Blue Öyster Cult Discography: Curse of the Hidden Mirror

[TAC]

Maybe it's the 18 year old in me at the time but I was really getting into BOC at the time and I loved it.  Looking back, yeah is was very 80'sish but who though Kiss would sound like Crazy Nights?

Crazy Nights has a lot of good songs on it.

The Paul Stanley ones.

Yes, very true. But I do like No No No No. Rocks pretty damned hard.

[The Dark Master]

I've been noticing some interesting similarities and patterns in the various suggested track orders for Imaginos:

1 - Les Invisibles -or- I Am The One You Warned Me Of
2 - Imaginos
3 - Del Rio's Song
4 - Blue Oyster Cult
5 - I Am The One You Warned Me Of -or- Les Invisibles -or- Astronomy
6 - The Siege And Investiture Of Baron Von Frankenstein's Castle At Weisseria -or- I Am The One You Warned Me Of
7 - In The Presence Of Another World
8 - Astronomy -or- The Siege And Investiture Of Baron Von Frankenstein's Castle At Weisseria
9 - Magna Of Illusion

There are some intersting combinations you can come up with.  I think my personal favourite is the one Podaar just posted recently:

1 - Les Invisibles
2 - Imaginos
3 - Del Rio's Song
4 - Blue Oyster Cult
5 - I Am The One You Warned Me Of
6 - The Siege And Investiture Of Baron Von Frankenstein's Castle At Weisseria
7 - In The Presence Of Another World
8 - Astronomy
9 - Magna Of Illusion

[The Dark Master]

Gave the demos a listen, and I agree that the songs that got removed were for the better-Gil Blanco County wasn't very good, and while I liked The Girl Love Made Blind and wouldn't have minded seeing it getting the polish the rest of the demo songs got, it really didn't fit into the rest of the album. And could have stood a little editing down to about five minutes. There's a really good song in The Girl Love Made Blind, but it's not quite right yet.

Probably one of the reasons Al took another shot at it with the Brain Surgeons. 

To be honest the only deleted track I would have kept was the reprise of Blue Oyster Cult, as I really like the full track and think a reprise of it toward the end of the album would have helped to musically tie the whole concept together.  Plus, the track was under four minutes long, so they easily could have fit it on the album and still kept the record under an hour long.  Ideally, I think the album should have been released like this:

1 - Les Invisibles
2 - Imaginos
3 - Del Rio's Song
4 - Blue Oyster Cult
5 - I Am The One You Warned Me Of
6 - The Siege And Investiture Of Baron Von Frankenstein's Castle At Weisseria
7 - In The Presence Of Another World
8 - Blue Oyster Cult (reprise)
9 - Astronomy
10 - Magna Of Illusion

total run time:  59:13

I think that would have been the best possible album to come out of the Imaginos sessions.

[Jaq]

I wouldn't have kept The Girl Who Love Made Blind for Imaginos-it massively doesn't fit at all-but it's a couple of passes away, and a good singer (sorry Al) from being a really good, memorable song.

Nothing, however, could save Gil Blanco County. 

[The Dark Master]

I wouldn't have kept The Girl Who Love Made Blind for Imaginos-it massively doesn't fit at all-but it's a couple of passes away, and a good singer (sorry Al) from being a really good, memorable song.

Nothing, however, could save Gil Blanco County. 

Yeah, I mean, I like some of the music in Gil Blanco, but the vocal melodies are just............ not good.  I listened to it and imagined what it would have sounded like with Bloom singing, and it still would have been tough to get through.  Of course, the song dates back to the Stalk Forrest Group days, so given the early stage of development the band was in when they wrote it, the poor vocal melodies should be, perhaps, unsurprising....

EDIT:  I just listened to the SFG version of the song: YE GODS!  The 1984 demo was actually an improvement over the original! 

[Jaq]

God, I don't even want to hear that version then. 

If one thing came out of this thread, it got me to listen to the Imaginos demos. Been meaning to for ages.

[Podaar]

Okay, so ignoring the songs that didn't make it; were their any of the other songs that you thought Albert was going in a better direction than what made it on the record?     

[Podaar]

Leaving Pearlman behind for good, dropped from Columbia, no record label contract and no prospects of getting one, the band (now consisting of 3ÖC 2.0) was reduced to a touring act; playing county fairs, biker bars and occasional festivals. In the decade between studio albums (1988-1998) several official records were released.

