We Pick Our 10 Favourite Albums from Saxon with Pete Pardo and Martin Popoff!
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- Опубліковано 10 січ 2025
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#saxon #albumranking
1. Strong Arm of the Law
2. Wheels of Steel
3. Denim and Leather
4. Crusader
5. Power & the Glory
6. Thunderbolt
6. Sacrifice
7. Hell, Fire & Damnation
8. Carpe Diem
9. Into the Labyrinth
10. Lionheart
Thank you Hack for given Dogs of War some love. I adore this album I remember getting this in 95 n played it to death so different to what was out at the time. Seen them on this tour. There was me n bar staff watching !!😢
I thought 'Carpe Diem' was fantastic, but when I first heard 'Hell, Fire and Damnation,' I thought, "holy cow, this album is even better than the previous one!" I totally agree that Saxon's post 2000s catalog is pretty dang strong!
1 Thunderbolt
2 Strong Arm Of The Law
3 Hell Fire and Damnation
4 Carpe Diem
5 Battering Ram
6 Wheels Of Steel
7 Denim And Leather
8 Saxon
9 The Inner Sanctum
10 Lionheart
11 The Eagle Has Landed p 1
🤟
1.Power and the Glory
2.Killing Ground
3.Strong Arm of the Law
4.Denim and Leather
5.Wheels of Steel
6.Innocence is No Excuse
7.Crusader
8.Lionheart
9.Thunderbolt
10.Battering Ram
Honorable mention has to go to The Eagle Has Landed (my introduction to Saxon).
One for pub quizzers... Drummer Pete Gill was one of the 2 drummers in The Glitter Band. Clearly to be seen on You Tube vids of the band with Gary Glitter on the BBC Top of the Pops show back in the early 70's....... Saxon where and still are a great live rock band.
Been a SAXON fan since discovering them on the Castle Donnington compilation and never turned back! with that said...
10. Hell Fire And Damnation
9. Thunderbolt
8. Solid Ball Of Rock
7. Carpe Diem
6. Unleash The Beast
5. SAXON
4. Strong Arm of The Law
3. Wheels Of Steel
2. Denim and Leather
1. Power And The Glory
Finally Unleash the Beast gets some love. Truly one of Saxon's greates albums. The real start of the heavy/modern era from which only 9/10 and 10/10 albums have been released.
- Unleash is the unsung hero of their modern/heavy stuff.
- Innocense is no Excuse is the true hidden gem of the classic era.
IMO.
Love these hosts.
Denim, Forver Free, Unleash the Beast, Inner Sanctum, Lion Heart.. All fantastic kick ass records
1. Power and the Glory
2. Denin and Leather
3. Strong Arm of the Law
4. Metalhead
5. Killing Ground
6. Wheels of Steel
7. Saxon
8. Unleash the Beast
9. Crusader
10. Dogf of War
I would love Pete to get a half a dozen guys together and do a last 6 Saxon v Iron Maiden album ranking. ✅
Great to do some Saxon! 1. Wheels 2. Strong arm 3. Denim 4. Power and the glory 5. Thunderbolt 6. Battering 7. Hell, Fire and Damnation 8. Innocent 9. lionheart 10. Carpe diem
My Top 3 Favourite SAXON Albums :
3. Denim and Leather (1981)
2. Strong Arm of the Law (1980)
1. Wheels Of Steel (1980)
Oh,Saxon,great band. I saw them live 4 times, they were always absolutely phenomenal. My Top 10 albums: Unleash The Beast,Metalhead,Sacrifice,Battering Ram,Thunderbolt,Lionheart,Inner Sanctum,Killing Ground,Solid Ball Of Rock,Crusader.
1. Strong arm of the law
2. Wheels of steel
3. Power and the glory
4. Denim and leather
5. Innocence is no excuse
6. Saxon
7. Rock the nations
8. Destiny
9. Solid ball of rock
10.Crusader
No recent albums then?
@@mahogany174 I have not heard the later albums.
@@jimekberg They are really good.
