Fourth time's the charm...

We've all heard of 'second album syndrome'. A band or singer put out a phenomenal debut effort and just can't match it on their next attempt. Bands like the Darkness, the Strokes and the Stone Roses all famously suffered from second album blues but fast forward two albums and there's another phenomena that is far less spoken about. A band's fourth album is often the culmination of their hard work and the evolution of their sound up to that point. For that reason there are many fourth albums that represent the peak of a band or singer's career. This doesn't mean that their musical output declines after this point, more that Album 4 often becomes the crown jewel in a stellar career. With that in mind here are five fourth albums that will forever stand as all time greats.

Toto: Toto IV

In 1982 Toto were a band struggling to live up to a hit debut album. Follow-ups 'Hydra' and 'Turn Back' achieved modest success but the band needed a hit album or be at risk of being dropped from Columbia Records. Enter 'Toto IV'. Tracks such as 'Make Believe' and 'I Won't Hold You Back' became big hits for the band and that's not even including the amazing 'Africa' or 'Rosanna' which gifted Toto one of it's 6 Grammy Awards for the album in 1983. To top it all off the band delayed touring the album so they could help on a little album called 'Thriller'. Talk about a band on fire!

Queen: A Night At The Opera

Queen were a band on the fringe of success. Their third effort 'Sheer Heart Attack' had been well received but a contract signed at the beginning of their careers meant that the band were making next to no money while their management reaped the rewards. 'Opera' was a make or break album. The most expensive album ever made at the time, Queen went all out and made the album they'd always dreamed of. The album stands tall as the one that sent Queen over the top on the road to becoming one of the biggest music acts in history. Still need convincing? Two words: Bohemian Rhapsody.

Def Leppard: Hysteria

Like Queen and Toto, Def Leppard were in a difficult position between albums 3 and 4. 'Pyromania' had been a huge success and even certified Diamond in the US. It was always going to be tough to create a follow up. Meat Loaf collaborator Jim Steinman started out on production duties but left due to creative differences. This was all before drummer Rick Allen lost his arm in a horrific car accident. Allen stayed with the band and had a drum set customised to accommodate his amputation. It may have taken four years but 'Hysteria' eclipsed even the success of 'Pyromania'. 'Pour Some Sugar On Me', 'Animal' and 'Love Bites' were all monster hits and the band still perform most of the album to this day.

Led Zeppelin: Led Zeppelin IV

Led Zeppelin's career is full of such great albums that it's difficult to pick one as a highlight. Zep's fourth album saw the band coming off a lukewarm response to 'Led Zeppelin III'. Guitarist Jimmy Page purposefully left the album untitled ('Led Zeppelin IV' is just one name given to the album over the years) in order to downplay the band's notoriety. 'IV' gave birth to some of the most iconic Led Zeppelin songs of all time including 'Black Dog'. 'Rock and Roll' and the now iconic 'Stairway to Heaven'. The album put the band back on track and created in 'Stairway' arguably the most iconic rock song of all time.

David Bowie: Hunky Dory

While David Bowie's career was already on the rise, his albums weren't exactly lighting the album charts on fire. Signing with RCA for his fourth album, Hunky Dory marked a moment where Bowie creatively and commercially hit his stride. Not only is 'Hunky Dory' home to tracks like 'Changes' and 'Oh! You Pretty Things' but it is also the album from which 'Life On Mars' was born; a track that has only gained more significance over the years particularly after Bowie's death earlier this year. An absolute classic.

Please check out Episode 3 of 'My Classic Album' right now on iTunes, TuneIn or at www.myclassicalbum.co.uk.

Don't forget on 1st November to check out Episode 4. Perhaps it'll have the same success as these fourth albums!

There'll be two types of people reading this particular post. There'll be those who've read blog posts on Norris Approved before and are wondering why I haven't posted anything in recent months. That question can be answered by everyone else who have been directed here from the social media pages for my new podcast 'My Classic Album'. Either way welcome! (or welcome back!)

For those who've missed it 'My Classic Album' is a podcast about the great albums in music history. We all have a favourite album and I think it says a lot about a person as to which album they highlight as their number 1. Over on the 'My Classic Album' website I somehow managed to pick my 20 favourite albums of all time and I'm sure it's widely different to your own. So who is better qualified to talk about your favourite album than you? That's why I think the podcast is working so well. My good friends Robin Ellwood, Ian Matthews and Andy Barkess had so much knowledge and passion about the albums they picked that the three podcasts are possibly the work I'm most proud of out of anything media related I've been involved in! That is why I've decided to rename the blog to go side by side with the podcast. Welcome to My Classic Album's official blog!

