Customer Reviews

Long Way to Heaven

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In 1985 we were in the nearing the heyday of the "hair band" era with a new (quote un quote) 'metal' band coming out every 45 seconds or so on MTV. Quietly in the middle of all this mediocrity came from the Great White North of Canada a serious band that could really PLAY! Wow, now there's a novel idea...a rock n' roll 'heavy metal' band that had real musical ability instead of glammor-boy/girl looks and lots of stupid clothes. These guys had the hair and all...but they were far from glammy.

True, Helix first rocked the world a couple years earlier on the excellent "No Rest For The Wicked" (album) CD, but I believe they put all the pieces together just right on 85's "Long Way To Heaven." The music is just excellent, yet admittedly simple, rock n' roll that pulls few punches and is fun as hell to listen to. Every song on this steller album stands on its own merits and it's just too bad that Helix never got the press or radio (over)exposure that lesser-talented bands like Def Leppard, Poison, or Warrant got.

Helix was a band that was cool to like because they weren't over-commercialized pretty boys that were short on talent and ridiculously long (or high) on hair. If the hair band era would have been more about musicianship and good music instead of image and mascara and spandex, it wouldn't have the rep it does today. Helix was firing on all cylinders on this one and it's certainly worth picking up by any true fan of rock n' roll. And you can play LOUD and very PROUD!

HELIX WAS ONE OF THE BEST, AND MOST UNDERATED, BANDS OF THE 80'S. Too bad, because they could actually PLAY!

I bought this on vinyl back in 1985 and have loved it ever since. Now that I have it on CD all I can say is that it ROCKS better than ever. Any rock n' roll fan would be wise to add this to their collection. The 80's spawned a lot of 'metal' bands that were long on image and short on talent. Helix, on the other hand, just cranked it up and let it rock. They were very underated and under appreciated by the masses. I've yet to figure out how a band like Warrant could make it big and Helix not...

This CD is solid through and through. It is a bit more polished than the first two. But, the songs are well written and well performed. If ya like harder edged rock, "Long Way To Heaven" is a must.

If you are a Helix fan, this a MUST have. This album rocks and has plenty of energy. One of my favorites.

This one had been in my Wish List for a while. I was happy to hear it was available. I brought back good memories of my youth. The songs were well constructed, glammy but not too much. "Deep Cuts the Knife" Really moves me.

This was a really solid effort and should've shot these guys into the stratosphere! Songs and music are top notch.Much better than Bon Jovi, Winger, Warrant etc, etc..Kids are all shakin, deep cuts the knife(my personal fave), long way to heaven, without you, Christine, Bang an off the bricks are some of the highlights, all songs are good, period. Production values are good not as good as Wild in the streets, though. Still this is extremely well written and played. This is a fun record, laid back and goes well with a beer!!!So buy it and rock on...Cheers..

Not bad for a hair metal band. The playing is excellent and the production, at least through the muddled translation from cassette to CD, seems to be on par with the times. My only problem is that the only track that has any impact on me is Ride The Rocket. In fact, I remember it a LOT. It won't get out of my head to the point that it is driving me nuts.

Ride The Rocket brings back a rush of memories from not only hearing it, but from probably seeing them on MTV on VHS tapes we used to get when we lived in Spain back in the mid 80's. That is what I remember most about that song. As for the rest of the music, the songs are rather generic hair metal anthems. I've listened to this album several times and still can't remember too much about them except Christine sticks out just a bit.

Not bad, just doesn't rock my boat (I've been saying that a lot lately). I hear they (or at least the lead singer) is still around. Bravo for them.

This is not a good album. It is fair at best. And it was a major disappointment at the time it was released, following the classic rockers, No Rest for the Wicked and Walkin' the Razor's Edge. If you made a true "Best Of" for Helix, nothing on this album would qualify, although Deep Cuts the Knife would probably have to be included because it was their biggest hit. I don't know whether the band was just burnt out or whether they tried too hard to become stars. It was probably both, since there are three slower songs on this one and even the rockers are lame and generic. Fortunately, they came back with the full-throttle blast of Wild In the Streets. And if you want a more laid-back Helix, get Back for Another Taste, which is far superior to this collection of schlock.

I bought this on vinyl when it came out in 1985, finally picked it up on CD. Hard to find, it's been out of print for awhile. "Long Way to Heaven" Helix's third release on Capitol/EMi and sounds great, but its a far cry from the material they produced on "Walking the Razor's Edge" and "No Rest for the Wicked". If you like Helix in a watered down version its a good buy, there's more focus on Brian's vocals with this one. The energy level is definetly mellow compared to previous releases, I still enjoy it, just not my favorite and I can see why they chose not to remaster/reissue this third release.

The first timei heard this cd i loved it and im not really a heavy metal person. im mostly into country. This cd really kicks a**.

This is something that I originally bought on album, then on casette, and just recently on cd. I loved this then and love it now. This cd was a little more commercial than the previous as well as WILD IN THE STREETS, however still a good one. The opening track of THE KIDS ARE SHAKIN' right into DEEP CUTS THE KNIFE all the way into BANGIN' OF A THE BRICKS shows that these boys from CANADA can rock. This is a cd that any fan of rock should buy.