Rise Above: 24 Black Flag Songs to Benefit the West Memphis Three [Amazon.com Exclusive Limited Edition]

Various Artists (Artist)

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 8, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 2
• ASIN: B00006MLT2
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #496,266 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Rise Above - Chuck D & Henry Rollins

2. Nervous Breakdown - Keith Morris

3. Fix Me - Iggy Pop

4. American Waste - Neil Fallon of Clutch

5. I've Had it - Cedric Bixler Zavala of The Mars Volta

6. I've Heard It Before - Jeff Moreira of Poison the Well

7. Room 13 - Corey Taylor of Slipknot

8. Wasted - Exene Cervenka

9. Jealous Again - Nick Oliveri of Queens of the Stone Age

10. TV Party - Henry Rollins

See all 24 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Rise Above - Chuck D & Henry Rollins (w/introduction by Henry Rollins)

2. Nervous Breakdown - Keith Morris (w/introduction by Henry Rollins)

3. Six Pack - Mike Patton (w/introduction by Henry Rollins)

4. TV Party - Henry Rollins (w/introduction by Henry Rollins)

5. Thirsty and Miserable - Lemmy (w/introduction by Henry Rollins)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Holy countercultural confluence! For the cause of fundraising for the defense of a trio of legally bound Arkansas headbangers--one of whom is currently on death row on the basis of hearsay testimony--Henry Rollins has resurrected the sacrosanct songs of his legendary former Los Angeles hardcore band Black Flag. Much as he first joined the popular Flag by jumping on stage and grabbing the microphone, Rollins here assigns lead vocals to a bewildering array of guests, including Iggy Pop, Dean Ween, Corey Taylor of Slipknot, Tom Araya of Slayer, Queens of the Stone Age, and Ice T. The Rollins Band convincingly serves as caustic backing band throughout. Protest music godfather Chuck D. of Public Enemy appears as well, though simply to introduce the album. Many of the singers, whether inspired by the cause itself or the muscular caliber of Black Flag's music, deliver the rebellious message with heartfelt intensity. Motorhead leader Lemmy's ripping version of "Thirsty and Miserable" is a stunning highlight, as is Hank Williams III's psychotic "No Values." Former Flag singers Keith Morris and Chuck Dukowski bring their veteran intensity, and Rollins himself shouts "My War," "TV Party," "Black Coffee," "Annihilate This Week," "Slip It In," and the title track. (Flag guitarist-lyricist Greg Ginn is notably absent, though his trademark clear Lucite guitar joins the West Memphis Three defendants on the cover artwork.) The participating musicians' anger and frustration over the West Memphis Three case, which has been detailed in HBO's Paradise Lost documentaries, is well matched with the giant fury of this band. --Ian Christe

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mighty Covers of BLACK ... FLAG Classics!!!, October 17, 2002

By	Mr Leo Scheben (Anchorage, AK United States) - See all my reviews

Not only can you help support the West Memphis 3 just by buying this album, but you also get 24 GREAT 'Flag covers.

I've been a huge "Flag" fan since I was about 13 years old (I'm 33 now). I didn't think anyone could pull-off Greg Ginn's amazing guitar parts but Mother Superior/Rollins Band does a freaking GREAT job!

It's ALL really good, but these are the standout tracks for me after the first listen:

3.) Iggy Pop doing "Fix Me" is a trip, considering he is one of Henry Rollins' & Black Flag's biggest influences. GREAT!

4.) Neil Fallon from Clutch does a very aggressive/straight-forward version of "American Waste".

5.) Cedric Bixler Zavala (from The Mars Volta--I'm not familar with them) does a really cool version of "I've Had It" from the Nervous Breakdown 7"--He does a really cool take on the early Keith Morris vocal sound. Familiar and original at the same time.

9.) Nick Oliveri (Queens of the Stone Age) does a really heavy version of "Jealous Again". POWERFUL!

11.) Hank III's version of "No Values" is ULTRA-COOL! Good voice, phrasing & intensity. One of the best cuts on the album!

14.) Mike Patton kills on "Six Pack"--CRAZY ...! INTENSE!!!

15.) Ice-T is a perfect choice for "Police Story" & he also does a really good job on this track.

16.) Tom Araya from SLAYER also KILLS on his cover of "Revenge".
SLAYER...God may hate them, but I LOVE them!

17.) Who is "Thirsty & Miserable"? LEMMY! Another PERFECT choice. He sounds really cool doing "Thirsty"!

24.) Is it Ryan Adams (Whiskeytown) or PJ HARVEY? The vocal phrasing on this bonus-cover of "Nervous Breakdown" sounds like something off of PJ Harvey's "Rid of Me" or "4 Track Demos" albums. Which is a good thing. I wonder if it's intentional or coinsidental? Either way it's really cool...

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is a wastey one, January 23, 2005

By	Erik D. Hilsinger "Subject of President Koo K... (Eagle River AK DDR) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is pretty much third on my Black Flag list. I saw them in Seattle in 83 and 84, and I saw Rollins tour with Tool in a discotheque under the Space Needle. I saw him do the talking thing, too.
Number one will always be Damaged. It got me through high school without killing myself or others, rough times.
Number two is "Who's got the 10.5" because, well, have you ever thought about getting yourself some? You know what I'm talking about.
This one is number three. The guitars sound too clean and controlled, not enough screw ups to make it have the real "wheels flying off and sparks spraying out about to blow" Black Flag feel. But it still destroyed anything that came out on a major label. Henry is middle aged and he is still on the high hard road. I wish Greg Ginn would have sucked it up and played some skanky guitar on some of these tracks, but no, and after reading "Broken Summer," and having listened to "Get in the Van" on cd, I guess maybe that's not realistic.
This is a must own. Buy it now. Or wallow in your own filth, weakness and failure.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow!, December 14, 2002

By	Peter Shepherd "pbsaurus" (San Jose, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Oh my god! I ordered this from Rollins' website about a month ago. It's still in my car and I love cranking the volume to 11. I like every song on the album and am amazed how Mother Superior did Greg Ginn justice! Henry's vocals are great! The guest vocalists are wonderful. This is my pick for album of the year (and it's for a worthy cause!). Henry you have outdone yourself with this project. Way to go, man!

I really liked the way TV Party was updated with shows such as Rosie O'Donnel and Ally McBeal. Hank III does a kick ... job on No Values. Tom Araya explodes on Revenge. Ice T was perfect for redoing Police Story. Ryan Adams' version of Nervous Breakdown is sublime. I often listen to that track twice. The intro by Chuck D is chilling and Rise Above has never been more rockin'.

I've been listening to Black Flag since 1981 when I was a Freshman in High School. This album has really brought back some fond memories. You owe it to yourself to buy this one immediately and buy a few for your friends and relatives!