SAXON: The Eagle Has Landed III

Released: 2006

It could be that because I was trying to listen to this album at 1 o'clock in the morning that I struggled to find anything to really recommend it. Or it could be that, despite the length of time they've been around and the standing amongst metalheads this band has long enjoyed, Saxon has never really lived up to that status. A combination of recordings lifted from 11 performances over two years, this mammoth, dinosaur of an album plods along for over an hour before hitting any of the glorious moments that you'd have every right to expect from a band that still headlines major festivals after nearly 30 years on the road.

On disc one of The Eagle Has Landed III, Saxon sounds very much like a band of tired old campaigners, wearily flying the flag as they wait for the end to come. There is probably no better example of this here than "Frozen Rainbow", a hoary old chestnut from 1979 that's delivered with all the exuberance of a dirge. Biff Byford sings as if he's reading the lyrics off a sheet while standing in a bank queue and no one else seems all that interested either. Most of the rest of the ancient Northern English beer barn metal on the first CD is also less than spectacular, and I still can't decide if that's because Saxon simply can't get excited about them anymore or if they were just rubbish in the first place. Or both.

Mercifully, the second CD is made up largely of tracks from 2004's Lionheart album and a selection from other more recent works. On these heavier and more modern-sounding cuts, TEHL3 finally shifts into higher gear. Indeed, on tunes like "Man & Machine" and particularly "Dragon's Lair" where they simply rip, Saxon seems totally energised and play like they're really enjoying themselves. It almost makes up for having to suffer through the first half of the album.

The Eagle Has Landed III is really like listening to two different bands, and what's most interesting is that the early stuff on which the Saxon name was built is utter crap compared to what they're doing now.

CD 1

1. This Town Rocks
2. Backs to the Wall
3. Redline
4. Stand Up and Be Counted
5. Never Surrender
6. Frozen Rainbow
7. Suzie Hold On
8. Play it Loud
9. Warrior
10. See the Lights Shining
11. To Hell and Back Again
12. Stallions of the Highway
13. Wheels of Steel
14. And the Band Played On
15. Crusader

CD 2

1. The Retrun
2. Lionheart
3. Man and Machine
4. Beyond the Grave
5. Searching for Atlantis
6. To Live by the Sword
7. Unleash the Beast
8. To Live by the Sword Pt 2
9. Flying on the Edge
10. Jack Tars
11. English Man o War
12. Court of the Crimson King
13. Broken Heroes
14. Dragon's Lair
15. Rock Is Our Life
16. Travellers in Time
17. Solid Ball of Rock

Rating: 58%