Thin Lizzy ? Jailbreak ? Rare Near Mint 1976 Mercury Records Masterdisk Vinyl LP

$

30

Welcome to Classic Cadillac Records!  My goal is to provide each and every customer with the best possible buying experience, no matter the size of the order.  Unlike most sellers, I advertise all my items clearly and in as much detail as possible, without shouting at you in all caps.  I take multiple high quality pictures and never use stock photos, so you know exactly what you’re buying.  I take great pride in my work and go the extra mile, which can clearly be seen in my listings compared to other sellers that put minimal effort into theirs.  I visually grade all my records as accurately as possible and will never grade anything above Near Mint unless it’s still sealed.  Please note that a visual grade can differ from a play grade, and am happy to spot check a record upon request.   All orders are shipped within 1 business day (usually sooner) and packed with extra care to ensure fast, safe arrival.  I combine shipping on multiple orders to save you money and gladly ship worldwide.  Please look closely at all pictures, read all relevant details and ask any questions you may have before buying.  I offer a full 30-day return policy on everything I sell, so buy with confidence!  And most importantly, thanks for looking!

Jailbreak is the sixth studio album by Irish hard rock band Thin Lizzy, released in 1976. It proved to be the band's commercial breakthrough in the US, and the only Thin Lizzy album with a certification (in this case, Gold) in that country. The singles include "Jailbreak" and "The Boys Are Back in Town", the latter being Thin Lizzy's biggest US hit, winning a 1976 NME Award for Best Single.

Composition and recording

After their previous two albums, Nightlife and Fighting, failed to generate sales, Thin Lizzy were given one last chance by their label, Vertigo Records. The band wrote songs and collected ideas in a studio in Buckinghamshire in late 1975, then convened at Ramport Studios in London in the new year. The band selected John Alcock as their producer, as he had worked in the studio extensively. The band worked diligently through February on the album. However, Gorham and Robertson felt that the speed at which it was completed adversely affected its quality. Both stated that the tightness of the songs made the album feel rigid. In particular, Robertson said he would have liked more freedom to improvise his lead guitar parts. Gorham also criticized Alcock's production, saying that he didn't particularly care for his guitar tone on the album.

"When I wrote 'Warriors'…" Lynott remarked in 1976, "the only way I could give any sense of heavy drug takers was by describing them as warriors; that they actually go out and do it. People like Hendrix and Duane Allman were perfectly aware of the position they were getting into. They weren't slowly being hooked. It was a conscious decision to go out and take the thing as far as it can go."

Initially, the song "Running Back" was chosen to be a single ahead of "The Boys Are Back in Town", the latter being seen as possibly too aggressive for some radio stations to play. Frontman and songwriter Phil Lynottand producer John Alcock decided to employ session musicians to add more commercial elements to some of the tracks to try to produce a hit single, and Tim Hinkley was brought in to add keyboard parts to "Running Back". Guitarist Brian Robertson was against the idea, as he liked the song as it had originally been arranged, in a blues format with his own additions of piano and bottleneck guitar. He later said, "I took enormous offence to [the changes]. I couldn't understand why they'd pay this guy a fortune just for playing what he did. Listen to it and tell me it's not bollocks." Robertson did not play on the finished version of the song and Hinkley is not credited on the album sleeve. Lynott said at the time that "Running Back" was "very much influenced by Van Morrison. I really like that song."[4] Hinkley later recalled, "Robbo and Scott were not keen on it at all but they were overruled." Thirty-five years later, Robertson recorded his own versions of the song on his 2011 album Diamonds and Dirt.

Scott Gorham also revealed that "Romeo and the Lonely Girl" was also brought up as an option for a single, but was ultimately discarded, as "nobody was overexcited about it."

Tour

While touring to promote the album, in the US, Lynott was stricken with hepatitis. Finally, the tour management decided to cancel the remaining tour dates allowing him time to recuperate.

Reception

On release, Robert Christgau likened the album's songs to Bruce Springsteen cast-offs, with Lynott's lyrical ideas as "boring", and Gorham's guitar lines as "second-hand". Stuart Bailie of Classic Rock magazine, reviewing the 2011 Thin Lizzy reissues, refers to Christgau's statements writing that both Springsteen and Lynott "were indebted to Van Morrison and his Celtic soul" and remarks how on Jailbreak "Lynott's best attributes were coming on strong."

In a retrospective assessment for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine describes Jailbreak as a "truly exceptional album", with "a dimension of richness that sustains, but there's such kinetic energy to the band that it still sounds immediate no matter how many times it's played". Highlighting Lynott's songs as "lovingly florid... crammed with specifics and overflowing with life", he says that Gorham and Robertson's guitar work is "intertwined, dual-lead guitar interplay that was one of the most distinctive sounds of '70s rock".

Track listing

All songs written by Phil Lynott except where noted.

On the 1996 Mercury CD reissue, "Angel from the Coast" and "Running Back" are listed as the second track with only one running time, making it appear to be a single song called "Angel from the Coast Running Back", and there is no third track listed. However, all the songs are sequenced as on the original LP release.

Singles

• "The Boys are Back in Town"/"Emerald" – 17 April 1976

• "Jailbreak"/"Running Back" – 30 July 1976
• "Cowboy Song"/"Angel from the Coast" (Canada and US only)

Original vinyl release

On the original vinyl release of the album, the back cover included a short story, which is also reprinted inside some editions of the new deluxe edition.