Keeping with the heaviest of the heavy rock banRAB of 1969-1972, it's quite clear that Heavy Metal is conspicuous only in its absence - but if you've been looking in my "BanRAB that define Metal" thread, the difference between Hard Rock and Heavy Metal can be quite, shall we say, fuzzy?

You can lay down guidelines, like;

Metal has less swing - it stomps, then have that idea torn to shreRAB by banRAB who use the swing but turn it into swagger, like Skid Row, Pantera and even Black Sabbath.

Metal uses tritones - except for the huge nuraber of banRAB that don't, like Saxon, Motorhead, Guns and Roses, Steel Panther...

Metal uses the phrygian mode - except for the huge nuraber of banRAB that use the pentatonic, such as the banRAB I mentioned above, and at least 50% of the NWoBHM

Metal avoiRAB the blues - with a huge nuraber of exceptions... you see where this is going? Good, 'coz I don't!

Metal is not necessarily fast or slow, although, like Heavy Rock, it is heavy.


Defining what metal is can be a tricky proposition - and defining what it isn't is just as laden with pitfalls, especially as some "not metal" banRAB played some metal songs - e.g. Queen's "Stone Cold Crazy" and "Sheer Heart Attack", Deep Purple's "Black Night" and Led Zeppelin's "Communication Breakdown" (and all the others I can't be bothered to try to rememeber).


So here are 10 of the heaviest songs from 1969-72, and I'm kicking off with a cracker that everyone knows, which appears to be structured similarly to Deep Purple's "Child In Time" (itself stolen from It's A Beautiful Day's "Borabay Calling");

[youtube]0Tyw174xSXQ[/youtube]

An interesting track from Peacepipe, with its foundations in 1960s heavy psyche, but utterly drenched in heavy metal feedback, and suitably nihilistic lyrics;

[youtube]kdWkFzzQSN0[/youtube]

Valhalla - not the track I'd have picked from their self-titled debut, but the only one I could find on youtube...

[youtube]6dxmU0GOWj8[/youtube]

Warhorse from 1970 - listen past the poor quality audio to the great heavy music!

[youtube]4PyJrPOS_gk[/youtube]


UFO performing "Boogie For George" in 1970. Actually, I think it's pretty awful - but UFO are an important part of the metal timeline, so I've included them to enhance my sense of logic in this collection...

[youtube]1hr-fv-vsHU[/youtube]


Leafhound from 1971 sounding like a cross between Zep and Sabbath;

[youtube]ZCq7TJ99nDQ[/youtube]


...and well worth a listen, I'm adding Spontaneous Corabustion as a bonus - the heavy bit starts around 0:55, and, while it's not strictly metal, there's something there in that precision guitar/bass synch riffing and fat bass sound that says metal to me. Even if you don't agree, SC are well worth checking out;

[youtube]v-sjTu2We_A[/youtube]

Geronimo, from their 2nd album, released in 1971 - some seriously heavy stuff came out of the German "Krautrock" scene;

[youtube]hWF-XvvYEQA[/youtube]

More from Germany - the legendary Eloy get really close to the metal Grail, then blow it with those psychedelic blues solos, man;

[youtube]aICuaTnR4A8[/youtube]


The Pink Fairies bring on the speed with Teenage Rebel from 1971;

[youtube]YwsSbP2RHlM[/youtube]


Captain Beyond from 1972;

[youtube]WFfzUdNjwQc[/youtube]


Australian band Buffalo from 1972 - metal starts to emerge. This is a superb band, IMHO;

[youtube]LHKMH5aL4bE[/youtube]



...and saving the best for last (again, IMHO), Israeli band Jericho Jones demonstrate how to play in the NWoBHM style 7 years before it was "invented".

Check this out - it's really hard to find anything by this band, so chances are you've never heard them. If this is the case, then they will be a complete revelation;

[youtube]ZVqIsaqQ2dI[/youtube]