Overkill

by Motoerhead

Overview

Motoerhead's landmark second album, Overkill, marked a major leap forward for the band, and it remains one of their all-time best, without question. In fact, some fans consider it their single best, topping even Ace of Spaces. It's a ferocious album, for sure, perfectly showcasing Motoerhead's trademark style of no holds barred proto-thrash -- a kind of punk-inflected heavy metal style that is sloppy and raw yet forceful and in your face. Motoerhead, the band's self-titled debut from 1977, had been rush-recorded, and its stripped-down, super-raw sound wasn't all that impressive, at least not relative to what would follow. Overkill is what followed, recorded in December 1978 and January 1979, and released not long thereafter. The band's sound is fully formed here, and it totally explodes right off the bat on the five-minute title track. A number of Motoerhead standards follow, among them "Stay Clean" and "No Class." Produced by Jimmy Miller, who had helmed a number of classic Rolling Stones albums (Beggars Banquet, Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers, Exile on Main St., Goats Head Soup), Overkill sounds wonderful, especially on the numerous remastered editions of this album. The band's classic lineup -- Lemmy (bass and vocals), "Fast" Eddie Clarke (guitar), and "Philthy Animal" Taylor (drums) -- is well in place here, and they seem eager to rip loose wildly on every single song. This, in addition to the solid track listing and Miller's production, makes Overkill a perfect Motoerhead album. Several great ones would follow, of course, but Overkill was the first of the great ones, and quite possibly the greatest of all. ~ Jason Birchmeier

Product Details

Release Date:	02/28/2025
Label:	Bmg
UPC:	4099964126938

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Motoerhead   Primary Artist
Jannelle Guillot   Voiceover
Phil Taylor   Drums,Drums
Ian Kilmister   Bass,Vocals
Lemmy   Bass,Guitar,Vocals,Soloist
Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor   Drums
Eddie Clarke   Guitar
"Fast" Eddie Clarke   Guitar
Lemmy Kilmister   Guitar

Technical Credits

Mick Farren   Composer
Ashley Howe   Engineer
John Trickett   Executive Producer
Edward Clarke   Composer
Neil Zlozower   Photography
Howard Kay   Composer
Curtis Evans   Reissue Design
Steffan Chirazi   Liner Notes
Mick Stevenson   Photography
Melinda Pepler   Production Coordination
Chuck Ybarra   Graphic Design
Adrian Van Velsen   Mastering
Bob Michaels   Executive Producer
Kristian Storli   Authoring
Phil Taylor   Composer,Composer,Lyricist
Kehni Davis   Quality Control
Ian Kilmister   Composer
Guy Lawrence   Composer
Jimmy Miller   Composer,Producer,Remixing
Chris Haynes   Engineer
Corey Taylor   Composer
Lamont Dozier   Composer
James Stone   Mixing
Howie Kay   Composer
Lemmy   Composer
John Mayall   Composer
Rob Halford   Composer
Lois Mann   Composer
Neil Richmond   Engineer,Producer,Audio Production
Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor   Composer
Richard Berry   Composer
K.K. Downing   Composer
Mick Brown   Composer
Motoerhead   Composer,Producer
Brian Holland   Composer
Tiny Bradshaw   Composer
Glenn Tipton   Composer
Trevor Hallesy   Engineer
Eddie Clarke   Composer,Lyricist
Jeff Dean   Executive Producer
Doug Smith   Direction
Eddie Holland   Composer
"Fast" Eddie Clarke   Composer
Lemmy Kilmister   Composer,Lyricist
Vic Maile   Producer