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BLUE OYSTER CULT
self-titled (Legacy/Sony)
Tyranny & Mutation (Legacy/Sony)
Secret Treaties (Legacy/Sony)
Agents Of Fortune (Legacy/Sony)
Reviewed by Alan Wright
A fantastic remastered edition of the first, and certainly most psych sounding, BOC LP. "She's As Beautiful As A Foot" still ranks up there with anything Syd Barrett period Pink Floyd ever did! Four earlier demos, including a great take on the rockabilly chestnut "Betty Lou's Got A New Pair Of Shoes" round this one out.
The second album, Tyranny & Mutation, kicked off with the third recorded version of "I'm On The Lamb, But I Ain't No Sheep," here retitled as "The Red & The Black." Also cool: the MC5 -ish "O.D.'d On Life Itself," "7 Screaming Dizbusters" and the really weird "Mistress Of The Salmon Salt (Quicktime Girl)." Live bonus cuts are cool, too.
Probably my fave BOC album, Secret Treaties includes the organ-fueled "Career Of Evil," as well as "Dominance & Submission" (where Radio Birdman took their first LP title from) with its cry of "radios appear!" The five bonus tracks, all of equal weirdness make this my fave remaster of the series!
The fourth in the BOC remaster series (as of this writing), Agents Of Fortune finds BOC flirting with hard rock, epic ballads, and a bizarre duet with Patti Smith! Highlights include their cover/reworking of The Imperial Dogs' "This Ain't The Summer Of Love," the obtuse "E.T.I.," and I even a soft spot for "Don't Fear The Reaper." Kind of a mixed bag and probably my least fave of the four.
© 2002 - Alan Wright