Abigail [Original recording remastered, Extra tracks]

King Diamond | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 11, 1997)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered, Extra tracks
• Label: Roadrunner Records
• ASIN: B000000H49
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (68 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #34,450 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

80's Black metal classic featuring Andy LaRoque on guitar, Mickey Dee (Motorhead) on drums, and the King himself. Re-mastered with four bonus tracks. - 1997

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars King Diamond : "Abigail", June 16, 2001

By 

Masked Jackal (Ft. Lauderdale, FL United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Abigail (Audio CD)

I love King Diamond, and "Abigail" was my very first King purchaced back in the 1980's. From the very first listen, I was addicted for life. The story is bone-chilling, and the musicianship / production on "Abigail" is absolutely flawless. I've been a Metalhead since about 1980, and not since Iron Maiden released "Piece Of Mind" back in 1983, has there been a Metal recording that has effected me as much as "Abigail" has. It's an incredible masterpiece, and in my opinion, King's finest hour...

~MJ~

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Won me over, September 12, 2000

By 

Methuselah (Philly, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Abigail (Audio CD)

Growing up I listened to such metal-lite bands as Def Leppard and Warrant. I never really took an interest in darker sounding metal. My first exposure to darker metal was seeing album covers of old Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne in a record store. They used to send chills down my spine and developed a kind of fear of listening to that kind of music (hey, I was a preteen at the time). Even Iron Maiden would give me the shivers until a guitar instructor played Powerslave for me when I was a Jr. in high school. Over the years (I am now in my late 20's) heavy metal has become my music of choice. The internet has brought the ability to explore different bands that I have never heard before and expand my tastes. I've never and will never get into death metal or any type of true thrash. A singer who actually sings is a must. I also don't really care for doom-type lyrics.

One band/singer that has always been an enigma to me has been King Diamond. Just the look of the guy kept me away from his music and he really stayed out of my conscience all these years. Well, thanks to the convenience of the internet, I had the opportunity to read a synopsis of Abigail and also read an interview where King Diamond explains his spiritual beliefs. Although I think he is a lot mixed up about the eternal picture, I got to see the man behind the makeup and realized that hey he really isn't any better or worse than any other singer I listen to. In fact, even as a Christian I can say that some of King Diamond's beliefs are closer to how the Bible explains the truth than what even so-called Christians believe. Anyway, it seems like he plays a character like Alice Cooper.

Well the story of Abigail intrigued me (I am a fan of classic horror movies), no mention or glorification of Satan present, so I thought I finally reached a point where I would overcome this "fear" of King Diamond and buy a King Diamond CD. The hair on my arms was actually standing on end as the The Funeral started and the intro to The Arrival began. The anticipation of what King Diamond's voice would sound like was unnerving. Would it be a monumental $17 mistake? Would it make me want to go out on a killing spree and perform a black mass? The answer resoundingly to both of these questions is NO. Straight up, King's voice is awesome. Everybody who puts Midnight (ex-Crimson Glory) up on a pedastal better make a little room for this guy. He puts on a vocal onslaught unmatched by anybody but the aforemention Midnight. The music is dark as expected but melodic.

As an example of how much I like this CD...I bought Abigail along with CD's by Nocturnal Rites, Brainstorm, Heavenly, and Metalium right before an hour drive home from work. I had it all figured out, 12 minutes per CD. Well, I couldn't eject Abigail out of my CD player. I wanted to hear every song. King Diamond went from being a monster in my mind to being a storyteller and great singer (Midnight meets H.P. Lovecraft).

If you take King Diamond for what he really is, than you won't miss out on some great music. I'm going to the CD store today to buy "Them."

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Along with Them and Conspiracy, a Must-Have, June 12, 2000

By 

D. Read "Maximumdread" (GA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Abigail (Audio CD)

Abigail is my favorite King Diamond record. To me, there are three essential King Diamond records: Abigail, Them, and Conspiracy. These three records comprise some of the best metal recorded in the late 80s. It's hard to put King Diamond, the band, in a category. This is metal for sure, but may not appeal to die-hard thrash/death/speed metal fans who shy away from melody and harmonies. That's not to say that this goes as far as Helloween or other such melodic-metal bands, but it's more towards that ballpark.

King Diamond, and these three records, work so well because of a perfect combination of great songwriting; inspired and extremely skillful playing; tight, well-rehearsed arrangements; and the chemistry and personality of the players. Mikkey Dee is one of the great unsung metal drummers. Andy LaRoque's hooks and flourishes are always a joy. Earlier and later King Diamond records suffer from the lack of at least one of these qualities, or from the lack of some of the personnel. Mikkey Dee, especially, is sorely missed in the post-Conspiracy era. The songwriting on the later records is lacking the great hooks of the Abigail/Them/Conspiracy triumverate (but, after 1990, songwriting for most metal bands changed in a way I did not like). Also, King's story conceptions on these three records have always seemed to me to be more inspired.

The bottom line is that there are plenty of people who are never going to like Kind Diamond. Either they're simply not into this kind of metal, or they can never get used to King's singing style. For my money, though, these three records are important, inspired, and a must-have.