COPPERHEAD – It was sometime during the Spring of 2011 when I came across the Southern Rock band Copperhead, while perusing the internet for all things Rock ‘N Roll. After sampling a few songs from the 1992 S/T debut album from Copperhead, I eagerly purchased it off of iTunes. This is the one and only studio album that Copperhead ever released too. Going back to 1992, I only remember Copperhead by band name only.
I guess that’s what makes being a lover of Rock ‘N Metal so damn fun, I’m always catching onto a new band from yesteryear! I steered best Metal buddy, Scott Coverdale, to this Copperhead album and he is as huge a believer in this band’s Southern Rock sound as I am. Copperhead may no longer be an active band, still they are a band well worth remembering and checking out. If Copperhead has reunited in any way, shape or form, please leave a comment!
Below are five cool reasons why you should buy this Copperhead S/T debut album. I’ve also included two fun facts about the album.
Reason #1: If you are a fan of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Molly Hatchet, Blackfoot, Marshall Tucker Band, etc., then you shall have no problem at all diving ears first into Copperhead.
Reason #2: This Copperhead album in my most honest opinion… ROCKS from start to finish.
Reason #3: Neil Carswell (vocalist, guitarist & founding member) has that classic Southern Rock voice that’s just as contagious as his band’s music.
Reason #4: Copperhead could jam! From driving guitars to the keyboards, Copperhead just let it all loose on this album. In my opinion, this band kept it real with Southern fried and blue-collar enthusiasm through their songs.
Reason #5: This is straight-up Southern Rock here folks and nothing is watered down. So, crank up some Copperhead, grab your six-pack then kick back, while those good times and Southern Rock vibes take control.
Oh… by the way, my favorite song on this Copperhead album is: Highway. Whoa and Metal be thy name.
Two Fun Facts About This Copperhead Album:
Fun Fact #1: The song Long Way From Home became the title song for the motion picture: Harley Davidson And The Marlboro Man. Mickey Rourke and Don Johnson starred in this movie too.
Fun Fact #2: The song Busted was included on the 1992 movie soundtrack: Dr. Giggles.
This is the cover for the Dr. Giggles movie soundtrack CD. Dr. Giggles is a Slasher film, can you tell?
COPPERHEAD – Track Listing:
Busted
Whiskey
The Scar
Brown’s Gold
Where Will I Be?
Keepin’ On
Highway
Hard Livin’
Lazy Days
Not My Tear
Born Loser
Long Way From Home
* Copperhead is available on iTunes, via Eastwinds Records. I’ve also seen it for sale on Amazon.
* Live & Lost (released in 2002), is a compilation of Copperhead studio and live tracks. It is also available on iTunes, via Eastwinds Records.
* For more info on NEIL CARSWELL and COPPERHEAD, click on the link below:
COPPERHEAD ROCKS.
Stone.
