Triumph "rock 'n roll machine" (1978)

[Steve Savicki]

Does anyone agree that Rik Emmett's solo in that song resembles the 2-finger tap?
I figured if the debut VH was released before that Triumph album that maybe Rik learned to pick up Ed right away. If not, I wonder if you can play like that without the 2-finger tap.

Does anyone else like Triumph in general?

[ALinChainz]

I like Triumph big time. Excellent in concert to. Saw Malmsteen open for them, though the year escapes me.

Best album in my opinion was "Allied Forces".

[Va Beach VH Fan]

Oh hell yeah, very underrated....

Very big in Canada of course....

Grab their "Live at the US Festival" CD/DVD....

Excellent....

[Steve Savicki]

I heard Triumph had some of the best light shows in the time.
What are the hits off of "Allied"? Recognize the album, just not the songs that go with them.

[pardo]

Triumph Stages is one of my favorite live albums of all time! Listen to the unaccompanied solo on that - incredible! And Riks solo acoustic version of Hold On shows what a talent that guy was! Very very good!

That part in Rock and Roll Machine does sound like 2 handed tapping. But he was pulling off to open strings.

[Steve Savicki]

What are open strings?

[Full Bug]

Cant go wrong listening to classic Triumph, a shame Rik Emmet turned into such an asshole, he turned into some classical guitar player and wont even mention the cool stuff he did with Triumph anymore, ever see the video for When The Lights Go Down or Never Surrender? Great stuff.....

[Full Bug]

Speaking of Triumph, here is a little thing I just came across about the bassist talking about the US Fest and Van Halen.....
===============================
"The night before, there was a lot of camaraderie," recalls Triumph bass player Mike Levine fondly, "But the day of, everybody just kind of kept to themselves. The night before, when I checked into the hotel - which was I guess a motel more than anything else; it was the closest place to where the park was - I had checked into my room, but outside they had set up a real nice patio and stuff and some heli-pads, whatever you call it where choppers land. And there was Mike Anthony yelling to me, 'Hey Levine, get over here, get over here,' so we started drinking and then Eddie came by and then Roth came by and a couple guys from Scorpions came by and pretty soon it was a party, and next thing I knew, it was two in the morning. I was pretty good in my day, but I certainly can't hold a candle to those guys. They put me under. Everybody was just hanging out. The L.A. bands arrived day of. I didn't see Ozzy. He might have stayed in L.A. and then drove to the heli-port, but we met briefly. There was a big press tent where a lot of us were hanging out day of. It was a hell of an event, let me tell you."

[pardo]

Yeah, Rik thinks he's Leona Boyde now or somethin. Don't know why he doesn't like to revel in the Triumph years. I'd talk peoples ears off about it! Last time I saw him, he was doing a duet of Looking Out For Number One (that what its called? That jazz one) with Randy Bachman on tv. Rik played some cool shit for the solo, but Randy reeeeeally laid down some incredible shit.

Open strings are when you don't touch the guitar with your left hand and pick a string. The string is not fretted.

[ALinChainz]

Originally posted by Steve Savicki
I heard Triumph had some of the best light shows in the time.
What are the hits off of "Allied"? Recognize the album, just not the songs that go with them.

Rik Emmett was a hell of a vocalist to in my opinion.

Some of the better from that album was:

Allied Forces
Fight The Good Fight
Magic Power
Say Goodbye
Ordinary Man
Fool For your Love

Good chit man.

[Full Bug]

I liked the way the band shared vocals on stuff, like on Killing Time from Thunder Seven, and on a bunch of others, dont see many bands that do that anymore, or ever did for that matter, Gil Moore wasnt as good as Rik, but he wasnt bad either.....

[pardo]

I always thought Gil could hit notes, but there wasn't much to his voice. Rik was much better I thought. I liked Mike Levine - a big lumbering whiskey drinkin bassist with a sense of humour. Played keys too which kept Rik away from them. The proper thing!

[Steve Savicki]

Wasn't 1986's "sport of kings" the last one they did as an original lineup?

[Full Bug]

Originally posted by Steve Savicki
Wasn't 1986's "sport of kings" the last one they did as an original lineup?

Yeah, good thing too, that album sucks in my view.....
One of the few bands I was into in those days that I never caught live, not sure why but regret not doing so.....
I have to pick up that US Fest DVD, looking forward to watching that, havent seen it around in any music stores though....

[Va Beach VH Fan]

Originally posted by pardo
Open strings are when you don't touch the guitar with your left hand and pick a string. The string is not fretted.

Under the assumption you're right-handed, of course....

Just had to throw that in, I'm a southpaw....

[WACF]

Rik's vocals are waaay better than Gil's.

I had no idea what Rik was up to these days.
Last I heard of him was years ago...I picked up his solo album and was hugely disapointed.
I had thought he had vanished...at least he did here on the prairies.

Too bad they could not of held it together...

[DLR_EngineRoom]

Triumph was as classic as VH with Roth. Regardless of how big Triumph became, they were, and remain, totally underrated. Slash himself called Rik Emmett "Completely Underrated". I've always said that Rik could kick Kirk Hammett's ass anyday on guitar. I don't remember listening to any of their earlier material (Thunder 7 and earlier) and not being completely impressed with their overall sound, musicianship and lyrics.

It's a shame that we live in a world where prix like Marilyn Manson and Sammy Hagar are still getting recognition for pure bullshit.

I say we need more David Lee Roths and Triumphs back in music.

Defense rests your honour, no further questions, case dismissed.

[PhxRocker]

Triumph was a kick-ass band back in the day!

Saw them here in Phoenix back in the summer of `79
and saw them again at the US Festival 1983.
Both times they absolutely KILLED!

My favorite Triumph album is called "Progressions Of Power" from, I believe, 1980 or `81.
Listen to "I Live For The Weekend", "I Can Survive", and "Nature's Child" from that album....fucking KILLER!!

[rucalobe]

Triumph rocked indeed. I saw them back in 1979 and totally blew me away with their live renditions of 'Rock n' Roll Machine', 'Hold On', and 'American Girls'

Too bad that they vanished...at least we have their CDs (same goes with Classic Van Halen)

"Van Hagar can't match Van Halen. Ever!!!"
Rick Nielsen, Cheap Trick (circa 1995)

[degüello]

Originally posted by pardo
Yeah, Rik thinks he's Leona Boyde now or somethin...

HA!

Very true. You always have a funny way of putting things, pardo.

[degüello]

I actually saw Triumph at their last show together, think I was in grade 9, at Canada's Wonderland, just outside of Toronto. With my whole fucking family, and aunts and cousins too .

Didn't know it'd be their last one together at the time, though. I was at a friend's house couple days later wearing the shirt, and his mom said, "they're breaking up, eh?" To which I responded, "no way, just saw them live... they rocked..."

Then she showed me the article in the paper all about the split. Think it was literally just a couple days after the show.

Anyways, Triumph's definitely a band that hasn't stood the test of time for me. Now when I hear them, it's unbearably cheesy and hokey sounding (sorry).

Anybody hear the faux-reunion album without Rik Emmett?
A guy named Phil X took his place (used to play with Aldo Nova; I saw him clubs around Toronto all the time, was the local hot axe dude).

Didn't cause too much of a stir; wasn't much sense to it (kind of like a Rothless VH "reunion"..."

[BrownSound1]

I liked Triumph, but never owned any of their albums except for Thunder 7 and the live album Stages. I had a friend though that worshipped Rik Emmett, so I heard all of their stuff through him. Some of it I thought was awesome...some of it was just standard rock fare. Rik was very versatile on guitar..which is probably what I enjoyed the most about the band.