U.D.O. - Celebrator

This double CD release comes as an anniversary for UDO, a singer so charismatic that for more that three decades is mentioned as an influence from countless bands and artists. Starting his career with Accept, and continuing solo since the late 90's, this album contains moments of his long career not often available to the audience, being b-sides to singles, rare and unreleased songs, and collaborations with other bands. Looking from the tracklist, I admit some of them were unknown to me as well, and plenty of them are remixes, so I didn't know what to expect. But rest assured that all the ingredients that made UDO so famous and so respected are still here. On the other hand there are moments where long time favorites are given through a different approach, and the result is the least to say, interesting and welcome. The peak of those moments is Balls To The Wall, performed in a piano, with the vocals of UDO on top and the addition of some cellos for the main melodies. The production is perfect, crystal clear, and powerful enough, and helps the music in the best possible way. What's more, there's so much variety here that everyone will enjoy this album, from the die-hard fan to the Heavy Metal listener. There's not much to add here, the brand name of UDO says it all, only that this album serves both as a collectors item, but also gives a different perspective to some very classic songs we have all banged our heads with. Now, if you are a fan of the singer and his work, and you are curious to listen to different versions of classics, or rare tracks and b-sides then this album is a good collection and a must have.

9/10