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Successivamente al tour di "Electric" (in cui furono accompagnati come gruppo di supporto dagli allora ignoti Guns n' Roses), l'obiettivo di Ian Astbury e Billy Duffy era quello di affermarsi prepotentemente sul mercato americano, sino ad allora ancora avaro di soddisfazioni per il duo inglese.
Lo scopo, grazie anche a Bob Rock, fu raggiunto con "Sonic Temple", loro quarto album in studio, che arrivò sino alla decima posizione delle classifiche statunitensi e vendette oltre tre milioni di copie.
Addirittura Ian Astbury fu contattato dal regista Oliver Stone che lo volle per interpretare la parte di Jim Morrison nel suo film sui Doors, ma, di fronte al rifiuto di Ian, troppo impegnato con la sua band nel tour post "Sonic Temple", decise di scritturare Val Kilmer.
"Sonic Temple" fu, però, anche il loro lavoro più criticato perché considerato sin troppo zeppeliniano (in effetti, in questo senso, "Soul Asylum", pur bellissima secondo chi vi scrive, sembra una rivisitazione psichedelica di "Kashmir" e "Automatic Blues" una versione un attimino più veloce di "Black Dog").
Nonostante tutto questo, il disco, trainato dalla emozionante ballad "Edie (ciao baby)", uno dei pezzi più famosi dei Cult insieme a "Rain" e "She Sell Sanctuary", fu un successo commerciale.
Si tratta di un lavoro che suona più variegato del precedente, e comunque molto rock n' roll, anche se, a mio parere, non ha la stessa carica esplosiva di "Electric".
Astbury e Duffy abbandonano gli AC/DC, dai quali avevano attinto a piene mani nel lavoro precedente, per attestarsi su suoni zeppeliniani e con molti rimandi alla musica del Re Lucertola (la già citata "Soul Asylum", "Soldier Blue").
Ma, anche se "Sonic Temple" non fu certo un disco originalissimo, specie se paragonato ai primi due dischi dell'era gotica, ebbe il merito (e questo grazie e, forse, soprattutto, a quello stratega di Bob Rock) di anticipare ed influenzare in modo rilevante quella corrente street rock americana che sarebbe sorta di lì a poco (in questo senso, "New York City", in cui fa capolino anche Iggy Pop come special guest, può essere considerata il manifesto per la nascita dello street rock d'oltreoceano e questo è significativo, se si pensa che i Cult sono inglesi).
Insomma, "Sonic Temple" è l'ennesimo disco dei Cult che, pur non avendo alcunché di originale, ebbe un'importanza non secondaria, per vari motivi, nella musica degli anni 80 e 90 e, di questo, al di là dei giudizi personali che, spesso, sulla band sono contrastanti, non si può non tenerne conto.
Elenco tracce testi samples e video
01 Sun King (06:09)
This is where it all ends
And the kinda dream that you've never seen
Well, yeah
Hot damn, ooh, mercy ma'am
What the hell you doing to me?
Ah, strutting round with your head held high
What you trying to prove, girl?
Black haired missy
Big brown eyes
On my knees, mama please
I'm a regal man
I'll do what I can
To take you off to the promised land
I'm a sun king, baby
Let me take you by the hand
Sun king, honey
We can rule across the land
I'm a sun king, baby
With you, I'll share my throne
A sun king, honey
I can't make it on my own, no
Hey, look out, little missy's about
Ripping up the town, yeah
Honey, I can't tie you down
Woman, you make me frown
Long legged lady with a black dress on
On my knees, mama please
I'm a regal man
I'll do what I can
To t-t-take you to the promised land
A sun king, baby
Let me take you by the hand
Yeah, sun king, honey
We can rule across this land
I'm a sun king, baby, baby
With you, I'll share my throne
A sun king, honey
I can't make it on my own, yeah
Let me tell you people
Now, listen good
City crawling like a tired dog, yeah
Cult children in the house of the dawn, yeah
Time was wasted 'cause it's gone too fast
Time was wasted 'cause it's gone too fast
I see the sun begin to shine
I see the sun begin to shine
Sun king, baby, ow
Let me take you by the hand
Oh, sun king, honey
We can rule across the land
I'm a sun king, baby, yeah yeah
With you, I'll share my throne
Sun king, honey
I can't make it on my own, yeah
I'm a sun king, baby
Sun king
Sun king, baby...
02 Fire Woman (05:10)
Fire woman, yeah
Shake, shake, shake, shake it, yeah
Wound up, can't sleep, can't do anything right, little honey
Oh, since I set my eyes on you
I tell you the truth
T-t-t-t-twistin' like a flame in a slow dance, baby
You're driving me crazy
Come on, little honey
Come on now
Fire
Smoke, she is a rising fire, yeah
Smoke on the horizon, well
Fire
Smoke, she is a rising fire
Oh, smokestack lightning
Smokestack lightning
Well, shake it up, you're to blame, got me swayin' little honey
My heart's a ball of burnin' flame
Oh, yes it is
Trancing like a cat on a hot tin shack
Lord, have mercy
Come on little sister
Come on and shake it
Fire
Smoke, she is a rising fire
Oh, smoke on the horizon, yeah
Fire
Smoke, she is a rising fire
Oh, smokestack lightning, baby
I was thinking what I've been missing
I'll tell you truthfully, well
She's coming close now
Oh, I can feel her
She's getting close to me
And I never, yeah
Fire
Smoke, she is a rising fire
Oh, smoke on the horizon
Fire
Smoke, she is a rising, rising, rising fire
Smokestack lightning
A-j-j-j...