One was a live audio CD companion to a VHS release of BÖC in concert from 1976 appropriately named Live 1976. Released in 1995 on Castle Communications label for the European market only this was a pretty pedestrian concert by BÖC standards but illustrates how popular the band still was overseas--or, at least, that’s what their management believed.

Columbia/Sony tried to cash in on the bands recordings they still owned and released several compilations.

Career of Evil: The Metal Years (1987)
On Flame with Rock and Roll (1990)
Workshop of the Telescopes (1995)
Super Hits (1998)


The only one I can recommend to the readers of this thread, who may not want to invest in the entire catalog, would be the double CD Workshop of the Telescopes. It hits best of the highlights through the years, even if some of my favorites are missing.


Not to be outdone, the band still owned the rights to perform and record their songs so they went in the studio and re-recorded a compilation themselves. Cult Classic was released in 1994 and performed by the current band with the rhythm section consisting of Jon Rogers on bass and Chuck Burgi (Rainbow) on the drum kit. Also, Stephen King wanted BÖC music to be featured in the television production of The Stand and where it is used, these are the recordings presented. I think it was pretty nice of him to try and direct any notoriety from his project directly to the band but it was kind of a half-assed effort; none of these songs were included on the soundtrack. Since these recordings are so faithful to the originals, there isn’t much to recommend them other than clearer, more modern production and recording techniques. Me-262, O.D.'d on Life Itself, Flaming Telepaths, Cities on Flame with Rock and Roll and Harvester of Eyes seem to benefit the most.

In 1992, the band was asked to score and provide a couple of songs for the campy, sci-fi spoof Bad Channels. From this soundtrack we are treated to some metal goodness with the debut of John Shirley’s lyrics on the tunes Demon’s Kiss and The Horsemen Arrive. We mentioned John Shirley way back in the OP when talking about the song Transmaniacon MC. By the 1990’s he was a highly respected, successful and prolific novel writer specializing in fantasy and science fiction. He was especially known for his cyberpunk novels and being the first screenwriter for the movie The Crow.

With a revolving door for a rhythm section, Allen, Eric and Buck kept touring, and touring and touring while Steve Schenk continued to try and find them a label. It’s difficult, for a fan like me, to imagine the mighty BÖC as not being worth enough respect to get a recording label, but it’s true. For ten years no one would touch them. They continued to work with Shirley on making songs, so when they finally got a deal with CMC International (otherwise known as Cheese Metal Cemetery) they were prepared.

[Jaq]

Structurally, the songs that all made the album were essentially identical to their finished versions, with minor changes: Frankenstein gets a better riff going into the guitar solo, for example. The backing tracks for a few songs appear nearly identical-Astronomy leaps to mind as an example. The released versions are improved in every way, with better production and singing. If I had to pick something, the organ being more prominent as a lead instrument on I Am The One You Warned Me Of comes to mind. Otherwise the demos are very much rough draft versions of the songs on Imaginos.

And I'll get to the other stuff....well, some other time. I parted ways with BOC after Imaginos, and honestly haven't heard all of their two studio albums since then.

[Podaar]

Jaq, I don't disagree, especially about the keyboards. There are several moments on the demos that I thought, "It would have been cool if they kept those keys." Also, there were a few moments where I liked Albert's vocals better but not very many...and I'm probably the only person who likes his voice. The raw, slightly off pitch, warbling quality of his voice fits with BÖC compositions sometimes. Or so it seems to me.

[Jaq]

His voice is perfectly suited for the less heavy parts of Blue Oyster Cult, which needs someone to be creepy and bizarre.

And I didn't realize that one compilation was re-recorded songs. Might have to look that one up.

[KevShmev]

Regarding the "dead years," Buck's Boogie from the Cult Classic CD is a home run of epic proportions.  I'd argue that that version is one of their five best songs ever.  And it is clear demonstration of what a great player Buck Dharma is.  The section from around 4:40 till the end is .

[Podaar]

For no particular reason I was browsing Eric Bloom's webpage and came across this.




 

[The Dark Master]

Concerning the Imaginos demos vs the final tracks, I pretty much agree with what Jaq said; there are a few little things here and there that I wish they had kept, like the organ in I Am The One You Warned Me Of, but for the most part, the final tracks were an improvement over the demos in every single way.  I'll agree that Albert's voice isn't horrible; it sounds pretty good on Blue Oyster Cult and Astronomy, but the heavier songs, especially tracks like Frankenstein and In The Presence Of Another World, really needed a different singer, and they sound just phenomenal on the finished record.  Joey Cerisano's vox on the final version of Frankenstein would give Dio a run for his money, and Bloom absolutely slays on I Am The One You Warned Me Of and In The Presence Of Another World.

