Five Great Classic Rock Songs From The 70s!

As far as music goes... Well there is a lot of great music out there that has spanned really the last 100 years! But as far as Rock 'N Roll is concerned, well... The 50s had some great Rock 'N Roll with people like, 'Elvis Presley' and the 60s had greats like, 'The Beatles', and so I thought it was about time that I started highlighting some of the great music from some of these eras, and so I thought I would start with Classic Rock, and more directly with the 1970s!

So I hope you enjoy: Five Great Classic Rock Songs From The 70's!

At number 5: AC/DC with, 'T.N.T.' from their 1976 album of the same name:

At number 4: Aerosmith with, 'Sweet Emotion' from their 1975 album, 'Toys In The Attic':

And next up at number 3: The Who with, 'The Punk And The Godfather', from their 1973 album, 'Quadrophenia':

And at number 2: Alice Cooper with, 'School's Out' from his 1972 album of the same name:

And last but certainly not least, at number 1: Led Zeppelin with, 'Kashmir' from their 1975 album, 'Physical Graffiti':

There are a lot more great songs from this era, but I thought that I would highlight these because these songs really are some truly classic rock songs!

Alice Cooper: School's Out (1972) - Song Review

Official Score = 3 1/2 Devils 

When I was a teenager and was just beginning to get pretty involved in horror movies, one of the first types of horror movies that I got in to was the, 'Teen Slasher' horror movie craze that was really popular back in the mid 90s... There  was a ton of them, including such awesome fanfare as: Scream (1996) & I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997), as well as so much more!

But there was one movie that at the time I had mistaken for being one of the teen slasher films, that being... The Faculty (1998)... Now I thought that this movie was the in a similar context to the ones that I had mentioned above because... Well let's be honest here, it is a horror movie that definitely involved teens fighting an overwhelming threat... But well... As it turns out it was more of an Alien Invasion then a teen slasher... but well, that is something else for the future...

The reason that I mention this is because there is a song that I first heard that was a part of the soundtrack to this movie, and which was first released by Alice Cooper... And that song being: School's Out (1972)!

Alice Cooper doing, 'School's Out' live!

Now this album was released in 1972 as a part of his fifth album of the same name I would say is one of his more popular songs, having been covered many times over the decades, as well as having been used in a bunch of movies as well as TV series such as: Degrassi. Glee & The Simpsons... That is to name a few!

So if you haven't heard this song yet, check out Alice Cooper singing it live:

For Alice Cooper fans... The Lyrics to: School's Out (1972)!

Well we got no choice
All the girls and boys
Makin' all that noise
'Cause they found new toys
Well we can't salute ya can't find a flag
If that don't suit ya that's a drag
School's out for summer
School's out forever
School's been blown to pieces

No more pencils no more books
No more teacher's dirty looks yeah
Well we got no class
And we got no principals
And we got no innocence
We can't even think of a word that rhymes
School's out for summer
School's out forever
My school's been blown to pieces

No more pencils no more books
No more teacher's dirty looks
Out for summer
Out till fall
We might not come back at all
School's out forever
School's out for summer
School's out with fever
School's out completely

The First Home Video Game System... wracked With Controversy

The Magnavox Odyssey... The video game system that started the revolution!

We all know video game systems like, 'The XBox One' or, 'The Playstation 4', but before that, and even before such classics as, 'The Sega Genesis', or the, 'Super Nintendo', or even before, 'The Atari 2600', or 'Commodore 64', there was a video game system that could be said to be either directly or indirectly the mother of every thing we as gamer's treasure in our current video game systems!

What I mean by this, is that the first home video game console, a video game console, which was released back in 1972, and which sold 100,000 games in it's first year was Magnavox's 'Odyssey'!

A blast from the past right... I mean when was the last time you bought something that had that label?

Two people playing one of the oldest video games ever made for a home console!

But the truth is, is that like every great innovation, there are others that will quickly come out with their own versions of it, trying to make it better...

Well the truth is, is rather it is right or wrong to do that, for everything to go ahead, we always need to be putting out better product right... Well with Magnavox being the first to make it in to the home video game market, they had competition almost immediately!

