All The Aces: The Best Of Motorhead

They may have had their thunder stolen by Metallica and Sepultura but there was a time when Motorhead were louder, faster and dirtier than anyone else – an awesome rock 'n' roll machine who never played at anything less than '11' and were every bit as dangerous as the Hell's Angels that adopted them.

They were also one of the first '70s bands to genuinely crossover. Take a listen to ‘Ace Of Spades’, ‘Iron Fist’ or ‘Bomber’ and you’ll understand why it was commonplace to find punks, skins, metallers and even a smattering of let’s go slumming for the night yuppies rubbing leather jacketed shoulders at their gigs.

For all the sandpaper vocals and cheesegrater riffs, Motorhead are not without their defter touches and, on All The Aces, the chugalong version of ‘Louie Louie’ and grinding ‘The Chase Is Better Than The Catch’ both bear testimony to Lemmy’s unashamed hero-worship of Muddy Waters which goes back to childhood.

Another thing not generally appreciated about Mr. Kilmister is his blacker than black sense of humour. True, the likes of ‘Killed By Death’ and ‘No Class’ don’t exactly necessitate the wearing of a girdle to stop your sides splitting, but they're so wonderfully ironic that the odd chuckle is unavoidable.

Elsewhere and ‘(We Are) The Road Crew’ captures the amphetamine-fuelled mayhem that propelled Motorhead round most of the western world during their heyday, 'Over The Top' is just that only more so and ‘Overkill’ finds Phil Taylor subjecting his drum-kit to the sort of pounding that even Evander Holyfield would run a mile from.

Ultimately, though, it was Motorhead’s own uncompromising attitude which triggered their fall into decline. When ex-Thin Lizzy guitarist Brian Robertson arrived on the scene in 1983, it seemed the ideal opportunity to add a touch of, ahem, melodic sophistication to their trademark cement-mixer sound.

The resulting Another Perfect Day album proved that brains and brawn do mix but despite mustering more critical acclaim than they’d managed in all the previous eight years, the fans hated it and before you could say “bargain bin” Robbo was on his way again.

A stab at revisionist history means there are no traces of that ill fated experiment on All The Aces, while the subsequent ‘Orgasmatron’ and ‘Deaf Forever’, despite the brilliant titles, suggest there’ll be a sharp ground frost in hell before Motorhead try taking another risk.

This probably explains why Lemmy threw a wobbler of such epic proportions when CCN added an electro backbeat to ‘Ace Of Spades’ and created the most perverse club hit of this or any other year. Tacked on here as a bonus cut, it not only flogged millions of Pot Noodles but mapped a way back from heavy metal’s Jurassic Park which they should at least consider taking.

Whatever happens in the future, though, Motorhead have won their place in rabble rousing history and if you’re looking for a record that’s guaranteed to not only make the neighbours move out but emigrate, this is the one!

• Stuart Clark