Glenn Tipton - Edge Of The World
2006 Rhino

Track Listing:
1.  Unknown Soldier
2.  Friendly Fire
3.  The Holy Man
4.  Never Say Die
5.  Resolution
6.  Searching
7.  Give Blood
8.  Crime Of Passion
9.  Walls Cave In
10. Edge Of The World
11. Stronger Than The Drug

Line-Up:
Vocals:  Glenn Tipton
Guitars:  Glenn Tipton
Bass:  John Entwistle
Drums:  Cozy Powell

Website:  www.glenntipton.co.uk

Horatio's Rating:  B+
Overall Rating:  B+

Also be sure to read:
Judas Priest - Angel Of Retribution by Horatio (Glenn Tipton)
Judas Priest - Jugulator by Horatio (Glenn Tipton)
Judas Priest - Killing Machine by Horatio (Glenn Tipton)
Judas Priest - Painkiller by Horatio (Glenn Tipton)
Judas Priest - Point Of Entry by Horatio (Glenn Tipton)
Judas Priest - Priest...Live by Horatio (Glenn Tipton)
Judas Priest - Ram It Down by Horatio (Glenn Tipton)

Horatio's Review:
Recorded at the same time as Tipton's 1997 then obscurity 'Baptizm Of Fire', this was shelved for a decade as according to Tipton Atlantic deemed Powell and Entwistle aged and not current.  Typical scenario in the 90's, even a pair of legends like the now deceased couple considered unhip and not as viable as someone like Shannon Larkin of Ugly Kid Joe.  Therefore only one track involving Entwistle made 'Baptizm Of Fire', the majority of the album similar to 'Jugulator' in sound.  I remember thinking 'Baptizm' to be a set of inferior metal, but in the light of the now released 'Edge Of The World' it still is.  Tipton claims this album to be one of the best things he has ever done, and with the greatest bass player in history at his side it should have been.  It doesn't always quite click and the end result is a vaguely interesting selection of melodic hard rock, far removed from the metal of 'Baptizm Of Fire'.

Unlike the 'DEP Sessions' involving Glenn Hughes and Tony Iommi that were also locked up for nearly ten years, this is mainly 80's influenced and not the then modern metal display that pair exhibited.  However, I truly believe Tipton when left exposed as the sole songwriter looks relatively poor without Downing or Halford and that he decided to provide vocals himself was a major error as he lacks the power needed to emphasize the material, something Entwistle never had trouble with as a solo artist.  'Friendly Fire' toys with a Priest like riff, but this has more in common with Asia than Tipton's main band.  The opening keyboard intro to 'The Holy Man' is steeped in 1984, and with more of a Priest vibe is more successful.  'Never Say Die' sounds like a reject from Entwistle's 1988 'The Rock' project, innocuous hard rock, the synth touches a piece of unexpected class.  'Resolution' plods but contains a decent chorus and I'm convinced Tipton wrote this for 'Ram It Down', which must have left a taste for Tipton in terms of extravagant keyboard flurries.  'Searching' is the first ballad and stale with its acoustic guitar shadings.

Nothing else quite measures up to 'Give Blood' and the sheer cornball of the main riff, this piece I believe to be influenced by Entwistle, as the vocal passages are similar to his solo albums and anyone expecting metal here will be thrown off by the exuberance of the rhythms, as non Priest as possible.  'Crime Of Passion' sounds like an AOR cut but is underdone.  Halford perhaps could breathe life into this with his infinitely better vocals, but Tipton was out to prove something!  Yet more synthesizer madness precedes 'Walls Cave In', as Entwistle finally comes into focus with prominent bass work, not that it saves this relatively dull piece.  The mass sung chorus of the title track actually made me laugh, in relief and pleasure mind you, as material of this sort in 1996 was almost extinct as the media and record companies decreed it to be derelict and shameful.  'Stronger Than The Drug' reminds me of Robert Palmer with the addition of a horn section, and it would have been an amusing situation had Tipton presented this material to Judas Priest during the 'Jugulator' sessions.  'Braindead'?  'Abductors'?  This is more inventive and offbeat, something that 'Jugulator' and its formulaic, inherently unmelodic metal was not.

First impressions of this were not favorable I openly concede, but with forced repeated listenings it comes off as more coherent and credible than 'Baptizm Of Fire'.  Undoubtedly the nucleus of Entwistle and Powell provided the experience and foresight that Brooks Wackerman and C.J. DeVillar could not.  The subtle blend of marvelously outdated techniques with a modern production job at once provides a link to the past and the future, but if this was where Tipton's heart really lay I could not blame him.  It was more of a departure than 'Baptizm' and something perhaps not expected from the seasoned pro.  That it was rejected is a scenario often repeated in an industry which is fad orientated.  I openly recommend this to those willing to experiment with something other than Priest.
Horatio's Rating:  B+

Discography (last updated 3.20.06):
Baptizm Of Fire - 1996
Edge Of The World - 2006