THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Thin Lizzy’s 1976 box set celebrates a phenomenal year in the life of one of the greatest rock bands of all time.
The five CD / one Blu-Ray set contains the new stereo mixes and the original versions of the studio albums that the band released in 1976; Jailbreak, featuring the classic title track and the career-defining tune The Boys Are Back In Town; and Johnny The Fox, featuring hit Don’t Believe A Word. The other discs contain unreleased versions from the band’s vault, radio sessions, demos and an unreleased Cleveland show recorded May 11, 1976. The Blu-Ray contains a Dolby Atmos mix of both albums, as well as the new stereo mixes and remastered versions of the original albums. The new mixes have been undertaken by Richard Whittaker, overseen by legendary guitarist Scott Gorham and mastered by Andy Pearce.
The tale of how Thin Lizzy came to produce two classic albums and tours that would result in the greatest live album of all time — Live And Dangerous — starts with a life-threatening crisis for the band’s leader, singer, songwriter and bass player Philip Lynott.
The Jailbreak album was released in March 1976 and solidified the twin-guitar sound of Californian Gorham and Glaswegian Brian Robertson. It was seen as the band’s breakthrough album in America, reaching No. 18 on the Billboard charts and the Top 10 in the U.K. While on tour in the U.S., disaster struck, with Lynott contracting hepatitis. The band were quarantined, and the rest of the tour was cancelled. Determined to keep momentum going, Lynott started writing songs in his hospital bed, which led to a month in The Who’s Ramport Studios. These sessions produced Johnny The Fox, a perfect companion piece to Jailbreak but with a more funk-rock feel.
October ’76 saw Johnny The Fox released to critical acclaim, and thanks to Don’t Believe A Word, it reached No. 11 in the U.K. charts. A month after its release, Thin Lizzy played three sold-out nights at the Hammersmith Odeon. The shows were recorded and marked the first step towards the ground-breaking Live And Dangerous album. The rest is history.
But the last word goes to Gorham: “The great thing was the writing, it was killer. I still don’t know if it was just something that happened naturally or because the pressure was on. But there are songs on these records we still play now. Songs that will always be in the Thin Lizzy set.”
