(U.K 1967-1988, 1995-1996, 1999-2010)
The sound heard on seminal albums such as Budgie's self-titled debut (1971), Squawk (1972) and Never Turn Your Back on a Friend (1973) pushed hard rock into heavier places and the band is largely regarded as a proto-metal act that went on to influence the likes of Metallica and Van Halen. Many metal fans were likely introduced to the group through Metallica's covers of "Crash Course in Brain Surgery" and "Breadfan," while Van Halen, in their early days, were known to cover the title track to Budgie's fourth album In for the Kill!, which was released in 1974.
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| Burke Shelley, Tony Bourge, Pete Boot |
Between 1971 and 1982, Budgie released a total of 10 full length albums and they originally disbanded in 1988. A brief reunion occurred in 1995 and 1996 where the band played one-off shows before reforming again in 1999. One more album, You're All Living in Cuckooland, came out in 2006.
The Making Of 'In For The Kill'
After Budgie released their 3rd album 'Never Turn Your Back On A Friend' in 1973 (considered by many as their best release), disagreements within the band surfaced resulting in drummer Ray Phillips leaving the band. Because existing tour commitments needed to be fulfilled and the bands agent did not want to cancel the tour, a replacement drummer had to be sourced quickly to honour the dates. Burke recalls: "When Ray left we had the problem of trying to find someone to fill his shoes. Pete Boot came along because our agent at the time said 'I'm not cancelling gigs just because Ray Phillips has left. I'll get a stand in drummer'. We felt obliged to do that. He already knew Pete Boot and send him along'.
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| Pete Boot, Tony Bourge, Burke Shelley |
Pete then stayed on for the recording of our follow up album 'In For The Kill' due to MCA pressuring the band for a new album.
Seven tracks finally emerged from the recording sessions including an edited single version of Zoom Club / Wondering What Everyone Knows
Most of the music recorded for Budgie's fourth studio album was written whilst gigging during the 1974 dates. In For The Kill went on to reach number 29 in the UK charts in 1974.
Burke Shelley: In For The Kill was the album that Pete Boot came in on. I can remember rehearsing the songs over in Barry at the Memorial Hall, throughout the daytime. It was a case of getting Pete to rehearse the set, quickly. We were trying to write songs, trying to put stuff together and do gigs at the same time. Although we did the first album in a couple of days, the point was it was written and ready, by the time we arrived at In For The Kill I think we had about three or four song's that's all. We were hard pressed to come up with material and it was all rushed plus there were gigs that we had to do. It wasn't as though we could relax doing it. I remember we were mixing the album whilst our truck was revved up and waiting at the back of the studio in Rockfield and me rushing the last bit of mixing before we had to run out into the truck and tear off to catch a ferry to go to Europe, it was that tight.
In For The Kill was an apt title, we just went for it. There are some good songs on there but I would have done a lot more to them. It turned out, considering, pretty good."
But things were not working out with Pete Boot and he parted company with the band less than a year after joining. His replacement was Steve Williams who remained Budgie's drummer to date. Steve Williams recalls: "In For The Kill is one of my favourite Budgie albums, had things worked out differently in 1973, I may have had a crack at it"
Seven tracks finally emerged from the recording sessions including an edited single version of Zoom Club / Wondering What Everyone Knows
Most of the music recorded for Budgie's fourth studio album was written whilst gigging during the 1974 dates. In For The Kill went on to reach number 29 in the UK charts in 1974.
Burke Shelley: In For The Kill was the album that Pete Boot came in on. I can remember rehearsing the songs over in Barry at the Memorial Hall, throughout the daytime. It was a case of getting Pete to rehearse the set, quickly. We were trying to write songs, trying to put stuff together and do gigs at the same time. Although we did the first album in a couple of days, the point was it was written and ready, by the time we arrived at In For The Kill I think we had about three or four song's that's all. We were hard pressed to come up with material and it was all rushed plus there were gigs that we had to do. It wasn't as though we could relax doing it. I remember we were mixing the album whilst our truck was revved up and waiting at the back of the studio in Rockfield and me rushing the last bit of mixing before we had to run out into the truck and tear off to catch a ferry to go to Europe, it was that tight.