Burnin' out
and shake it, baby.
Come on and burn it.
I say send down fire to me
say send down fire to me
say send down fire to me, yeah!
Fire woman, you're to blame...
04 Edie (Ciao Baby) (04:46)
Always said you were a youthquaker, Edie
A stormy little world shaker
Oh, Warhol's darling queen, Edie
An angel with a broken wing
The dogs lay at your feet, Edie
A wind caressed your cheek
Ooh, stars wrapped in your hair
Ooh, life without a care
But your not there
Oh, caught up in an inward sea, Edie
Yeah, paradise, a shattered dream
Oh, wired on the pills you took, Edie
Your innocence dripped blood, sweet child
The dogs lay at your feet, Edie
A wind caressed your cheek
Ooh, stars wrapped in your hair
Ooh, life without a care
Ciao baby
Shake it, boy
Oh, sweet little sugar talker
Paradise dream stealer
Oh, Warhol's little queen, Edie
An angel with a broken wing, oh
The dogs lay at your feet, Edie
A wind caressed your cheek, well
Stars wrapped in your hair
Ooh, life without a care
Yeah, yeah, yeah
Why did you kiss the world goodbye?
Ciao baby
Don't you know paradise takes time?
Ciao, Edie
Why did you kiss the world goodbye?
Ciao baby
Don't you know paradise takes time?
Ooh, ciao, Edie
Ciao baby, yeah
Ciao baby
Ciao baby, yeah
Ciao baby
05 Sweet Soul Sister (05:08)
Embrace the wind with both arms
Stop the clouds dead in sky
Hang your head no more
And beg no more
Brother wolf and sister moon
Your time has come
Brother wolf and sister moon
Your time has come
And the wind will blow my fears away
Will dry my tears away
And dry my tears away
And dry my tears away
Embrace the wind with both arms
Stop the clouds dead in sky
Hang your head no more
And beg no more
Brother wolf and sister moon
Your time has come
Brother wolf and sister moon
Your time has come
And the wind will blow my fears away
Will dry my tears away
And blow my fears away
And dry my tears away
And the wind will blow my fears away
Will dry my tears away
And blow my fears away
And blow my, blow my fears away
Dry my tears away
And blow my, blow my fears away yeah
And blow my, blow my, blow my
And blow my fears away
08 Automatic Blues (03:51)
Yeah
Ooh now baby, baby, baby, baby, baby
Hey there people, have you heard the news?
Ooh oh yeah
The world's on fire, I'm telling you, yeah, I'm telling you
Brothers and sisters everywhere, come together
People like you should
Ooh, like you should
Drive on people
Drive on people
Ooh, I never thought we'd get too far, yeah
Living on the wrong side talking 'bout life
Ow, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Lovers and sinners, cats and fools
Shake it together, come on people, please, yeah
Drive on people
People drive on, say
Drive on people
I ain't no sucker, I ain't no fool
Talking about the automatic blues, yeah
I ain't no sucker, I ain't no fool
Talking about the automatic blues
Ain't no sucker, ain't no fool, no
Ain't no sucker, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Come on and shake it, boy
Drive on people
People drive on, yeah
Drive on people, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Drive on people
People drive on, say
Drive on people
I ain't no sucker, I ain't no fool
I'm talking about the automatic blues, yeah
I ain't no sucker, I ain't no fool
I'm talking about the automatic blues, now
I ain't no sucker, I ain't no fool
I'm talking about the automatic blues
I ain't no sucker, I ain't no fool
I'm talking about the automatic blues, yeah, uh
10 Wake Up Time for Freedom (05:17)
Wake up time for freedom, baby
Wake up time to fly
Wake up time for freedom, baby
Ah-ha, ah-ha-ha, yeah
Ah-ha, ah-ha-ha, well
Ah-ha, ah-ha-ha
Ah-ha, ah-ha-ha
There's someone knocking on my door
A tall dark figure I've never seen before
His badge shone brightly like a star in the sky
Drag me out to the waiting car
Wake up time for freedom, baby
Wake up time to fly
Wake up time for freedom, baby
A flock of vultures spinning round my head
Left me on the roadside for dead
Cars pass by but no one stares
These waking dreams, they never end
Wake up time for freedom, baby
Wake up time to fly
Wake up time for freedom
You we gotta try
Lawman on the bank now, honey
Hound dog on my trail
Wake up time for freedom
Before the night prevails
There's someone knocking on my door
A tall dark figure I've never seen before
Yeah, backs on blinding, like a star in the sky
He drag me out to the waiting car
Sometimes, like this, they came
Ah-ha, ah-ha-ha, yeah
Ah-ha, ah-ha-ha
Ah-ha, ah-ha-ha, yeah
Ah-ha, ah-ha-ha
Wake up time for freedom, baby
Wake up time to fly, yeah
Wake up time for freedom, baby
Wake up time for freedom, baby
Wake up time to fly, yeah
Wake up time for freedom, baby
Wake up time for freedom, baby
Wake up time to fly
Wake up time for freedom, baby
Wake up time for freedom, baby
Wake up time to fly
Wake up time for freedom, baby
Wake up time for freedom, baby...
Freedom...
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Altre recensioni
Di sanvalentino3
Il trionfo del machismo da checche pazze.
Con Sonic Temple, il gruppo inglese ripercorre un suono zeppeliniano rivitalizzato (o mortificato?) dal clima losangelino di fine anni '80.
