Fight for the Rock

Fight for the Rock is the third studio album by the American heavy metal band Savatage, released on June 30, 1986. It is their first album with new bass player Johnny Lee Middleton.

Fight for the Rock
Studio album by
Savatage
ReleasedApril 25, 1986
RecordedEngland
GenreHeavy metal, hard rock
Length37:54
LabelAtlantic
ProducerStephan Galfas, Robert Zemsky, Rick Smith, Steven Machat
Savatage chronology
Power of the Night
(1985)		 Fight for the Rock
(1986)		 Hall of the Mountain King
(1987)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal7/10[2]
Kerrang![3]
Metal Hammer (GER)5/7[4]
Rock Hard7.0/10[5]

Released in 1986, it is largely regarded as the band's worst release by both fans and band members, with the band referring to it as "Fight for the Nightmare".[6] Jon Oliva said in October 1994, "I've never really been fond of that album. WE'VE never been fond of that album".[6] The band said that they were driven to make the record by their label, Atlantic Records; particularly Oliva began writing pop-rock songs for other artists on the label such as John Waite. However, the label eventually turned around and told the band to record the music that Oliva had written for other artists themselves. This destroyed the band's credibility in the eyes of the press, and their reviews were not kind .[7] The negative critical reaction has also been cited as the cause of Oliva's battle with drug and alcohol addiction, which eventually drove him from the fore of the band.[6]

Atlantic Records also wanted the band to have photographs taken, since none of their previous releases had included any. The band hired a friend to do the photography work, with one of the photos featuring the band re-recreating the famous photo Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima. The band agreed this was a good idea at the time, but look back with the same feelings on the photos taken as they do the album.[6]

When initially released, the album featured a Parental Advisory label on the front cover, despite having no "nasty words", as Jon Oliva puts it, featured anywhere on the record. This was largely done to please the label, as they felt that putting the sticker on the record would drive up record sales. Although it did chart, the band have been extremely reluctant to perform any of the songs live, and haven't done so since the early 1990s. Even on the tour in support of the album, the band only performed "Hyde", "The Edge of Midnight" and few others.[6]

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Fight for the Rock"Criss Oliva, Jon Oliva, Steve Wacholz3:55
2."Out on the Streets"C. Oliva, J. Oliva3:58
3."Crying for Love"C. Oliva, J. Oliva3:27
4."Day After Day" (Badfinger cover)Pete Ham3:40
5."The Edge of Midnight"C. Oliva, J. Oliva, Wacholz4:52
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."Hyde"C. Oliva, J. Oliva, Wacholz3:51
7."Lady in Disguise"J. Oliva3:08
8."She's Only Rock 'n Roll"C. Oliva, J. Oliva3:14
9."Wishing Well" (Free cover)John "Rabbit" Bundrick, Paul Kossoff, Simon Kirke, Paul Rodgers, Tetsu Yamauchi3:20
10."Red Light Paradise"Johnny Lee Middleton, C. Oliva, J. Oliva3:56
1997 Edel Music CD reissue
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
11."If I Go Away" (Acoustic version)C. Oliva, J. Oliva, Paul O'Neill3:50
2002 SPV CD reissue
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
11."The Dungeons Are Calling" (live)Keith Collins, C. Oliva, J. Oliva3:45
12."City Beneath the Surface" (live)C. Oliva, J. Oliva5:01
2011 Ear Music CD reissue
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
11."This Is the Time" (acoustic version recorded by Jon Oliva in 2010)O'Neill, J. Oliva5:31
12."This Is Where You Should Be" (recorded during the Hall of the Mountain King sessions)O'Neill, J. Oliva4:55

Personnel
Savatage
Additional musicians
  • Larry Dvoskin (credited as "Dvoskin") – keyboards
  • Brent Daniels – backing vocals
Production
  • Stephan Galfas – producer, engineer, mixing
  • Mario Rodriguez, Ralph Mastrangelo – assistant mixing
  • Mark Jolley – engineer
  • Dan McMillan – assistant engineer
  • Bob Ludwig – mastering at Masterdisk, New York
  • Robert Zemsky – associate producer, management
  • Steven Machat, Rick Smith – executive producers
  • Bob Defrin – art direction

Charts
Chart performance for Fight for the Rock
Chart (1986) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[8] 158
Chart (2021) Peak
position
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[9] 67

References
  1. Orens, Geoff. "Savatage - Fight for the Rock review". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2011-09-06.
  2. Popoff, Martin (1 November 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 313. ISBN 978-1894959315.
  3. Johnson, Howard (26 June 1986). "Savatage 'Fight for the Rock'". Kerrang!. No. 123. London, UK: United Magazines ltd. p. 16.
  4. Kaldeuer, Ulf (June 1986). "Savatage - Fight for the Rock". Metal Hammer (in German). Retrieved 2018-05-08.
  5. Kühnemund, Götz (1986). "Review Album: Savatage - Fight for the Rock". Rock Hard (in German). No. 17. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  6. "Savatage FAQ, part 1". Savatage.com. Archived from the original on 11 June 2007. Retrieved 2007-02-08.
  7. Gordon, Jim. "Hall of the Mountain King review". Savatage Official Website. Archived from the original on 12 February 2009. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  8. "Savatage Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard.com. Billboard. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  9. "Offiziellecharts.de – Savatage – Fight for the Rock" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved December 23, 2021.
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