THIN LIZZY – Thunder And Lightning [Japan SHM-CD remastered] *EXCLUSIVE*

After the recent – and excellent – THIN LIZZY box set, many of you asked for the band’s albums in its best sound quality CD press. 0dayrox team, being a big Lizzy fan, will select what we consider the best of them.
“Thunder And Lightning” is very special album. It marked the end of an era. It was March of 1983 that THIN LIZZY released ”Thunder And Lightning”, which would end up being their final effort of original material prior to the death of Phil Lynott in early 1986.
Sure, there’s the Deluxe Edition out there, remastered and with a bonus disc of demos/live (which is good but noy essential), but this Japanese edition on SHM-CD sounds better. It uses the previous remaster than the Deluxe, and it feels more warm and ‘vinyl’.

By this point Phil Lynott had recorded and released two solo albums, and the group had lost guitarist Snowy White, who was replaced by the young John Sykes, fresh out of his stint with Tygers of Pan Tang. For their final album of original material, the group was comprised of Phil Lynott, John Sykes, Scott Gorham, Brian Downey, and keyboardist Darren Wharton (future DARE), who had joined the band a few years prior.

Being a band that had so many issues with its members and inner struggles, you would think that this was something put together under unpleasant circumstances and that the end results would reflect that. Of course, you would be wrong.
”Thunder And Lighting” is not only a fantastic album, it is one of the best albums THIN LIZZY ever made!
Some fans miss the ‘Celtic’ touch of Lizzy origins, but it was 1983, and NWOBHM / hard rock was dominating the scene, and Lizzy just brought it in spades.

If you are going to go out on top and with a bang, putting out an album like ”Thunder And Lighting” is the way to do it. The album is noticeably heavier than the earlier Thin Lizzy records; the presence of guitar ace John Sykes (later of WHITESNAKE and BLUE MURDER) is felt on every single track.
Nothing Thin Lizzy put out could ever really be considered all-out “heavy metal,” but thanks to Sykes, this album comes pretty damn close in a few places. Darren Wharton’s presence in the band also becomes fully fleshed out here, with songwriting credits and some wild keyboard playing that only contributes to the heaviness and hard rock feel, without detracting from it.

Right from the opening title cut, ”Thunder And Lighting” grabs the listener and does not let go. At its hardest and heaviest, this is the most aggressive and wild that Lizzy ever was. Tracks like “This Is the One” and “Cold Sweat” make this very evident.
And yet, the band does not sacrifice the more melodic and soulful elements of their sound either; “The Sun Goes Down” is a slower-paced masterpiece that ranks as one of the band’s last great songs. Many classics and underrated deep cuts fill the record, which is brilliantly concluded with the eerily prolific “Heart Attack.”

”Thunder And Lighting” is THIN LIZZY’s last grand stand in the studio, and they make this record count, whether they knew it would be their last or not.
A masterpiece of CLASSIC hard rock that does not sacrifice everything that made the band musically diverse, the album gets this fan’s absolute highest recommendation.
A MUST

ＵＮＩＶＥＲＳＡＬ ＭＵＳＩＣ ＪＡＰＡＮ ～ UICY-25151
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01 – Thunder And Lightning
02 – This Is The One
03 – The Sun Goes Down
04 – The Holy War
05 – Cold Sweat
06 – Someday She Is Going To Hit Back
07 – Baby Please Don’t Go
08 – Bad Habits
09 – Heart Attack

Phil Lynott – bass, vocals
Scott Gorham – guitar, backing vocals
John Sykes – guitar, backing vocals
Darren Wharton – keyboards, backing vocals
Brian Downey – drums, percussion

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www.cdjapan.co.jp/product/UICY-25151