@@mahogany174 Ok, i have to listen.
I was at the Monsters Of Rock Festival that inspired And The Bands Played On. Denim And Leather is always my number 1.
1. Strong Arm Of The Law
2. Wheel Of The Steel
3. Power And The Glory
4. Denim And Leather
5. Inner Sanctum
6. Lionheart
7. Killing Ground
8. Call To Arms
9. Solid Ball Of Rock
10. Dogs Of War
Great show. HACK. Especially when it involves these 2️⃣. HOF ers !!👍💯
1. Strong Arm of The Law (1980)
2. Denim and Leather (1981)
3. Wheels of Steel (1980)
4. Power & The Glory (1983)
5. Sacrifice (2013)
6. Into The Labyrinth (2009)
7. The Inner Sanctum (2007)
8. Metalhead (1999)
9. Hell, Fire and Damnation (2024)
10. Battering Ram (2015)
1. Power & Glory
2. Wheels Of Steel
3. Strong Arm Of The Law
4. Denim & Leather
5. Dogs Of War
6. Lionheart
7. Call To Arms
8. Innocence Is No Excuse
9. Sacrifice
10. Crusader
11. Thunderbolt
12. Carpe Diem
13. Hell, Fire & Damnation
14. Battering Ram
15. Unleash The Beast
16. Into The Labyrinth
17. Metalhead
18. Solid Ball Of Rock
19. Saxon
20. Inner Sanctum
21. Forever Free
22. Killing Ground
23. Rock The Nations
24. Destiny
Eternal my Saxon lists: 1. Innocence is No Excuse, 1. Destiny, 3. Denim and Leather, 4. Dogs of War, 5. Unleash the Beast, 6. Inner Sanctum, 7. Lionheart, 8. Metalhead, 9. Solid Ball of Rock, and 10. Wheels of Steel
1. Wheels of Steel
2. Sacrifice
3. The Inner Sanctum
4. Carpe Diem
5. Unleash the Beast
6. Destiny
7. Power and the Glory
8. Strong Arm of the Law
9. Thunderbolt
10. Metalhead
11. Innocence Is No Excuse
12. Saxon
13. Denim and Leather
14. Crusader
I did my top 14, because these are the albums I know well enough to rank.
Great show guys! Going to have to deep dive some Saxon, love Wheels of Steel, I need to check out more of their stuff.
I tune in for the “Pensive Popoff” look.
Forever Free is Saxon’s most underrated album. Nobody ever talks about it as it fell in between the commercial 80s era and the heavier mid 90s and beyond era coming out at the height of grunge in 92. Not surprised at all it was ignored by everyone here
Agreed!!! I adore that album and Dogs of War. Saxon is a top 5 heavy metal band!
@@michaelhein5455 👍🏻
The song Dogs of War is fantastic and especially on The Eagle Has Landed II
Great episode, really enjoyed it. Living in the UK through NWOBHM Saxon were turning out some excellent material. Though I always return to 1985 "Innocence is no excuse", great tracks start to finish. Saw them on this tour they were excellent. Great to see in 2024 still putting out great material, the new album rocks and some.
Always felt those mid-late 80's early 90's Saxon albums were missed opportunities. Those first two Tank picks in particular with Back On The Streets, Broken Heroes, Requiem etc were perfect for blockbuster soundtrack songs back when \m/
Power, Strong Arm, Denim, Wheels, Lionheart, Hell Fire
Really loved this one, Hack. Fantastic show!
Denim and Leather, brought us all together 👍
Top 10:
1. Denim and Leather
2. Hell, Fire And Damnation
3. Lionheart
4. Strong Arm Of The Law
5. Metalhead
6. Carpe Diem
7. Wheels Of Steel
8. Thunderbolt
9. The Inner Sanctum
10. Battering Ram
Saxon is a mainly a great Live band : 1. Live in Napoli 1981 2.the eagle has landed 1982 3. Greatest Hits Live! 1990 4. Heavy Metal Thunder - Live : Eagles Over Wacken 2012 5. St. George's Day Sacrifice - Live in Manchester 2014. Have a Nice weekend from Flanders Belgium
Out of 24 albums there are only 5 I'm a bit meh on, the rest is good to excellent. I've been a casual fan for a couple years, but I saw them and even before then I deepdived into their catalogue... Brilliant, brilliant band.
