Attila (band)
Encyclopedia
Attila was the name of a band featuring a young Billy Joel
. Billy was a member of a band called The Hassles
; he and the drummer, Jon Small, broke away from the Hassles and formed Attila in 1969. The instrumentation was organ and drums, with Billy Joel also handling the bass lines with a keyboard, like the Doors' Ray Manzarek
. Their creative partnership ended in 1970 when Joel allegedly ran off with Small's wife, Elizabeth, although this did not end their collaborations, as Small produced Joel's Концерт video as well as the Live at Shea Stadium
performance.
They released only one album, Attila, in 1970. Attila is often selected by critics and other music journalists as one of the worst rock albums of all time. Joel himself has gone on record as describing the album as "psychedelic bullshit".
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
of AllMusic.com writes, "Attila undoubtedly is the worst album released in the history of rock & roll -- hell, the history of recorded music itself. There have been many bad ideas in rock, but none match the colossal stupidity of Attila."
One track from the album, "Amplifier Fire, Part 1 (Godzilla)," appears on Joel's 2005 boxed set My Lives
.
Billy Joel
William Martin "Billy" Joel is an American musician and pianist, singer-songwriter, and classical composer. Since releasing his first hit song, "Piano Man", in 1973, Joel has become the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States, according to...
. Billy was a member of a band called The Hassles
The Hassles
The Hassles were a rock group in the 1960s, most notable for recording the first releases to feature Billy Joel. The group released two full-length albums and a number of singles....
; he and the drummer, Jon Small, broke away from the Hassles and formed Attila in 1969. The instrumentation was organ and drums, with Billy Joel also handling the bass lines with a keyboard, like the Doors' Ray Manzarek
Ray Manzarek
Raymond Daniel Manzarek, Jr., better known as Ray Manzarek , is an American musician, singer, producer, film director, writer, co-founder and keyboardist of The Doors from 1965 to 1973, Nite City from 1977–1978 and Manzarek-Krieger since 2001.Manzarek is listed #4 on Digital Dreamdoor's "100...
. Their creative partnership ended in 1970 when Joel allegedly ran off with Small's wife, Elizabeth, although this did not end their collaborations, as Small produced Joel's Концерт video as well as the Live at Shea Stadium
Live at Shea Stadium: The Concert
Billy Joel: Live at Shea Stadium is a music compilation of songs performed by American singer/songwriter Billy Joel during two concerts at Shea Stadium in New York City on July 16 & 18, 2008. It was released on March 8, 2011....
performance.
They released only one album, Attila, in 1970. Attila is often selected by critics and other music journalists as one of the worst rock albums of all time. Joel himself has gone on record as describing the album as "psychedelic bullshit".
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for Allmusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for Allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the nephew...
of AllMusic.com writes, "Attila undoubtedly is the worst album released in the history of rock & roll -- hell, the history of recorded music itself. There have been many bad ideas in rock, but none match the colossal stupidity of Attila."
One track from the album, "Amplifier Fire, Part 1 (Godzilla)," appears on Joel's 2005 boxed set My Lives
My Lives
My Lives is a box set compilation of demos, outtakes, B-sides, soundtrack cuts, live recordings and album cuts by American singer/songwriter Billy Joel. It was released on November 22, 2005...
.
Track listing
- All Songs Written By Billy Joel & Jon Small.
- Wonder Woman (3:38)
- California Flash (3:32)
- Revenge Is Sweet (4:00)
- Amplifier Fire (Part I: Godzilla/Part II: March Of The Huns) (7:39)
- Rollin' Home (4:52)
- Tear This Castle Down (5:49)
- Holy Moses (4:30)
- Brain Invasion (5:41)
Personnel
- Billy Joel: vocals, keyboards, songwriter
- Jon Small: drums, songwriter
- Glenn Evans: road manager and creator of the direct input of a Hammond organ to Marshall Amps.
External links
- Review on head hearitage by Boy Howdy
- allmusic [ link]