor
The Gathering
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Taylor Swift
[Chorus 3]
I wanna do centuries in a lifetime
And feel it with my hands
Touch the Renaissance and Chaka Khan
Flying…




Sources

https://genius.com/The-gathering-strange-machines-lyrics

Epic Rock Episode 30-The Wild and the Young-Quiet Riot

“The Wild and the Young” is a song by American heavy metal band Quiet Riot, released in 1986 as the lead single from their fifth studio album QR III. The song was written by Spencer Proffer, Frankie Banali, Carlos Cavazo, Kevin DuBrow and Chuck Wright, and was produced by Proffer.

The song’s music video was directed by Jeff Stein and produced by Michael Ader. It received its premiere on MTV on 11 July 1986 and went on to achieve active rotation on the channel. It peaked at number 30 on the Cash Box Top 30 Music Videos chart in October 1986.

The video was made when the US Senate held hearings regarding explicit song lyrics, particularly in heavy metal songs, imagery that resonated deeply with rock and metal music fans, who wanted nothing more than to listen to their favorite music. The video also featured game show host Wink Martindale in a cameo as a militarist in charge of the rock’ n’ roll purge.


Times are changing, nothing stays the same
For this jukebox generation
Adhere to fashion like computer games
Modern day communication


The news hard to take will fade in tomorrow
They are the strong, they’ll survive


The wild and the young, they all have their dreams
The wild and the young, they got to be free
The sun never sets for souls on the run
The wild and the young, yeah


Roaring passion with no guilt or shame
It’s accepting education, yeah
Misbehaving, no regrets, no blame
With a bold kind of sophistication

So close to the edge and high on the wire
They are not wrong, they’re alive


The wild and the young, they all have their dreams
The wild and the young, they got to be free
The sun never sets for souls on the run
The wild and the young


So close to the edge and high on the wire
They are not wrong, they’re alive
Look out
Wild, wild
The wild and the young, y-y-y-y-young


The wild and the young, they all have their dreams
The wild and the young, they got to be free
The sun never sets for souls on the run
The wild and the young, they all have their dreams
The wild and the young, they got to be free
The sun never sets for souls on the run
The wild and the young

The wild and the young
Oh, alright

SOURCES

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8013616/plotsummary/?ref_=tt_ov_pl

https://genius.com/Quiet-riot-the-wild-and-the-young-lyrics

Epic Rock Episode 29: Barracuda—Heart

“Barracuda” is a song by American rock band Heart, released in 1977 on their third studio album, Little Queen, and was released as the album’s lead single. The song peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2009, “Barracuda” was named the 34th-best hard rock song of all time by VH1.

Rock sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson engraved their names into rock history with their band “Heart.” The Seattle-based group has sold over 35 million albums worldwide and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2013. One of the most acclaimed songs of the band is their rage anthem “Barracuda”

It is a song that calls out an idiot for his idiotic behavior. Which was an ever-so-common occurrence for the rock sisters in the men’s ruled music scene. A scene where some men degenerated the sisters based upon the sole fact that they were women. So it isn’t shocking to learn that the song is based on a true story.

At the time, rumors spread that the sisters were lesbian lovers. This rumor was created by the band’s record company Mushroom Records. As a publicity stunt for Heart, the company ran an advertisement with the controversial caption: “It was only our first time”.

So this ain’t the end, I saw you again today
I had to turn my heart away
Smile like the sun, kisses for everyone
And tales, it never fails


You lying so low in the weeds
I bet you gonna ambush me
You’d have me down, down, down, down on my knees
Now wouldn’t you, Barracuda? Oh

Back over time, we were all trying for free
You met the porpoise and me, uh-huh
No right, no wrong, selling a song, a name
Whisper game

And if the real thing don’t do the trick
You better make up something quick
You gonna burn, burn, burn, burn, burn to the wick
Ooh, Barracuda, oh, yeah


“Sell me, sell you,” the porpoise said
Dive down deep now to save my head
You, I think that you got the blues, too
All that night and all the next
Swam without looking back
Made for the western pools, silly, silly fools


The real thing don’t do the trick, no?
You better make up something quick
You gonna burn, burn, burn, burn, burn it to the wick
Oh, Barra-Barracuda, yeah

sources

https://genius.com/Heart-barracuda-lyrics

Epic Rock Episode 28: Salvation—The Cranberries.

“Salvation” is the lead single from Irish rock band the Cranberries’ third studio album, To the Faithful Departed (1996). Released on 8 April 1996 by Island Records, the single reached number one on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart for four weeks and was a chart hit in Europe and Australia, peaking at number four in Iceland, number six in Italy, number seven in New Zealand, and number eight in Australia and Ireland. The music video for the song was directed by Olivier Dahan and filmed in France.

