Frank Marino – Juggernaut and The Power of Rock and Roll
BGO Records
www.bgo-records.com

Rating:

Juggernaut B
The Power of Rock and Roll B-

BGO Records is a company based in London, England that is doing some very cool repackaging of classic rock and roll records. This time out, they give us the first two Frank Marino solo albums after Frank dissolved Mahogany Rush.

Frank Marino is a powerhouse guitarist, best remembered as being a Hendrix clone, however, this is not quite fair. Sure, he can ‘do’ Jimi great but he can flat out tear up an electric, Hendrix styled or not!

The Power of Rock and Roll is a good album and features the title track, “Stay With Me” and “Runnin’ Wild” which are all top notch. The best tune, hands down, on this sucker, however, is the amazing “Ain’t Dead Yet.” That song is worth the price of admission alone!

Juggernaut is, all in all, a more complete album with not a bad tune on it. It was the last major label release for Marino but he went out with a bang. His soling on this one, start to finish, is simply astonishing. Oddly enough, the biggest hit on the album, “Strange Dreams” did not have a solo. The rest of it, however, smokes. The title track is a monster while “For Your Love” and “Ditch Queen” show the man is capable of anything he wants to do on the six string. He does not do his Hendrix style here, but his soloing does evoke the spirit of the Motor City Madman Ted Nugent.

At the end of the day, this is a great release from a recording company that is in it for the love of the music. In fact, check out their website for more great deals.

By Jeb Wright