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[Riot Band Picture]

Artist: Riot

(click on Artist's name above to return to artist's main page)

Riot Homepage

CD Title: Fire Down Under

Riot Fire Down Under Album Cover

 

Category: Hard Rock

Year: 1981

Label: Elektra/ High Vaultage Rec. (Ger)

Catalog Number: HV-1021

Personnel

Guy Speranza vocals
Mark Reale guitar
Kip Lemming bass
Rick Ventura guitar
Sandy Slavin drums

Tracks

1.  Swords And Tequila  3:14
2.  Fire Down Under  2:35
3.  Feel The Same  4:29
4.  Outlaw  4:50
5.  Don't Bring Me Down  2:57
6.  Don't Hold Back  3:12
7.  Altar Of The King  4:42
8.  No Lies  4:06
9.  Run For Your Life  3:15
10.  Flashbacks  3:57
11.  Struck By Lightning bonus track  3:38
12.  Misty Morning Rain bonus track  3:07
13.  You're All I Needed Tonight bonus track  2:58
14.  One Step Closer bonus track  2:12
15.  Hot Life bonus track  0:23
  
Total Running Time:  49:35

If you see any errors or omissions in the CD information shown above, either in the musician credits or song listings (cover song credits, live tracks, etc.), please post them in the corrections section of the Heavy Harmonies forum/message board.

The music discographies on this site are works in progress. If you notice that a particular Riot CD release or compilation is missing from the list above, please submit that CD using the CD submission page. The ultimate goal is to make the discographies here at Heavy Harmonies as complete as possible. Even if it is an obscure greatest-hits or live compilation CD, we want to add it to the site. Please only submit official CD releases; no bootlegs or cassette-only or LP-only releases.

EPs and CD-singles from Riot are also welcome to be added, as long as they are at least 4 songs in length.




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Existing comments about this CD

From: Metal Pete Date: January 15, 2004 at 15:53
THANK YOU! Riot's crowning achievement, I was blasting it this morning. If you don't own this album and consider yourself a true hard rocker, then you must find it. You are an incomplete person without this cd!! ROCK ON.

From: Shoemaker Date: January 16, 2004 at 16:10
Some people say this is the first speed metal album. But this is total bullshit. This album contains Rock´n Roll, with normal speed. I would call some songs on the "Thundersteel" album Speedmetal. I hate FIRE DOWN UNDER "Rock city" is the better choice. Everywhere is written "Swords an tequilla" is a great song, I say it´s a good song for an old beer bar nothing more.

From: AOR freaky Date: January 19, 2004 at 5:37
One of the best pure hardrock records ever released. Indeed, a hardrock collection without this great record is not complete ! Personally, I even like 'Rock City', their debut a bit more, but this is a class release and a pleasure to listen to !

From: bernardito Date: February 5, 2004 at 22:51
vaya pedazo de disco, solido, con caña COMO DEBE SER!!! OUTLAW, UN TRANCAZO! HARD RULESS!!! 95/100

From: Metal Pete Date: February 18, 2004 at 18:49
Shoemocker what the hell are you talking about? Listen to this album and remember it came out in '81. Talk about ahead of their time! Nobody said it was speed metal, it's just great, crunchy guitar rock--and was very ORIGINAL at the time. Many afterwards copied their style, but none compare. They were VERY heavy for the time, and the music stands up easily today. This one stays in my top ten of all time, in the company of Master of Puppets, Heaven and Hell, High n Dry, Appetite for Destruction..

From: Music Man Date: February 19, 2004 at 9:44
Interesting comment Metal Pete.I made a tape 20 years ago,Fire Down Under on side 1,High n Dry on side 2.I always thought those two releases complimented one another perfectly and sound best at high volume.

From: Rockhead Date: March 17, 2004 at 9:32
An 80's classic!! Fire Down Under, Swords and Tequilla, Outlaw the quality reamins very high throughout. Buy this and listen to how the big boys did it back in the day. How and why Capitol Records turned this down is beyond me-an absolute travesty. In my top 10-forever

From: Date: April 4, 2004 at 13:56
This is one of my ALLTIME-Favs! KILLER, go and get a copy! One of the best records of the NWOBHM. The best american part at least! They would be a really big one if Guy didnt leave the band, too bad! As Metal Pete writes "You are an incomplete person without this cd .." !

From: Mr M Date: May 3, 2004 at 9:25
The previous two albums hinted at what was to come. To me, this is where songs/sound/vibe come together in an an irresistable combination. Essential.

From: Date: May 7, 2004 at 16:02
Great unheralded heavy rock album. I don't know why they didn't get more props back in the day. Way before GnR these guys were doing it the right way! OUTLAW rocks hard, great leads also. Every song rocks!

From: Big Papa K Date: June 14, 2004 at 17:43
A great eaxmple of early 80's american metal. Reminds me riff wise of early Def Leppard. "Swords and Tequilla" is one of the unheralded metal classics of all time. 9/10

From: Mike Murray Date: August 26, 2004 at 4:15
Listen to Metal Pete you guys. For 1981, this was bleeding edge metal. Great vox, ripp'n guitar. fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck. I get chills just thinking about the vox on "Outlaw"

From: Propane Date: November 30, 2004 at 23:41
It collapses your spine while twisting it and at the same time making your ears bleed. This is the Riot achievement of the era. If you have to beg, borrow or steal, get this one NOW!!!

