Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 06/22/1990
Run Time: 35:50
If
Thin Lizzy got a bit too grand and florid on
Johnny the Fox, they quickly corrected themselves on its 1977 follow-up,
Bad Reputation. Teaming up with the legendary producer
Tony Visconti,
Thin Lizzy managed to pull of a nifty trick of sounding leaner, tougher than they did on
Johnny, yet they also had a broader sonic palette. Much of this is due, of course, to
Visconti, who always had a flair for subtle dramatics that never called attention to themselves and he puts this to use in dramatic effect here, to the extent that
Lizzy sounds stripped down to their bare bones, even when they have horns pushing them forward on
"Dancing in the Moonlight" or when overdubbed vocals pile up on the title track. Of course, they
were stripped down to a trio on this record, lacking guitarist
Brian Robertson, but
Scott Gorham's double duty makes his absence unnoticeable. Plus, this is pure visceral
rock & roll, the hardest and heaviest that
Thin Lizzy ever made, living up to the promise of the title track. And, as always, a lot of this has to do with
Phil Lynott's writing, which is in top form whether he's romanticizing
"Soldiers of Fortune" or heading down the
"Opium Trail." It adds up to an album that rivals
Jailbreak as their best studio album.
~Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
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