Spectres (album)

Untitled

Spectres is a rock album by Blue Öyster Cult, released in November 1977 (see 1977 in music). Although BÖC is usually referred to as a metal band, much of their best known work fell into the "hard rock" or rock ballad category; Spectres is no exception. In fact, the album cover of Spectres invokes much of the band’s literary influences, with the band sitting in a 1940s-era parlor with a bookshelf and grandfather clock in the background. The reverse side of the album shows the band manipulating lasers (as in their infamous laser light shows during some of their concerts).

Spectres was eventually certified gold in January 1978 and contained the album rock hits "Godzilla," "Death Valley Nights," and "I Love the Night." The last two songs reference vampires. "I Love the Night" narrates a man’s encounter with a female vampire, and his subsequent transformation into the same. "Nosferatu" is the classic Stoker tale, set to an ominous tune.

A remaster of this album is slated for Autumn 2006 release, as is one of Some Enchanted Evening.

Track listing

1. "Godzilla"– 3:41
2. "Golden Age of Leather"– 5:51
3. "Death Valley Nights"– 4:08
4. "Searchin’ for Celine"– 3:36
5. "Fireworks"– 3:10
6. "R.U. Ready 2 Rock"– 3:43
7. "Celestial the Queen"– 3:24
8. "Goin’ Through the Motions"– 3:12
9. "I Love the Night"– 4:23
10. "Nosferatu"– 5:21

Personnel

• Eric Bloom—vocals, guitar
• Joe Bouchard—bass guitar, vocals, guitar
• Donald Roeser (Buck Dharma) —lead and rhythm guitar, vocals
• Albert Bouchard—drums, vocals, harmonica
• Allen Lanier—keyboards, guitar

• Shelly Yakus—engineering, mixing
• John Jansen—engineering
• Corky Stasiak—engineering
• Thom Panunzio—engineering
• Roni Hoffman—design
• Eric Meola—photos
• David Infante—laser effects and photo assistance
• Newark Boys Chorus—vocals (“Golden Age of Leather”)
• Joe Brescio—mastering
• Gray Russell—assistant engineer
• Dave Thoener—assistant engineer
• Jay Krugman—assistant engineer
• Rod O’Brien—assistant engineer
• Sam Ginsberg—assistant engineer
• Andy Abrams—other engineer

Produced by Murray Krugman, Sandy Pearlman, David Lucas, and Blue Öyster Cult.

Trivia

The song was covered by the band Racer X on their album Superheroes