The Petra Zone

It is finished...



Didja know... at a little over 31 minutes, Jekyll & Hyde is Petra's shortest album

Another tough one but I went with Test of Time.

Perfect World.

Thief wrote:It is finished...



Didja know... at a little over 31 minutes, Jekyll & Hyde is Petra's shortest album

this is one reason it is not my favorite album. It's half an album.

rexreed wrote:

Thief wrote: Didja know... at a little over 31 minutes, Jekyll & Hyde is Petra's shortest album

this is one reason it is not my favorite album. It's half an album.

Nah, that's a bit of a stretch, considering that the average duration for a Petra album is around the 40 minute mark. If anything, it's missing a song, but I'm glad they went with a direct, short album.

Life As We Know It got my vote; what a song and what an album. The song and album both are in my top 5 rankings for Petra. Some think the album is short but it is about 1 song short time wise; most Petra albums have come at or under the 40 minute mark. Over the years I've heard a lot of people complain because the lack of guitar solos on the album and I've discuss this with Bob at a couple meet/greet and he has always maintained that he NEVERS puts a solo in a song where it doesn't belong or just to put it in there(his quote) and he felt like none of the songs for this album should have one. Bob likes his solos to flow with and be in trenched with the song and not to be just thrown in just to have a solo; If he doesn't feel it, it won't happen.

There are some weak solos on other albums, so if Bob can force a solo I guess he withold a solo when it is needed.

It's all up to the artists interpretation of the song. I love solos just as much as the next guy, but I think Bob has a point about how the solo should be a part or imbedded in the song; just throwing a solo even if its a good solo into a song just to do it is a huge mistake. There is a well known Christian Axe man that did that and his band's music got old & boring at the fourth album point because of it. I felt like it was already getting old on the third album for this group because every song sounded the same.

Bob has done some great soloing in the past. Soloing has to be felt in the player. He said he did not feel anything on this record. I get that. It is a different style than Bob was soloing over in the past as well. All that said, Bob is older now, isn't touring and doesn't have the chops he used to. Not a slam. If you listen to his solos on the videos from the years they were road doggin hard, you will hear some pretty incredible stuff. There is also the energy of the crowd contributing to his playing. The crowd can take a band to a place that a record producer in a cramped studio cannot.

I voted for "Sacred Trust", but I really like the whole album. Back when I first bought it, "Perfect World" was my favorite, but I now tend to favor ST more. I also like "Would'a, Could'a, Should'a" a lot, and the title song is an obvious good choice as well. Finally, "Test of Time" is one of those great, fast-paced songs, sorta like "Right Place" or "God Fixation". I love it too.

executioner wrote:It's all up to the artists interpretation of the song. I love solos just as much as the next guy, but I think Bob has a point about how the solo should be a part or imbedded in the song; just throwing a solo even if its a good solo into a song just to do it is a huge mistake. There is a well known Christian Axe man that did that and his band's music got old & boring at the fourth album point because of it. I felt like it was already getting old on the third album for this group because every song sounded the same.

The second I read this I said, Whitecross.

There is more to the Whitecross Story than guitar solos. They, too were victims of Star Song... and I never thought they got boring... just better.

Yep. Star Song started telling them not to solo, not to scream, sing to the girls, go more radio rock direction. That sucked for everyone.

I did think that WC's appeal was they sounded like so many secular big name bands minus the good songs. They were kind of corny lyrically. But, musically, they appealed to secular kids who were listening to VH, Ratt, Cinderella, etc, etc. Rex could solo like the rest of them and that is what people I knew liked most.

On a related note, Quinton Gibson recorded one album with Whitecross

But seriously, in the grounds of axe-grinders, I like Carroll as much as the next guy, but I'd take Impellitteri over him any day.

Wow. You are an old fart like me.