Best Wishes (Cro-Mags album)

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Best Wishes
Best Wishes.jpg
Studio album by
Cro-Mags
ReleasedApril 26, 1989 (1989-04-26)
Recorded1988–89
StudioNormandy Sound, Warren, Rhode Island, USA
GenreCrossover thrash, thrash metal
Length33:09
LabelProfile Records
Another Planet 1994 reissue
ProducerChris Williamson
Cro-Mags chronology
The Age Of Quarrel
(1986) 		Best Wishes
(1989) 		Alpha Omega
(1992)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic4/5 stars[1]

Best Wishes is the second album by New York hardcore band, Cro-Mags. It was released on April 26, 1989 on Profile Records and was subsequently re-released on Another Planet – along with their debut album: The Age Of Quarrel on the same disc. The album's cover reflected the band's interest in the Hare Krishna religion which started with their previous singer John Joseph and then carried on through Harley Flanagan who also became a devotee. Their next album, Alpha Omega, saw the return of John Joseph to the Cro-Mags fold and an even further gravitation towards a metal sound.

Overview[]

This album was a complete change of style from the short, sharp bursts of song encountered on their previous album, 1986's The Age Of Quarrel. Here Cro-Mags entered the crossover thrash and thrash metal arena, complete with guitar solos.[citation needed] The songs also became longer (averaging around four minutes) while over half of Quarrel's songs came in under the two-minute mark. Best Wishes is also distinguished by two line-up changes from the previous album: Pete Hines coming in on drums and Harley Flanagan taking up both bass and vocal duties from John Joseph. As explained by guitarist Parris Mayhew:

″The songs that made it infinitely apparent John couldn’t do it were: 'The Only One', and 'Death Camps' (all lyrics Harley wrote). You could hear and see that John was holding back vocally, struggling with melody and rhythm, mumbling quietly into the microphone instead of singing, while we blasted out these new songs. He was making excuses that our massive PA system wasn't loud enough to hear him when it was just that he was hiding, stalling and making excuses for his inability to find a melody...John was simply a bully and a jerk and his problematic uncooperative pose was getting old. I told him “the band is moving on without you.” It was that simple.″[2]

Flanagan's vocal style was very different and it further evolved the band's image from straight-out hardcore punk to a more metal sound.

Release and reception[]

In an AllMusic review, Alex Henderson says "What would Lemmy Kilmister and Motörhead have sounded like if they'd been influenced by the Hare Krishna sect and the beliefs of Hinduism? They might have sounded like New York's unorthodox thrash metal/punk outfit the Cro-Mags whose Best Wishes rocks ferociously while expressing a very Hindu viewpoint. The CD's cover contains some distinctly Indian art, and songs like: "Age of Quarrel," "Crush the Demoniac," and "Days of Confusion" were clearly inspired by the Bhagavad-Gita and other Hindu scriptures. The New Yorkers may see the violent, chaotic world around them as a living hell, but their overall message is one of hope and optimism. The Cro-Mags do see better days ahead—even if one has to go through various reincarnations in order to find them. Of course, a headbanger doesn't have to embrace Hinduism in order to appreciate Best Wishes. Whatever one's spiritual beliefs this is a band that rocks without hesitation.".[3]

Writing for The Pensive Quill, Christopher Owens summed the record up as: "...a perfect example of crossover done correctly. It's heavy enough to appeal to the hi-tops brigade but still retains the aggression and intensity of hardcore."[4]

Track listing[]

No.TitleMusicLength
1."Death Camps"Harley Flanagan, Doug Holland, Pete Hines5:22
2."Days of Confusion"Flanagan2:19
3."The Only One"Flanagan, Paris M Mayhew4:55
4."Down but Not Out"Flanagan, Mayhew3:59
5."Crush the Demoniac"Flanagan, Holland, Mayhew3:56
6."Fugitive"Flanagan, Holland, Mayhew4:40
7."Then and Now"Flanagan, Hines3:12
8."Age of Quarrel"Flanagan4:45
Total length:33:09

Personnel[]

Cro-Mags
Production
  • Recorded in 1988–1989 at Normandy Sound, Warren, Rhode Island, USA
  • Produced by Chris Williamson
  • Engineered by Tom Soares
  • Assistant engineered by Jamie Locke
  • Mixed by Chris Williamson and Tom Soares
  • Further assistance by Robert Windsor
  • Original cover illustration by The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust
Additional production
  • Re-issue remastered by Alan Douches at West Westside Music

References[]

  1. ^ Alex Henderson. "Best Wishes – Cro-Mags | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2017-06-05.
  2. ^ "Cro-Mags ➖ 'Best Wishes'". TPQ. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  3. ^ Henderson, Alex. "Best Wishes - Cro-mags". allmusic.com. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
  4. ^ "Cro-Mags ➖ 'Best Wishes'". TPQ. Retrieved 2021-04-05.

External links[]

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