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Scott Gorham, guitarist of Thin Lizzy, in a recent interview described Philip Lynott, the group's leader, as: "The man who screw more chicks, took more drugs and swallowed more drinks than everyone". Philip was a party animal, a sacrificial victim of rock, and much more. He grew up in the ghettos of Dublin alongside his beloved Irish mother, Philomena; his father was a black English worker, although Philip always described him as a Brazilian sailor. The fact is that he abandoned the boy and his mother to their fate. Philip experienced the harsh street life in suburban Dublin, developing a difficult character and a strong aggressiveness; about that period he said: "It's hard to be an Irish but being a black Irish is a nightmare".
But Lynott wasn't just a brawling thug; he was also a very sensitive and intelligent boy. In Dublin, he developed a passion for Celtic mythology by attending Irish literature courses and simultaneously developed a visceral love for music; from rock to folk, from jazz to punk, the multifaceted musical influences contributed to shaping his diverse personality.
Thin Lizzy was born in 1969. The album "Bad Reputation" was released in 1977, when the band had achieved international success in the hard rock scene after releasing works like "Johnny the fox" and "Jailbreak," both from '76. The work was recorded in June of that year in Toronto and marks the reintegration into the group of guitarist Brian "Robbo" Robertson, who was forced into a long period of rest after damaging several tendons and arteries in his hand by breaking a glass in a brawl. Robertson, who only recorded the tracks "Opium Trail," "Killer Without A Cause" and "That woman's gonna break your heart," doesn't appear in the cover figure but is relegated to a photo on the last page of the booklet enclosed with the CD.
While retaining the rock soul of previous albums, characterized in some cases by the "crossed guitars" of Robertson and Gorham, "Bad Reputation" is an album imbued with a melancholic aura that includes rather different pieces due to various contaminations. "Soldier Of Fortune," the opening song, presents the traits of a Celtic anthem, reprising the Irish national anthem "The Soldier's Song"; the mercenary soldier character spoken of in the song metaphorically represents the tenacity in pursuing a goal. Elvis Costello will also dedicate his famous song "Oliver's Army" to this figure.
The second track, which gives the album its name, presents a decidedly more pressing rhythm and a nice guitar riff. The swaggering theme of gang fights, the reputation to uphold, comes back to mind pieces like "The boys are back In town" or "Jailbreak" but in this lyric, it is described by Lynott in a dimension of regret, aware of the relentless passage of time ("That bad reputation ha made you so old"). "Opium Trail," the third song, inspired by the opium trade by the Triad, stands out for excellent synchronization of bass and drums and the guitar sound that perfectly accompanies Lynott's voice, a suffering and fascinated lament; the singer's relationship with heroin will also be suffering and fascinated, beginning only two years later in conjunction with the recording of the album "Black Rose." Lynott will always be attracted to the figure of the artist devoted to self-destruction, in whom he will come to identify himself in the last years of his career.
The subsequent song, "Southbound," lights up in contrast to the dark context of the two previous pieces, outlining through positive sounds a departure from gray and corrupt ports towards a hopeful future. Then comes "Dancing In The Moonlight", the peak of the album, in my opinion a timeless classic song. A song that might jar the ears of the purist hard rocker for its velvet melody, it is actually an extraordinary reconciliation of different but contiguous realms: the sax piloted by John Helliwell of Supertramp blends with Lynott's exceptional bass line until culminating in Gorham's guitar solo, giving light to an ecstatic musical parabola. It is above all a tribute to "Moonlight" by Lynott's compatriot, the great blues man Van Morrison, from which is borrowed the scene of dancing under the moon with a sensual and unknown woman. The suggestive verse "I always get chocolate stains on my pants", in the song's lyrics, was justified by Lynott saying he stained his jeans by spilling a box of Maltesers while watching Martin Scorsese's film "Mean Streets."
"Killer Without A Cause", the sixth track, highlights abundant contaminations from punk sounds due to Thin Lizzy's friendship with the Sex Pistols and the favorable situation punk was experiencing in those years. The following "Downtown Sundown" returns to the tones we had already glimpsed in "Southbound": simple and contemplative melodic lines, nostalgic aspirations and mystical tensions.
"That Woman's Gonna Break Your Heart" warms the listeners' spirits again with an aggressively melodic and vaguely intimidating tune, enhanced by the crossed guitars of the Gorham-Robertson duo that dispense clean and cascading notes like a waterfall. The album closes with "Dear Lord", another muffled and melodic piece where the music serves as a backdrop to Lynott's voice, very dark, bowed in a prayer to the Lord; a sort of perfect testament to close the work.
