Taking a hint from The Who‘s “Pinball Wizard” and making it much cooler, “Angel From The Coast” is just as much of a storytelling tune filled with characters and more done up in Lynott‘s classic romanticized style. Yeah, I have heard it a million times like “Rock And Roll All Nite” but this one, it never gets old. Few hard rock songs have created such a visual just in sound and Thin Lizzy‘s mix of edge and melody makes for the perfect emotional theme song for bad boys everywhere, especially back in 1976 through the next ten years or so to follow. The chunking notes just create the feeling of creeping around and that quiet aura of danger around the corner. The stomp and that guitar lick and eventual vocal delivery. Of course, we all know that first note and pause of the album. I’m not sure and honestly the fear in questioning is that actually discovering the answer might make the feeling disappear. Maybe it’s in the sound, or the delivery, or the recollection of that initial feeling back in 1976. Well in some ways, songs like “Jailbreak” and especially “The Boys Are Back in Town” could very easily fit in that company if it wasn’t for the fact that there is just something just as magical in Jailbreak‘s most overplayed tunes as there are in the seven other incredible songs on the record. You get that same feeling of chills within the first screams of the original live version of KISS‘ “Rock And Roll All Nite” but unless you’re hearing it in person, about halfway in, you debate letting it play until the end. There’s no denying that “Stairway To Heaven” is loaded with emotional bombast but the first few notes can cause a change in radio station.
In the history of music, there are many classics that while incredible, have burned the ears so often that even the mere mention brings a cringe. But before I spill too much blood, let me get back to the rock and roll. That kind of thing Jared Leto had in My So-Called Life that for ages has found its way into the hearts of romantic rockers and while all respects to Jordan Catalano, Lynott did it well before and far better leaving behind recorded proof. That sort of Rebel Without A Cause tortured soul that despite a heart of gold, should never be counted out. From the first time I heard “A Song While I’m Away” from 1973’s Vagabonds of The Western World, I wanted to be cool enough to say or even write such words but kind of felt outside looking in on “Romeo And The Lonely Girl.” Even so, like a great movie, the feeling that there was this personal connection made it seem more magical than discouraging which is where the uplifting words of “Fight Or Fall” and even “Jailbreak” come into play. A closet romantic due to an early degree of shyness, Phil Lynott‘s ability to perfectly romanticize every aspect of Thin Lizzy‘s music, regardless of the theme, caught me by not only the ears, but heart and soul. While the Thin Lizzy catalog comes bearing a loaded cannon of tough rock and roll driven along by thick grooves, I can easily say that from first listen, it was that soft heart beneath the tough exterior that sucked me into the music. Not that we ever had this plan of knocking off anyone, we just had this thick as thieves ideal created by a common bond. Most of the guys considered “Cowboy Song” to be their own personal theme and “Fight Or Fall” our American dependent gang battle cry through our adventures in a foreign country. Despite our young age, the visuals still made sense. Sure Johnny The Fox or Bad Reputation would have been just as cool but Jailbreak, with all its references to “the boys” and “getting up and going down” just spoke to my teen pals and I.
Thin lizzy running back lyrics full#
After weeks of excitement including a show day that seemed to last forever, the final “ceremonial” action in preparation for a “proper” night of “live Lizzy” was a full on spin of Jailbreak.
I was blessed to see Thin Lizzy live in Germany just after my favorite period of the band (1975-77) and to this day, it’s impossible to look back on that day without feeling lost in time. While it’s true that I may hold a listening preference to Thin Lizzy‘s other 1976 release Johnny The Fox, there is just something magical in the grooves of Jailbreak. Suddenly, like every other time, for the millionth time, you’ve fallen head over heels in love all over again. For me, there is, and never will be, such a thing as a bad Thin Lizzy record. But every once in a great while, there are those records that, years after they first stole your heart, at every listen still grab your soul and drag you happily back to the place you first fell in love with the songs. Some records make you move, some make you dance, and some even drive you to the point of extreme physical exhaustion.
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