Artist: Thin Lizzy
Label: Warner Bros. Records
Release: 1980
Thin Lizzy march into the eighties with a revamped look. Gary Moore, the incorrigible guitar-slinging hero who played a big part in the success of Black Rose, decides to leave for good in the middle of the tour for that album, citing “oversensitivity” to Phil’s and Gorham’s escalating drug problems. In his place steps the shy, blues-leaning guitarist Snowy White, which doesn’t exactly do Thin Lizzy any favors in terms of technical polish. Snowy is clearly well aware of these “shortcomings”, so with Scott’s help he pours all his energy into crafting harmonized guitar dialogues. Either way, they never come close to recreating the thrilling vibe of Black Rose. Understandably, the legendary Tony Visconti wasn’t happy with how things were going either, and his departure landed, as if cursed, at just about the worst possible moment for Phil Lynott.
The fallout from all this chaos shows in Chinatown’s below-average quality. Next to Night Life, it probably ends up being the worst Thin Lizzy album of all (even its similarly idea-starved successor Renegade tops it)! For the first time ever, Lizzy run around completely directionless, from the shelter of one lukewarm idea into the arms of another. The Lynott – Gorham duo has never sounded so helpless. Similar criticism goes to the lukewarm production, something Thin Lizzy should never have allowed themselves. Apparently the gentlemen at that point considered simply finishing the album an achievement.
It’s really hard to say anything nice about Chinatown. The album splits into two halves: a more promising first one, and a second one made up mostly of pitiful second-rate tracks that mainly serve as filler. We set off on this boring tour of the “Chinese quarter” to the sounds of We Will Be Strong, a Lynott number full of optimistic enthusiasm. The song, if we ignore the confusingly set-up guitar mix, remains one of the testaments to Thin Lizzy’s strength. The tempo picks up with the lively, boogie-style guitar riff of Chinatown, which fits nicely with the album’s best track, Killer On The Loose. The latter features the only typically Phil bass line, effectively combined with guitar arrangements that are otherwise mostly monotonous this time around. A great song that, under optimal conditions, would probably have turned out much better. Also worth a mention is the autobiographical tale Sugar Blues, which will earn a wry smile from anyone who knows even a little about what went on behind the scenes of Chinatown. Believe it or not, sadly that’s all Thin Lizzy have to offer us that’s edible this time. What’s left is piles of junk: the silly pop-ish Sweetheart, the misleading Having A Good Time (!), and the abnormal Genocide (The Killing Of The Buffalo), which I really don’t intend to waste any words on. All I can say is that the title alone tells you enough! Then there are the awful, though definitely more appealing than that buffalo hunt, Didn’t I and Hey You.
Generally speaking, Chinatown reflects the real state of Lynott and company at the turn of the decade. Many of you will probably console yourselves by saying that next to the brilliant Black Rose, Chinatown was simply never destined to shine. Either way, from musicians of this caliber we would definitely expect more.
Lineup
Phil Lynott: vocals/bass
Snowy White: guitar
Scott Gorham: guitar
Brian Downey: drums
Production
Kit Woolven
Track list
1.We Will Be Strong
2.Chinatown
3.Sweetheart
4.Sugar Blues
5.Killer On The Loose
6.Having A Good Time
7.Genocide (The Killing Of The Buffalo)
8.Didn’t I
9.Hey You.
Running time: 41.15