In 1996, in an article written by Jayne Margetts, Fergal said, “The song Salvation is a glance at drug addiction. […] If you look around you see so much of it going on day-to-day, even in Limerick, which is quite a small town. You walk around the place and go to pubs at night and you see people drinking water because they’re on ecstasy or whatever. It’s quite scary to see that. I mean no matter how much you travel, and how much you see, nothing can prepare you for that kind of thing. You see your brother’s friends who are 16 years old and they’re totally out of it. It’s scary to see how it’s taken over the whole world. “I dunno, […] you meet so many people who have been through all that and they look back, and they said ‘what’s the point’? […] People learn the hard way I suppose. It’s just unfortunate that some people don’t survive it.”

In November 2002 Fergal explained, “It was an anti-drug song when Ecstasy was taking over the world. Some people picked it up wrong as a preachy thing: Don’t do it, don’t do it, like Who is she to tell me don’t do it, and it wasn’t like that, she was kinda talking to herself really. ‘Cos we’d been on tour with lots of different bands and you see different things and hear the stories of people fucking themselves up. It’s something we’ve always been wary of and kept an eye on, and we just kind of steer away from that, ‘cos it’s the old cliché of you and up in Betty Ford at the end of it – What’s the point?” (Hot Press, 2002)

Dolores, “It’s not so much like an anti-drug song. It’s kind of anti- the idea of becoming totally controlled by anything, any substance at all, because I know what it’s like. And it wasn’t a nice experience and it didn’t get me anywhere. It just confused me more […] Oh no, I didn’t try heroin. I was just trying to find the answer in getting out of it, whether it was drinking or whatever. I’m not going to elaborate. But it just, basically, any substances don’t really help. Reality is reality, and unfortunately, no how much you go away, you come back, and it’s always here.” (MTV, 1996)

To all those people doing lines
Don’t do it
Don’t do it
Inject your soul with liberty
It’s free
It’s free

To all the kids with heroin eyes
Don’t do it
Don’t do
Because it’s not not what it seems
No no it’s not not what it seems

Salvation
Salvation
Salvation is free

Salvation
Salvation
Salvation is free

a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha

a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha

a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha

a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
ha

do do do do do do do do
do do do doooo

do do do do do do do do
do do do doo

To all the parents with sleepless nights
Sleepless nights
Tie your kids on to their beds
Clean their heads

To all the kids with heroin eyes (heroin eyes)
Don’t do it
Don’t do
Because it’s not not what it seems
No no it’s not not what it seems

Salvation
Salvation
Salvation is free

Salvation
Salvation
Salvation is free

Salvation
Salvation
Salvation is free

Salvation
Salvation
Salvation is free

a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha

a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha

a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha

a-ha-ha
a-ha-ha
ha

Music by Noel Hogan & Dolores O’Riordan
Lyrics by Dolores O’Riordan

Source

Salvation

Epic Rock Episode 27: Bloody Well Right—Supertramp

Since it was Roger Hodgson’s 74th birthday on the 21st of March, I am dedicating this episode of Epic Rock to Supertramp.

“Bloody Well Right” is a song by English rock band Supertramp from their 1974 album Crime of the Century. It appeared as the B-side of the single “Dreamer” in 1974. Listeners in the United States preferred it to the A-side, and “Bloody Well Right” became their breakthrough hit in the country, peaking at number 35 on the Billboard Hot 100.

It was written by Roger Hodgson and Rick Davies.

Davies consciously linked the song to the album’s opening track “School” with the line “So you think your schooling is phoney”, helping to perpetuate the false impression that Crime of the Century is a concept album.

So you think your schooling is phoney
I guess it’s hard not to agree
You say, “It all depends on money
And who is in your family tree”


Right (right), you’re bloody well right
You got a bloody right to say
Right, you’re bloody well right
You know, you got a right to say
Ha, ha, you’re bloody well right


You know, you’re right to say
Yeah, yeah, you’re bloody well right
You know, you’re right to say
And me, I don’t care anyway
Write your problems down in detail


And take ’em to a higher place
You’ve had your cry, no, I shouldn’t say wail
In the meantime hush your face
Right (quite right), you’re bloody well right
You got a bloody right to say
Right, you’re bloody well right


You know, you got a right to say
Ha, ha, you’re bloody well right
You know, you’re right to say
Yeah, yeah, you’re bloody well right


You know, you got a right to say
You got a bloody right to say
You got a bloody right to say
You got a bloody right to say
You got a bloody right to say, yeah




Sources

https://www.musixmatch.com

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloody_Well_Right

Epic Rock Ballads—Episode 9: All About Eve—What Kind of Fool

When it comes to atmospheric Rock ballads, it really doesn’t get much better than this, An underrated classic from an underrated band.