In For The Kill was an apt title, we just went for it. There are some good songs on there but I would have done a lot more to them. It turned out, considering, pretty good."
But things were not working out with Pete Boot and he parted company with the band less than a year after joining. His replacement was Steve Williams who remained Budgie's drummer to date. Steve Williams recalls: "In For The Kill is one of my favourite Budgie albums, had things worked out differently in 1973, I may have had a crack at it"
Album Tracks
01. In For The Kill: This is a stomping song on record and equally so on stage. According to Burke: "It's got a nice chugging riff courtesy of Tony Bourge. We recorded this one under extreme pressure - it was due to us gigging so much that we didn't have time to spit.". One of the highlights of the album, the title track was often covered by Van Halen in their early live sets.
Tony Bourge: "In For The Kill . I think I wrote this one. I was in the house one day and I was messing around with a couple of ideas the we had written before and I wanted to do something that was really heavy, grindingly heavy, something that you felt was going to walk through a brick wall, but I wanted to keep it simple. I thought about some of the other songs we'd done. They were usually easy to play riffs down in E somewhere or G to E, what ever, but really getting down low on the bass strings and we'd done a couple of other things like that, one that Bourke wrote ....Guts, and that was a really easy simple grinder, and I think that was what we like doing, that's what Budgie were good at doing, ie. playing simple grinding riffs".
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Attention: RIP Burke Shelley (Jan 11, 2022)
This post consists of FLACs ripped from CD and includes full album artwork for both CD and Vinyl. My vinyl copy of In For The Kill has had nearly 50 years of spin time on my turntables and still plays as well as it did when I first purchased it from K-mart in Geelong. I'm pretty sure it set me back $5.99 and it is one of my favourite Budgie releases. Four bonus tracks are included which were released with the 2004 CD release by Noteworthy Productions. This album is no longer available and is officially out of print.
01. In For The Kill: This is a stomping song on record and equally so on stage. According to Burke: "It's got a nice chugging riff courtesy of Tony Bourge. We recorded this one under extreme pressure - it was due to us gigging so much that we didn't have time to spit.". One of the highlights of the album, the title track was often covered by Van Halen in their early live sets.
Tony Bourge: "In For The Kill . I think I wrote this one. I was in the house one day and I was messing around with a couple of ideas the we had written before and I wanted to do something that was really heavy, grindingly heavy, something that you felt was going to walk through a brick wall, but I wanted to keep it simple. I thought about some of the other songs we'd done. They were usually easy to play riffs down in E somewhere or G to E, what ever, but really getting down low on the bass strings and we'd done a couple of other things like that, one that Bourke wrote ....Guts, and that was a really easy simple grinder, and I think that was what we like doing, that's what Budgie were good at doing, ie. playing simple grinding riffs".
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02. Crash Course In Brain Surgery: This song was originally recorded around the time of Budgie's debut album as the bands first single released in 1971 though was not included on the original pressing of the album (even though the cover listed it). The track was included on In For The Kill due to a shortage of material. Subsequently covered by Metallica for their Garage Days EP in the eighties Metallica have continued to cite Budgie as a major influence in their own music. Listening to Crash Course one can understand why!
Burke Shelly: "I idealistically thought this might be a cure for a lot of the worlds problems, including my own"
Tony Bourge: "It was one of those tracks that we did on stage and it had a great feel to it"
03. Wondering What Everyone Knows: Two minutes and fifty seconds of Typical Burke acousticness! This is a lovely song that certainly creates the feeling of the calm between two storms, which sandwiched between the bone crushing Crash Course and the driving Zoom Club, it certainly is.
04. Zoom Club: Zoom Club quickly became a favourite live number with the fans and still is today. A club in Frankfurt, Germany was the initial inspiration for the number. Burke recalls: "Playing in Frankfurt at the Zoom Club. Americans need to turn up at this club which was when the Vietnam war was on. They were all off to Vietnam eventually, most of them. It was just one of those places, it was like the last place before they all went to war. The Zoom Club was the place they all went to."
