Reviews list for Thin Lizzy - Thunder and Lightning (1983)

Thin Lizzy could sometimes be a great hard rock band and Phil Lynott was as much a lyrical poet for the common man as Bruce Springsteen across the pond. Good though most of their albums were, with some really anthemic songs in their repertoire, I don't think that their studio albums ever really captured their live energy suffciently. This is a viewpoint that I think is borne out by how much esteem people attach to the Live and Dangerous double live set. I managed to catch them on the Black Rose tour in 1979 and got to see that energy and vitality up close and was lucky enough to witness exactly how Lynott worked an audience and got them eating out of his hand. As the NWOBHM swept across the UK during the early '80s Phil and co started to develop a harder edge, both lyrically and musically with tracks like "Killer on the Loose" and "Angel of Death", which has even been covered by polish death metallers Vader, coming to the fore. Inevitably then, that they would react to the musical zeitgeist and issue an album that occasionally pushed their long-established hard rock sound over into heavy metal territory. Now let us not overstate things, Thunder and Lightning certainly isn't a "Piece of Mind", "Court in the Act" or even a "Holy Diver, it is still recognisably Thin Lizzy with more than one of its feet still in rock territory, but as the title track explodes from the speakers following a short, typically 80s synth intro, then it is obvious that the band have upped the ante on the aggressiveness of their attack. I think a significant event that contributed to this change was the replacement of the laid-back Snowy White with Tygers of Pan Tang guitarist John Sykes, a six-string slinger who had obviously grown up and paid his dues in the heart of the NWOBHM and whose harder-edged guitar style was much more suited to the younger metal audience than the bluesy, Clapton-esque White. Of course Sykes was only one half of the twin guitar attack with long-time member Scott Gorham still most definitely present. When Sykes lets rip though, even on a track like "The Holy War" then he makes it sound more metal than it actually is, so when applied to a more fundamentally metal track like "Cold Sweat" then the effect is multiplied tenfold.

I wonder exactly how much "Thunder and Lightning" can really be considered metal because, apart from those already mentioned, contemporary albums were "Kill 'Em All", "Show No Mercy" and "Melissa". Now is T&L even close to being as metal as any of those albums? No of course it isn't and the majority of the tracklist is still under the rock umbrella for my money, but Sykes' contribution and the songwriting of tracks like "Cold Sweat" and the title track hint at a more metal aspiration, probably just naturally absorbed from the audiences and support acts the band interacted with in the Brave New Metal World of the early 80s in the UK and Ireland.

So, considering this only as a Thin Lizzy album, irrespective of its metal credentials, how does it compare to past glories? Well, for me, Lizzy albums were always a little bit patchy, even classics like "Jailbreak" with Phil Lynott's excessive sentimentality sometimes getting the better of him and being reflected in the odd soppy track that really didn't do too much for me. I would say that this was a big improvement over the unremarkable "Renegade", but doesn't touch the likes of Jailbreak and Black Rose, at least as far as the songwriting goes, but it is certainly enlivened by Sykes guitar work which raises it a knotch or two in quality. Inevitably, because that is just how it was back then with legacy acts, the album also has that eighties' stadium production sound with accentuated percussion and synths that I find a little bit kitsch nowadays and which I generally struggle with (see Judas Priest's entire eighties' output for further examples) and which also drops it in position in Lizzy's overall discography for me. So once more a patchy release, but when it is good and the stars align, it is very good.

I understand that Phil Lynott is beloved by many, but goddamn this album is not exciting. It just blurrs into itself, and I just want it to end honestly. Like it's the worst kind of music, because it's not awful. If it was awful I would have something to say about it, but it's not good either. If it was good I would be enjoying myself. I'm not. This is just a slog. This is some music that exists. This is a tall glass of room temperature water, and I'm not even thirsty man. This is a particularly flavorless protein bar, you CAN eat it, and it will sustain you, but it's not tastey. Is this enough metaphores? Have I gotten the mediocrity across? CAN I GO HOME NOW?

