Metal Health

1983 studio album by Quiet Riot

Metal Health

Studio album by

Quiet Riot

Released| February 28, 1983[1]
Studio| Pasha Music House, North Hollywood, California
Genre|

* Heavy metal
* hard rock
* glam metal[2]

Length| 40:57
Label| Pasha
Producer| Spencer Proffer
Quiet Riot chronology
| Quiet Riot II
(1978)  | Metal Health
(1983)  | Condition Critical
(1984)

|
|

Singles from  Metal Health

1. "Cum On Feel the Noize"
Released: July 1983[3]
2. "Metal Health (Bang Your Head)"
Released: November 1983[3]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic|  link
Sputnikmusic| 3.5/5[4]

Metal Health is the third studio album by the American heavy metal band Quiet Riot, released on February 28, 1983, through Pasha Records.[1] It was the band's first album to receive a worldwide release, and the first to feature guitarist Carlos Cavazo and drummer Frankie Banali. The album spawned two hit singles: the Slade cover "Cum On Feel the Noize" and "Metal Health".

Metal Health was the first heavy metal album to reach number one on the Billboard 200 chart,[5] replacing The Police's Synchronicity at number one in November 1983. Due to its commercial success, Metal Health is regarded by some as the catalyst that opened the door for hair metal's immense popularity throughout the next several years.[6] The album went on to sell more than ten million copies worldwide[7] and over six million in the U.S. alone, being certified six-times platinum by the RIAA.

## Overview

[edit]

The band parted ways with bassist Chuck Wright early in the recording process, and replacement Gary Van Dyke was not working out. Vocalist Kevin DuBrow asked the band's former bassist Rudy Sarzo to take part in the recording of "Thunderbird", a song written as a tribute to the band's founder Randy Rhoads, who died in a 1982 plane crash. While DuBrow began writing the song while Rhoads was still alive, it wasn't completed until after the guitarist's death.[8] The partnership was quite fruitful and Sarzo ended up recording several songs with the band, and he ultimately left his spot with Ozzy Osbourne to re-join Quiet Riot as a permanent member.[9]

In support of the album, Quiet Riot opened for Black Sabbath on their Born Again Tour in the US. They also managed to secure a spot at the 1983 US Festival alongside established acts such as Ozzy Osbourne and Judas Priest. Prior to Quiet Riot's US Festival performance, Sarzo was punched in the face backstage by a drunken Osbourne, still bitter over the bassist leaving him to rejoin Quiet Riot several months prior.[9]

Due to the band's subsequent failure to match Metal Health's commercial success, Quiet Riot has at times been referred to as "one-hit wonders".[10] This is not correct, however, as the band had two songs reach the Billboard Top 40 on the Hot 100, in addition to a subsequent album being certified Platinum by the RIAA for over one million album sales.[11] The title track was ranked No. 35 on VH1's 40 Greatest Metal Songs. "Slick Black Cadillac" is a re-recording of a song that appeared on the band's 1978 album Quiet Riot II.

## Artwork

[edit]

The album cover art was designed by Stan Watts, who had previously designed the covers for The Doobie Brothers' Best of The Doobies Volume II (1981), Black Sabbath's Live Evil (1982) and Martin Briley's One Night with a Stranger (1983), as well as the poster for the film The Howling (1981). Frankie Banali later stated that Quiet Riot had wanted to create an icon for the band, and that Sarzo had suggested something akin to Alexandre Dumas' "The Man in the Iron Mask" (1847). While many thought the masked cover model was DuBrow, it was actually Watts himself, whose wife took the photo of him, which he then airbrushed for a "dramatic, high-contrast look". The mask became so popular that DuBrow wore a similar one on the cover of the band's follow-up album, 1984's Condition Critical.[12]

## Track listing

[edit]

No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Metal Health"|

* Frankie Banali
* Carlos Cavazo
* Tony Cavazo
* Kevin DuBrow

| 5:17
2.| "Cum On Feel the Noize" (Slade cover)|

* Noddy Holder
* Jim Lea

| 4:51
3.| "Don't Wanna Let You Go"|

* C.Cavazo
* DuBrow

| 4:43
4.| "Slick Black Cadillac"| DuBrow| 4:13
5.| "Love's a Bitch"| DuBrow| 4:11
6.| "Breathless"|

* C.Cavazo
* DuBrow

| 3:51
7.| "Run for Cover"|

* C.Cavazo
* DuBrow

| 3:38
8.| "Battle Axe" (instrumental)| C.Cavazo| 1:39
9.| "Let's Get Crazy"| DuBrow| 4:08
10.| "Thunderbird"| DuBrow| 4:43

## Personnel

[edit]

Credits adapted from LP liner notes.[13]

Quiet Riot

* Kevin DuBrow – lead vocals, backing vocals, mike stand
* Carlos Cavazo – guitars, backing vocals
* Rudy Sarzo – bass guitars, backing vocals
* Frankie Banali – drums, percussion, car horn, backing vocals