What I mean by this is that Magnavox started protecting what was theirs when they sued Atari for patent infringement, when Atari released, 'Pong' as it looked extremely similar to Magnavox's, 'Tennis' game...

The Odyssey's 'Tennis', and the Atari 2600's 'Pong'... 2 very similar games that caused some friction at the dawn of the home console games!

Well ultimately, they settled out of court, but in the following years they would end up suing other big name companies such as: Mattel, Coleco, Seeburg & Activision... They would either win or settle these cases!

Ultimately, 'The Odyssey' line would continue to come out with fresh consoles until 1978, when, 'The Odyssey 2' was released... Now apparently this was the first of it's type to be a fully programmable system... Since then, in 1997, an emulator was created for the Odyssey 2...

This system may have ended up having a little bit of a checkered past... But you can't beat the first of it's kind, and the generations of boy and girls that have been entertained because that system will continue on for generations to come!

5 Classic B Horror/Sci-fi Movie Posters And The Trailers For Those Movies

Being a huge B Movie fan, as well as having the science fiction & horror movie genres and all of their subgenre's as some of my favorite movie genre's, I thought that you guys might enjoy these 5 Classic B Horror/Sci-fi Movie Posters And The Trailers For Those Movies:

At number 5: The Crawling Eye (1958).

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="435"] A Classic Horror/Sci-Fi B Movie![/caption]

For more information on this movie,  please enjoy this trailer for: The Crawling Eye (1958):

http://youtu.be/BDGwCMcLs_M

At number 4: Frogs (1972).

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="361"] A great monster movie![/caption]

For more information on this movie, please enjoy the trailer for: Frogs (1972):

http://youtu.be/Dzl1RkBxNsY

At Number 3: The Wasp Woman (1959).

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="451"] A great B Movie take on, 'The Fly'![/caption]

For more information on this movie, please enjoy this trailer for: The Wasp Woman (1959):

http://youtu.be/E5zAPCwCh40

At number 2: Prianha (1978).

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="336"] A great B Movie take on, 'Jaws'![/caption]

For more info on this movie, please check out the trailer for, Piranha (1978):

http://youtu.be/XoCKGvVlNYM

At number 1: DeepStar 6 (1989):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="321"] A great B Sci-fi/Horror Movie![/caption]

For more information on this movie, please enjoy this trailer for: DeepStar Six (1989):

http://youtu.be/pouTM3jqZCM

 

Frogs (1972) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_325" align="alignright" width="263"] Official Score = 3 Devils[/caption]

One of the types of movies that the horror & science fiction genres have done surprisingly really well is the whole concept of the more pedestrian, 'Animals' that normally would not attack man or taking over civilization actually doing so!

A couple of great examples of this are, Them! (1954) and Empire Of The Ants (1977)... Both movies have to do with Ants that after mutating, end up overpowering mankind... And in the case of, Empire Of The Ants, end up starting try to take control of mankind!

Another great example of this is the movie, Man's Best Friend (1993), a movie that has to do with a reporter who rescues a gigantic dog from a research facility, only to show that this dog was actually a lethal killing machine!

And the latest one that I have found that I really enjoyed is the movie, Frogs (1972)!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="214"] I have to admit that this movie was pretty bad ass![/caption]

Written by: Robert Hutchison (Outside In), Robert Blees (Curse Of The Black Widow) & Directed by: George McCowan (Murder On Flight 502). Starring: Ray Milland (Battlestar Galactica), Sam Elliott (Hulk), Joan Van Ark (Tainted Blood), Adam Roarke (Hells Angels On Wheels), Judy Pace (Cotton Comes To Harlem), Lynn Borden (Hazel), Mae Mercer (Dirty Harry), David Gilliam (The Eagle Has Landed), Nicholas Cortland (The Day Of The Locusts), George Skaff (Man Beast), Lance Taylor Sr. (Blacula), Hollis Irving (The Crowded Sky), Dale Willingham & Hal Hodges.