Can’t see the wood for all of the trees
Can’t hear the wind for the breeze that whispers
Voice in your head, you like what it said
So what can you do but listen to it?

What kind of fool
Lays all that’s precious to waste?
What kind of fool
Leaves all their treasure to rust in the rain?
They’ll need it again when the sky clears
What kind of fool
Won’t discover the jewel
‘Til the dust clears?
Fools like us

Fools who want more than they’ve treasured before
Wanting the dawn of the brightest morning
Reach for the stars ’cause they’re sweeter by far
Than the moon ‘though she’s brighter
And closer to you



Source

https://songmeanings.com/songs/view/3458764513820559221/

Epic Rock—Episode 26: Killed by Death-Motorhead

“Killed by Death” is a song by the English heavy metal band Motörhead. Released in 1984, in 7″ and 12″ vinyl pressings. It peaked at number 51 in the UK Singles Chart.

Motörhead anthem, loaded with noise and sleaze. Lemmy oozes attitude (and makes references to his junk being a lizard and snake) and is a no-good son of a bitch to deal with up until he is “killed by death.”

The song itself has been a mainstay of live performances since its release. As with many Motörhead songs, the lyrics show Lemmy’s skill at composing lyrics which are at the same time menacing and tongue-in-cheek. Another common theme is Lemmy’s use of animal images. Phrases such as “If you squeeze my lizard, I’ll put my snake on you, I’m a romantic adventure, And I’m a reptile too” recall the song “Love Me like a Reptile” from the earlier Ace of Spades album. The second verse also contains the line, “I’m a lone-wolf ligger”

Shut up!

If you squeeze my lizard
I’ll put my snake on you
I’m a romantic adventurer
And a reptile too

But it don’t make no difference
‘Cause I ain’t gonna be, easy, easy
The only time I’m easy’s when I’m
Killed by death, killed by death
Killed by death, come on!

I’m a lone wolf ligger
But I ain’t no pretty boy
I’m a backbone shiver
And I’m a bundle of joy

But it don’t make no difference
‘Cause I ain’t gonna be, easy, easy
The only time I’m easy’s when I’m
Killed by death, killed by death
Killed by death, come on!

Killed by death, Killed by death
Killed by death, come on!
Come on, I said you’re killed by death
Come on!
Killed by

Killed by death
Killed by death
Killed by death, ha-ha-ha-ha!
Killed by death
Killed by death
Killed by death
Aah!

Killed by death
Killed by death
Killed by death
Killed by a bunch of death!

Killed by death
Killed by death
Killed by death
Shout out your mouth, shout out your mouth!

Come on!
Killed by death
Killed by death
Killed by death

I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead, I’m dead
I’m dead, I’m dead
Dead, dead, dead, killed by death
Aah!

Sources

https://fr.ulule.com/clip-motorhead-killed-by-death

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killed_by_Death_(song)

Epic Rock-Episode 25: Eye of the Tiger-Survivor.

As preparations for their third album, Survivor knew they still had a lot to prove. Everything was about to change in a big way thanks to some unexpected interest from Sylvester Stallone.

The band’s chief songwriters – Jim Peterik and Frankie Sullivan – agree they were at a crossroads at the time. “Probably this is either going to happen, or they’re going to drop us,” Sullivan tells UCR. “We never thought that, but probably in reality, that’s what they were thinking, because that’s what labels did back then.” But Scotti Bros. were committed to the band.

I had the privilege to interview Jim Peterik, last April when we talked about Eye of the Tiger and other songs he wrote.

source

https://ultimateclassicrock.com/survivor-eye-of-the-tiger-album

Epic Rock-Episode 24: Locomotive Breath-Jethro Tull

“Locomotive Breath” is a song by British progressive rock band Jethro Tull from their 1971 album, Aqualung.

Written as a comment on population growth, “Locomotive Breath” was meant to replicate the chugging rhythm of a train. In addition to its release on Aqualung, “Locomotive Breath” saw two different single releases and has been a live favorite. It is one of Jethro Tull’s best-known songs.

“Yes, yes. It was about population growth but it was talking about what we might now call globalization. So it is about the population and its place in the expanding capitalist world that we live in. It might have seemed a difficult subject back then. It’s a difficult subject today, people don’t like to be reminded of the harsh reality of overpopulation.”

“Everything follows on from that, everything from the pandemic crisis we’re in, you can trace that back to the effect of a huge population that travel, the spread of the disease, everything to do with climate change… You can see how that is vastly exacerbated by population size. So pretty much everything that we might fear and be concerned with in terms of its effect on our great grandchildren.” according to Ian Anderson.

source