King Diamond - Abigail
1987 Roadrunner Records

Track Listing:
1.  Funeral
2.  Arrival
3.  A Mansion In Darkness
4.  The Family Ghost
5.  The 7th Day Of July 1777
6.  Omens
7.  The Possession
8.  Abigail
9.  Black Horsemen
10. Shrine (bonus track)

Line-Up:
Vocals:  King Diamond
Guitars:  Andy Larocque, Michael Denner
Bass:  Timi Hansen
Drums:  Mikkey Dee

Website:  www.covenworldwide.org

Uncle Meat's Rating:  B+
Average Album Rating:  B+

Uncle Meat's Review:
King Diamond’s second solo disc, after leaving Mercyful Fate, finds King and his musicians hitting their stride.  The first total “story” album, it is, lyrically, above anything he has done before.  Long story short:  the undead sole of a murdered little girl who haunts the new inhabitants of and old mansion.  The lyrical approach might be more digestible for people who are turned off by Mercyful Fate’s Satanic leaning.

The best aspect of this song is the sound.  Every sound is in its place.  Nothing gets in the way of anything else.  The production is also pretty good.  Not muddy at all.  Another excellent quality that I have to point out is song length.  King doesn't beat around the bush.  No 10+ minute song with 30 different parts.  Short and sweet.  The biggest drawback would be the King’s voice, which isn't everyone cup of tea, but all I can say it that the voice grew on me over time.  So my suggestion would be to borrow someone's copy.  Start with Abigail and Melissa (Mercyful Fate).

Song summaries include...

1. Funeral - Story exposition.  Noises, keyboard drones.  King sounds like he is singing through a speak-and-spell.  A
2. Arrival - Good lead-in hook.  Rocks along until the middle when the pace picks up, before dropping again.  Mike and Andy really shine on this track.  B+
3. A Mansion in Darkness - Begins in much the same way as Arrival.  Excellent harmonizing of the guitar along with King’s voice during the “And the shadows...” and “And the house began...” parts.  Again the outro guitars are a highlight of this track.  B
4. The Family Ghost - The intro riff seams wrong for the rest of the song.  Some nice breakdowns in the middle of the song.  B-
5. The 7th Day of July 1777 - The acoustic intro is very nice.  It gives the song a haunting quality.  The lyrics of this song give more background information on the ghost.  The drums are very up front in this song.  Mikkey Dee plays his ass off in this song.  Almost 4 minutes in this song really picks up.  The guitar playing starts to take on a sinister approach.  This is also a King masterpiece as far as his singing goes.  A
6. Omens - This song starts out with a great hook, but then falls flat as soon as the singing starts.  C
7. The Possession - Great intro!  Bass and drum hook before the guitars blow the doors off.  Everything clicks here.  Mike and Andy’s playing becomes ferocious during the middle section.  A-
8. Abigail - Another standout cut.  One of the best songs on the album and classic King Diamond.  A
9. Black Horseman - Acoustic, mellow intro.  Heavy without being overbearing.  The riffs and solos flow well together, and Mikkey Dee pulls off another great performance.  B+
10. Shrine (bonus track) - Recorded but left off the original pressing because it does not follow the story.  Which is too bad because this absolute rocks.  Think early Judas Priest with more of a crunch.  B

Uncle Meat's Rating:  B+

Also be sure to read:
King Diamond - Abigail II:  The Revenge by Uncle Meat
King Diamond - The Puppet Master by Uncle Meat
King Diamond - The Puppet Master by Horatio
Mercyful Fate - Don't Break The Oath by Uncle Meat
Mercyful Fate - In The Shadows by Uncle Meat
Mercyful Fate - The Beginning by Uncle Meat
Motörhead - Bastards by Shev (Mikkey Dee)
Motörhead - Inferno by Horatio (Mikkey Dee)
Motörhead - Snake Bit Love by Horatio (Mikkey Dee)