Fire Down Under

Fire Down Under
Studio album by
Riot
Released1981
Recorded1980
StudioGreene St. Recording, New York City
GenreHeavy metal
Length37:35
LabelElektra, Victor (Japan)
ProducerSteve Loeb and Billy Arnell
Riot chronology
Narita
(1979) 		Fire Down Under
(1981) 		Restless Breed
(1982)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Martin Popoff[2]

Fire Down Under is the third studio album by American heavy metal band Riot, released in 1981, it's the last album to feature original vocalist Guy Speranza.[3] The song "Flashbacks" is dedicated to Neal Kay, a British DJ who supported heavy metal in the UK during the new wave of British heavy metal.[4]

The album was re-issued on CD in 1997 by the German-based High Vaultage label, utilizing a new, controversial remix by former Riot producer Steve Loeb, and in 1999 by Metal Blade Records in the U.S., this time featuring the original Elektra mix. The album was reissued in 2014 courtesy of Varèse Sarabande. All three versions contain various bonus tracks recorded for the original Capitol Records version of Fire Down Under which the band were unhappy with. Capitol dropped the band for being "too heavy" after hearing the final version subsequently released by Elektra Records.. In 2018 the album was reissued, remastered and with six bonus tracks, by Rock Candy Records.

Track listing

[edit]
Side one
No.TitleComposersLength
1."Swords and Tequila"Guy Speranza, Mark Reale3:18
2."Fire Down Under"Speranza, Kip Leming2:31
3."Feel the Same"Rick Ventura4:52
4."Outlaw"Speranza, Reale4:19
5."Don't Bring Me Down"Speranza, Reale, Leming, Ventura, Sandy Slavin3:00
Side two
No.TitleComposersLength
6."Don't Hold Back"Speranza, Reale3:14
7."Altar of the King"Speranza, Reale4:44
8."No Lies"Ventura4:19
9."Run for Your Life"Speranza, Reale3:16
10."Flashbacks"Speranza, Reale, Leming, Ventura, Slavin4:00
1997 remastered edition bonus tracks
No.TitleComposersLength
11."Struck By Lightning"Reale, Speranza3:41
12."Misty Morning Rain"Speranza3:10
13."You're All I Needed Tonight"Speranza, Ventura3:00
14."One Step Closer"Ventura2:14
15."Hot Life"Ventura0:25
1999, 2014 & 2016 remastered editions bonus tracks
No.TitleComposersLength
11."Misty Morning Rain"Speranza3:10
12."You're All I Needed Tonight"Speranza, Ventura3:00
2018 Rock Candy Records remastered edition bonus tracks
No.TitleComposersLength
11."Misty Morning Rain"Speranza3:10
12."You're All I Needed Tonight"Speranza, Ventura3:00
13."One Step Closer"Ventura2:14
14."Struck By Lightning"Reale, Speranza3:41
15."Outlaw (remix/edited)"Reale, Speranza3:18
16."Scooby calabresa (live)"Feit, Reale, Speranza4:29

Personnel

[edit]

Band members

[edit]
  • Guy Speranza – vocals
  • Mark Reale – guitar
  • Rick Ventura – guitar
  • Kip Leming – bass
  • Sandy Slavin – drums

Production

[edit]
  • Steve Loeb, Billy Arnell – producers
  • Rod Hui – engineer, mixing
  • Howie Weinberg – mastering

Cover versions and appearances

[edit]
  • The song "Swords and Tequila" is featured in the video game Brütal Legend.
  • The song "Swords and Tequila" was covered by the band "Salvación".

Chart performance

[edit]
Year Chart Position
1981 Billboard 200 49[5]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Anderson, Jason. "Riot Fire Down Under review". AllMusic. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
  2. ^ Popoff, Martin (November 1, 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. pp. 288–289. ISBN 978-1-894959-31-5.
  3. ^ "Riot - Fire Down Under". Encyclopaedia Metallum. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
  4. ^ Fire Down Under (LP Sleeve). Riot. New York City, USA: Elektra Records 5E-546. 1981.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  5. ^ "Riot | Billboard Albums". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
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