So yeah, there are a few things from the demos I would have kept on the final record, but overall, the demos were, as Jaq says, just rough drafts of what ended up on the finished product.

[Podaar]

“In the fading light
From a middle aged star
You've seen every blemish
Every sign of age
And it's useless to whine
And it's useless to rage”

Heaven Forbid (1998)



Band members
Eric Bloom – guitars, keyboards, lead vocals on tracks 1, 3, 5, and 7, producer
Buck Dharma – guitars, keyboards, lead vocals on tracks 2, 4, 6, 8-11, producer
Allen Lanier – guitars, keyboards
Danny Miranda – bass guitar on tracks 1, 4-9, 11, backing vocals
Jon Rogers – bass guitar on tracks 2, 3 and 10, backing vocals
Bob Rondinelli – drums on track 9
Chuck Burgi - drums on tracks 1-8 and 10, backing vocals

Additional musicians
George Cintron – additional vocals
Tony Perrino – additional keyboards

------------------------

 1.   See You in Black   (Eric Bloom, Donald Roeser, John Shirley) – 3:17
 2.   Harvest Moon   (Roeser) – 4:55
 3.   Power Underneath Despair   (Bloom, Roeser, Shirley) – 3:30
 4.   X-Ray Eyes   (Roeser, Shirley) – 3:48
 5.   Hammer Back   (Bloom, Roeser, Shirley) – 3:35
 6.   Damaged   (Roeser, Shirley) – 4:22
 7.   Cold Gray Light of Dawn   (Bloom, Roeser, Shirley) – 3:51
 8.   Real World   (Roeser, Shirley) – 5:08
 9.   Live for Me   (Roeser, Shirley) – 5:19
10.  Still Burnin’   (Roeser, Jon Rogers) – 3:39
11.  In Thee (Live)   (Allen Lanier) – 3:40

------------------------

At the time of this album’s release Buck, Eric, and Allen had all had birthdays that included black balloons for decorations. It had been a decade since Imaginos (an album they barely had anything to do with) and their last true hit was already in rotation on Classic Rock Radio. The heady days of their twenties with sold out stadiums were a distant memory; their tours were smaller, their audience gray.

That being said, there is a steady confidence that comes with experience and an innate muscle memory to your beloved craft after so much repetition. All the elements of BÖC are present but without the mysterio (as Albert called it) naiveté. The monsters of aliens, conspiracies, creatures of the night and Tokyo smashing lizards have been traded in for the middle-aged monsters of addiction, fear of violence, adultery, economic hardship, incarceration and death. The lyrics are primarily provided by the previously mentioned, and now middle-aged, John Shirley.

This is a surprisingly heavy, guitar oriented, record that punches you in your rounding waistline from the first warm-up salvo of See You in Black with a tight rhythmic union between drums and guitar that is quite striking. The album is further punctuated with some of the heaviest numbers since Cultösaurus. Power Underneath Despair has a really rocking chorus riff with an odd time signature that is more head banging than just about anything else in their catalog. Hammer Back takes a more classic BÖC boogie approach to the metal as it implores you to stay prepared to return any violence your faced with. A celebration for a life of damaging habits conquered, Damaged gallops through some heavy funk and blistering guitar solos and, finally, some really cool organ leads from Allen. Not to be out rocked, Still Burnin’, presumably a sequel to Burnin’ for You, is a metalized tribute to life long physical attraction to your spouse.

Buck jokingly said during an interview at the time that he didn’t know if the album would help with their metal street-cred but he wouldn’t mind if it did.

Where the album really soars is in the light-metal™ moments such as the brilliant Harvest Moon! I can’t say enough praise for this song. Not only are the verses and chorus beautiful and catchy but the middle instrumental and Buck’s lead break is jaw droppingly awesome! Ever since our own KevShmev convinced me to give this a listen, a bit over a year now, it’s been my favorite Buck song ever and sits comfortably in 3rd place for BÖC top honors.

Cold Gray Light of Dawn, Real World, and especially the sublime Live for Me are all excellent songs and a must listen. Each is thought provoking and the guitar work is stellar throughout.

X-Ray Eyes is the only song on this album that I could do without and it’s not annoying or anything but I’m not fond of Buck’s vocals on this one and the ending is just too repetitive.

