Back in '85 Robert Plant was staging a killer second act, and it must have felt like a kick in the nuts to Jimmy Page, the genius producer, player and arranger from all those classic Led Zeppelin albums, that he was relegated to the remainder bin. Death Wish II hardly counts as a career jump start. Surely there was a way to become a force to be reckoned with, or at least be relevant.
First he needed to pull together a band. Paul Rodgers, a singer who was practically the blueprint for how to be a rock vocalist, apparently needed a job. Chris Slade, a drummer who had played with everyone from Tom Jones to Manfred Mann, signed on. Rounding out the band was new kid Tony Franklin on bass, who was literally just a kid when the other guys were out slogging it out.
There was some really awesome music coming out in '85, and then there were some odd ducks. The Firm was one of those weird anomalies that looked like a duck, quacked like a duck, and two of the members used to be on Swan Song Records ... maybe the little ugly duckling would become something beautiful.
I remember hearing "Radioactive" on the radio a few times, and the disc jockey gushed about the band. Obviously a dyed-in-the-wool fan of Jimmy Page, he seemed to think this was the second coming. For me, all I heard was a clunky, albeit catchy song that was trying really hard to sound like an '80s rock song. It seemed so desperate to be a hit that it became one through sheer force of will. Heck, there was obviously some appetite for this, as the album would go gold in the US.
When I saw the album in the bin, I didn't hesitate. The record itself was decent, but it was hard to tell if it would clean up ... for the most part it did, but it wasn't ideal. The jacket was really nice, and heck, the liner was intact. All goodness.
I have to say my first impressions weren't that positive. Thick, muddy, plodding and lifeless. Oh, I enjoyed "Radioactive" more than I thought. It was better than I remembered, and I'm sort of sad classic rock radio doesn't play it more ... if at all. There was something about it, though, that warranted more than a cursory dismissive spin.
It's a given that Page and Rodgers were going to hold up their end of things. Maybe not a given; back in '82 Jimmy wasn't in top form, and it seemed like he was all out of mojo. You'd be hard pressed to tell, though. There are some wicked riffs on the album, you just need to listen. What popped out of the grooves was Tony Franklin's bass. His fretless work was impeccable and so tasty. My goodness, for a 23-year-old he was holding down the fort. Chris Slade is, well, Chris Slade, and those unfortunate '80s drum sounds that were so cool for five minutes have aged about as well as stirrup pants and wedged haircut with mullet mud flaps. Thankfully those instances are few, but when they occur they can be jarring and not always in a good way.
Most of the songs were written by Page and Rodgers, and a couple, including "Radioactive," were attributed to Rodgers. Then there was a cover of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" that I'm sure the band wished was used in Top Gun ... except it wasn't and that was a good thing. Although, for what it's worth, it's a pretty cool version with those splatty '80s toms, and Jimmy does a pretty passable Jeff Beck impression on the solo. Who knows, maybe Maverick would have gotten into Charlie's pants regardless of which version was used.
I wish the album had opened with the hit. For a couple of reasons: First, by being the last song on the first side it had the least amount of vinyl to support the song ... it's also the shortest, so there was that as an offset. However, "Closer," the album's opener, was only a few seconds longer. The second reason, the album really would have benefited from a solid opening hook. Instead the album plods along, providing a couple of decent moments before having to turn the album over.
Now it is the second side that really opens up. After the previously mentioned cover of "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling," there's a renewed sense of vigour to the songs, and Jimmy seems to really be having a good time being an '80s guitar player. The album closes out with a really strong one-two punch. "Satisfaction Guaranteed" is yet another mid-tempo slow burn, but there's something about the groove and feel that puts this over the top. The song doesn't have the spark to be a single, but it is one of the best songs on the album.
Closing the album out is "Midnight Moonlight." It's over nine minutes, so you know the guys are going for something big. Apparently this was a leftover song from the Zeppelin days, and it was never finished. There are acoustic guitar sections, along with some really great bass work by Tony Franklin. Some of the effects applied to Paul's voice were unfortunate, but they seemed to be used sparingly ... too bad they were used at all.
The song takes its time slowly building as the band finally comes in, with the backing singers adding their voices to the throng. For me the song worked. I was probably in the right mood. I can also see this as a plodding, self-indulgent mess that takes too long to get to the point, and there's not enough tension to keep things taut for almost ten minutes.
In all it was better than I expected. There were a couple of really solid songs here, and "Radioactive" was much more fun than I remember. It's really too bad my copy wasn't in better shape. I won't replace my vinyl copy (who am I kidding, I'll bet I do - later during editing - I'll be getting a new copy for Father's Day from my kids), but I have added it to my playlist. Sort of a compromise, besides, and this is sacrilege, the lossless copy sounds pretty frigging firm.
P.S. Like I said, I added it to a playlist, and the wife and I are in the car and I figure I'll play The Firm. After all, I'm still sort of in the mood, and I've been enjoying the album, and I know in relatively short order I'll end up shelving it and who knows when it'll see the light of day. "Radioactive" comes on and the song gets to the sort of cacophonous muddle of notes that is Jimmy Page's solo, and my wife looks at me and simply asks, "What. Is. This?"
Man, and you think I'm harsh at times. If she wrote this stuff it'd be a lot shorter: The Firm ... but soft. The End.
Oh Matt, if you ever read this, don't roll your eyes and stroke your beard in that wise way you have that implies I'm totally full of shit and that there's a reason no one ever says anything nice about this album. I stand by this one. Yeah, you can dismiss it, but you're sleeping on an album with a few really solid songs, and if nothing else, to hear the finished "Midnight Moonlight" was a treat.
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