Rock Crusade

The final album of an (unintentional) trilogy, Crusade is most notable for the appearance of a very young, pre-Rolling Stones Mick Taylor on lead guitar. Taylor's performance is indeed the highlight, just as Eric Clapton and Peter Green's playing was on the previous album. The centerpiece of the album is a beautiful instrumental by Taylor titled "Snowy Wood," which, while wholly original, seems to combine both Green and Clapton's influence with great style and sensibility. The rest of the record, while very enjoyable, is standard blues-rock fare of the day, but somewhat behind the then-progressive flavor of 1967. Mayall, while being one of the great bandleaders of London, simply wasn't really the frontman that the group needed so desperately, especially then. Nevertheless, Crusade is important listening for Mick Taylor aficionados.

Konchordat hail from Kent in the UK. They are a progressive rock band in the 'English' tradition; their music has been described as "majestic and often epic in scale." On their debut album 'English Ghosts' the music is led by main stays Steve Cork (basses, keyboards), Lee Harding (voice, keyboards) and Stuart Martin (guitars, keyboards, vocals). The album 'English Ghosts' scored 7/10 in a review by Geoff Bartom in Classic Rock Magazine (Feb.2010, issue 141). "The 20-minute title track is stately and masterful…" Their second album - The New Crusade - saw a personnel change, with Stuart taking over lead vocal duties as well as guitar. The new album has been described by Paul Baker - SoundScapes show on UK internet station ARFM as "A Classic Prog Album."

In 1969 bluesgroup ‘Crusade’ was founded by Henk Bol aka Philhelmon. After some time, like many other bluesgroups, 'Crusade' changed their music in 1971 to Progressive Rock. In 1973 they signed an exclusive contract with the famous Paul Acket Agency and even appeared at the Holland Festival of that year. In 1974 they started recording at the Rainbow Studios in The Hague. These sessions were to produce a first single and an album. Due to the world wide oil crisis this was, unfortunately, never to be. The disappointment eventually led to the break up of the band. In 2000 Sound Art & Design restored these recordings and now you can enjoy them too.

The Church - The Blurred Crusade (1982) {Parlophone-EMI Records CDP 790625 2}
XLD rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 319 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 109 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 15 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 1982 Parlophone / EMI Records | CDP 790625 2
Rock / Neo-Psychedelia / Alternative / Indie

After such a fine debut as Of Skins and Heart, creating a follow-up might have been a burden for the Church – and maybe it was, but the end result was well worth it. Perhaps even better than their first, Blurred Crusade captures what for many remains the classic early Church sound, blending both the various strains of '60s inspiration and postpunk drive detected from the start with an even more elegant melancholy. Musically, both Willson-Piper and Koppes are just fantastic, their combination of guitar playing running the range from sparkling post-Byrds chime to sharp power. If the group doesn't fully explode here as much as later albums would demonstrate, especially on Heyday, that perhaps can be laid at producer Bob Clearmountain's feet.

The Top 100 '80s Rock Albums span a series of genres as startling and varied as the era's neon-flecked fashions.No one was immune to the early-decade emergence of new wave, from up-and-coming acts to legacy groups – many of whom began incorporating the then-new sound into their bedrock approach.Meanwhile, classic rock and subsequently metal began a transformation into mass acceptance when the edges were smoothed out to form arena rock and hair metal, respectively. The arrival of roots, thrash, and world music influences kept things interesting, along the way. All of it made selecting the period's best releases both intriguing and deeply challenging.Check out the list below, as Ultimate Classic Rock takes a chronological look at the Top 100 '80s Rock Albums.

TRIVIUM blasts back onto the scene with a third effort that is one of the best metal releases of 2006 and quite possibly the heavy music album of the year.

Formed in 1971 by old schoolmates Dane Stevens and Cedric Sharpley, along with local bass player Neil Brewer, Druid spent years playing clubs as a trio before winning a competition by Melody Maker for the best unsigned band. At this point they added Andrew McCrorie-Shand, a recent London College of Music graduate. The Melody Maker prize included new instruments and a recording contract, and their debut album appeared in July 1975 among envious whispers by rival bands and music publications. The band had a difficult time shaking the charge of hype, and they were also charged in some quarters as being Yes soundalikes – Starcastle in the U.S. was later to be tarred with the same brush.