10. Thunderbolt
This one blew me away. The three that came before were rock solid to great, but man this sounds even fresher...
9. The Inner Sanctum
A bit of a grower after a damn awesome start in the new millenium, but songs like Attila the Hun are amazing. In their 31st year more or less they showed the world once more that they still have something to offer.
8. Hell, Fire and Damnation
Although Carpe Diem is great it barely was included into my top 10 - this one was as strong as Thunderbolt, now I prefer it. One of the shortest gaps even more modern Saxon, but they still deliver such a barnstorming album. The 4 songs they played live also translated very well.
7. Killing Ground
After the solid mid 90s stuff I somehow thought Metalhead was really lacking in terms of songwriting and production - this was their "Angel of Retribution" or "Brave New World" moment though. I also have a soft spot for albums like Solid Ball of Rock and Innocence is no excuse, but this is the strongest Saxon album in over 15 years at that point.
6. Into the Labyrinth
Love the epic nature of this one. Battalions of Steel is either my favourite or my second favourite Saxon song, and the rest of the album also delivers.
5. Wheels of Steel
One of four classic albums in a row, I played it constantly even when I was just a casual fan. I like the debut, but this is the birth of the real Saxon. First four songs and last song of course mainstays in the setlist, I also love the deeper cut "See the light shining".
4. Denim and Leather
Perhaps their most iconic album at least for the mainstream, at least 5 or 6 mainstays in the setlist of course!
3. Power and the Glory
For many probably number one, and I too love it to bits. Although Crusader's title track is iconic and I really dig "Innocence" this is without a doubt their high point of the early era.
2. Lionheart
If I could turn back time and get reintroduced to classic Heavy metal once again I wish someone would've showed me this album first when I was between 10-12. I loved Richard Lionheart and many other medieval tales, fantasy, sword and sorcery, Avalon, whatever... I might have lost the fantasy over the years but the spark is still gleaming. 9 songs, two interludes, at least 2 or 3 would probably land in my top 10 Saxon songs. Masterpiece.
1. Strong Arm of the Law
I started at the beginning, dug the debut and really liked Wheels of Steel but this made me a fan. A classic album, really cementing their craft on their third opus.
... and competition with Unleash the Beast is a new album Hell, fire and Damnation, which easily could be included in the list, as very nice surprise from NWBHM veterans.
Gentlemen, it's always enjoyable when you all get together to discuss some of the classic bands, and particularly those underdogs deserving of the attention.
Good observation about Saxon and why they didn't get more popular based on not fitting in. They fell in with several of the others that no longer fit in like Raven and Anvil, for instance; interestingly enough another band that did make a pretty good go of it during that period from the mid- to late-eighties was Helix--at least based on metal radio and MTV video rotation.
Innocence Is No Excuse should have broke them here--brilliant album, huge leap from Crusader: anthemic, chorus-driven metal with much better, bottom-heavy production. The band absolutely deserves to be in the same conversation with the Priests and Maidens, and all things considered, in terms of longevity, integrity, and quality of catalog are pretty much in a league of their own with the likes of Motorhead.
Even Saxon's lesser albums had some terrific songs, so I'd never consider them outright bombs. We can all cite something; for me it's Crusader, Rock the Nations, and Forever Free to name a few--but only those few really. Destiny was much better than it gets credit for (so was Priest's Ram It Down that same year but that's for another post) and at least in part faithful to their heavier sound if we ignore the odd ballad and keyboarding. Red Alert, Calm Before the Storm, and S.O.S were quite good.