Episode 4 (out November 1st) is about a Randy Newman album called 'Good Old Boys' and my guest Reed Turchi and I had such a fascinating and in depth conversation about the album. I really hope that translates to the finished product as I think many of my UK listeners may never have heard this album. Hopefully Reed can convince you to check it out! Besides Reed I have many more exciting prospective guests in the pipeline so please stay tuned... or begin to tune in if you've yet to hear the show!

With that in mind let's get to the crux of why I've resurrected this blog (again). One of my favourite things about creating 'My Classic Album' is the interaction with listeners and very often this has come in the form of general music conversation independent of podcast episodes. I'm always really interested in people's thoughts on music and thought listeners of the podcast may enjoy reading my ramblings every once in a while. Let's face it, if you can endure listening to my voice for an hour a month I'm sure the written word will be less daunting!

So I'll try and update this blog when I can. It'll be the same sort of thing its always been. A gig review here, a list there. I'd love to hear your thoughts on it all if you feel so inclined to share them.

If you want to listen to 'My Classic Album' the easiest ways are via iTunes for Apple users and TuneIn for everyone else. Search for 'My Classic Album with Mike Norris' on your Podcast app on iPhones or search for us on Tunein.com to make sure never miss an episode!

Until next time! Mike :-)

Knucklebonz- The Starchild is here!

Those of you who read my blog regularly may remember a post from a few months back about the Rock Iconz series from Knucklebonz. If not please feel free to have a little peruse here.

I've been buying these rock and roll collectables for around six years now. My collection started when I happened to stumble across their Brian May statue that they produced back in 2007. Like all of their collectables, Brian's statue is officially licensed and limited edition. I was so impressed with Brian that I've been collecting Rock Iconz ever since. My previous article shows you some of the rock legends that have immortalised by Knucklebonz but by simply going to their website or typing 'Knucklebonz' into eBay, you will see an impressive rock and metal line up- all officially licensed and many now sold out! The likes of Queen, Judas Priest, AC/DC and Slayer have all signed up to be a part of the series. Never a band to shy away from unique merchandise (or merchandise in general), KISS are the latest rock legends to get the Knucklebonz treatment.

The company have been teasing the KISS Army since last summer via their Facebook page and I have had two of the four statues pre-ordered since late December. Now of course as Knucklebonz releases more statues, it spreads the word as music fans see their favourites join the series. 13 years in business and their first bash at one of the biggest rock bands in history was bound to garner attention. Kiss fans and Knucklebonz collectors alike were abuzz as to when KISS would be shipped. If you haven't already ordered yours you'll be pleased to know that that time is now!

The question on everyone's lips is simply this: Are they any good? I personally think that as Knucklebonz get more established that their statues have become consistently great. Their Lemmy statue which I was lucky enough to get for Christmas before his unfortunate passing is arguably my favourite they've done so far! As for Kiss? Well being I have only bought Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley you may have to look elsewhere for now if you're considering buying Ace or Peter's statues. That being said if they are anything like Gene and Paul's then KISS fans should be pretty damn happy.

My statue of the Demon is actually a gift for my 30th birthday in June so other than opening the box and making sure it wasn't damaged during shipping I've barely seen it. My first impression was a good one. The advantage of doing this kind of project with Kiss is that they have such flamboyant stage attire and make up that you can potentially have a really great collectable that stands out. I knew that Knucklebonz would work hard on an icon like Gene Simmons and in the brief time that I looked over the statue, I knew that I was very happy with my purchase... but sadly I have to wait until June when I turn 30. Rest assured I'll put some pics here when that happens.

Paul however is a different story. Different in that he isn't a birthday present and he is already pride of place in my existing Rock Iconz collection. So let's have a look!

I was actually very pleasantly surprised when I opened the box. The pictures that Knucklebonz released are a good indicator of what to expect and yet I was still very impressed with the detail. I actually think that the finished product has a better likeness of Paul than the prototype that KB have on their website. I'm by no means an expert but I do feel that that old saying 'a picture's worth a thousand words' is pretty apt here...

In an ideal world I'd love to add Ace and Peter to my collection but we'll have to see how the old finances hold out. If you're a KISS fan who has never invested in a Knucklebonz statue please feel free to message me over at the Norris Approved Facebook group or on Twitter @NorrisApproved3. I'm happy to answer any questions you have.

In the mean time I'm gonna look ahead to June when I can add Gene to my legendary rock and roll line up!

