Bernie Torme archives continue to dig up some great lost classics! While never becoming a big star, Bernie Torme, always delivered the goods. He was mostly known for his involvement with Gillan, and short stint with Ozzy Osbourne. This however focuses on his solo career which yielded several great albums. If you already own the first volume, then you are ready for what came next.
The 5 CD box set begins with Back to Babylon, a great hard rock album released back in 1985, and it featured a very young Phil Lewis on vocals. Lewis of course found fame with L.A. Guns later on, but here he is doing what he does best. Back to Babylon should’ve been huge, no doubt about that. Die Pretty Young came out in 1986, and the band continued on the right path. Another solid album, great line up, but for some reason the band just couldn’t capitalize on the momentum. Within a year it all came to an end, and Phil Lewis went overseas to follow his dream. Official Bootleg was recorded back in 1986, and gives a taste of this great band on stage. Simply amazing, hearing here again!
After Torme band came to an end, Bernie was involved in Desperado. This was a supergroup involving Dee Snider, Clive Burr, and Marc Russell. They wrote a great album that remined unreleased, and the band folded shortly after. By 1992, Torme was back with Demolition Ball, and that the final disc of this set. Demolition Ball was a great album, but once again released in the midst of grunge explosion. It was only released in Europe, and it had a very limited audience. Lewis was back on three tracks, and it felt very natural to hear that collaboration again. Here, Demolition Ball is expanded to two CDs. Another disc of demos is now included in the set. Torme delivered great hard rock with Irish overtones.
There is a lot of background info provided by a very comprehensive liner notes in the booklet. This project is clearly a labor of love by true admirers of Bernie Torme’s talent. Torme passed away in 2019, and it’s great to see his music resurfacing and keeping his legacy alive.
Mark Kadzielawa
No comments:
Post a Comment