Regarding Dogs of War, I'll agree with Hack on this one. I'm hard-pressed to find a stronger one-two punch to start their albums than Dogs of War and Burning Wheels. Add in an epic like Great White Buffalo, and this record is definitely respectable. I don't say it's great, but it's a good bridge from FF to Unleash the Beast, the latter of which cleared the way for their impressive renaissance right up to today. Bottom line: Good music is good music and no one should have to justify their preferences with a PSA.
Wow, 24 albums? Can't do a proper top 10 since I haven't heard their last few yet, but based on your feedback, I'm looking forward to them. And so, my best of the rest...
1. Denim and Leather
2. Strong Arm of the Law
3. The Inner Sanctum
4. Innocence Is No Excuse
5. Unleash the Beast
6. Power & the Glory
7. Killing Ground
8. Call to Arms
9. Wheels of Steel
10. Solid Ball of Rock
Interesting how witrh Saxon their looks tend to come up. They do realize this as the Biff autobiography co-written with John Tucker is called Never Surrender (Or nearly good looking )Looks were not a NWOBHM thing, but then came MTV.
I remember many years ago someone said that (in their early career) they were "suspiciously old"!
My ranking for the Saxon albums would be🤘
24. Destiny 1988
23. Rock The Nations 1986
22. Solid Ball Of Rock 1991
21. Forever Free 1992
20. Call To Arms 2011
19. Into The Labyrinth 2009
18. Killing Ground 2001
17. Unleash The Beast 1997
16. Carpe Diem 2022
15. Hell Fire And Damnation 2024
14. Thunderbolt 2018
13. Sacrifice 2013
12. Battering Ram 2015
11. The Inner Sanctum 2007
10. Lionheart 2004
9. Dogs Of War 1995
8. Metalhead 1999
7. Innocence Is No Excuse 1985
6. Saxon 1979
5. Crusader 1984
4. Strong Arm Of The Law 1980
3. Wheels Of Steel 1980
2. Denim And Leather 1981
1. Power And The Glory 1983
Saxon.............................................. Rules
Got inspired to listen to Hell Fire and Damnation and I love it thank you gentlemen
It was touched on but really the subject matter of Saxon songs is so good. Biff writes some great lyrics which are certainly better than your average metal band.
Catchin' the Replay!
Dogs Of War is freakin amazing 🎸🔥
Yes!
I love it. ✅
"Biff's vocals are an acquired taste" truer words were never spoken.
"Sixth form girls" could be not a good song but it ends with one of the best Paul Quinn solo ever, if you pay attention to this solo you can realize what a great guitar player he is
We do mention his playing. He is great and bluesy.
.... yeah guys you're missing my favorite 2000s Saxon album the inner Sanctum
I didn’t know that Saxon was so prolific.i do love power and the glory though . As a child of ten, i discovered my love of rock and metal music in 1980s when i was young and dumb i wanted to be like Ozzie.
Bill Byford! I love it.
1. Innocence Is No Excuse
2. Denim and Leather
3. Wheels of Steel
4. Strong Arm of the Law
5. Destiny
6. Power & the Glory
7. Saxon
8. Unleash the Beast
9. Sacrifice
10. Hell, Fire and Damnation
I'm a huge Saxon fan. They are top 10 band of all-time for me. They are incredibly hard to rank. This ranking is a loose ranking. I'm sure that it will change over time.
Strong arm of the law
Wheels of steel
Innocence is no excuse
Solid ball of rock
Power and the glory
Denim and leather
Destiny
Crusader
Dogs of war
Thunderbolt
Metalhead
Hell, fire damnation
Rock the nations
Killing ground
Lionheart
Inner sanctum
Into the labyrinth
Carpe diem
Saxon
Sacrifice
Forever free
Call to arms
Battering ram
In an SoT video on albums that are perfect and featured Montrose's debut as an example for that, I commented that the track "I Don't Want It" featured a totally generic, boring guitar riff that, surprisingly, has been reused by seemingly every other NWOBHM band. And now, to prove my point, I'm listening to "Redline" from Power And The Glory for the first time in years, and it turns out that it has the exact same, lame main guitar riff.
