Winterhawk-Revival (1982)

Winterhawk's only studio album, "Revival", is considered by many to be one of the most outstanding guitar-driven hard rock albums of all time. This Chicago-based band is frequently compared to the Canadian band Rush due to the similarity in their instrumental patterns and Doug Brown's vocal timbre, which bears a striking resemblance to Geddy Lee's. However, musically, Winterhawk's style leaned towards the primitive roots of American hard rock, unlike the Canadian band, which was more influenced by British blues-rock, a style inherited from bands like Led Zeppelin, and which they already showcased in their first three albums: "Rush", "Fly By Night", and "Caress of Steel". Nevertheless, there is no doubt that the shadow of the Canadian trio is evident in many of their instrumental passages, as demonstrated by the title track, the dynamic "Sanctuary", and even the progressive-tinged hard rock of "Period of Change". On the other hand, “Ace In The Hole” showcases the group’s diversity with a muscular piece of instrumental jazz rock, while the Southern rock track “Can’t See The Forest For The Trees” and especially the legendary jam “Free To Live” demonstrate the dazzling talent of their guitarist Jordan Macarus with his dizzying and arabesque solos on the six strings, making it clear that he is one of the great and at the same time unknown guitarists of seventies hard rock.

George Hatcher Band-Dry Run (1976)

George Hatcher is one of the greatest unsung heroes of southern rock, one of those musicians who exude genius and creativity in equal measure. He had to emigrate to Europe in the mid-70s to achieve some recognition with his band, the George Hatcher Band. Originally from South Carolina, George Hatcher had already explored his musical talent in several local groups that came and went without much fanfare, such as Frantic and Flatrock. In 1974, he decided to try his luck in England, where he formed the short-lived band Stark Naked and the Car Thieves with former Curved Air members Stuart Copeland (later famous for founding The Police) and Darrel Way. They toured the country for a while. After this short-lived venture, he founded the George Hatcher Band, initially enlisting guitarist John Tomas and former Renaissance drummer Terry Slade. Shortly after, bassist Harris Joannou, guitarist Phil Swan, and keyboardist Steve Wren joined, completing the band's lineup. Thanks to the United label, they released their first album, "Dry Run", a work oriented towards southern sounds with hints of boogie rock, as demonstrated in the opening track, "Lucky Guy". Other standout tracks include "All Night Gambler", "Rockin' in the Morning", "First Thing Smoking", and "Good Friend", where we find a style influenced by country rock and southern blues that at times recalls the Allman Brothers Band. During the following years, the band continued to release great works such as "Talkin' Turkey" (1977), "Rich Girl" (1978), and "Coming Home" (1980), all of which received significant media attention, leading to appearances at the Reading Festival and opening slots for artists like AC/DC, Ted Nugent, Aerosmith, and Molly Hatchet in the UK. Back in the United States, in 1985 they released their last album, "Hindsight", resuming activity well into the 1980s. In the 2000s, they played a series of concerts with a completely reformed band, touring with leading bands such as Molly Hatchet, Cheap Trick, Black Oak Arkansas, The Outlaws, Black Sabbath, and Scorpions, or performing as the main act for large audiences of up to 80,000 people alongside the 38 Special, such as the one held in 2002 at the famous Speed ​​Street festival in Charlotte.

The Clash-Sandinista (1980)

In 1980, The Clash released their fifth album, "Sandinista!", a triple album whose cover perfectly reflects the image of its four members with their backs to a wall, as if about to be executed an image that perfectly captures the last vestiges of punk. When it was released, this overwhelming collection of songs surprised no one. A year earlier, they had already done something similar with the double album "London Calling", a work brimming with rock 'n' roll anthems, as evidenced even by its iconic cover, a clear nod to Elvis Presley's famous first album. "Sandinista!" consists of 36 songs, not all of them of exceptional quality, but as is to be expected with such a large number of compositions. Ironically, despite being a deeply anti-American album, "Sandinista!" was a huge commercial success in the United States, thanks in part to the diverse styles and sounds it encompasses, from rap and blues to dub and rock. Stylish tracks as disparate as the rockabilly of "The Leader", the epic ballads of "The Magnificent Seven", and the reggae of "Junco Partner" alternate with truly surprising and high-quality compositions such as "Somebody Got Murdered", "The Call Up", "Washington Bullets", "Police on My Back", and "Rebel Waltz". Even with such a profusion of songs, "Sandinista" is not an easy album; its development is quite erratic and its repertoire is excessively disconcerting and disordered, something very common in the punk philosophy, and this album in particular would stage the biography of an entire generation on the threshold of a new decade and the subsequent decline and fall of a genre that almost at the same time as Macío was devoured by its own image.