Cozy Powell's Hammer
Over The Top

"Cozy Powell on drums!"

How many times have we heard it shouted in concerts, with Jeff Beck or with Rainbow for example, at the end of those breathtaking drum solos. Cozy Powell was an active, versatile drummer, alternating collaborations with various rock bands (in addition to Beck and Rainbow, also ELP, MSG, Whitesnake, and Black Sabbath) with a prolific solo production.

His project was called Cozy Powell's Hammers. In 1979 his first album was released: "Over The Top". An entirely instrumental album, featuring the best virtuosos of the Rock music scene at the time. This album includes: Gary Moore, Bernie Mardsen, and Dave Clempson; on keyboards the omnipresent Don Airey and Max Middleton; on bass Jack Bruce.

An incessant space march opens the work. In "Theme 1" Airey and Middleton create atmospheres worthy of the best Space Rock, supported by the rhythmic structure built by Powell and Bruce. The beauty of this album is that various stylistic solutions of the rock genre are revisited. The use of double bass (a technique perfected by Powell himself) enlivens "Killer", a hard rock piece, where the first guitar solos are heard before culminating in a bluesy finale.

Keyboards also dominate the third track, "Heidi Goes To Town". The synthesizers produce beautiful classical motifs, creating a solemn setting. Another leap into pure hard rock with "El Sid", where the guitars of Mardsen, Moore, and Clempson take center stage, with a Moog solo at the end. The sweet sound of the electric piano introduces "Sweet Poison", starting with jazz and then evolving into a track with pop and soul influences.

"The Loner" is a well-inspired melancholic blues, after all, the musicians have full liberty to showcase their skills, and they do so magnificently.

The title track, however, is certainly the most successful song, in which only keyboard, bass, and drums collaborate. Powell's passion for classical music culminates in this compelling piece, where first Airey and Middleton work hard at the piano and synthesizer. In the middle, a perfectly executed drum solo by good Cozy. It's the suitable overture, at the end of the solo the keyboards re-enter, picking up the fantastic "Ouverture 1812" by Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The final crescendo is the apotheosis of musical beauty, Powell's accompaniment makes the Russian composer's work even more imposing.

The curtain falls on this splendid instrumental album by a drummer out of the ordinary. Not just a simple collaborator with the "headliner" bands, but a talent in music, who with unique mastery gifted works like "Over The Top".