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Our top ten best Babylon A.D. songs list presents the music catalog of an American rock band best known for its glam metal sound. Babylon A.D. was established in 1987 with its original lineup consisting of vocalist Derek Davis, bassist Eric Pacheco, guitarist Dan De La Rosa, and percussionist James Pacheco. The band’s move to pursue a music career centered around glam metal made Babylon A.D. outliers in Bay Area, a place where thrash metal was flourishing.
Over the years, Babylon A.D. has issued four studio albums with the band’s 1989 eponymous record being the most definitive and successful. Unfortunately, Babylon A.D. didn’t enjoy much success following the decline of glam metal’s influence—grunge was quickly rising to popularity with bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden soaring.
Babylon A.D.’s Career Beginnings and Breakthrough
After its formation, Babylon A.D. went on to play music in multiple venues in Bay Area gaining traction thanks to their eclectic live performances. However, the desire for more success propelled the band’s move to Los Angeles, California. Here, the band earned the attention of major record labels—the band’s then-manager played a demo tape and homemade music videos by the band to a few labels who were impressed. RCA Records, then home to Eurythmics, Rick Astley, and Juice Newton, was among the record labels that considered signing Babylon A.D.
The label offered the band a demo deal worth fifteen thousand dollars as revealed by Derek Davis in our recent interview. However, Randy Gerston, then-artists and repertoire personnel at Arista Records suggested that the band members exercise some patience—a full album deal was a possibility with Arista Records. A few months of patience while writing new songs bore fruits with the band impressing Arista Records’ founder Clive Davis after a remarkable performance at SIR studios, L.A. Clive Davis is also credited to have signed Grateful Dead, Barry Manilow, Dionne Warwick, The Outlaws, and The Kinks among other artists/bands to his label, Arista Records.
Babylon A.D.’s Album Releases over the Years
After signing a recording contract with Arista Records, the band went on to issue its eponymous debut studio album in September 1989. Babylon A.D. saw the band give to the world its luscious glam metal musical efforts. “Bang Go the Bells,” “The Kid Goes Wild,” “Desperate,” “Maryanne,” and “Hammer Swings Down” are the best Babylon A.D. songs from the album.
Babylon A.D. was a mainstream success rising to the eighty-eighth spot on the Billboard 200. The band’s 1989 eponymous record was produced by Simon Hanhart. Simon also worked with a number of artists/bands including Saxon, Nevada Beach, Whitecross, and Marillion. Unfortunately, the grunge takeover completely annihilated the chances of hair metal bands like Babylon A.D. to achieve continued success.
In 1992, Babylon A.D. returned with their sophomore studio album Nothing Sacred. The album saw barely successful compared to the band’s eponymous debut studio album. Nevertheless, Nothing Sacred managed to feature a few popular songs by Babylon A.D. including “Bad Blood,” “So Savage the Heart,” “Dream Train,” and “Redemption.”
Among the personnel tasked with the production of Nothing Sacred was Tom Werman—Tom has also worked with other artists including Lita Ford, Poison, Kix, Ted Nugent, L.A. Guns, Mötley Crüe, and Cheap Trick. The band went on hiatus in 1994—reduced popularity of glam metal, being dropped by Arista Records, and a lawsuit by the band’s accountant all coupled up to push Babylon A.D. out of the music scene. However, the band returned to the music scene in the late ‘90s and has since been on and off.
American Blitzkrieg, issued in 2000, marked the band’s third studio album. The album was issued through the band’s own label, Apocalypse Records—the album was distributed through Perris Records, (once) home to L.A. Guns, Jetboy, Helix, and Enuff Z’Nuff among others. American Blitzkrieg is home to several hits including “Sinking in the Sand” and “American Blitzkrieg.”
Seventeen years later, Babylon A.D. returned with their fourth studio album Revelation Highway. Revelation Highway was issued through Frontiers Records, a label (once) home to Lynch Mob, Whitesnake, Dokken, Cinderella, and Primal Fear among others. “One Million Miles,” “Crash and Burn,” “Rags to Riches,” and “Saturday Night” are the best Babylon A.D. songs from Revelation Highway.
Recently, Babylon A.D. issued a live concert recording under the title Live Lightning. The recording was issued through Perris Records. Live Lightning is a fourteen-track recording featuring some of the most popular classics. The band also announced that it will be releasing a new studio album in early 2024.
Babylon A.D.’s Legacy
Babylon A.D. never got a huge share of the spoils of the glam metal scene. However, the band’s impact on hair metal remains significant. Hailing from Bay Area, Babylon A.D. went against the grain by pursuing glam metal in a music scene heavily known for its then-flourishing thrash metal scene. The band members have cited Aerosmith, UFO, and Montrose to be some of their influences. Here we present the ten best Babylon A.D. songs that have helped the band earn a reputation as one of the most eclectic live bands.
#10- Sinking in the Sand
Ushering us to the top ten Babylon A.D. songs list is the ferocious hit “Sinking in the Sand.” The song is featured on the nine-track third studio album American Blitzkrieg. “Sinking in the Sand” is the only song on our list from the band’s third studio album. While the song might have earned less popularity (compared to all other tracks on this list), it remains one of Derek Davis’s best songs by the band. “Sinking in the Sand” is among the fourteen songs on the band’s most recent release Live Lightning.