From: Dave Date: March 25, 2005 at 5:11
Without a doubt ,the first 3 albums were pure jems.I still only have them on vinyl {they themselves would be collectors items} and have them on my cd get list. Outlaw is still to this day in my top 10 songs of all time.They were in a class of their own back then.Their latest album "Through The Storm" is a beauty aswell.

From: AOR freaky Date: March 25, 2005 at 7:52
Great band, and there is a newie coming this year ! The sooner, the better !

From: z4roxx Date: March 28, 2005 at 12:57
That's another King band!But my fave Riot cd is"The privilege of power"indeed,after it I put immediately"Nightbreaker","Thundersteel"and the rest after these but,I repeat,all Riot's works are great!I give 10/10 to the band in general....

From: angusshenkofspade Date: June 9, 2006 at 5:20
what a fantastic album ! and fantastic voice - Mr Speranza, the real, the only Riot singer, much better than Rhett "The fat" Forester

From: poproxx2007 Date: November 28, 2006 at 11:14
Plain and simple a Metal Masterpiece!! Just as good if not better than anything Priest or Maiden put to wax!! 10/10

From: z4roxx Date: January 19, 2007 at 13:43
Another great release from this incredible band.Sioncerely I don’t like so much old releases with 70’s influences but this cd is really great.

From: juan carlos Date: August 2, 2007 at 10:38
Tremendo clásico, temas como "Swords And Tequila" y "Altar Of The King" que Steve Harris y Cia deben haberlo escuchado hasta el cansancio sobre todo en ese riff de "Swords and Tequila" que influenciado claramente al "Two Minutes to Midnight" de los Maiden. "Outlaw" es otro temazo con un final a la mexicana y "Don't Hold Back" los mejores. Los demas temas y los bonus me suenan muy clásicos, "Struck By Lightning" a lo Rainbow y ese tema?? final "Hot Life" jeje bueno. 9/10

From: shoemaker Date: August 10, 2007 at 6:41
This is not very ORIGINAL for 81. I have an album in my collection from a band called ELECTRIC EELS. It´s from 74 and it´s pure Rock´n Roll, or the first TRIUMPH lps, they are from the early 70ies and they Rock as much as RIOT did in 81.

From: Figge Date: August 10, 2007 at 7:02
Huh?!? How can you compare early Triumph with "Fire Down Under? There is nothing remotely similar in their sound or approach if you ask me. This is a GREAT album and yes, it was ahead of it's time. Fast, heavy, hard rock 'n' roll. A very special sound hard to compare with anyone else at the time. "Outlaw" is a monster of a song and "Swords & Tequila" is a classic in the genre. One of their best albums but the whole discography is worth checking out.

From: CS2007 Date: October 9, 2007 at 16:55
Another great early 1980s heavy metal album. The sound is in the vein of the NWOBHM bands at the time, although Riot hails from New York. "Swords and Tequila", "Outlaw", "Altar of the King", and the title track are the best songs, although there are no bad songs to be found here. Mark Reale is an excellent guitar player, and Guy Speranza (R.I.P.) is an underrated vocalist.

From: True Believer Date: March 25, 2009 at 8:08
This one is simply fantastic. Very consistent, with great riffs, hooks and atypical Speranza's voice. The standouts are "Swords and Tequila" (which is similar to NWOBHM songs from that era), Thin Lizzy - influenced "Outlaw", Rainbow-like "Don't hold back" and "The altar of the king". The music mixes elements of NWOBHM with more traditional hardrock. 9/10

From: hair metal again Date: July 24, 2009 at 6:26
this is a classichard rock dynamite!i mean it has a huge energy in it ,the guitars are howling,speranza's voice is fantastic.straight rock n roll but very well performed technically by great musicians."outlaw" remains the strongest choice of the album.the only thing i would change is include one or two party songs.hard rock has this side too you know..

From: rick kerch vzla Date: August 9, 2010 at 21:13
This is one of the most representative albums of the band..with classic songs such as "Swords And Tequila" which is a great rockin' track,"Fire Down Under" is a killer track 4 sure,"Feel The Same" & "Don't Bring Me Down" both very good ones,"Don't Hold Back" rocks but in a much better way does it "Run For Your Life","Flashbacks" is a very crazy guitar & instrumental number with some play backs of concerts and band annoucements ...i have the vinyl so i cannot comment the bonus tracks,suppose they are killer ones too!...Guy Speranza in here...along with Rhett Forrester both were important members of the band...sadly Guy Speranza died too in 2003 (he had a pancreatic cancer)...an excellent singer that is singing together with Rhett in Heaven...God Bless them...the album...93/100

From: elljam Date: January 23, 2012 at 11:11
I saw Riot twice on the tour for this album supporting Saxon on their "Denim & Leather" tour in London & Brighton,talk about two bands at the top of their game at the time. I didn't think they could get near "Narita" but this matches up. Not a weak track but "Swords & Tequila", "Feel the same", "Outlaw" & "Don't Hold Back" stand out from the crowd. This is how hard rock should be played & to this day not many have done it better.


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