Strong Arm of the Law (2009) [Import, Original recording remastered]

Saxon | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 10, 2009)
• Original Release Date: 2009
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import, Original recording remastered
• Label: EMI France
• ASIN: B001Q2RXJ2
• Also Available in: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #12,497 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #34 in Music > Imports > Hard Rock & Metal

Track Listings

1. Heavy Metal Thunder

2. To Hell and Back Again

3. Strong Arm of the Law

4. Taking Your Chances

5. 20, 000 Ft

6. Hungry Years

7. Sixth Form Girls

8. Dallas 1 PM

9. 20, 000 Ft [BBC Session 1982] [*]

10. Dallas 1 PM [BBC Session 1982] [*]

11. The Eagle Has Landed [BBC Session 1982] [*]

12. 747 (Strangers in the Night) [BBC Session 1982] [*]

13. To Hell and Back Again [Alternate Version][*]

14. 20, 000 Ft [Abbey Road Mix 2009] [*]

15. Mandy [Early Version of Sixth Form Girls] [*][Version]

16. Heavy Metal Thinder [Abbey Road Mix '09' [Bonus Track] [Remix] [*]

Editorial Reviews

2009 digitally remastered and expanded edition of the British Metal band's third album originally released in 1980. Strong Arm Of The Law was their second album to be produced by the band in association with Pete Hinton at Ramport Studios. Opening with the self-explanatory 'Heavy Metal Thunder', like its predecessor Wheels Of Steel, Strong Arm Of The Law features many tracks that have remained staples of Saxon's live set to the present day. Strong Arm Of The Law now includes the complete 1982 Kid Jensen B15 session, recorded live in the studio for BBC Radio 1 and new mixes taken from the original 24 track tapes of 'To Hell And Back Again', '20,000 Feet' and 'Heavy Metal Thunder'. It also features two previously unreleased songs in 'Mandy' (an early working version of 'Sixth Form Girls', plus the jokey, off-the-cuff 'Mule Train'. It also features rare memorabilia and extensive liner notes by Classic Rock and Metal Hammer writer Jerry Ewing, written in co-operation with lead singer Biff Byford.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic NWOBHM; brilliant remaster, November 13, 2009

By 

Tom P. the Underground Navigator (Park Forest, IL USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Strong Arm of the Law (2009) (Audio CD)

How exciting it must have been to be of age in Britain in 1980 and part of the burgeoning underground hard rock/heavy metal scene. '80 arguably saw the NWOBHM movement at its absolute peak, with debut LPs being released by the scene's top contenders, most notably Iron Maiden, Def Leppard, Diamond Head, Tygers of Pan Tang and Girlschool.

With the exception of Iron Maiden, none of those groups however, not even Def Leppard, would chart that year as high as Barnsley's Saxon. Their breakthrough LP (and second overall) "Wheels of Steel," released in March of '80, peaked at #5 in the U.K. national charts, an astonishing feat in itself, but even more astonishing is that they would unleash its follow-up a mere seven months later.

And the amazing thing is that October's "Strong Arm of the Law" LP didn't suffer a bit from the usual sophomore slump and was actually even MORE rockin', even FASTER and overall better than its predecessor.

This record is chock full of mini metal masterpieces, not the least of which is opener "Heavy Metal Thunder," yet another of Saxon's odes to their legions of headbanging fans. The mere title indicates that here was a group that wore their metal colors with pride at a time when many of their peers were trying to distance themselves from that label. From there, the title track is another monster of a rocker, and the group's record company seemed to agree at the time, as it was released as a successful single from the LP (singles were a big thing at this time). And who could forget that Saxon were arguably one of, if not the fastest band to exist in heavy metal in 1980. Just listen to the velocity of stand-out speed metal scorchers like "20,000 Ft." and "Sixth Form Girls" for proof. You just did not find tempos this rapid in music at the time without crossing over into hardcore punk.