A rough month to be a music fan

You may have noticed that I've not been bombarding you with posts this month. Truth be told it's been a pretty rough month for music legends. As you may or may not have seen I did share my thoughts on Lemmy's passing from cancer at the end of last year. In the time since I last posted here at Norris Approved we have lost fantastic musicians including Mott the Hoople's Dale 'Buffin' Griffin, Eagles guitarist Glenn Frey and of course the incomparable David Bowie. (That's not even including actor Alan Rickman who also sadly passed away this month) No matter what way you look at it it's been a rough month to be a fan of classic rock.

Both Lemmy and Bowie knocked me particularly hard. I've listened to David Bowie since I was a 6 year old boy nosing through his dad's CD collection. Meanwhile Lemmy has been part of the soundtrack to my life since my early teens. In a random moment, I thought to myself how respectful people were being. People were united in grief, particularly for Bowie. Fans of his music as well as fans of the movie 'Labryinth' same together online and shared their grief and I can genuinely say I didn't see anything spiteful or inappropriate.
Today on my Facebook feed I came across an article from the Guardian which really piqued my interest. The article compared how the world (particularly the online world) grieved for David Bowie earlier this month and how the online world has reacted to Eagles' guitarist Glenn Frey's death this week. For those who don't know a lot about Eagles they are a huge band beyond their seminal hit 'Hotel California'. They like Bowie have sold millions of albums and toured the world several times over. To my surprise the article claims that the same people who grieved so publicly for Bowie are now mocking Frey and his fans!

The article which can be read here raises a very interesting debate. How does the work of Frey get ignored upon his death in favour of a punchline or the suggestion that he's 'no loss' compared to the Starman?

I thought back to around four years ago when Robin Gibb passed away. Like Bowie, the Beegees have been a huge part of my musical childhood. Beyond the 'Saturday Night Fever' era that everyone associates with the band, Robin was part of one of the greatest songwriting partnerships in music history. Yet what did I hear online (and via texts from people who knew how much I loved the Beegees?) Jokes! Jokes about 'Staying Alive'. It was too easy. In that moment because the Beegees didn't rewrite the rule book, the death of one of them was merely joke fodder. I'm sure it was the same when his brother Maurice died years earlier but the online community wasn't as strong back then.

Take Steve Irwin. Steve Irwin was a true hero of mine. Yes he was wacky and a strong TV personality but he did so much for the environment and to raise awareness of endangered species throughout his life. People knew the high esteem in which I held him. That didn't stop people texting me sick jokes within hours of his death.

What we're talking about here is a side effect of celebrity. It's almost as if we think because we see them everywhere that we KNOW them and OWN them. At the end of the day they're people too! I'm guilty of it myself. Someone on my Facebook made a joke about swapping Lemmy for Justin Bieber and I went along with it. But... and this is the only time you'll EVER hear me say this... if Justin Bieber was to die tomorrow I wouldn't mock him. If One Direction were to die in a plane crash I wouldn't poke and prod at their fans who love them. I can rip their musical output until the cows come home but they are people too.

 Several months before Amy Winehouse passed away I predicted she wouldn't make the year. It didn't fill me with joy to learn that I was right. Others however joked and cajoled at the death of a very tragic figure in music. With all the respect in the world to David Bowie who I loved and respected just as much as everyone else, why is his death any different to Amy Winehouse's or Robin Gibb's or Glenn Frey's? It doesn't belittle what any of them did in life to treat their deaths with the same respect such a sad occasion deserves.

I sincerely hope that this trend of great musicians (and other national treasures) passing away isn't a sign of things to come. Of course death is always prevalent but it certainly seems all around us at the moment. But if yet another public figure passes away soon, think before you comment. They have a family. They have fans. They have a right to be celebrated by those who loved them.

Throughout 2016 I will be raising money for Cancer Research UK. My first fundraising idea involves my tackling a life long fear and going on a rollercoaster. You can donate at www.justgiving.co.uk/mike-norris

Thanks

Guns N' Roses- will the reunion happen?

There are certain landmarks in life that people remember until the day they die. That single moment where your life changes in a way you can't ignore. Usually we'd be talking about weddings, births and other such life events but sometimes these landmarks can come in a more subtle moment. 

Let's go back to the mid 1990s. I''m going to guess 1996 but I'm not 100% sure (for such an important landmark you'd think I'd remember the date right?). I'm a ten year old boy with a love for music that my friends thought was "for old fogies" Since I was 4 I had raided my parents' CD collection and discovered such great artists as Queen, Elton John and David Bowie. It's fair to say that already at such a young age that the likes of the Spice Girls and All Saints just weren't going to cut it. In August 1996(ish) I will have been in the Lake District. My family used to holiday there every year and we all loved it. As I looked round the shops of Keswick I found a CD called 'The Best Rock Anthems... Ever!' I remember thinking it might have some cool stuff on I hadn't heard before so promptly bought it and popped it in my DiscMan (the 1990s version of an iPod for those born this side of the millennium) as my dad drove us back to the caravan.

