2. Thin Lizzy: Johnny The Fox (1976): The Pinnacle Of Romantic Hard Rock

Thin Lizzy belongs to my all time favorite bands, mostly because Philip Lynott for me is the greatest songwriter in hard rock as well as one of the most personal and charismatic singers - a rocker with a soul, no less. Beginning with "Jailbreak" in 1976 through "Black Rose" three years later, they put out one of the best strings of albums I know, and my favourite among this set of knockouts is its second installment, "Johnny The Fox".

Why is it so good? Well, I started off with Phil Lynott. His way of combining words and melody into something recognizable and appealing has few matches - he could mix the Celtic and the funky with the hard rock base, and he is the closest thing to a poet within the genre - raw or romantic, tender or threatening - and quite often all of these. And his voice was the perfect vehicle - in later years you could hear the hard life taking its toll, but in 1976, his alter ego Johnny the Fox was still on top of things, as evident by the album title - even though you might argue that the lyrics of the album foretell his downfall.

And the band was the other part of the story. I'm no expert, but I like his bass lines as well - and when it comes to rock drummers, there are few that can reach the level of Brian Downey. Add to that he classic twin guitar lines of Scott Gorham and Brian Robertson, also creators of quite a number of instantly memorable riffs, and the mix is complete.

As for the songs, not every track is a killer - but the opener, "Johnny" kicks off with one of the funkiest riffs in hard rock - up to this - whereas the hit single, "Don't Believe A Word", is all of two minutes and 20 seconds pure gold - including another killer riff, a classic macho rock'n'roll storyline, and a real ending without any fades. This is one of precious few musical pieces that in fact could have gone on for another minute, in contrast to the myriads of five-minute tracks that could have been cut at 3:30...

The title track, "Johnny The Fox Meets Jimmy The Weed", steals the funk badge for hard rock for keeps, "Massacre" is one of the classic Lizzy twin guitar soarers, and "Boogie Woogie Dance" is, well, unique. I must confess that one or two of the slower tracks veer a little towards the over-sentimental, but "Old Flame" is indeed a showcase for lamenting lost love - and besides, the crying in your beer (or in seven as in "Borderline"), kind of comes with the role.

So, in my books this is a classic rock album - and also an exercise in not overdoing it; the ten tracks clock in at a little over 36 minutes, which really is close to the optimal long play format. If you want more, play it again - that's what I tend to do.

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