Now I can tell you all of the reasons  why this movie rocked... I could tell you that this movie had some truly awesome talent in it... It does, (As a matter of fact I would say that it was fun to see Ray Milland  as an old man in this movie, it was also cool to see Sam Elliott at an earlier point in his career.)

The truth is, is I could say that, that was the main reason for me as to why I enjoyed this movie... (It is not the main reason, it is one of them  though!)

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Jason Crockett (Milland) and Pickett Smith (Elliott) as the begin to discuss the situation at hand...[/caption]

I could also go on to say that the special effects in this movie were awesome, (They weren't... But the truth is, is I have always found in these low budget special effects that they add to the charm of the movie), the truth is though, is that the special effect were pretty much not bad... But since they were so minimal, I would say that they were almost unimportant!

I could say that the story was the main thing for me... And this story tells of how one of those stereotypical old money, but spoiled and bored rich families end up going to spend some time for some of their birthdays on their Island... And the Island that is just full of all sorts and kinds of, 'Snakes', 'Alligators' & 'Frogs' and the like, that have finally had enough, and end up going after the people on the Island... Now I could say that, that is the best part... I could also say that the surprise twist at the end of the movie is the best part of it... but the truth is, is it is just one part of it!

In the end, the part that I really like is the concept over all... More so then the more obvious, 'Mutant Frogs' going after the Island's inhabitants... It is more that the animal kingdom  has had enough, and has decided to go after man... And I just found that to be extremely awesome! (Don't  worry though folks, there is a well coordinated effort by the Island's various Lizard species that go after the people on the Island that is also fun as well!)

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Look out! There is a Sea Turtle and he looks pissed![/caption]

In the end this movie was a real blast, and if you get a chance, I would recommend checking it out, it is well worth it!

http://youtu.be/Dzl1RkBxNsY

The Lighter Side Of Remakes

Like most people I have to admit that I am not always the hugest fan of horror movie remakes...

I mean the creation of these types of movies generally tend to show that Hollywood is out of ideas, but in Hollywood's greed, they seem like they are not willing to put to bed these classic franchises, and often times seem to virtually destroy these franchises!

A couple of franchises that should have never have been remade, that have since seemed to have ruined a truly legendary franchise are, A Nightmare On Elm Street (2010), and Friday The 13th (2009)!

As for A Nightmare On Elm Street, this movie series has become truly legendary in the world of horror movies, and it made both the name and the character of Freddy Krueger, a house hold name.... The same can be said for Friday The 13th and Jason Voorhees!

Now as for the remakes, I actually did like the Friday The 13th remake (obviously not as much as the original series), and I haven't seen the new remake for A Nightmare On Elm Street, but from what I have heard and from what I have seen, it has been universally panned by just about every one!

Now that is the darker side of Remakes, there is also a lighter side as well!

What I mean by this is that there has in my opinion also been some good ones as well and at least one movie that I liked better than the original (If you can believe that!)

[caption id="attachment_1154" align="aligncenter" width="525"] The posters for John Carpenter's, 'Halloween' (1978), and the poster Rob Zombie's 2007 remake![/caption]

An example of a pretty solid remake of a horror movie was Rob Zombie's Halloween (2007), now this movie in my opinion was not as good as John Carpenter's original Halloween (a fav). But the truth is, is that this movie had some special effects that I doubt could have been done in 1978, (which was when Carpenter's Halloween was made) and the way that Rob Zombie expanded on the story line for what happened to Michael Myers before he started killing his family, to when he broke out of the insane asylum was a lot of fun and well worth it!

Another example is Marcus Nispel's, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003).... Now I personally was a fan of Tobe Hooper's classic, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974), but the truth is, is that this movie was a lot of fun and really needed for the following reasons:

1. The last Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie to come out from the original series, 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation' (1994) kind of really sucked, and it looked like it would get worse and worse.

2. Everything about the remake was fun, including the special effects, the direction, the story, and the acting, and the look and feel of the movie seemed a lot more realistic!