So I hear you... what the hell are you blabbering on about Mike? Well it was on that car journey that I first heard a genuine rock classic: 'Sweet Child O' Mine' by Guns N' Roses. Sure I'd heard some fantastic rock music in my time but THAT opening riff from Slash blew my mind. I'd never heard anything like it. It made such an impression on me that I immediately paused the CD to take it in. Yeah I get that that sounds pretentious but that's genuinely what happened. I'd been so blown away by the first ten seconds of 'Sweet Child O' Mine' that I needed time to process it. Twenty years later it is still my favourite song of all time. It was also my first introduction to Guns N' Roses... and my first real introduction to hard rock.

Fast forward ten years from that first introduction in Keswick and I'm standing in the hallowed ground of Donington Park watching Axl Rose's latest incarnation of GN'R headline on a hot Sunday night. It's not the first time I've seen a band calling themselves Guns N' Roses. Their Leeds Festival show in 2002 was my first ever live music experience. Sadly Download 2006 wasn't quite cutting it. Don't get me wrong, the band were very accomplished and slick for the first 30 minutes. However as Axl stormed off stage after slipping during 'Sweet Child O' Mine' the atmosphere changed. We GN'R fans have put up with a lot. Yes at this stage Axl's diva theatrics are almost part of the show but as bass player Tommy Stinson hits a camera man with his guitar while storming off stage, the Donington faithful started booing, throwing bottles and (where I was at least) started chanting for the previous night's headliner Metallica. 

Sure Axl and Stinson came back but personally not even cameos from Sebastian Bach and founding member Izzy Stradlin could take the bad taste from my mouth. I just felt a little... fed up. At that stage there were two things that I (and the world) believed would never happen:

  1. The album that GN'R had been working on for over a decade, 'Chinese Democracy' would never come out. It was eventually released in 2008 and despite most reviews I actually loved the album.

  2. That original line up would never reunite again... much less Slash appear on a stage with W. Axl Rose.

Well if the rumours are to be believed, Hell had just frozen over.

On the same day that Lemmy sadly passed away, rumours were flying all over the Internet that Guns N' Roses would be headlining Coachella in 2016. A Guns N' Roses with Axl (of course), Duff McKagan and... Slash! Freaking Slash! The most volatile rock partnership perhaps of all time may just be back on the road. But let's look beyond the headline. 

Despite the headlines this is only a RUMOUR at this point. Many websites are reporting it as gospel but until it comes out of the mouths of Axl and co or the Coachella organisers then I wait with baited breath. What's also clear from looking deeper into the the various articles is the fact that this isn't exactly a Kiss circa 1996 reunion. Drummer Steven Adler and Guitarist Izzy Stradlin are unlikely to be involved. Instead reports indicate that it is more likely to be current band members filling the gaps. If those members are the likes of Dizzy Reed and Richard Fortus then we are actually going to have a line up that encompasses all eras of Guns N' Roses from 1985 right up to present day. Maybe that's not such a bad thing.

Of course we would all love to see Adler and Stradlin hit the stage at Coachella but let's be realistic. Any Guns N' Roses headline show isn't going to be 'Appetitie For Destruction' from 'Welcome To The Jungle' through to 'Rocket Queen'. There's going to be 'November Rain'. There's going to be 'Knockin' On Heaven's Door' and yes 'Chinese Democracy' will take up at least some of the setlist. It's somewhat sensible to keep some of the current line up on board even if it is less exciting than a full 'Appetite era' reunion. It's a debate that rolls on with so many bands. 

   

  "Queen isn't Queen without Freddie and John."

  "Kiss are just a tribute band without Ace and Peter."

Can Guns N' Roses be Guns N' Roses without Izzy and Steven? They can certainly give us one hell of a show.

One of the greatest moments in my gig going life was hearing Slash at  Download 2010 play that same riff that got me hooked on Guns N' Roses during his solo set. The mere thought of Slash, Duff and Axl reuniting to play GN'R songs old and new is so exciting as I thought it would genuinely never happen. The cynics may cry that it's not genuine but this may be the closest we'll ever get and it's certainly exciting for long time fans no matter what they say. Now all we need to worry about it whether this can last without falling apart! We're 'Right Next Door To Hell' and it may have just frozen over. Only time will tell...