Outlaws - Ghost Riders
#446
November 22 1980
Outlaws
Ghost Riders
Genre: Southern Rock
3.25 out of 5
Highlights:
(Ghost) Riders in the Sky
White Horses
I never include covers in the highlights. Well, rarely. And I’ve said before I think it’s a weak sign to open your record with a cover. It suggests that your own tunes aren’t up to snuff.
But, come on, this is one of the most delectable examples of the genre. And it’s the end of an era, truly.
And you know what? It only opens the record because it’s a well worn single.
The album’s next track “White Horses” is an big stadium epic that is a declaration of arrival. I actually prefer it as an opener.
But what the band is known for, apparently, is their three guitar attack and this album provides that immediately after those two tracks. The song is a nice little template for Bon Jovi’s mid-80s stuff and not really about the song, but, rather, about the guitar work. Which is really delicious. Following the “Angels Hide” with “Devils Road” is asking for it, but the latter is an unashamed barn burner. Look, neither of these songs are really all that great, they are held up by a scaffolding made of southern rock guitars but, for what they are, they will get your feet tapping and your air drumming will get some exercise.
Look, a lot of this is mediocre southern tinged pop rock but it’ll get you there on a long ride across the panhandle.
One more sad note of artistic depression. Lead guitarist and vocalist Billy Jones would leave the band after this album and 15 years later shoot himself in the head. Has anyone done a suicide ratio evaluation in rock? I mean, it’s a lot, right?
https://music.apple.com/us/album/ghost-riders-remastered/327815900
