GLENN TIPTON – Baptizm Of Fire (Japan Edition Expanded & Remastered)

As an original member of heavy metal forefathers Judas Priest, guitarist GLENN TIPTON has engaged audiences for nearly four decades with his aggressive yet melodic guitar playing.
The reason there was such a gap between Priest’s Painkiller (1990) and Jugulator (1997), other than the fact that they had to find someone worthy of replacing singer Rob Halford, was perhaps because main songwriter Glenn Tipton wrote and recorded 2 albums worth of material under his own name; Edge Of The World and this “Baptizm Of Fire“.
Displaying a wide range of styles ranging from bluesy hard rock, classical, classic rock and traditional British metal, all coalesce in this rockin’ album, and Tipton (who also sings) gets to work in song formats not common to Judas Priest.

Label executives rejected Glenn’s first attempt, ‘Edge Of The World’ – recorded with giants Cozy Powell & John Entwistle – on the grounds that it wasn’t metal enough (however the record was eventually released later).
“Baptizm Of Fire” features numerous guest musicians in the bass and drum departments, including Entwistle, Neil Murray, Billy Sheehan and Metallica’s Robert Trujillo. The songwriting is stellar & diverse, while the production is crystal clear and punchy — energetic and mostly melodic.

As for Glenn’s lead vocals, he’s not the greatest singer in the world yet does the job. The problem is that his vocals will automatically be compared to Rob Halford. Halford isn’t called the ‘metal god’ for nothing, and Glenn just can’t compete in the vocal department. But heck, this is his album…

The guitar work is nothing like Priest, except with the occasional screeching riffs. Like It’s insanely groovy and catchy, which is the strongest side of the album. And his bizarre but incredibly cool voice also add to this.
But fear not, seeker of heavy riffs, for you’ll find those as well. Just take a look at ‘Kill Or Be Killed’ and especially ‘Fuel Me Up.

And there’s some other extremely talented musicians on here, most notably none other than the legendary Cozy Powell who handles drums on 5 tracks here (really like ‘Extinct’, title track and ‘The Healer’). Billy Sheehan and C.J. De Vilar also lays done some wicked basswork, which is just perfectly loud in the mix. And we hear talented Don Airey as well, among others.

How about the songs? It’s a very consistent album. From the first to last track, everything is completely solid. There are, however, some that stands out as being exceptionally cool.
First off the above midpaced and insanely groovy ‘Hard Core’, featuring some killer riffs and the best vocal work on the album, when he goes up and down from his lower to higher voice in practically every single vocal line, and it sounds excellent. And the lyrics own you, too.

‘Enter The Storm’ is a slower song with a whole bunch of time changes. Mainly, there are the acoustic verses and that monstrous chorus section – and that riff is heavy! Do not mistake for brutal, fast or aggressive – just plain heavy, punchy.
‘Baptizm of Fire’ is an instrumental song, except for that short spoken part in the middle. Lots of great instrumentation on this one. Killer drum intro, monstrous riffs that for the most part get heavily backed up by the powerful bass, and even a really cool church organ part is to be found.

‘Kill or be Killed’ is probably the heaviest song on here, with some excellent riffwork as the standout factor. And this song also features strong lyrics: “The pacifist won’t last – his view means nothing.” Hell yeah.
And of course, we have the acoustic ‘Left For Dead’, which has some instrument sounding more like a banjo than anything else. Still, it is extremely cool, and features another great set of lyrics. The chorus melody is also very infectious, like on many other songs found on the disc.

“Baptizm Of Fire” is a real grower, takes some time getting into, however this speaks for its originality, or at least, trying to sound different than everyone. You have to adapt to Glenn’s unique vocals to appreciate it, but it’s worth it.
In addition to the stellar musicianship and song craft, the mature and sometimes intriguing lyrical themes are a highlight.
Highly Recommended

01 – Hard Core
02 – Paint It Black
03 – Enter the Storm
04 – Fuel Me Up
05 – Extinct
06 – Baptizm of Fire
07 – The Healer
08 – Cruise Control
09 – Kill or Be Killed
10 – Voodoo Brother
11 – Left for Dead
BONUS TRACKS:
12 – Himalaya
13 – New Breed

Glenn Tipton – all guitars and vocals, bass on track 13
Billy Sheehan – bass on tracks 5, 6
John Entwistle – bass on track 7
Neil Murray – bass on track 12
Robert Trujillo – bass on tracks 1, 2, 10
C.J. de Villar – bass on tracks 3, 4, 8, 9, 11
Brooks Wackerman – drums on tracks 1, 2, 10
Shannon Larkin – drums on tracks 3, 4, 8, 9, 11
Cozy Powell – drums on tracks 5, 6, 7, 11, 12
Rick Tipton – drums on track 13
Don Airey – keyboards on track 6
Whitfield Crane – backing vocals on track 10

Out of Print
www.cdjapan.co.jp/product/WPCR-12299