Genre: rock
Rating: 2 stars **
Title:  Marseille
Company: RCA
Catalog: AFL1-3631
Year: 1979
Country/State: Liverpool, UK
Grade (cover/record): VG+ / VG+
Comments: --
Available: 1
Catalog ID: 6375
Price: $8.00

I've listened to 1979's "Marseille" dozens of times and I'm still at a loss to come up with something truly compelling to say about it. The best song on the American pressing of the album was actually a carry-over from their debut recording sessions. Their choice for a band name was clumsy - originally known as AC/DC, but how many folks thought Marseille were a lame French long-hair band and put their albums back on the shelf out of confusion ... Choosing Mountain as their recording label would prove disastrous. Even their band logo was lame; looking like a third grader's attempt to copy the Batman logo. Oh, don't let me forget the fact their second album had zilch in the way of originality ... Yeah, it doesn't present a very promising package. Did I have anything nice to say ? Well sonically their sophomore set sounded way better than 1978's "Red. White and Slightly Blue" which was way under-produced and echoic and lead singer Paul Dale seemingly lost some of his Cockney edge on this follow-up release.
Largely produced by John Punter (in what appeared to be a leftover from their initial recording sessions, Slade's Manny Charlton was credited with handling one song), 1979's "Marseille" continued the band's inept plundering of other heavy metal acts. Seriously, you were hard pressed to identify a single shred of originality spread across these nine tracks. Song titles, lyrics, melodies, production effects ... you'd heard it all before (usually with more energy and enthusiasm). Derivative in the extreme would be a generous description which I guess was fine if you liked Def Leppard, Iron Maiden, Saxon, and the rest of the late-1970s British hard rock crowd. To my ears Dale was little more than a pedestrian lead singer. He didn't have a great deal of range and whenever he tried to sound heavy ('Armed and Ready'), he merely managed to sound like he was constipated, Lead guitarist Neil Buchanan was probably the most talented of the bunch showing occasional flashes of real talent. Unfortunately, for the most part he was required to pound out standard heavy metal chords which left you wondering if he was sleep walking through some of the performances. Rhythm guitarist Andy Charters seemed little more than an after-thought. Witness he was gone by the time that band recorded their third album. The rhythm section of bassist Steve Dinwoodle and drummer Keith Knowles were competent, but hardly awe-inspiring.

- One of three band penned numbers, in spite of the fact they blatantly ripped-off the hook from The Kinks' 'You Really Got Me'. 'Rock You Tonight' may well be in the running for dullest rock song ever. About as energetic as a commercial for toothpaste (and about as energetic), you were left wondering how these guys attracted the attention of a record label. rating: ** stars
- So here's something nice to say - 'Armed and Ready' started out with some surprisingly attractive and light fingered lead guitar from Neil Buchanan. The open segment only lasted about twenty seconds before Dale's wailing kicked in and the song morphed into another forgettable mid-tempo slice of sludge rock. rating: ** stars
- Penned by Buchanan, 'Over and Over' was another song that held some promise before succumbing to various metal clichés, For what it was worth, the soaring chorus indicated the band may have been listening to more than their share of Def Leppard. Yes, I'll admit this one was at least listenable, exhibiting a trace of restraint and a melody that was actually quasi-catchy. I guessing that's the reason Mountain tapped it as a single. rating: *** stars
- From the opening chords the epic 'Lady of the Night' sounded like it had been stitched together from a cross section of late-1970s/early-1980s metal bands. Well, it at least made from a fun game of spot-the-influences. Okay, okay, adding what sounded like a balalaika was unexpected and Buchanan's solo was atypically melodic. rating: ** stars
- The bouncy opening to 'Walking Thro' the Night' has always reminded me of another song (though I've never managed to figure it out), The chief pleasure on this one was hearing Dale turning on his most measured voice. It literally sounded like he was trying to channel Tim Curry doing his best Dr. Frank-N-Furter impersonation (c'mon, you know - The Rocky Horror Picture Show) ... rating: ** stars
- Produced by Slade's Manny Charlton and the only cover tune, their revamped cover of Lee Pockriss' 'Kites' was interesting given it didn't sound anything like the rest of the album. Dale sounded like he'd done an evening's worth of whippets with the rest of the band playing at hyper-speed, giving the song a herky-jerky, almost new-wave feel. Truly strange and similarly engaging. By the way, the original UK version of the album didn't include this song, rather included the song 'Bring on the Dancing Girls'. rating: *** stars
- 'You're a Woman' found them diving right back into the heavy metal pool of clichés. You could just hear women's rights groups having a complete meltdown over the inane lyrics. rating: ** stars
- 'Don't Wanna Hurt You' was literally a cringe-inducing power ballad. Slowed down and stripped of the band's usual bombastic support, Dale's voice came off as even more fragile and strained than usual. You were left to wonder if he was actually going to make it through the track without having his voice crack. rating: ** stars
- 'Some Like It Hot' closed the album with the band's stab at reinforcing their 'bad boys' image. The funny thing is the song was about as threatening as a mean-spirited baby sitter (turn off the video game and go to your room now). Yeah, the lyrics were as dumb as ever, but at the core the track was a pop tune pretending to be a metal track. rating: ** stars

As mentioned, the album was tapped for a series of UK singles:

- 1979's 'Over and Over' b/w 'Your a Woman' and 'Can Can' (Mountain catalog number BON 002)
- 1979's 'Bring On the Dancing Girls' b/w 'Rock You Tonight' (Mountain catalog number TOP 40)
- 1980's 'Kites' b/w 'Some Like It Hot' (Mountain catalog number TOP 51)

Yeah, I've been a bit harsh here. It looses points for lack of originality, but for the most part this isn't any worse that the vast rank and file of what gets lumped into the New Wave of British Heavy Metal.
"Marseille" track listing:
(side 1)
1.) Rock You Tonight (Neil Buchanan - Andy Charters - Paul Dale - Steve Dinwoodle - Keith Knowles) - 5:45
2.) Armed and Ready (Andy Charters) - 5:01
3.) Over and Over (Neil Buchanan) - 4:25
4.) Lady of the Night (Neil Buchanan - Andy Charters - Paul Dale - Steve Dinwoodle - Keith Knowles) - 7:17

(side 2)
1.) Walking Thro' the Night (Neil Buchanan) - 4:34
2.) Kites (Les Pockriss) - 4:20
3.) You're a Woman (Neil Buchanan - Andy Charters - Paul Dale - Steve Dinwoodle - Keith Knowles) -3:05
4.) Don't Wanna Hurt You (Neil Buchanan) - 4:08
5.) Some Like It Hot (Neil Buchanan) - 7:22

For anyone interested, the reunited band have a web presence at:
http://www.marseilleonline.co.uk/