In fact, if I were to level one general complaint on this album that’s it: The chorus’s are often repetitive and usually walk a fine line between being memorable and overstaying their welcome.

The live version of In Thee is nice but I don’t find it significantly better than the studio version on Mirrors. The vocal harmonies are a highlight.

Overall this is a great record of individual songs that all sit well on shuffle of your favorite music player. There is no overarching theme nor does this album require listening to it as a whole to get enjoyment from it.

If you haven’t already, give it a whirl.

[jingle.boy]

Looking forward to it.  Though you have the wrong release year.  Sometimes a big break is just what the doctor ordered.  I have a feeling I'm REALLY going to like this one.

[Podaar]

 

Thanks Jingle!

That's what I get for using a template. 

[TAC]

I'm gonna try and check out some of these tunes. There's a lot of shows from this time period on Dime.

[Podaar]

TAC, here's a playlist for you.

[TAC]

See You In Black

Wow!!

I'm on it, bro!

[KevShmev]

Fantastic record!  I'll say more tomorrow when I am more awake...

[Zook]

I'm listening to the best of album at work. Not bad. I think Motorhead ripped them off with Ace of Spades.

[Podaar]

I'm listening to the best of album at work. Not bad. I think Motorhead ripped them off with Ace of Spades.

Which one? Saying you're listening to a best of album when talking about BÖC is like saying, "That's a cool star up yonder." Which song do you think sounds like Ace of Spades?

[jingle.boy]

Excellent album.  Takes pretty much the best of the past two albums (the musical quality of Imaginos + production of Club Ninja) and mashes them together. 

[Zook]

I'm listening to the best of album at work. Not bad. I think Motorhead ripped them off with Ace of Spades.

Which one? Saying you're listening to a best of album when talking about BÖC is like saying, "That's a cool star up yonder." Which song do you think sounds like Ace of Spades?

This one:


The song that reminds me of Ace of Spades is called The Red & the Black.

[KevShmev]

Fantastic record!  I'll say more tomorrow when I am more awake...

So yeah, like I said last night in my sleepy haze, this is a fantastic record.  Harvest Moon kind played to death on the radio here in St. Louis, so I bought the CD knowing that it had at least one major winner.  And it ended up having a handful of major winners besides that tune, Real World being my other favorite.  That and Harvest Moon are both top 20 B.O.C. tunes in my book, and I am big on Cold Gray Light of Dawn, Damaged and Live for Me, as well.  Hammer Back is the only average tune here.  And I really dig the live rendition of In Thee.  Yep, this is a fantastic record, for sure.

[Podaar]

I think where this record succeeds compared with other middle-aged metal (or as I prefer to call them, Menopause Metal) albums is that BÖC never attempts to be something they're not. We've probably beat the subject to death in the A-Mob thread but it's really off putting when players 'of certain age' go for youthful angst. Heaven Forbid is a great mature classic rock album by, according to me, the most underrated classic rock band out there.

Also, I didn't mention it in the write-up, but I think the bass and drums on this record are better than on any other BÖC album. Not to take anything away from the Bouchard brothers but as multi-instrumentalists they never really locked in as tight as the specialist who play on Heaven Forbid.

Oh, and as Chad pointed out, the production is quite clear which really adds to the experience.

[The Dark Master]

Ahhh, now we are getting into unfamiliar territory for me.  I have not heard any post-Imaginos BOC at all so I'm going to have to wait to comment until I check out this album later.

[Podaar]

“There is a chain that I have worn
And on the chain a thorn is hung
There is a pain forever borne
That sings a song forever sung
The song is but a stone”

Curse of the Hidden Mirror (2001)



Band members
Eric Bloom - lead vocals on tracks 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11, guitars, keyboards, associate producer
Donald 'Buck Dharma' Roeser - guitars, lead vocals on tracks 1, 4, 7, 9, keyboards, producer
Allen Lanier - guitars, keyboards
Danny Miranda - bass, keyboards, background vocals
Bobby Rondinelli - drums

Additional musicians
Norman DelTufo - percussion
George Cintron - background vocals

