The Runaways' albums collection (1976-1978) [5 albums in 1 post] *Combined repost

×

The Runaways' albums collection (1976-1978) [5 albums in 1 post] *Combined repost

Close

The Runaways' albums collection [5 albums in 1 post]
APE+CUE+LOG or MP3 CBR 320 | 185:04 min | 1,24 GB or 423 MB
16, 17 and 18-year-old girls playing punky hard rock … and it is Heaven!

The Runaways were an American all-girl teenage rock band that recorded and performed in the second half of the 1970s. The band in a short lifetime released four studio and one live album, recorded in Japan where The Runaways were a sensation.

×

The Runaways' albums collection (1976-1978) [5 albums in 1 post] *Combined repost

Close

AMG Biography

Often dismissed during their existence as a crass marketing gimmick, the Runaways have grown in stature over the years as the first all-female band to make a substantial impression on the public by playing loud, straight-up, guitar-driven rock & roll. Since all of the members were teenagers (some of whom were still learning to play their instruments when they passed their auditions), the band's music was frequently raw and amateurish, but it neatly combined American heavy metal with the newly emerging sound of punk rock. In the media, the Runaways were victims of their own hype, supplied by maverick promoter/manager Kim Fowley. Fowley's insistence on a sleazy jailbait image for the group made it easy for the press to dismiss them as nothing but a tasteless adolescent fantasy – an impression bolstered at the time by the admittedly erratic quality of their music. But in the end, the Runaways' sound and attitude proved crucially important in paving the way for female artists to crank up the volume on their guitars and rock as hard as the boys; plus, they produced one undeniably classic single in the rebel-girl manifesto "Cherry Bomb."

The genesis of the Runaways can be traced to a 1975 Alice Cooper party, where Fowley met teenage lyricist Kari Krome. Fowley was impressed with Krome's streetwise perspective and set about putting together a female band. Krome's friend, guitarist Joan Jett (born Joan Larkin), had been forming a band of her own with drummer Sandy West (born Sandy Pesavento), and Fowley quickly had a trio on his hands. However, it soon became apparent that Krome was not much of a singer, and she was replaced by vocalist Michael "Micki" Steele (born Sue Thomas), who also began learning the bass. As a trio, this lineup recorded a demo titled Born to Be Bad in late 1975; shortly thereafter, guitarist Lita Ford successfully auditioned through a trade-paper ad, and Steele left the group (she would later join the Bangles). Cherie Currie became the new lead vocalist, and after an extremely brief stint with a bass player known only as Peggy (which lasted just a few weeks), the band settled on Jackie Fox (born Jacqueline Fuchs), who switched to bass from guitar in order to join the band.

Thus constituted as an entirely teenaged quintet, it didn't take long for the Runaways to score a record deal; Currie's stage wardrobe (lingerie) and Fowley's well-established contacts made sure of that. After signing with Mercury in February 1976, the band began recording their self-titled debut album, which was released just a few months later. However, it was not greeted well. Fowley was preceded by his reputation for overhyping gimmicky acts, and the sheer number of roles he played in guiding the Runaways' career made him appear a manipulative, Svengali-like figure. Moreover, regardless of whether or not the Runaways were simply a cheap exploitation act (an endlessly debatable question), the entire concept of the band – teenage girls playing their own instruments and singing frankly and enthusiastically about sex, booze, and life on the streets – was simply too discomforting for much of America. Fowley's extensive involvement (some called it near-total control) made it easy for journalists and radio programmers to dismiss the group out of hand as a male-concocted sham; it was also a convenient way to ignore the myriad cultural buttons the Runaways were pushing.

Despite a wave of publicity on Fowley's part, The Runaways just barely scraped the bottom of the charts in the early fall of 1976, around the same time the band played their first gig at the legendary New York punk club CBGB's. The second Runaways album, Queens of Noise, was released in early 1977 and fared little better on the charts than its predecessor, thanks to radio's continued reluctance to program the group's music. However, when the Runaways mounted a tour of Japan in June of that year, they were greeted with sold-out arena gigs and rabidly enthusiastic audiences who didn't consider them a joke ("Cherry Bomb" had, in fact, topped the Japanese charts). A concert record, Live in Japan, was culled from the tour, but wasn't released in the U.S.