Tony Bourge: "That was again one of Burke's ideas. It was basically about a club that we played in, in Germany, where all the G.I's used to go. Hence the first couple of lines...."Come on all you G.I's"
Burke Shelly: "I idealistically thought this might be a cure for a lot of the worlds problems, including my own"
Tony Bourge: "It was one of those tracks that we did on stage and it had a great feel to it"
03. Wondering What Everyone Knows: Two minutes and fifty seconds of Typical Burke acousticness! This is a lovely song that certainly creates the feeling of the calm between two storms, which sandwiched between the bone crushing Crash Course and the driving Zoom Club, it certainly is.
04. Zoom Club: Zoom Club quickly became a favourite live number with the fans and still is today. A club in Frankfurt, Germany was the initial inspiration for the number. Burke recalls: "Playing in Frankfurt at the Zoom Club. Americans need to turn up at this club which was when the Vietnam war was on. They were all off to Vietnam eventually, most of them. It was just one of those places, it was like the last place before they all went to war. The Zoom Club was the place they all went to."
Tony Bourge: "That was again one of Burke's ideas. It was basically about a club that we played in, in Germany, where all the G.I's used to go. Hence the first couple of lines...."Come on all you G.I's"
05. Hammer and Tongs: The song was based on yet another Tony Bourge guitar riff.
Burke Shelley: "It was a bluesy but heavy number that reflected how we'd been influenced by the progressive blues scene of the mid 1960's which later produced bands like Cream, Led Zeppelin, Hendrix etc. Tony particularly liked the Chicago blues bands."
06. Running From My Soul: Budgie had to come up with extra material for the album and quickly. Running From My Soul was one of the late additions. Again featuring some great guitar work from Tony Bourge and classic Burke vocals.
Tony Bourge: Running From My Soul and Living On Your Own: "They were a bit more light hearted. Burke and I were both of the mind that we didn't want to listen to one album track after another just to hear everything sounding the same, so we constantly tried to come up with maybe some lighter ideas using more chords rather than riffs.
Burke Shelley: "This track is a mix of influences - Chicken Shack, Stan Webb, Love Sculptures "Blues helping' album and all the rest of the late 1960's blues bands."
07. Living On Your Own: The final track of the album and another worked on heavily in the studio. Burke Shelley: "I remember pinching the chord chopping style from a great band called 'Glass Menagerie'. The end section is 'Beck's Bolero' revisited.
Burke Shelley: "It was a bluesy but heavy number that reflected how we'd been influenced by the progressive blues scene of the mid 1960's which later produced bands like Cream, Led Zeppelin, Hendrix etc. Tony particularly liked the Chicago blues bands."
06. Running From My Soul: Budgie had to come up with extra material for the album and quickly. Running From My Soul was one of the late additions. Again featuring some great guitar work from Tony Bourge and classic Burke vocals.
Tony Bourge: Running From My Soul and Living On Your Own: "They were a bit more light hearted. Burke and I were both of the mind that we didn't want to listen to one album track after another just to hear everything sounding the same, so we constantly tried to come up with maybe some lighter ideas using more chords rather than riffs.
Burke Shelley: "This track is a mix of influences - Chicken Shack, Stan Webb, Love Sculptures "Blues helping' album and all the rest of the late 1960's blues bands."
07. Living On Your Own: The final track of the album and another worked on heavily in the studio. Burke Shelley: "I remember pinching the chord chopping style from a great band called 'Glass Menagerie'. The end section is 'Beck's Bolero' revisited.
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| Simon Lees, Burke Shelley, Steve Williams (2003) |
[Bonus Tracks]
08. Zoom Club Edit (Single Edit): Shortened to fit time constraints of the a 45 and of course 'Radio Station Playtimes'
09. In For The Kill 10. Crash Course In Brain Surgery 11. Zoom Club
Final 3 tracks are re-recorded tracks. Recorded in summer 2003 by Burke Shelley, Steve Williams and Simon Lees with a mobile studio during rehearsals for the 2003 Autumn Tour.