Lynyrd Skynyrd are Southern Rock Legends and Rock and Roll Hall of Famers. What more does Lynyrd Skynyrd have to prove? What keeps the motivation meter running with this band? In my Metal opinion, it is a combination of many things… the Skynyrd Nation and the fact that this band has never lost touch with their roots are two quick examples. Southern Music roots… family roots… old school values, these three attributes come out Southern Rockin’ loud and clear on God & Guns
Blackfoot has always been one of my favorite Southern Rock Bands, their songs and sound flat out Rock for me. The history of Blackfoot includes a long list of musicians, this is one band that has seen it’s share of lineup changes over the years. My favorite years of Blackfoot Southern Rock were definitely 1979 through 1981. The Blackfoot albums released during those years were “Strikes”, “Tomcattin'” and “Marauder”. The CD “Blackfoot Greatest Hits”, (pictured here), contains ten songs representing these three albums, which was at Walmart a couple of years ago… for five bucks I bought it without question. Admittedly, I do not own any other Blackfoot albums, so picking up a Greatest Hits of Blackfoot was essential sooner or later. I really get into this Blackfoot CD during the Spring through Autumn months… probably due to the fact I always equate Southern Rock to warmer weather. Go figure. The first track on this CD is “Highway Song”, my favorite Blackfoot tune ever. This CD I played in my car recently, the timing of listening to “Highway Song”, on this particular small road trip, could not have been any better, here is how it all unfolded…
Back in 1980, I was enthralled by 38 Special. That year, I went to the Caldor Department Store and bought the 45 rpm of the hit single – “Rockin’ Into The Night”. I was in eighth grade with not too much cash in my pocket, still I always held onto enough dough to buy my 45’s. My parents were on an extremely fixed budget, therefore, I could not coax too many higher priced albums from them back then. That was fine, I was always grateful for what my parents could afford to give me. Besides, I more often than not, earned my records from doing yard work and cleaning up the house. That 38 Special 45 rpm was played by me continuously. “Rockin’ Into The Night” was my song back in 1980, no one else’s, (or so I thought). The truth of the day is, I did not buy the actual album “Rockin’ Into The Night” until decades later. Man, what was I thinking? The 45 rpm I had from 1980 had been worn down from repeated play, eventually tossed away. Yet, as I write this post, this Classic Southern Hard Rock album, (really it is a CD now), is a permanent fixture in my music collection. 
Every time I listen to Molly Hatchet “Greatest Hits” I get positively pumped and put into the best of moods. The Southern Hard Rock crunch of Molly Hatchet coupled with the back roads feel of all their music will never be matched by any band today. Molly Hatchet, in my opinion, was the heaviest Southern Rock band of their day. They treaded the fine line of Metal later in their career with “Satisfied Man” and “Shake The House Down”. Early in Molly Hatchet’s catalog of music, “The Creeper” made it known instantly that this band was playing heavy and for keeps! This song off of their debut album “Molly Hatchet” is bass heavy and the guitar work slams it down! The signature heaviness of Molly Hatchet is also linked to the unique lead vocals. The tough as nails vocals you will hear are from Jimmy Farrar and Danny Joe Brown. Both vocalists were so similar in their attitude and make no mistake Southern Hard Rock vocal delivery. The FM radio hits of the late ’70’s and early ’80’s are all here, with “Flirtin’ With Disaster”, “Beatin’ The Odds”, and the lengthy guitar driven masterpieces “Dreams I’ll Never See” and “Fall Of The Peacemakers”.
Let’s face it, the album artwork on Molly Hatchet album covers are extremely cool. I still find myself, to this day, staring at the artwork like it is my first time ever seeing it. I am from the generation of Metal/Hard Rock fans that would (and still do), sit down with a vinyl album jacket and inspect every speck of art, from front to back, while listening to that respective band’s tunes. I strongly recommend any fan of heavy music to buy this “Greatest Hits” of Molly Hatchet, still, I also recommend any album that this band has ever released, past or present. It is my opinion, that Molly Hatchet truly crossed over many Rock genres during their reign – Rock, Hard Rock, Southern Rock, Southern Hard Rock and eventually a stab at trying to sound like ’80’s Heavy Metal, (with the album “The Deed Is Done” – released in 1984). Call them any genre you wish, I just call Molly Hatchet legends. Long live Molly Hatchet. Keeping in mind, the core of the original Molly Hatchet lineup has changed over the years, this band has still released some current and impressive Southern Hard Rock albums over the last decade.
I have never, ever, heard such incredible, good-old fashioned guitar jamming in my life like I hear with Molly Hatchet on their “Greatest Hits” – intensity is the best adjective. This band legitimized guitar jamming and put it on the map! This is the ultimate “Greatest Hits” you will find from Molly Hatchet. Give the Hatchet a try and you will be hooked for life! The liner notes that come with the re-mastered CD are eight pages. Two pages are devoted to a summary history of Molly Hatchet, along with four cool band photos and song/album credits.
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