Despite this taste of success, relationships between some of the group members had begun to fray, thanks partly to substance abuse problems and partly to unconcerned negligence on the management's part. Upon their return to Los Angeles in July 1977, Jackie Fox departed the group; a story circulated that she had attempted suicide on the Japanese tour, though it was later discredited. Before the year was out, Currie too had left, spurred in part by consistent disagreements with Fowley. Jett took over as lead vocalist, and new bassist Vicki Blue was hired for the group's third album. Waiting for the Night was released at the end of the year, and failed to even hit the U.S. charts. By this point, Fowley had lost interest in the band, and quit as manager early the next year. Jett's unofficial leadership role within the group became more serious, but unfortunately, musical differences were beginning to arise (Jett's punk and glam rock influences clashed with West and Ford's love of straight-up hard rock and heavy metal). One more album, And Now…The Runaways, appeared toward the end of 1978, but it was released only in the group's core markets of Europe and Japan (it later appeared in America with a different running order under the title Little Lost Girls). Blue quit the band after their New Year's gig and was replaced by Laurie McAllister, but to no avail; Jett left the group in April 1979, and the Runaways officially disbanded not long after.

×

The Runaways' albums collection (1976-1978) [5 albums in 1 post] *Combined repost

Close

The Runaways - The Runaways (1976)
APE+CUE+LOG or MP3 CBR 320 | 32:08 min | 232 or 72 MB

When the Runaways debuted in 1976 with this self-titled LP, aggressive female rockers were the exception instead of the rule. Women had no problem becoming folk-rockers, singer/songwriters or Top 40 icons, but female artists who had more in common with Led Zeppelin and Aerosmith than Joni Mitchell were hardly the norm. With this album, the Runaways made it crystal clear that women (or specifically, adolescent girls) were more than capable of playing intense, forceful hard rock that went directly for the jugular. Lusty classics like "Cherry Bomb" and "You Drive Me Wild" made no attempt to conceal the fact that teenage girls could be every bit as sexual as the guys – a message that both men and women found intimidating. And on "Is It Day or Night," Cherie Currie sings about life in the fast lane with every bit as much conviction as Axl Rose would 11 years later. Currie and Joan Jett are equally riveting, and a 17-year-old Lita Ford was already an impressive guitarist. This LP was far from a commercial hit in the U.S., where timid rock radio programmers simply didn't know what to make of the Runaways. But interestingly, it did earn the band a strong following in the major rock market of Japan.

~ Alex Henderson, all media guide

Download from FileSonic
The Right choice
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064211/RUN176RUN982P.part1.rar
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064217/RUN176RUN982P.part2.rar

all covers.jpg
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064133/RUN176RUN380C.rar

lossy.mp3
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064169/RUN176RUN20G.rar

×

The Runaways' albums collection (1976-1978) [5 albums in 1 post] *Combined repost

Close

The Runaways - Queens Of Noise (1977)
APE+CUE+LOG or MP3 CBR 320 | 37:07 min | 239 or 85 MB

The Runaways didn't compromise a bit on their outstanding sophomore effort, Queens of Noise. Melodic yet tough and aggressive, this is hard rock that pulls no punches either musically or lyrically. Classics like "Neon Angels (On the Road to Ruin)," "Take It or Leave It," and "I Love Playing with Fire" wouldn't have been shocking coming from Aerosmith or Kiss, but suburban adolescent girls singing openly and honestly about casual sex, intoxication, and wild all-night parties was certainly radical for 1977. Joan Jett and Cherie Currie articulated the thoughts and feelings of the "bad girls" Kiss and countless others were describing, and they didn't hesitate to say that yes, women fantasized about sex. "Johnny Guitar" is a fine vehicle for guitarist/singer Lita Ford, who had solid chops before she was old enough to vote. Queens of Noise would be Currie's last album with the groundbreaking band.