[Taken from Liner Notes]
08. Zoom Club Edit (Single Edit): Shortened to fit time constraints of the a 45 and of course 'Radio Station Playtimes'
09. In For The Kill 10. Crash Course In Brain Surgery 11. Zoom Club
Final 3 tracks are re-recorded tracks. Recorded in summer 2003 by Burke Shelley, Steve Williams and Simon Lees with a mobile studio during rehearsals for the 2003 Autumn Tour.
[Taken from Liner Notes]
It is with heavy heart that I announce the sad news that Burke Shelley passed away on the 11th January this year at the age of 71.
I have only just seen this news today, some 6 months later (how I missed this news baffles me) and I'm gutted. Nothing mentioned on Budgie's official website which is really strange and sad.
I have followed Budgie since they first released their debut album in 1971 and was lucky enough to see them play live in 2009, when they finally visited Australia for the first time.
Without Burke, the band can never be the same - his voice and bass lines were the essence of this great band.
When I saw Burke play in 2009, he had the energy of a 21yr old and a voice as good as the day when he first sang "Guts". But I must admit he didn't really look 100% and I suspect that this was around the time when his health started to deteriorate. The world has lost a talented musician and entertainer, and a band that led the way for so may heavy metal bands. You can read more details at loudwire.com
I have followed Budgie since they first released their debut album in 1971 and was lucky enough to see them play live in 2009, when they finally visited Australia for the first time.
Without Burke, the band can never be the same - his voice and bass lines were the essence of this great band.
When I saw Burke play in 2009, he had the energy of a 21yr old and a voice as good as the day when he first sang "Guts". But I must admit he didn't really look 100% and I suspect that this was around the time when his health started to deteriorate. The world has lost a talented musician and entertainer, and a band that led the way for so may heavy metal bands. You can read more details at loudwire.com
This post consists of FLACs ripped from CD and includes full album artwork for both CD and Vinyl. My vinyl copy of In For The Kill has had nearly 50 years of spin time on my turntables and still plays as well as it did when I first purchased it from K-mart in Geelong. I'm pretty sure it set me back $5.99 and it is one of my favourite Budgie releases. Four bonus tracks are included which were released with the 2004 CD release by Noteworthy Productions. This album is no longer available and is officially out of print.
Track List
01 In For The Kill 6:26
03 Wondering What Everyone Knows 2:53
04 Zoom Club 9:53
05 Hammer And Tongs 6:52
06 Running From My Soul 3:35
07 Living On Your Own 8:54
[Bonus Tracks]
08 Zoom Club (Single Edit) 3:26
09 In For The Kill (2003 Version) 3:35
10 Crash Course In Brain Surgery (2003 Version) 2:44
11 Zoom Club (2003 Version)
Budgie were:
Tony Bourge - Guitar
Pete Boot - Drums
In For The Kill Link (391Mb)
Hello dear music lover... many thanks for Budgie... I'm a huge fan of this group.. especially their first four records... for me also one of the greatest heavy rock band... nice greetings from Germany.. btw: thank you also for the other goodies finding here.
ReplyDeleteAlso found out late about Bourke, shame on the media and music scene for not putting anything in print. Also seen them on the two tours of australia put together by the fan club I believe. There were rumours Bourke was writting new material just before he passed, we can only hope it sees the light of day.
ReplyDeleteI bought their debut album in 1972. Blew me away. So underated especially Tony Bourge a wonderfully gifted guitarist. They had stuff all recognition in Australia and it's still got me buggered why. This is a great album. Thanks
ReplyDeleteNever tried Budgie as I expected them to just be another loud untalented heavy band. I will give this a try going on the information supplied. Thanks for the chance to increase my musical education
ReplyDeleteHi Rhodb I'm sure you won't be disappointed .If you like what you hear then you really should listen to their 'masterpiece' 3rd LP NTYBOAF
Deletehttp://rockonvinyl.blogspot.com/2009/08/budgie-never-turn-your-back-on-friend.html
The album covers alone got me in, early 70's. All the Yes, Hawkwind, Trower, Eno artwork too. I'd rather listen to Budgie than Zeppelin, so that's saying something. Truly GREAT band.
ReplyDelete