Spectres

• Artist: Blue Öyster Cult
• Rating:
• Release Date: 1977 10
• Total Time: 40:29
• Genre: Rock

Review

Blue Öyster Cult scored big with Agents of Fortune and its now-classic rock hit, "(Don't Fear) The Reaper." It took the album into the stratosphere and the band's profile with it; it put them in the visible pop space they'd tried for years to get to. But upon arrival, they found that kind of success difficult to respond to. Not only did the Cult want to respond, they wanted to cement their place. Spectres is not the masterpiece that Agents of Fortune is, but it didn't need to be. However, upon hearing Spectres again, the album offers proof that the commercial and creative bent of Agents of Fortune was still in place at certain moments, and the band laid out a major single in the opening cut, "Godzilla," a tune -- however silly it may be -- that is every bit as memorable as "(Don't Fear) The Reaper." It's not the only big number here either: "Goin' Through the Motions" and the truly spooky "I Love the Night" by Buck Dharma also scored. The former track is a wonderful blend of Tommy James & the Shondells, Boston, and Mott the Hoople's roots rock glam attack. Written by Eric Bloom and Ian Hunter, it's a stunning single. It sounds less like the Cult than anything they'd recorded, but as a classic rock & roll single it succeeds in spades. And "I Love the Night" (with its guitar part resembling "Reaper" for a moment) is one of rock & roll's truly strange and seductive love songs. There is more spook and darkness here, of course, in the album's closer, "Nosferatu." As a closer, "I Love the Night" may have been a better choice, but this track has all those layered harmonies, a reverbed piano, Dharma's power chords, and lyric fills that never lose their sense of menace and once more, a story. BOC were the only band in their league, walking the line between AOR rock and metal, and offering such detailed narratives. Spectres also contains tunes that were ready-made for touring, which is what the Cult did immediately after, resulting in the wildly successful live album Some Enchanted Evening. In sum, the only reason Spectres is not regarded as a classic is because it followed Agents of Fortune. Other than the false funk of "Searchin' for Celine," it's flawless as a finely tuned tome that begins with sci-fi humor and ends with gothic horror -- all of which can be hummed to. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Godzilla (Lyrics)	Donald Roeser, Richard Meltzer	Blue Öyster Cult	(3:41)
Golden Age of Leather (Lyrics)	Donald Roeser	Blue Öyster Cult	(5:51)
Death Valley Nights	Albert Bouchard, Richard Meltzer	Blue Öyster Cult	(4:08)
Searchin' for Celine	Allen Lanier	Blue Öyster Cult	(3:36)
Fireworks	Albert Bouchard	Blue Öyster Cult	(3:10)
R.U. Ready 2 Rock (Lyrics)	Albert Bouchard, Sandy Pearlman	Blue Öyster Cult	(3:43)
Celestial the Queen	Joe Bouchard, Helen Wheels Band	Blue Öyster Cult	(3:24)
Goin' Through the Motions (Lyrics)	Ian Hunter, Eric Bloom	Blue Öyster Cult	(3:12)
I Love the Night (Lyrics)	Donald Roeser	Blue Öyster Cult	(4:23)
Nosferatu	Joe Bouchard, Helen Wheels Band	Blue Öyster Cult	(5:21)

Credits

Donald Roeser (Synthesizer), Joe Bouchard (Bass), Joe Bouchard (Guitar), Murray Krugman (Producer), Eric Bloom (Keyboards), Donald Roeser (Vocals), Donald Roeser (Guitar (Rhythm)), Eric Bloom (Guitar), Donald Roeser (Keyboards), Joe Bouchard (Piano), David Lucas (Producer), Shelly Yakus (Engineer), Allen Lanier (Keyboards), Blue Öyster Cult (Producer), Allen Lanier (Guitar), Allen Lanier (Bass), Allen Lanier (Vocals), Joe Bouchard (Vocals), Eric Bloom (Vocals), Sandy Pearlman (Producer), Albert Bouchard (Guitar), John Jansen (Engineer), Donald Roeser (Guitar), Albert Bouchard (Harmonica), Albert Bouchard (Drums), Albert Bouchard (Vocals)

• Formed: 1962
• Disbanded: 1967
• Genres: Rock
• Representative Albums: "Blood Sweat and Nitro", "The Great Erotic Zombie Shakedown!

Biography

The Spectres were one of the longer-lived local bands from London, enduring through five years of club dates and backing visiting American singers. The band--Francis Rossi (guitar, vocals), Alan Lancaster (guitar, bass, vocals), Rod Lynes (keyboards), John Coughlan (drums)--were later joined by Rick Parfitt of the Highlifes on bass and keyboards, and they hung on in this line-up long enough to get signed to Pye Records' Piccadilly imprint in 1966. They made their debut that year covering the Shirley Bassey hit "I (Who Have Nothing)," and followed it up with a version of "Hurdy Gurdy Man," finally covering the Blues Magoos hit "(We Ain't Got) Nothing Yet." That record, released in early 1967, captured a good chunk of the sound--crunchy guitar, swirling organ Arabesques, and hard rhythm section--that the group would use, after an interlude spent as Traffic Jam, to finally top the charts as Status Quo.

Formed in South London back in 1962 and gradually developed playing local dates and backing visiting American singers. The band---- from The Highlifes, who they'd originally met at the Cafe Des Artistes in Earls Court. Signing to Piccadilly they covered a Shirley Bassey hit for their first 45, a song which Donovan later enjoyed a hit with for their second one and a song which had been a big American hit for The Blues Magoos for their third. In early 1967, The Spectres became The Traffic Jam who, in turn, evolved into Status Quo on the same label, with essentially the same line-up. The three Spectres singles and their B-sides have appeared on various CD reissues, grouped together on a couple of Status Quo compilations. "(We Ain't Got) Nothin' Yet" has appeared on Sequel Records' Freakbeat Freakout, among other compilations, while "I (Who Have Nothing)" is on the Sequel Songs of Leiber and Stoller collection. ~ Bruce Eder, All Music Guide

Great Erotic Zombie Shakedown! Buy this CD

Blood Sweat and Nitro Buy this CD

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