''Fire of Unknown Origin'' is the eighth studio album by the American

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...

band Blue Öyster Cult, released on June 22, 1981. It was produced by Martin Birch. The album, which included the Top 40 hit "

Burnin' for You "Burnin' for You" is a song by American hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult. It was released as the lead single from the band's eighth studio album, ''Fire of Unknown Origin'', released in June 1981, where it was the album's second track. The song w ...

" (#1 on Billboard's Album Rock Tracks chart), represented a resurgence of the group's commercial standing after two albums with disappointing sales. It became the band's highest-charting studio album on the ''Billboard'' 200, peaking at number 24. ''Fire of Unknown Origin'' would be the final studio LP featuring the band's original lineup; during the subsequent tour, the band fired original drummer Albert Bouchard.

Songs

Several of the songs were intended for the soundtrack of the animated film '' Heavy Metal'', such as "Vengeance (The Pact)," the lyrics of which follow in detail the plot of the "Taarna" segment of the movie. However, only the song "

Veteran of the Psychic Wars "Veteran of the Psychic Wars" is a song by the American hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult. It was written by Eric Bloom and British author Michael Moorcock (creator of Elric of Melniboné). The song first appeared on the 1981 album ''Fire of Unkno ...

" (ironically not written for the film), co-written by science fiction author Michael Moorcock, ended up in the film's final version and soundtrack. The title track was used in episode 17 of season 1 of ''

Supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

'' entitled "Hell House," written by long-time BÖC fan Trey Callaway. The album's closing track, "Don't Turn Your Back," marks Allen Lanier's final songwriting contribution to Blue Öyster Cult; it was played live by the group for the first time on June 17, 2016, at a special concert highlighting Lanier's music. The album's title track, "Fire of Unknown Origin," was originally considered for the band's fourth album, but was cut. The original version of the song is available through the band's 2017 compilation ''Rarities''. "Joan Crawford" was a moderate success, reaching #49 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' Mainstream Rock chart. The subject of the song is the actress of the same name, who had died four years before the song's release. A music video was created for the song, which was famously banned by

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

for featuring a

sexually suggestive Sexual suggestiveness is visual, verbal, written or behavioral material or action with sexual undertones implying sexual intent in order to provoke sexual arousal. There are variations in the perception and display of sexual suggestiveness, incl ...

scene.

Track listing

Personnel

;Band members * Eric Bloom – vocals, guitar, bass on track 5 * Donald 'Buck Dharma' Roeser – lead guitar, vocals, percussion on track 3, bass and sound effects on track 8 * Allen Lanier – keyboards * Joe Bouchard – bass, vocals * Albert Bouchard – drums, synthesizer, vocals, mixing (uncredited) ;Additional musicians * Karla DeVito – background vocals on track 4 *Sandy Jean – background vocals on track 9 *Bill Civitella, Tony Cedrone – additional percussion on track 3 *Jesse Levy – string arrangements on tracks 3 and 8 ;Production * Martin Birch – producer, engineer, mixing *Clay Hutchinson – engineer *Paul Stubblebine – mastering *Greg Scott – album artwork

Charts

Album

Singles

Joan Crawford

Certifications

References

{{Authority control Blue Öyster Cult albums 1981 albums Albums produced by Martin Birch Columbia Records albums