GH: The collective ranking of Power And The Glory is spot on, but Pete and Martin appear to have a blind spot to Saxon's high quality 90's output. Their lone 90's selection was Unleash The Beast, but I'm with you in ranking Dogs Of War as one of Saxon's best albums. Dogs Of War has only 1 mediocre song on it (e.g., track #2) and the rest of the songs are a perfect blend of melody and hard rock. IMO, Power And The Glory is Saxon's best album, Dogs Of War at #2, and Strong Arm Of The Law or Innocence Is No Excuse at #3. My main beef with Pete and Martin's placement of post 2000 Saxon albums is that Biff's voice has slowly deteriorated to the point where the vocals don't match the energy of the music.
I’d have the debut in my top 1 easily. Power and the Glory is my #1. Denim and Leather first one I bought…when it was released. Too lazy to do a top 10. Yeah Crusader is weak. Rock the Nations I like a lot.
I haven't listen to their whole discography, as far :
1. Power and the Glory
2. Crusader
3. Denim and leather
4. Inner sanctum
5. Wheels of steel
6. Unleash the beast
7. Innocence is no excuse
8. Solid ball of rock
9. Strong arm of the law
I adamantly disagree on the disparaging comments concerning Sixth Form Girls. It is one of their most memorable songs from the eraly albums. I appreciated when it was played on Jim Florentine's show.
Saxon rules! I notice that Hack put Innocence is no exucuse that 1 and Crusader,Rock the nations and Destiny its so calked"american sound metal albums" But all you like it more other 80s albums.They have a lot of fans in europe until 84 i think.We did not like that change of sound they did it .But they try to hit Usa because metal mainstream in usa was so called glam metal style.But bands like Metallica like it Saxon very much that was very intersting.
Oh please i just lost my shit. Ive been a fan of saxon for yrs since the begining. I know paul quinn. Yes he was unfortunate to loose his hair early age. But hes their for his talents and he has more than many top guitarists.hes a brilliant chap really fantastic star which he is. Im hurt by some of these comments sorry. Whatever paul does is a gem trust me. Hes been held back a lot😢
"Teenage eighth notes"!
Lost them after Dawson & Oliver was out sorry to say.
The Power and the Glory is a classic, an absolute juggernaut of a record killed by the iffy cover and a terrible record company that couldn’t market it properly and went out of business soon after…
Pete: Ever think about doing a show about bands you've graduated or moved on from? As soon as thrash started bands like Saxon ended for me ..though The Eagle Has Landed is an all time favorite song for me. Just a thought .
Who doesn't know Saxon? Really?
*Promosm*
Martin is SPOT ON here - that Saxon is so formulaic takes away from the uniqueness of their first 5 years, in which each album was a leap forward. Every two years you can count on them to "Mail in" another generic album from the stamper.
Nobody's breaking down Into The Labrynthe vs Sacrifice...lol
Saxon is not underrated or overrated - they are PERFECTLY rated. Competent heavy metal, but not GOOD ENOUGH (Visually OR Musically) to cross over to a mainstream audience.
I think the biggest issue that held them back are Biff's vocals. He can't sing really, and isn't good looking like Jon Bon Jovi or Kip Winger so women aren't going to be into them.
Their music is also VERY formulaic. You cannot distinguish any of their last 13 albums from one another. It's the SAME ALBUM OVER AND OVER AGAIN.
Not good enough musically, what a load of absolute rubbish.
They did try to go more melodic hard rock in the mid-80s, that didn't really work all too well and Biff going blond for Crusader didn't do the trick either interestingly enough he kept it that way. As musicians I think they're great, to this day they can't be faulted and Oliver/Quinn were actually my #1 guitar duo back then with their masterful melody licks, not any of the other usual suspects of the metal genre, it always helps a player in solos to come from the blues or have it in your arsenal.
@@LarryFleetwood8675 I love Dogs of War but a lot of people don't seem to rate it, there are a lot of good songs on the album.
They were on a poor label.
They weren't very charismatic