#9- One Million Miles
We shift fast from the ferocious track “Sinking in the Sand,” ushering in one of the calmest hits by the band, “One Million Miles.” The song is among the most popular songs by Babylon A.D. from the band’s fourth studio album Revelation Highway. Vocalist Derek Davis is credited to have penned the lyrics to this song—in an interview, the singer revealed to have penned its lyrics about his wife.
Derek also cited “One Million Miles” to be a special song to him (of course it should, having it reference his lover). The singer went ahead to reveal that the song is quite an emotive release that reminds him of “floating.” While its calm pace might not appeal to some, the harmonious guitar work unites us all as we drown deeper into this lyrical masterpiece. The music video to this melodic hit was recorded in San Francisco close to a beautiful ocean view.
#8- Maryanne
Coming in at the eighth spot on our all-time best Babylon A.D. songs is the track “Maryanne.” The song introduces us to Babylon A.D.’s musicianship on the band’s debut eponymous album. “Maryanne” is a fast-paced and hard-hitting hair metal ballad whose viciousness catapulted it to become one of the fan favorites by Babylon A.D. The song is among the fourteen tracks featured on Babylon A.D.’s recent release Live Lightning.
#7- Crash and Burn
Revelation Highway was an impressive release thanks to wide-ranging musical explorations by the band. The album manages to encapsulate Babylon A.D.’s signature hair metal sound with some ‘80s-Esque melodic hard rock influences. Unlike the melodic hit “One Million Miles,” our seventh pick “Crash and Burn,” takes us back to the hard-hitting glam metal sound of the band.
“Crash and Burn” serves as the album-opening track of the album Revelation Highway. The song oozes pure intensity that reminds us of the vintage Babylon A.D. The song bursts with energy reminiscent of songs from the band’s eponymous debut album. You ought to love the searing guitar riffs in this song.
#6- So Savage the Heart
Number six on our ten best Babylon A.D. songs is the impressive hit “So Savage the Heart.” The song is one of the outstanding hits off the band’s sophomore effort Nothing Scared. Of course, Babylon A.D. is best known for its glam metal sound. However, songs like “So Savage the Heart” gives us space to visualize the band’s striking melodic hard rock influences.
“So Savage the Heart” is a power ballad that helps us open a conversation about Derek Davis’s vocal dexterity. In a recent interview with us, Derek mentioned singers like Steven Tyler and John Waite (as well as soul singers such as James Brown and Bobby Womack) to have been influential to his crooning style. “So Savage the Heart” speaks volumes about his diverse crooning influences. Unfortunately, this song didn’t make it to Babylon A.D.’s recent release Live Lightning.
#5- Desperate
Babylon A.D., the band’s 1989 debut studio album, is by far the most sought-after album by Babylon A.D. Four of the five best Babylon A.D. songs are featured on this album including the fifth pick on our list “Desperate.” Unlike the hit “Maryanne,” “Desperate” is delivered at a slower tempo. However, the main catch in this song is its imposing melodic nature—the song forms a perfect template for Babylon A.D.’s later melodic releases.
#4- The Kid Goes Wild
“The Kid Goes Wild” takes us back to the signature ferocious glam metal influences by Babylon A.D. The song is among the most sought-after tracks off the band’s 1989 eponymous studio album. Sam Kinison, an American stand-up comedian, is featured on the guest vocals in this song (more of a vocal cameo).
Kinison is best known for his song “Wild Thing,” a song that was popularized by The Troggs. “The Kid Goes Wild” is featured in the 1990 sci-fi film RoboCop 2—the song was used to promote the film. RoboCop, a character in the sci-fi film RoboCop 2 is featured in the music video for “The Kid Goes Wild.”
#3- Bad Blood
The third pick on our all-time best Babylon A.D. songs list is the hard-hitting song “Bad Blood.” “Bad Blood” is featured on the band’s sophomore studio album Nothing Sacred. Unlike the song “So Savage the Heart,” “Bad Blood” gets a little more ferocious—the song takes us back to Babylon A.D.’s impressive signature glam metal sound!
“Bad Blood” is among Babylon A.D.’s songs that impressed on the radio charts, earning quite some airplay. The song’s video was also put on MTV for quite some time. While “Bad Blood” ranks as the best song by Babylon A.D. from Nothing Sacred we feel indebted not to have featured songs like “Take Off the Dog Chain,” a flawless showstopper!
#2- Hammer Swings Down
“Hammer Swings Down” is yet another fan-favorite song by Babylon A.D. This fan-favorite pick is among the most sought-after tracks off the band’s 1989 eponymous studio album. “Hammer Swings Down” is among the songs that saw Babylon A.D. poised for massive success in the glam metal scene. Unfortunately, the urgency that grunge took over the music scene wouldn’t allow Babylon A.D. to compete with bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam.
#1- Bang Go the Bell
Number one on our all-time best Babylon A.D. songs list is the alluring hit “Bang to the Bell.” The song serves as the album-opening track to the band’s 1989 eponymous studio album. “Bang Go the Bell” has its lyrics alluding to reaching out to a lover when in need of love! It is the song’s catchy chorus that makes it quite the gem it is!
“Bang to Go the Bell” also featured some impressive guitar riffs reminiscent of the good old hair metal ‘80s vibes. The song is among the songs featured on the band’s 2023 release Live Lightning. With the band back together, we can only wait to see what its members have in store for its fans and the glam metal scene at large!
Top 10 Babylon A.D. Songs article published on Classic RockHistory.com© 2023
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