This is the catchiest "metal" record I've ever heard. It's got just enough shred to be considered metal for me, but otherwise it's very on the cusp. I've never really gone into their back catalog before too much but I am definitely aware of their hits as most are. I love a good cheese, and they do it really really well here even if at times it does get a bit repetitive at times, songs like the title track "Thunder and Lightning", "The Sun Goes Down", "Baby Please Don't Go" have very memorable rhythm guitar lines that hit into my soul just enough where it almost gets annoying how long they go with same 3-4 measures of notes get played throughout the song. I wouldn't say I found any song on here to be bad but many do just hit that 10 seconds too long but for the 4 minutes-ish before that they are very enjoyable. I actually found those aforementioned songs to be my favorites plus Bad Habits that I got an early pop punk vibe from. Even Heart Attack is a solid enough closer to the album, but by the time that it gets to that point in the album the cheese gets to be a bit much for me. It's barely a 40 minute album and I can't say there's really a bunch of extra fat on this to be cut out but I do think there is some bits and bobs that could to make this an even better just fun quick bop that's in and out and you get your full on this pop metal sound. Really enjoyable overall for me though.

Thin Lizzy were well into their career by this point, though I assume like many, my primary exposure to the band prior to this was through their more well known hits like "The Boys are Back in Town" or their version of the ballad "Whisky in the Jar".

Certainly, Thunder & Lightning doesn't feel too terribly far removed from those. It's 80s hard rock with enough of a NWOBHM spice to pass at times, especially in the frequently flashy guitar work ("Cold Sweat" being a sterling example). It's also a good dose of it for those who have had enough of more sleazy shock rock of the era; there's a certain level of restraint and even respectability about this. But there's also not a lot of weight or character to the music on show here. It's fine, but that's often all it is: just 'fine'. There's the occasional hook but not a lot, and songs like "Bad Habits" can be enjoyable, but they just don't leave much of an impact behind them.

The one real exception is "The Holy War". The constant beat there really does conjure the image of a march to war by an army of righteous crusaders, and it's catchy as hell to boot. Definitely the stand-out of the album. The title track also does strive for something a bit meatier than much of the rest, but the metalhead in me still craves something more.

To be clear, it's not an issue of Thunder & Lightning "not being metal enough" or the like. There's plenty of good rock material from this era, but Thunder & Lightning just plays it too safe to be anything more than passable.

Choice cuts: The Holy War, Cold Sweat

1983 and album number twelve for Lizzy and by this point we have already had the likes of Nightlife, Fighting, Jailbreak, Johnny The Fox and the superb Black Rose.  Things have gone off the boil a tad with Chinatown and Renegade and so we are on a downward spiral now, right?  Actually, half right.  Lynott's last album is not a high point by any means.  Overall it is a patchy affair with the odd snippet of catchy brilliance and well played hard rock music to give the listener some flashes of what once was.  You have to sit through some nonsense also unfortunately.

The album does open strongly with the title track stomping its authority early on with its stomping keys teeing things up nicely.  Lynott's gruff vocal delivery complimenting the fast-paced track well.  Unfortunately the album takes a sharp dip after this with the clumsy This Is the One stumbling along with a slight off-kilter rhythm seemingly a stretch too far for Phil to pace with and at times the track almost feels like the lyrics are somehow a word or two short forcing other words to be stretched out uncomfortably.  The excellent guitar work of Gorham and Sykes makes up for this to some degree though but overall it's a poor track very early on in the track listing.

To follow this with a slow-paced ballad seems to throw lacklustre after poor in all honesty, not that The Sun Goes Down is a sterling piece of songwriting with its over-brooding bass line quickly becoming overbearing, particularly alongside the underwhelming chorus.  Again the lead work goes some way to performing a rescue job but it is glitter on a turd at the end of the day.  The more catchy The Holy War  ramps up the pace again soon enough with its arrogant lyrics and thumping skins supporting the choppy riffs well.  The track gets the blood pumping nicely after the early lull in the flow of the record.

This upward turn continues with the pounding rhythm of Cold Sweat driving the record along with an engine like efficiency, not afraid to mix up the structure along the way and fire in a few licks to keep things interesting.  This is perhaps the finest moment on the record kicking off side B superbly.  Unfortunately though, as with side A we immediately get lost in the overly melodic Someday She Is Going To Hit Back which even the guitar work can't save.  The cheesy Baby Please Don't Go lacks maturity and it suffers badly from poor lyrical content and a lacklustre pace.

Closing out the album strongly is one of the reasons why this rating kept the right side of three stars and didn't slip to a half star in the wrong direction.  Bad Habits is another one of those infectious tracks that slap away the memory of the albums weaker points and gets head and foot going again.  Similarly closing track Heart Attack, although not sterling in quality, hits with enough punch to leave a mark as things draw to a close.  Not terrible but would have been nice for Phil to have left us with a more consistent swansong.