Cobra (American band)
| Cobra | |
|---|---|
| Origin |
Memphis, Tennessee  |
| Genres | Hard Rock, Heavy Metal |
| Years active | 1982-1984 |
| Labels | Epic Records |
| Associated acts | Krokus, Asia, Survivor(Band) |
| Past members |
Jimi Jamison (Lead Vocals) Mandy Meyer (Lead Guitar) Tommy Keiser (Bassist) Jack Holder (Guitar and Keyboard) Jeff Klaven (Drummer) Tommy Andris Butch Stone (Manager) Tom Allon (Producer) |
Cobra was a hard rock band formed in 1982 from Memphis, which released an album in 1983 and whose best known musicians were the later Survivor singer Jimi Jamison and the former Krokus- and later Asian guitarist Mandy Meyer. Cobra went their separate ways in 1984.
First Strike (1983)
In 1982, Jamison teamed up with Memphis-based Swiss expatriates, guitarist Mandy Meyer (ex-Krokus) and bassist Tommy Keiser, in their new band, eventually named Cobra. Rounded out by guitarist/keyboardist Jack Holder (ex-Black Oak Arkansas) and drummer Jeff Klaven and managed by Butch Stone, who had also handled Jamison's old band Target as well as Krokus and Black Oak Arkansas, the band became a fixture on the local scene and managed to score a record deal with Epic Records. The group issued their lone album, the Tom Allom-produced First Strike, in 1983. In the British music magazine Kerrang! the album took first place in the import charts.[1]
Musically, Cobra was essentially a guitar driven band featuring complementary keyboards and up-front rhythm section but clearly not the flamboyant style of bass/drumming that would become popular in the following years, endorsed by melodic hard rock groups. One has to comment that the guitar leads are pretty inventive and First Strike does bare pretty shredding solos and twin guitar leads; yet those melodic guitar lines are rarely found within the basic song structure (opening, verse, chorus) mostly reserved to the guitar solo spot of each song.[2]
Jamison is the focal point of Cobra putting on a vocal performance. The singer carries all the core melodies of each song with the same passion and attack that made him famous the rock world over. First Strike is a quality hard rock album that includes a fair share of intense moments. "Blood On Your Money" got MTV airplay along and was a solid rock song along with "Looking at You" and "Travelin' Man" was the CD record they promoted at the TV Club. They did concerts in the United States (including Quiet Riot, Nazareth, and Krokus) also did a live performance (called Live Attack) in Memphis, November 27th, 1983 with new records played. Meanwhile, First Strike was only a moderate commercial success, Cobra went their separate ways in 1984, (one of the reasons is due to each member wanted to do different things and never agreed to each other), with members going on to join Asia, Krokus, and, in Jamison's case, Survivor.
Discography
| First Strike | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by Cobra | ||||
| Released | 1983 | |||
| Recorded |
Memphis, Tennessee, | |||
| Venue |
Memphis, Tennessee, | |||
| Studio |
Memphis, Tennessee, | |||
| Genre | Hard Rock, Heavy Metal | |||
| Length | 41:00 | |||
| Label | Epic Records | |||
| Producer | Tom Allon | |||
| Cobra chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from First Strike | ||||
| ||||
| Album | Year | Label |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Strike | 1983 | Epic Records | #1 |
Track Listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Blood On Your Money" | Mandy Meyer & Tommy Keiser | 3:50 |
| 2. | "Only You Can Rock Me" | Jimi Jamison & Mandy Meyer | 4:15 |
| 3. | "Travelin' Man" | Jimi Jamison, Mandy Meyer & Tommy Andris | 5:12 |
| 4. | "I've Been A Fool Before" | Jack Holder & Jimi Jamison | 4:13 |
| 5. | "First Strike" | Jack Holder & Jimi Jamison | 2:55 |
| 6. | "Danger Zone" | Jimi Jamison & Mandy Meyer | 5:01 |
| 7. | "Looking At You" | Mandy Meyer & Tommy Keiser | 3:50 |
| 8. | "Falling Angel" | Jeff Klaven & Mandy Meyer | 3:46 |
| 9. | "What Love Is" | B. Walsh & G. Prestopino | 4:06 |
| 10. | "Thorn In Your Flesh" | Mandy Meyer & Tommy Keiser | 3:53 |
| Total length: | 41:00 | ||
Other Records
The band created material for a second album, all the songs played in Live Concerts and these songs can be found as 1982 Demos and from Live Attack, the unreleased compilation album from the live presentation in the Memphis TV Club in November 27th, 1983.
Popular Culture/Facts/Covers
On November 15, 1985, Van Zant released the song "I'm A Fighter" for his album by Geffen Records, written by Meyer, Jamison and Andris, originally written for the planned but never recorded second Cobra album but they played this record on live performances. The song climbed to #30 on the US Billboard singles chart and is a popular anthem in WWF wrestling matches. #16 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and it's the theme song for WWE Hall of Famer Paul Orndorff and have a music video (with "Marvelous" Marvin Hagler).
| Single | Album | Year | Artist | Label | |
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "I'm A Fighter" | Van Zant | 1985 | Van Zant | Geffen Records | #170 | #30 | #16 |
In 1994, the Swiss hard rock band Gotthard recorded the Cobra song "Travelin'Man" on their Dial Hard album. The album peaked at #1 on the Swiss Charts and was certified as platinum for exceeding 30,000 sales. Published by BMG and produced by Chris von Rohr.
Mandy Meyer, one of the writters of this song, joined Gotthard three years later. In 2002, Gotthard covert another song from the Cobra debut album, "Looking At You", appeared on the ballad compilation album One Life One Soul published by Nuclear Blast and produced by Chris von Rohr.
| Single | Album | Year | Artist | Label |  |
Album Certification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Travelin' Man" | Dial Hard | 1994 | Gotthard | BMG | #1 | Platinum |
| "Looking At You" | One Life One Soul | 2002 | Gotthard | Nuclear Blast | - | - |
References
- ↑ "Cobra (27) - First Strike". Discogs. Retrieved 2018-10-06.
- ↑ "Cobra (27) - First Strike". Discogs (in Spanish). Retrieved 2018-10-06.