A couple weeks ago, I went and watched this legendary 70's hard rock band, at one of our local live music spots, none other than, the almighty Pentagram!
So you've never heard of them? Well, I guess that's the point. This was a band that had so many close brushes with fame and rock n'roll immortality over the years, it's rather shocking that they weren't right up there with Ozzy, Judas Priest, Scorpions, or Blue Oyster Cult in hard rock consciousness. Formed by singer Bobby Liebling clear back in 1971, they've persevered for over five decades, despite countless setbacks, breakups, hiatuses, drug issues, you name it. Every time they were right on the cusp of breaking big, it would all get derailed. And sadly, a lot of that was self-sabotage, as drug problems, infighting and bad luck would always rear their head. But it was mostly the former, as Liebling battled hard drugs his entire life. At one point Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley were going to get them a record deal, as they were impressed with their songs, but when they went to watch them rehearse, they were dissappointed by the lack of image (they dressed like regular working stiffs, not a circus act) and passed on them. They even offered a hefty cash deal for some of the songs Liebling & co had written, but the band said no, basically.
Then came the 80s, an ugly breakup, more drug use, then finally their debut album. And it was excellent, and had huge reviews. But by 1985 when it came out (Two years after it was recorded, mind you) rock n'roll was all about the hairspray and makeup, and the new, cutting edge underground music was thrash metal like Metallica and Slayer, and punk like Black Flag, Suicidal Tendencies, and the Misfits. As good as the album was, it was still stuck in the 70's underground aesthetic and was never destined to be a hit. Several more albums followed, VERY sporadically, mind you, but over the ensuing decades, numerous drug , and accompanying legal troubles, Bobby Liebling persevered, never really giving up on his rock n' roll dreams.
And he and his newest version of the band delivered one hell of a show. For a contemporary of Ozzy, Liebling sounded great, still delivering an energetic performance, not a drugged out zombie like you would expect, and at 73, he admittedly looks much older than his years. But he sang and moved around with the energy of a seasoned youthful veteran full of energy, and delivered a great show. The music has shades of Alice Cooper, Blue Oyster Cult and of course Black Sabbath, and one can only imagine that if he had a little more self-discipline over the years, Bobby Liebling could have been America's answer to Ozzy. Anyway, here you go, listen for yourself and tell me what you think; Pentagram played this track at their show 2 weeks ago and it sounded note-for-note perfect just like the album, heck maybe even better.