Blue Öyster Cult – The Columbia Albums Collectiön (2012) (*****)

What’s to like?

“On your feet – or on your knees.” The definitive collection of albums and rarities from one of rock’s most original bands, still “on tour forever”.

The low down

My first encounter with Blue Öyster Cult (or BÖC), was like many others, hearing their single “Don’t Fear The Reaper”, with its catchy choruses and tale of eternal love beyond the grave. It was one of those songs that can justifiably be described as a classic, and I think the band rarely play a show without its inclusion in the setlist.

However, as I was largely unfamiliar with the band, instead of checking out the parent album Agents Of Fortune, I ended up with a tape of the debut self-titled album, which even today still ranks as one of my favourite BÖC albums. There was something intriguing about the sounds that the bands were coaxing out of their instruments and their off-kilter lyrics caught my imagination, but at the same time the music was hard rocking and accessible.

Critics lazily described them as America’s answer to Black Sabbath, but BÖC were always a little more intellectual in their lyrics and more varied musically, with the addition of twin guitars and keyboards, and a sound that could be reproduced live. (Sabbath’s single guitarist Tony Iommi often had to vamp chords in and around his solos live.)

In some ways, BÖC had less in common with heavy metal and more of the surreal mystique that emanated from the likes of The Doors. If you listen to the Soft White Underbelly demo tracks, Eric Bloom’s singing sounds uncannily like that of Jim Morrison. (These demos can be found as bonus tracks on the debut album).

And without taking anything away from the other band members, BÖC had an outstanding lead guitarist in Donald “Buck Dharma” Roeser. Whether peeling off solos or embellishing his guitar partner Bloom’s chords, his choices of notes and scales were always impeccable and a pleasure on the ear.

Over the years I picked up their albums sporadically, and not in order of release, but I was always impressed by the way the band had come up with great songs and tight playing whichever album was on the turntable. I knew at some point I’d want to upgrade those albums to cd, but that didn’t transpire until 2001’s remasters of the first three albums, complete with bonus tracks. Those three albums – Blue Öyster Cult, Tyranny And Mutation and Secret Treaties – known as “The Black and White Trilogy” for their album covers, are particularly original in their music and lyrical ideas, and are a creative peak for me.

So I didn’t pursue any of the other album remasters that followed, until this box set appeared. Apparently the remastering of the later albums stalled, and the band were presented with an ultimatum from the label – approve the box set and it would contain all of their Columbia label albums remastered, otherwise the fans would have to settle for the earlier editions of the cds, which had less than stellar sound. I reckon the band made the right call, as all of their Columbia albums now have a mastering which really makes the music come alive and in some cases offers a dynamic improvement on the vinyl versions (which I felt a little thin on the drums and bass guitar).

The live albums have also had a sonic upgrade, and On Your Feet Or On Your Knees sounds absolutely blistering in this version. You can more clearly hear every instrument and every player’s contribution to the overall BÖC sound amid the chaos of a live performance, and this album is a nice showcase for Eric Bloom’s guitar playing and Allen Lanier’s keyboards. In contrast, it wasn’t always easy to work out who was playing what in the studio versions.

And Some Enchanted Evening comes with a bonus live concert on dvd.

These upgrades in themselves would be encouragement enough to check out this box set, but it also comes loaded with bonus material that’s well worth a listen. The first five studio cds previously came with a generous number of bonus tracks, and these have been kept intact on the equivalent cds in the box. So you get demo versions of familiar songs, and songs that never made it onto albums, as well as more live material previously limited to rare EPs. It’s all fascinating stuff and in good quality audio too.

However, the box goes further by including an additional disc of rarities exclusive to this set. There are live versions of deep cuts from the Mirrors album, a mono version of “Godzilla” which sounds suitably hefty, and more demo tracks for side projects. Hard core collectors may already have some of this material, but for the casual fan, this is a treasure trove all gathered into one convenient cd.

That just leaves one other disc, Radios Appear: The Best Of The Broadcasts. This is basically a compilation of live songs picked from concerts recorded while being broadcast on radio, and are sourced from shows performed in San Francisco (1980), New York (1981), Pasadena (1983) and Santa Monica (1986). It’s a good enough pick of songs, but the real treat needs a little deeper digging.

The box originally included an exclusive code which allowed buyers to download the complete versions of each broadcast. The audio quality varies from good to middling (and is slightly better on the cd sampler), but the performances from 1980 and 1981 are worth the effort. The San Francisco 1980 gig appears to be the complete show, and the band are on excellent form with a set that includes songs rarely performed.

The New York 1981 show isn’t quite as complete, with fade outs after each song, but it does give the listener an opportunity to hear Albert Bouchard’s drumming on songs from the Fire Of Unknown Origin album just before he was sacked. He was subsequently replaced by a drum tech, Rick Downey, who appears on the Extra-Terrestrial Live album recorded later on the same tour, but if you compare the two drummers’ styles, Bouchard clearly has the better and more nuanced rhythmic chops. I think the band lost something when they sacked him, and it was the start of a revolving door of session musicians as other members subsequently left, with only Bloom and Roeser staying the course to this day.

Sometimes, when diving into a box set as full as this one, it can seem a daunting task, but equally it can reward the listener with a good overview of a band’s career, and that’s what this box does. Even though the band went on to record a handful of releases for other labels, their period on Columbia is their most recognised and respected, and I found myself re-evaluating my original opinion of individual albums after hearing them again within the wider context of the band’s long-term career.

Albums which had seemed lacking first time around now sounded more enjoyable (eg Mirrors), while later albums that I’d liked on first listen (Revolution By Night) now sounded more like a band running out of ideas and relying more on outside songwriters who would push the music up a one-way commercial cul-de-sac.

But across the board Blue Öyster Cult had a great run of albums in the seventies and early eighties, and their live shows were among some of the best at that time, as attested by the live concerts included in this box set. Not surprisingly this box can still be purchased online, twelve years later, and comes highly recommended for anyone wanting to explore this band’s career.

A complete track-listing of the box’s contents can be found here.