------------------------

 1. Dance on Stilts      (Donald Roeser, John Shirley) - 6:05
 2. Showtime      (Eric Bloom, John Trivers) - 4:38
 3. The Old Gods Return      (Bloom, Roeser, Shirley) - 4:36
 4. Pocket      (Roeser, Shirley) - 4:15
 5. One Step Ahead of the Devil      (Bloom, Roeser, Danny Miranda, Bobby Rondinelli, Shirley) - 4:16
 6. I Just Like to Be Bad      (Bloom, Bryan Neumeister, Shirley) - 3:54
 7. Here Comes That Feeling      (Roeser, Dick Trismen) - 3:21
 8. Out of the Darkness      (Miranda, Bloom, Roeser, Shirley) - 5:06
 9. Stone of Love      (Roeser, Richard Meltzer) - 5:49
10. Eye of the Hurricane      (Bloom, Neumeister, Roeser, Rondinelli, Shirley) - 4:40
11. Good to Feel Hungry   (Miranda, Bloom, Roeser, Shirley) - 4:12

------------------------

Shocking everyone, the band released an album a mere three years from Heaven Forbid but unlike that album they left much of the metal behind. This time they built more of a classic rock feel and fully embraced their status as a classic rock band. Curse of the Hidden Mirror is still very much a guitar showcase and is very enjoyable for what it is.

It’s a little light on the BÖC aesthetic but still manages to serve up a couple of tunes that sit quite well in the catalog with The Old Gods Return and Stone of Love. TOGR feels like a spiritual successor to Veterans of the Psychic Wars if just a bit too deliberately. John Shirley’s lyrics are perhaps a bit too tailored to the BÖC motif but Eric’s performance more than makes up for it. Stone of Love may have the best lyrics on any BÖC song ever. I’ve always been a fan of Meltzer’s contributions before but this time the odd quirkiness is traded in for, what is to me, a relevant and deep commentary on the nature of doubt and love. The music is wonderful and is worthy of a top ten ranking.

I think Dance on Stilts, Pocket, Out of the Darkness and Eye of the Hurricane are all good songs too and are all great additions to the album. The rest are just okay: not bad, by any means, just something I’d hesitate to flag with three stars on my music player.

This is the last studio album from Blue Öyster Cult and thus completes this discography…except the bands official website lists one more.





A Long Day’s Night (2002)



This is a live album recorded in June of that year in Chicago.

I won’t bother to provide a track listing, you can find it here.

The CD is good and contains some great performances, especially Harvest Moon. There is also the fun rarity of, one of my favorites, “Quicklime Girl”. But where this release really shines is on the DVD. It’s great fun seeing the ol’ men bust out so many classics and the performance of “Then Came the Last Days of May" is truly special with Buck and Allen taking turns during the extended lead section.

To me, the DVD is a huge recommendation for those of you who may be big BÖC fans! It’s a wonderful book end to the band’s storied career.

------------------------

Thank you to everyone who followed along in this thread and a huge   o/   to everyone who contributed with your thoughts and memories. I've definitely gained a bigger appreciation for the band through this exercise. I hope some of you have as well.

[KevShmev]

I mostly agree with what you said about Curse...

Stone of Love, The Old Gods Return and Dance on Stilts are all terrific, and those other three you mentioned are solid.  And the rest, like you said, are just kind of there.  Not really bad by any means, but not noteworthy in any way whatsoever.

Overall, probably a bottom 3 B.O.C. album, but at least they gave us a few major keepers.

[hefdaddy42]

I'm a little behind, but I'll try to get to the last two albums as quickly as I can.

[Podaar]

Oh, another thing about the DVD...Buck is fucking awesome!! I hate the look of his "Cheeseberger" guitar (although it's funny) but the tone of the thing is so clear and smooth and he plays it like 'buta'. He just get's smoother with age.

Check out Buck's Boogie

[Lowdz]

I've enjoyed this trip  through the catalogue of a band I hardly knew going in (two songs -duh - and one album was all I knew). I've loved half of every album so far but not listened to the last one yet. Thanks for doing it. Thoroughly enjoyed it and I've come to be a bit of a fan.

I'd say it was job done. 

[Podaar]

I'd say it was job done. 

 

Well, I promised to get us through it. I never promised to do it well.

[jingle.boy]

fully embarrassed their status as a classic rock band.

I hope you meant they "fully embraced"??  If this album embarrassed their classic rock status, I'm not sure I should listen to it!!

I've enjoyed this trip  through the catalogue of a band I hardly knew going in (two songs -duh - and one album was all I knew). I've loved half of every album so far but not listened to the last one yet. Thanks for doing it. Thoroughly enjoyed it and I've come to be a bit of a fan.

I'd say it was job done. 

Nicely done Gregg... you've got big shoes to follow.  Guess I need to start my Zeppelin discussion shortly.