Fighting the World
Fighting the World is the fifth album by the American heavy metal band Manowar, released in 1987. This was the first Manowar album to feature artwork by long-time collaborator Ken Kelly, and also one of the first heavy metal albums to be recorded and mixed entirely on digital equipment (Turbo album, by Judas Priest, was prior to that).[citation needed] Since Fighting The World, all Manowar album covers have been painted by Ken Kelly.
| Fighting the World | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Cover art by Ken Kelly | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | February 17, 1987 | |||
| Recorded | 1986–1987 | |||
| Studio | Universal Recording, Chicago, Illinois, US | |||
| Genre | Heavy metal, power metal | |||
| Length | 34:48 | |||
| Label | ATCO | |||
| Producer | Manowar, Jason Flom | |||
| Manowar chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Fighting the World | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | [1] |
| Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 9/10[2] |
The song "Defender" features a speech by American actor Orson Welles. The album was released 2 years after Welles died. The recording of Welles' speech was re-used from the original 1982 demo of the song.
Ross The Boss said in an interview with German magazine Deaf Forever that Joey DeMaio used a drum computer for Fighting the World (and most of Kings of Metal). Drummer Scott Columbus was unhappy with that and left the band afterwards.
Track listing edit
All songs written by Joey DeMaio.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Fighting the World" | 3:53 |
| 2. | "Blow Your Speakers" | 3:43 |
| 3. | "Carry On" | 4:18 |
| 4. | "Violence and Bloodshed" | 4:00 |
| 5. | "Defender" | 6:05 |
| 6. | "Drums of Doom" | 1:14 |
| 7. | "Holy War" | 4:45 |
| 8. | "Master of Revenge" | 1:34 |
| 9. | "Black Wind, Fire and Steel" | 5:16 |
| Total length: | 34:48 | |
Cover versions edit
- "Fighting the World" was covered by German power metal band Mystic Prophecy as a bonus track on their album Regressus.
- "Black Wind, Fire and Steel" has been covered by Brazilian heavy metal band Immortal Choir, by Swedish punk band Venerea and by Spanish rock/punk band Reserva Dos, this last under the name "Viento negro, fuego y acero" (in Spanish).
References in popular culture edit
- The cover is parodied in the Metalocalypse episode "Dethfashion". In the episode, Dethklok is visited by a sadistic fashion designer who is upset that their measurements for their fashion line were not reflective of their actual physiques. The designer used a cover of the band's previous album as a reference for his designs, and like the cover of Fighting the World, the band is standing shirtless on a pile of stones. The cover had been airbrushed to make the band members look much thinner and more physically fit than they actually were.
Personnel edit
Manowar edit
- Eric Adams – vocals
- Ross the Boss – guitars, keyboards
- Joey DeMaio – four- and eight-string bass
- Scott Columbus – drums
Production edit
- Richard Breen – engineer, mixing, Synclavier programming
- Vince Gutman – digital programming, recording and mixing supervision
- Howie Weinberg – mastering at Masterdisk, New York
- Jason Flom – executive producer
Charts edit
| Chart (1987) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts)[3] | 15 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[4] | 27 |
Certifications edit
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Germany (BVMI)[5] | Gold | 250,000^ |
| Spain (PROMUSICAE)[6] | Gold | 50,000^ |
| ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References edit
- ^ Rivadavia, Eduardo. Fighting the World at AllMusic
- ^ Popoff, Martin (November 1, 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. pp. 213–214. ISBN 978-1-894959-31-5.
- ^ Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Manowar – Fighting the World". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
- ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Manowar; 'Fighting the World')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
- ^ Salaverrie, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (PDF) (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE. p. 953. ISBN 84-8048-639-2. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
External links edit
- Lyrics at Rawrix.net
- Official artist website