Additional musicians

* Pat Regan – keyboards
* Tuesday Knight – backing vocals ("Thunderbird")
* Chuck Wright – bass guitar ("Don't Wanna Let You Go", "Metal Health"), backing vocals
* "Riot Squad" (Frankie Banali, Carlos Cavazo, Kevin DuBrow, Spencer Proffer, Donna Slattery) – backing vocals ("Let's Get Crazy")

Technical

* Spencer Proffer – producer, additional engineering
* Duane Baron – engineer
* Csaba Petocz – additional engineering
* Jay Vigon – art direction, design
* Quiet Riot – concept
* Stan Watts – cover illustration
* Sam Emerson – back cover photographs
* Ron Sobol – button photos

## Charts

[edit]

Weekly Charts (1983–1984)  | Peak
position

|

Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[14] | 39
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[15] | 5
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[16] | 33
US Billboard 200[17] | 1

## Certifications

[edit]

Region  | Certification | Certified units/sales

|
|

Canada (Music Canada)[18] | 3× Platinum  | 300,000^
United States (RIAA)[19] | 6× Platinum  | 6,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

## Accolades

[edit]

Publication  | Country  | Accolade  | Rank

|
|
|

Consequence of Sound | US  | 10 Hair Metal Albums That Don't Suck[2] | 3
Rolling Stone | 50 Greatest Hair Metal Albums of All Time[20] | 15
Loudwire | Top 30 Hair Metal Albums[21] | 11

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b FMQB New Releases (Feb. 18, 1983)
2. ^ a b "Consequence of Sound - 10 Hair Metal Albums That Don't Suck". Consequence of Sound. February 5, 2018. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
3. ^ a b Strong, Martin Charles (1995). Great Rock discography. Canongate Press. p. 668\. ISBN 978-0-86241-541-9.
4. ^ "Review: Quiet Riot - Metal Health | Sputnikmusic". www.sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
5. ^ DiVita, Joe (July 22, 2013). "10 Best Metal Albums of 1983". Loudwire. Retrieved April 9, 2021. "Metal Health' is immortalized in music history as the first heavy metal album to reach the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 chart"
6. ^ Rivadavia, Eduardo (August 6, 2018). "The 11 Heaviest Hair Metal Songs". Loudwire. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
7. ^ "Quiet Riot - BIO". www.quietriot.band. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
8. ^ Quiet Riot 2001 CD: Liner notes
9. ^ a b Sarzo, Rudy (2017). Off the Rails (third edition). CreateSpace Publishing. ISBN 1-53743-746-1
10. ^ Rivadavia, Eduardo; Franck, John Franck. "Metal Health review". AllMusic. Retrieved April 18, 2010.
11. ^ Mitchell, Matt. "The 100 Greatest Cover Songs of All Time". Paste. Retrieved May 30, 2024.
12. ^ Bennett, J. (December 1, 2010). "Quiet Riot's 'Metal Health': The Story Behind the Cover Art". Revolver. Retrieved February 4, 2024.
13. ^ Quiet Riot (1983). Metal Health (LP liner notes). Pasha Records. FZ 38443.
14. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
15. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 4451a". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
16. ^ "Charts.nz – Quiet Riot – Metal Health". Hung Medien. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
17. ^ "Quiet Riot Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
18. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Quiet Riot – Metal Heath". Music Canada.
19. ^ "American album certifications – Quiet Riot – Metal Health". Recording Industry Association of America.
20. ^ "Rolling Stone - 50 Greatest Hair Metal Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. August 31, 2019. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
21. ^ DiVita, Joe (November 9, 2016). "Top 30 Hair Metal Albums". Loudwire. Retrieved June 22, 2021.

* v
* t
* e

Quiet Riot

* Rudy Sarzo
* Alex Grossi
* Jizzy Pearl
* Johnny Kelly

* Kevin DuBrow
* Randy Rhoads
* Greg Leon
* Kelly Garni
* Frankie Banali
* Carlos Cavazo
* Chuck Wright
* Paul Shortino
* Sean McNabb
* Bobby Rondinelli
* Bjorn Englen
* Tracii Guns
* Neil Citron
* Tony Franklin
* Billy Morris
* Keith St. John
* Seann Nicols
* James Durbin
* Mike Dupke

Studio albums|

* Quiet Riot
* Quiet Riot II
* Metal Health
* Condition Critical
* QR III
* QR
* Terrified
* Down to the Bone
* Alive and Well
* Guilty Pleasures
* Rehab
* Quiet Riot 10
* Road Rage
* Hollywood Cowboys

Singles|

* "Metal Health"
* "Cum On Feel the Noize"
* "Mama Weer All Crazee Now"
* "The Wild and the Young"
* "Itchycoo Park"

Live albums|

* Live & Rare Volume 1

Compilation albums|

* The Randy Rhoads Years
* Greatest Hits

Video albums|

* '89 Live in Japan

Related articles|

* Hear 'n Aid
* House of Lords
* List of Ozzy Osbourne members
* Ratt
* Tony Franklin

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

|

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