3. And lastly I have to say that R. Lee Ermey (Se7en) was both funny and entertaining in this movie.

Earlier I mentioned that there was a remake that I actually liked more than the original... That movie is the remake of, The Last House On The Left (1972).

Now I enjoyed to a strong degree the story and the acting in the original movie, but the truth is, is that the original movie in my opinion was so intense that you would have thought that there was a film crew that had been sent out to film a group psychopaths as they brutally murdered a couple innocent girls (they didn't.) The remake on the other hand was a fun horror movie!

With that in mind folks, for the most part. I will agree with you that remakes and reboots are not the best, but I highly recommend not entirely discounting them entirely out of hand, because in the end you might find some movies that you really enjoy!

http://youtu.be/Mra_Z3cpGCM

http://youtu.be/btH4tPwILg0

Baron Blood (1972) - Movie Review

[caption id="attachment_325" align="alignright" width="263"] Official Score = 3 Devils[/caption]

There is a horror movie director that is very well known in most circles, that director is Mario Bava (Planet Of The Vampires)…

Unfortunately Mr. Bava is no longer around, but when he was this guy I suspect helped at least to some extent to influence such people as George A. Romero (Night Of The Living Dead), he was a pioneer that helped to define an era of some of the greatest cheesy, ‘B’ Horror movies that the world would ever know!

Another thing about this guy that I thought that I would mention here is that Mario Bava, along with such greats of other genre’s (such as Sergio Leone in Spaghetti Westerns) where real trailblazers, what with not just having helped to create a truly legendary Italian cinema, but in the case of Mario Bava, his work still translates decades after their release to the still legions of fans that he has all over the world!

The last thing that I do unfortunately have to say is that I recently really started to dig in to his work, what with having recently watched, Planet Of The Vampires (1965)… And you want to know what I think is the best thing about this legendary master of horror?

Well simply stated the best thing about this guy’s amazing body of work is the eerie sense of doom that pervades the suspense that ends up keeping you on the edge of your seat almost all the way through the movie!

With that said, that is just one of the reasons I was glad to see the movie: Baron Blood (1972).

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400"] The Baron has come home to play![/caption]

You see, this movie, which was written by: Vincent Forte (Missile To The Moon), and which starred: Joseph Cotton (The Survivor), Elke Sommer (The Prize), Rada Rassimov (Necropolis), Massimo Girotti (Facing Windows), and Antonio Cantafora (Demons 2) is an interesting story that seems to incorporate certain elements of the tales of both ‘Vlad The Impaler (Dracula)’ and, ‘Elizabeth Bathory’, you see both were sadistic lunatics (who both happened to be noble people,) and Vlad liked to impale certain subjects that lived in the areas that he controlled that he ultimately did not get along with!

Anyway, this movie tells the tale of a particularly brutal 16th century Baron by the name of, ‘Baron Otto Von Kleist’ (Cotton), who would sadistically torture and kill certain citizens that lived in the areas that he controlled… (That was until he made the mistake of killing a witch that would go on to set a curse on him that would damn him for all eternity…)

Well as it turns out, the Baron would end up being burned alive inside of his Castle…

Three hundred years later, his descendant, Peter Kleist (Cantafora), an American, who would end up deciding to go ahead and look up some of his roots after college…

At first everything is moving along alright, he meets his long lost Uncle Karl (Girotti), ‘a professor at the local school’, and he would end up meeting a woman by the name of, ‘Eva’ (Sommer), with whom he would fall for while he is on vacation in the old country… As a matter of fact he brings along an old spell that would supposedly summon his ancestor…

The only problem is that after Peter and Eva go to the castle to, ‘Summon’ Baron Von Kleist, strange things start to happen, people start going missing, etc… And as time goes by it is starting to look like Peter is going to be able to re-unite with another long lost relative!

[caption id="attachment_815" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Peter (Cantafora) is really regretting resurrecting his dead ancestor![/caption]

In the end, this movie is a great time, and if you haven’t seen it yet… Trust me when I say that I thought it was well worth it, and you might think so as well!

http://youtu.be/kL-aU1fW2-o