Motorhead - Motorhead
- intothewellsabyss
- Aug 22, 2023
- 4 min read
π πππ πππ ππππππ - πππππππππππ ππππ πππππ ππππππππ π’π§ ππ‘π πππππππ π¨πΒ ππππ ππππ & πππππ πππππβ¦
August 21, 1977 β MotΓΆrhead released their self-titled debut studio album via Chiswick Records. (Listen)
It is officially regarded as the band's debut album, though an album was recorded in 1975 for United Artists which was shelved, and was only released in 1979 after the band had established themselves commercially.
This would be the first album to feature what would become the "πππππππ" MotΓΆrhead lineup of Lemmy Kilmister, "Fast" Eddie Clarke and Philthy Animal Taylor and their only release under Chiswick, as they were signed to the larger Bronze Records by early 1978.
More About MotΓΆrhead (1977):
MotΓΆrhead hired lead guitarist "Fast" Eddie Clarke in early 1977, and he was originally to serve as the band's second guitarist along with Larry Wallis in what was intended to be a four-piece lineup, but Wallis left shortly after for his own reasons. Sensing that the fledgling band had dim prospects for success, MotΓΆrhead decided to disband after playing one final show at the Marquee Club in London that year. Ted Carroll, founder of the upstart Chiswick Records label, knew Lemmy well from his rare 45 Record's store in London of which Lemmy was a frequent customer.
Carroll decided to give the band a break and hosted what was to be their final performance at the Marquee on April 1, 1977. The decision was made to record the gig. As Clarke recalls in the documentary The Guts and the Glory;
"πΈπ π ππ πππππ ππ ππ πππ πππππ πππ πππ. πΈ ππππ, π»ππβπ πππ π ππππππ πππ π ππ πππππ ππ ππππππ πππ ππππππ' π’πππ πππ π ππππ π πβππ ππππ ππππππππ πππ πππ πππππππππ ππ πππ ππππππ' ππππ, π’ππ ππππ ? πππ πππππππ π πππ πππ πΌππππππ π ππ ππππ’ π πππππ π»πΆπΆ ππππ πππ πππππ π πππππππππ ππ πππ πΌππππππ. ππππ, ππππ π ππ πππ ππ πππ ππππππππ ππ πππππ πππ’π."
Feeling that the band had already seen its share of adversity, Carroll offered the band two days of studio time at Escape Studios in Kent, England, to record a single with producer John "Speedy" Keen. As Clarke explained to John Robinson of Uncut in 2015, the band finished the gig at the Marquee and drove straight to the studio in Kent for a weekend of recording:
"ππππ π ππ π΅πππππ’ πππππ, ππ π π πππ πππ ππππππππ’ πππ ππππππ’. ππβπ ππππ ππππ’πππ πππππ πππππ πππ π π’πππ, ππ π π πππππππ ππππ ππ, π π πππ ππ ππ πππππ. πΈπ π πππ πππππ π π πππ πππ πππ πππππππ ππππππ πππ π. πΏππ πππ ππππππ πππ π. π±ππ ππππ πππππ, πππ ππππ ππππ πππππππ ππ. π΅ππ ππππ πππππ β π π π πππ πππππππ ππππππππ. π²πππ ππππππππ’ πππππ, π πβπ ππππππ’ ππππππππ ππ."
As biographer Joel McIver recalls in his book Overkill: The Untold Story of MotΓΆrhead;
"π°π πππ πππππ’ ππππ, ππ’ πππ ππππ π²ππππππ ππππ ππππ ππ πππ ππππππ ππ ππππ πππ πππππππ, πππ ππππ πππ ππππππππ ππ πππ ππ ππππ π·π· ππππππ. πΈππππππππ, ππ ππππ πππ ππππ ππππππ ππππ ππ πππππ ππππ ππ ππππππππ ππ πππππ. πππ πππππ πππ π πππ ππππππ ππ ππππππ πππ ππππ π ππππ ππππππ ππππππππ, πππ ππ π ππππ ππ πππππ πππ‘π πππππ, π·πΏπ½πΏβπ πΎπππππππ, ππππ ππππππ ππ ππ πππππ ππππ ππππππππππππ."
The recording of MotΓΆrhead (1977):
Due to the very limited studio time afforded to the band, the decision was made to re-record the unreleased United Artists album almost in its entirety; only Fools and Leaving Here weren't re-recorded at the Kent sessions.
In addition, two new self-penned compositions, White Line Fever and Keep Us on the Road, were added, as well as a cover of John Mayall's Train Kept A-Rollin.
Three tracks on the album were actually composed by Lemmy while he was still a member of Hawkwind, Motorhead, Lost Johnny, and The Watcher, the latter a psychedelic acoustic piece.
Like the band name itself, the song MotΓΆrhead is a reference to speed (Lemmy's drug of choice at that time) and was coupled with the non-album track City Kids (a Larry Wallis composition from his Pink Fairies' days) for release as 7" and 12" singles.
(πΌππΓΆπππππ π½β ππππππ ππππ. πππ π-ππππ π²πππ’ πΊπππ)
In his autobiography White Line Fever, Lemmy recalls working with producer Speedy Keen and engineer John Burns and the challenges arising from a lack of time;
"(ππππ’) π πππ ππππππππ πππ ππ πππππ πππππ πππππππ ππππ’ ππππππβπ ππππππ ππ ππ ππ πππππ β ππππ’ ππππβπ ππππ ππππ, πππ ππππ’ π πππππ ππ ππππ ππ πππππ ππ ππππ ππ π π πππ. ππππ’ πππ‘ππ ππ ππππ’-ππππ ππππππππ ππ πΌππΓΆπππππ πππππ!"
The band members were less than pleased with the finished product, and guitarist Clarke has referred to the album's muddled sound as "ππππππ’ ππππππππ".
Four remaining tracks from the session were shelved until 1980, when they were released as the Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers EP.
(π±πππ π³πππππππ πππ π·πππ πππππππ π΄πΏ. πππ π΄πΏ ππππππππ πππ ππππ πππππ πππππ ππ πππ πΌππΓΆπππππ ππππππ)
In his memoir Lemmy noted;
"πΎπππ πππππ ππ π ππ ππππ-ππ ππππ β πππ πππ ππππππ ππππππ, ππ πππππ. πΈβππ πππππ ππππππππ ππππ ππππ π π ππππ πππππ! π±ππ ππππππ ππππ ππππ, πΈ πππβπ ππππππππ πππ π²ππππππ ππππ β ππ πππππ ππ’ ππππ."
(πΆππ’π π°πππππ ππππ πππ π°ππππππ π πππ π»ππππ’, π·πΏπ½π½)
The B-side and the EP tracks were later added as bonus material on the CD release of MotΓΆrhead's self-titled debut.
About the Cover Art:
The sleeve artwork featured the debut of Snaggletooth, the War-Pig, the fanged face that would become an icon of the band and would appear on most of the band's album covers. Snaggletooth was created by artist Joe Petagno, who had earlier worked with Storm Thorgerson of Hipgnosis and had designed the Swan Song Records logo for Led Zeppelin. According to its creator, Snaggletooth represents a combination of a bear, a wolf and a dog skull with boar tusks. The original MotΓΆrhead album cover contained a swastika on the spike of the helmet, though it was removed from future copies of the album.
Watch the Official Music Video for MotΓΆrhead.
Notice: Any reviews shared here are for historical reference. The views and opinions expressed within are not always supported (in full or in part) by Into the Wells. β E.N. Wells
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