Recorded in late summer 1979 and released by the end of the year,
Bomber quickly followed up
Overkill,
Motörhead's landmark breakthrough album from earlier in the year.
Bomber bears a lot in common with its fan-favorite predecessor. For starters, it features the classic
Motörhead lineup:
Lemmy (bass and vocals),
"Fast" Eddie Clarke (guitar), and "Philthy Animal" Taylor (drums). Also like
Overkill,
Bomber features the production grace of
Jimmy Miller, the man responsible for
the Rolling Stones' late-'60s/early-'70s albums, including such masterpieces as
Beggars Banquet,
Sticky Fingers, and
Exile on Main St. And the music here on
Bomber explodes on song after song, thanks to the crazed performances of the aforementioned bandmembers as well as the well-overdriven, ear-rattling production perfection of
Miller. Actually, there's only one marked difference between
Overkill and
Bomber that's worth noting: the songs. There are a couple killers here, namely "Dead Men Tell No Tales," "Stone Dead Forever," and "Bomber," but overall, the songs of
Bomber aren't as strong as those of
Overkill were. Granted, this is somewhat of a moot point to raise, as
Bomber is still a top-shelf
Motörhead album, one of their all-time best, without question. But it does fall just a notch or two below
Overkill and
Ace of Spades, the latter of which would follow a year later and catapult the band to further acclaim.
Bomber kicks ass, in any event, and its best moments are as superlative as any
Motörhead would ever record. The band was really on fire during this point in time and could seemingly do no wrong. [Earmark released a special picture disc LP for collectors.] ~ Jason Birchmeier