Thin Lizzy - Chinatown
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Music CD Cover
Artist: Thin LizzyEdition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 2001-06-19
Music Label: Wounded Bird Records
Soundtracks:
- We Will Be Strong
- Chinatown
- Sweetheart
- Sugar Blues
- Killer On The Loose
- Having A Good Time
- Genocide
- Didn't I
- Hey You
Free Music Notes for Chinatown
Free Music Review: Thin Lizzy Enters The 80's In Solid Hard Rock Mode!
Hit: 5 Stars
The 1979-80 period was a turbulent one for the group as band leader Phil Lynott was searching for a full time replacement of guitarist Gary Moore who had quit the group mid-way through a US tour in July 1979. After a brief period with temporary guitarists Dave Flett (from Manfred Mann's Earth Band) and Midge Ure (from Ultravox), finally in early 1980, permanent guitarist Snowy White joined Lynott on vocals/bass, and Brian Downey on drums to complement Scott Gorham's rhythm and harmony guitar leads. Also, a keyboard player named Darren Wharton joined too but at this point he was not yet a permanent member.
First I would like to point out that "Chinatown" is a great album, however is not in my favorite top five because the material falls short in comparison with 1979's "Black Rose" which was one of the band's best ever releases and there are some moments in which for the first time, Lynott's voice sounds a little rough.
On the plus side, the album shows that at this time, Lynott was sure about the band's direction: hard rock. Out of the nine tracks featured, all of them are in that mode except one which is a fine sort of ballad. Like I said, the songwriting on this album was not as developed as the previous year's noticeably superior "Black Rose" but it's still great and in fact this was actually the band's last great album. In my opinion, the band entered a downward spiral afterwards with Lynott and the band's drug problems taking the best of their creative magic. The two following albums aren't bad but just not on par with this one or the ones before because in the case of 1982's "Renegade", the direction is no longer defined consistently towards hard rock but rather it is a diverse type of record but unlike some of the band's early LP's with diverse styles, the material dosen't blend quite well for me.
The band's last album, 1983's "Thunder & Lightning", has a more consistent direction rocking hard but the songwriting came out noticeably underdeveloped and it's my least favorite album from the band; it almost seems like Lynott just took the demo recordings for the album and decided to release them just like that making the album sound like a promising demo that was left unfinished. Remember that this is my opinion and some people will disagree!
The first track "We Will Be Strong" is one of the best not only here but from all the band's work! It has the classic harmony leads all over it and Lynott's trade-mark vocal delivery in great form. Melodic hard rock at its best! The title track (written by the four members) is slightly more bluesy but still rocking hard with some mean soloing from the White/Gorham team and an excellent vocal bridge: 'chinatown, it's a different scene'...love that part! More classic stuff follows in "Sweetheart", another melodic rocker with the catchy harmony lead guitars. Sounds almost like punk-rock! The direction shifts slightly in "Sugar Blues" (another one written by the four members), a track that new guitarist White co-wrote. It loses some of the melody but the lead guitars cook! Also notice Downey's thunderous drumming here!
Next is the straight riff-driven heavy rocker "Killer On The Loose" with steady drumming and mean riff/soloing. However this song sounds slightly better on 1983's live album "Life-Live". In my opinion, Lynott's vocals could have been better in this studio take. White co-wrote song number six "Having A Good Time" and as the title suggest it is a song about partying, enjoying yourself, etc. Musically it is based around major scale melodies and both Gorham and White get soloing space which they use well. I like how Lynott announces the name of the respective guitarist that is about to take the solo! That's cool!
The next song "Genocide" is one of the more metallic sounding ones of the LP. Great rhythm and riffs to go along with Lynott's tale of mass buffalo killing. Lynott's vocals are great on this one! Too bad the song doesn't have a solo! Now it's time for the odd ball of the bunch: the LP's lone ballad titled "Didn't I". It has a nice harmony lead guitar motif, a tenuous yet effective string arrangement and good bass work from Lynott. At the beginning, the tempo is slow but quickly the pace picks up. The tune actually sounds more like a soft up-tempo number rather than a ballad. The harmonized melody is slightly expanded towards the end. Nice finish!
The closing composition "Hey You" shows an influence from the group The Police in the song's spacey intro but quickly transforms itself into another hard rocker. In the middle there's a nice instrumental bridge with an excellent aggressive solo from Gorham. The verse/chorus parts are also very good and it is definitely a high key exit to the LP even if Lynott's singing sounds a little rough in spots here and could have been better.
To sum up, this album does not make it to my favorite top five from the band in my book (in fact in my "Thin Lizzy's Discography & Related" listmania!, the LP made it to my top ten in place #9) but I feel the material was still strong enough for a five star rating. If you would like to check the band's 80's work, then this is the one to get first for sure!
Thanks for taking the time to read!
Later...
Chinatown Poster
Import pressing features the original nine tracks. Universal.Classic Rock Music CDs
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