Tickets for Blue Oyster Cult are on sale now from Ticketmaster outlets nationwide and Soundcellar priced at €40 (inc booking fee). Get yours today and be part of history!
Blue Oyster Cult rose from the ashes of the Stalk Forest Group and went on to become of the all-time greatest hard-rock ensembles. With a legacy of classic albums from the mid ’70 through the early ’80s, that combines street-level rock ‘n’ roll with more cerebral elements of poetry and literature the band were responsible for influencing an entire generation of rock and metal bands including Metallica.
Avoiding cliches whenever possible, Blue Oyster Cult rode hard and loud, and kicked out the jams at every opportunity. For that reason, Overdrive has put together the ultimate top ten of classics – Enjoy!
10 ‘Burnin’ for You’
From: Fire of Unknown Origin (1981)
Blue Oyster Cult hit the jackpot with this riff-driven melodic rocker from their 1981 album Fire of Unknown Origin. Co-written by guitarist Donald Roeser (better known as Buck Dharma) and author Richard Meltzer, ‘Burnin’ for You’ gave the band its first radio hit since ‘(Don’t Fear) The Reaper’. With more of a polished sound than usual, bordering on power pop at times, this is an instant hit and features some captivation guitar work by Dharma. An essential track in the bands history which remains one of the band’s most beloved songs.
9 ‘I Love The Night’
From: Spectres (1978)
With a delicate and equally haunting sound that’s not a million miles away from Pink Floyd, ‘I Love the Night’ oozes with after-dark moodiness. Chiming guitar tones and gentle harmonies add to the track’s inherent beauty. Check out Buck Dharma’s lets loose a salty solo, it’s worth it for the track alone!
8 ‘Flaming Telepaths’
From: Secret Treaties (1974)
Widely hailed as an essential album in the bands long career. ‘Flaming Telepaths’ offers a much heavier guitar sound with a noticeable vocal range, that is is much more developed. The overall atmosphere of the track is simply mesmerizing with all the different sounds going on.
7 ‘Then Came The Last Days in May’
From: Blue Oyster Cult (1972)
‘Then Came the Last Days of May,’ is holds a deceptively pretty melody amongst a rather chilling storyline. Telling the tale of “three good buddies” who attempt to make a drug deal and get caught in a double-cross that costs them their lives, the songs melody behind the narrative is surprisingly gentle but equally dark with elements of melancholy and unsuspecting tragedy.
6 ‘Cities on Flame with Rock and Roll’
From: Blue Oyster Cult (1972)
Considered as one of America’s first native heavy metal songs, Blue Oyster Cult opened many a door with this early psych / doomish approach. So heavy for it’s time and packed full of timeless riffing that would have all members of Sabbath nodding with approval, ‘Cities on Flame with Rock and Roll’ offers a glimpse of the origin of early American heavy metal at it’s finest.
5 ‘Hot Rails to Hell’
From: Tyranny and Mutation (1973)
Less dense and than their previous releases, Tyranny and Mutation offers the mighty ‘Hot Rails to Hell’ as a prime piece of classic rock. The song’s subject matter is based on a close friend of the band who made his living playing cards until one night he involuntarily shed this mortal coil due to it. The mystery of the story is somewhat hazy, but that’s Blue Oyster Cult for you!
4 ‘This ain’t the Summer of Love
From: Agents of Fortune (1975)
By the time of 1975’s double live album, On Your Feet or on Your Knees, the band were on what seemed like an unstoppable course towards conquering the world. However it was the bands follow up album, Agents of Fortune, which was released the following year, that would finally give them the push they needed. With another dynamic riff at the core, ‘This Ain’t the Summer of Love’ signals a call to arms, somewhat in tandem with the forthcoming punk movement, in just a little more than two minutes.
3 ‘ME 262’
From: Secret Treaties (1974)
‘ME 262’ is a rocking slice of classic rock at it’s finest. The songs meaning is based on a particular German fighter plane used in World War II, which was capable of flying 120 miles per hour faster than the U.S.’ top aircraft. It’s one of the most fiercely rocking songs in the band’s catalogue and should be played at deafening levels of volume. This is by far one of Blue Oyster Cult‘s more punchy tunes and boasts almost as much firepower as the track’s subject.
2 ‘Astronomy’
From: Secret Treaties (1974)
Most of the younger generation will be familiar with this track, as it features on Metallica‘s 1998 Garage Inc. album. Mysterious and amazing in equal measures, Blue Oyster Cult can be heard doing what they do best on ‘Astronomy’, with unpredictable and encapsulating measures of songwriting can be heard. The arrangement in this track is a perfect example of just how ground breaking Blue Oyster Cult were for their time and shows a direct influence to which Metallica own them for, especially with the vocal delivery.
1 ‘(Don’t) Fear the Reaper’
From: Agents of Fortune (1975)
If you’re not familiar with this timeless classic, then you deserve to go back to the rock in which you have been hiding under! Arguably the bands biggest hit and one that pushed the Agents of Fortune album into platinum selling territory. Famously used in the more recent Saturday Night Live ‘More Cowbell’ sketch, featuring actors Christopher Walken and Will Ferrell, Blue Oyster Cult‘s classic has been playing on a radio somewhere around the world at any given time since it’s release back in 1975.
Tickets for Blue Oyster Cult are on sale now from Ticketmaster outlets nationwide and Soundcellar priced at €40 (inc booking fee). Please check DME Promotions for more details on availability.
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© Overdrive 2016