~ Alex Henderson, all media guide

Download from FileSonic
The Right choice
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064249/RUN1771QN874P.part1.rar
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064219/RUN1771QN874P.part2.rar

all covers.jpg
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064137/RUN1771QN380C.rar

lossy.mp3
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064189/RUN1771QN20G.rar

×

The Runaways' albums collection (1976-1978) [5 albums in 1 post] *Combined repost

Close

The Runaways - Live In Japan (1977)
APE+CUE+LOG or MP3 CBR 320 | 41:13 min | 297 or 96 MB

Because the Runaways were much better known in Japan than the U.S., it stands to reason that their only live album was recorded in that country. This hard to find LP was available in the U.S. only as a Japanese import and sold for around ten to 12 dollars, which was a lot to pay for vinyl in the late '70s. But American Runaways fans who were willing to make that investment found a lot to admire about the album, which boasted superior sound quality (by '70s standards) and explosive, uninhibited versions of "You Drive Me Wild," "Cherry Bomb," "California Paradise," and other hard rock pearls. The original Runaways lineup (Joan Jett, Cherie Currie, Lita Ford, Jackie Fox, and Sandy West) was still in place, and the rockers' primary focus is on material from The Runaways and Queens of Noise. Holding nothing back, Ford is at her most metallic. Except for a handful of bootlegs, Live in Japan is the only documentation of the Runaways on stage.

~ Alex Henderson, all media guide

Download from FileSonic
The Right choice
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064233/RUN1772JA979P.part1.rar
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064199/RUN1772JA979P.part2.rar
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064171/RUN1772JA979P.part3.rar

all covers.jpg
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064147/RUN1772JA380C.rar

lossy.mp3
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064145/RUN1772JA20G.rar

×

The Runaways' albums collection (1976-1978) [5 albums in 1 post] *Combined repost

Close

The Runaways - Waitin' For The Night (1977)
APE+CUE+LOG or MP3 CBR 320 | 39:18 min | 282 or 90 MB

Cherie Currie's departure was a major loss for the Runaways, but it was hardly a fatal blow. The female hard rockers still had a gem of a singer in Joan Jett and a captivating guitarist in Lita Ford, and they continued to offer sneering, in-your-face rock & roll on their third album, Waitin' for the Night. This LP isn't quite as strong as Queens of Noise, but is excellent, gutsy, and inspired nonetheless. From the jaded "Little Sister" to the catchy "Wait for Me," Night proved that there was indeed life after Cherie Currie for the Runaways. Night did well in Japan, though in the U.S., the ladies of loudness still couldn't break through commercially. This band was definitely way ahead of its time, and it can't be stressed enough that everyone from Girlschool to Babes in Toyland, 7 Year Bitch, and L7 owes the risk-taking but underexposed Runaways a huge debt of gratitude.

~ Alex Henderson, all media guide

Download from FileSonic
The Right choice
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064255/RUN1773WA974P.part1.rar
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064181/RUN1773WA974P.part2.rar
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064131/RUN1773WA974P.part3.rar

all covers.jpg
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064157/RUN1773WA380C.rar

lossy.mp3
http://www.filesonic.com/file/28064195/RUN1773WA20G.rar

×

The Runaways' albums collection (1976-1978) [5 albums in 1 post] *Combined repost

Close

The Runaways - And Now … The Runaways (1978)
APE+CUE+LOG or MP3 CBR 320 | 35:19 min | 227 or 80 MB

Of all the studio albums that the Runaways recorded in the late 1970s, And Now… The Runaways is the least essential. This isn't to say that And Now is a bad album; it's generally decent, if uneven, but it certainly isn't in a class with such gems as The Runaways, Queens of Noise and Waiting for the Night. Recorded in 1978, it offers the same lineup heard on 1977's Waiting for the Night: Original members Joan Jett, Lita Ford, and Sandy West were still on board, but singer Cherie Currie was gone and Vicki Blue had replaced original bassist Jackie Fox. This recording marked the first time that a Runaways album wasn't produced or co-produced by Kim Fowley; John Alcock is the producer, and Fowley's input is definitely missed. That said, hardcore Runaways fans will find that this album has some enjoyable moments. Jett gives a surprisingly lackluster performance on the Beatles' "Eight Days a Week," but she is in good form on "My Buddy and Me" and a fun cover of Slade's "Mama Weer All Crazee Now." Meanwhile, Ford provides a memorable vocal on the eerie ballad "I'm a Million." A killer guitarist, Ford didn't do a lot of lead singing when she was with the Runaways, but she made singing a very high priority when she went solo a few years later. A solo career was also inevitable for Jett – as inevitable as the band's breakup. Though it has its moments, And Now… the Runaways is clearly the work of a group who were past their prime, and an album that is strictly for diehard fans.

~ Alex Henderson, all media guide