"Bad Reputation" is, in my opinion, one of Thin Lizzy's most representative albums, being the valid realization of the different tendencies, of the different influences that the band assumed in its approach to rock music. In particular, it is the mirror of the band's leader, of his life split between the desire to pursue the myth of the brilliantly dissolute musician and a naturally fragile and poetic soul destined to shipwreck in dependencies.
Tracklist Lyrics and Samples
01 Soldier of Fortune (05:17)
A soldier of fortune came home from war
And wondered what he was fighting for
This sad-eyed soldier, he broke down and cried
Oh he was so broke up inside
When will it end
When will it end
The bells toll
For those about to die
The battle's over the war is won
But this soldier of fortune he will carry on
He will carry on when all hope is gone
He will carry on
He's trained to kill and kill he will
As we march along
Singing just another soldier song
Just another soldier song
I am a soldier of fortune
Destined to keep on marching
I can hear the pipers calling
I am a soldier of fortune
Destined to keep on marching
I can hear the pipers calling
02 Bad Reputation (03:09)
You got a bad reputation
That's the word out on the town
It gives a certain fascination
But it can only bring you down
You better turn yourself around
Turn yourself around
Turn it upside down
Turn yourself around
You had bad breaks well that's tough luck
You play too hard too much rough stuff
You're too sly so cold
That bad reputation has made you old
Turn yourself around
Turn yourself around
Turn it upside down
Turn yourself around
03 Opium Trail (03:59)
I took a line that leads you to the opium trail
Oriental eyes reveal the lies, deceit, betrayal
On this journey behold one who travels far
You called him fool but now you are
The wizard wanders through the world made from dreams
The splashing whirlpool drowns the frightened streams
Exotic dancers, flashing lancers, this mysterious space
The fanfare advances, the warlord falls from grace
It clears your pain
But It's got you claimed again, my love
You feel the need but it lets you bleed
You must concede, my love
No one to blame, no shame
You crave again and again, my love
No use to plead from you
It feeds on your greed, my love
I took a line that comes from the golden states of Shan
The smugglers trail that leads to the opium den
The Chinese connection refines to heroin
Depart the heart you crave again
It clears your pain
You soul is claimed again, my love
You feel the need, it lets you bleed
You must concede, my love
No one to blame, no shame
You crave again and again, my love
No use to plead
From you it feeds, my love
04 South Bound (04:27)
The boom time it is over
A ghost town is all that's left here
The gold rush it is over
And depression days draw near
Tonight after sundown
I'm going to pack my case
I leave without a sound
Disappear without a trace
I'm going southbound
Drifting like a drover
Chasing my career
From the ships docked in the harbour
New horizons will appear
Tumbling with the tumbleweed
Down the open road
Taking only what I need
Before my head explodes
I'm going southbound
Hey, you're not getting any younger
The wild west has already been won
Northern lights are growing colder
And the old eastern ways are gone
So tonight after sundown
You must go from this place
Without a tear, without a frown
Disappear without a trace
07 Downtown Sundown (04:08)
If you want your freedom
There is nothing planned
If you really need him
I will understand
Please believe in love
I believe there is a God above
For love
And He's coming, yes He's coming
If you want to fly
Then fly away
All the cloudy skies
Belong to yesterday
Please believe in love
I believe there is a God above
For love
And He's coming, yes He's coming
In the shadows the swallow dies
No one knows the hobo hides
There is no need to apologize
This is the story of a downtown sundown
Oh
If you climb the mountain
Then you will see
There is no great distance
Between the Lord and me
Please believe in love
I believe there is a God above
For love
And He's coming, yes He's coming
And in the shadows a swallow dies
No one knows the hobo hides
There is no need to apologize
This is the story of a downtown sundown
09 Dear Lord (04:22)
Dear Lord this is a prayer
Just let me know if you're really there
Dear Lord come gain control
Oh Lord come save my soul
Give me dignity restore my sanity
Oh Lord come rescue me
Dear Lord, my vanity
Oh Lord it's killing me, killing me
If you give your soul to heaven
And your soul begins to bleed
Remember all the sevens
Don't turn up when you need
If you do believe in glory
Then please believe a fact
If you give your soul to heaven
You won't get it back
I'm down deep and I need your help
There's no one to turn to and I can't help myself
Dear Lord hear this call
Oh Lord save my fall
I'm scared, I doubt
Dear Lord, help me out
I despair, my Lord, oh set your hand yeah
Dear Lord take the time
I believe your story now you believe mine
Oh Lord I'm on my knees
Oh Lord please please beware
My Lord oh care my Lord
Give me dignity
Restore my sanity
My vanity is killing me
Lord
If you give your soul to heaven
Oh my Lord
And your soul begins to bleed
Remember all the sevens
Don't turn up when you need
If you do believe in glory
Lord
Then please believe a fact
Oh my Lord
Give your soul to heaven
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