And finally, in 2009, nearly 30 years after Saxon's peak, their early albums get CD releases that actually do these essential recordings justice. Because if you ask me, the poor mixes of previous pressings all but stripped the music of its original rawness and power. I am happy to report to you that you can in good confidence replace any previous Saxon CDs in your collection with these remasters, as I did. The mere term "remaster" is ambiguous when dealing with music made long before the digital age dawned, as it usually involves replacing the original mix with something presumably "cleaner" and more up to date (read: sterile) that all but ruins it. To me, the best remaster of an album from 1980 is one that attempts to replicate the sound of hearing a brand new copy of the original vinyl. These 2009 Saxon remasters do just that, so much so that I've officially retired my worn old Carrere LP pressings of these albums.

If that weren't enough, each reissue contains expanded liner notes with input from frontman Biff Byford himself, along with various clippings from the day and reproductions of the back covers of each LP, making them essential for collectors.

To summarize, mandatory NWOBHM album, and remasters that give these 30 year old recordings a new lease on life. Highly recommended.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Metal Masterpiece - reissued, October 2, 2009

By 

Justin Gaines (Northern Virginia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Strong Arm of the Law (2009) (Audio CD)

Iron Maiden may be the best known band from the legendary New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) scene, and rightly so, but there was a time when Saxon was the dominant NWOBHM band. Actually, once Maiden acquired Bruce Dickinson and took on the larger world stage, it was Saxon that best embodied the sound and spirit of the NWOBHM scene. The speed, the frantic energy, the "denim and leather" attitude - Saxon had all that and then some.

Originally released in 1980, Strong Arm of the Law was Saxon's third album, and is arguably their best work. It's still hard to imagine the band releasing such landmark albums as Wheels of Steel and Strong Arm of the Law in the same year, but that was how prolific and high-octane Saxon was at the time. With Strong Arm of the Law, Saxon continues the hard charging, riffs n' wailing heavy metal sound found on Wheels of Steel, pounding out mammoth rockers like "To Hell and Back Again", "20,000 Feet" and "Strong Arm of the Law" as well as "Heavy Metal Thunder", one of metal's all time greatest anthems. Between the speed of the guitar riffs and Biff Byford's vocals, not to mention the pure energy of the whole thing, it's easy to see why Saxon was so influential in the early heavy metal scene. Strong Arm of the Law is heavy metal perfection.

Strong Arm of the Law is an essential NWOBHM album, an essential British metal album, and an essential heavy metal album. If you call yourself a metal fan, you need to have this album on your shelf. It's just that simple.

Edition Notes - EMI reissued Strong Arm of the Law (along with the rest of the early Saxon albums) in 2009. EMI has been responsible for some of the best-sounding classic hard rock reissues lately (see: Whitesnake, UFO, MSG and the Scorpions), and their Saxon reissues do not disappoint. In addition to the digitally remastered sound, the reissue of Strong Arm of the Law features expanded liner notes by Metal Hammer Magazine's Jerry Ewing and a hefty eight bonus tracks, doubling the original album's length. The first four bonus tracks are BBC session recordings of "20,000 Feet", "Dallas 1PM", "The Eagle Has Landed" and "747 (Strangers in the Night)". The remaining tracks are remixes or alternate versions of various Strong Arm songs. Between the remastered sound, liner notes and bonus tracks, there are plenty of reasons to replace your old version of Strong Arm of the Law.

PS - When you line up the spines of the EMI Saxon reissues they form the Saxon logo and the Wheels of Steel cover icon. I'm a total geek for stuff like that!

1 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Distortion, anyone?, August 14, 2010

By 

D. Cook "Wizard of KISS" (Huh?) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Strong Arm Of The Law (MP3 Download)

Am I the only one who hears the distortion and hiss on this recording? Mainly in the guitar tracks. Not every song, but Heavy Metal Thunder, Strong Arm and a few others. Just a horrible sound? I never owned the vinyl of this album, but it couldn't have been recorded that way, could it? I have other Saxon remasters from this series...Wheels of Steel, Power and the Glory and Denim and Leather...they are great remasters and I don't hear this noise. I've had two copies of the Strong Arm cd and even downloaded a track to compare and the distorted hiss is in everything. Please tell me somebody can hear this besides me.
2 stars is for the sound, not the songs. They're great! But I would sure love to hear them without the noise.