Thin Lizzy: Shades of a Blue Orphanage (Vinyl LP)

Limited 180gm vinyl LP pressing housed in a deluxe gatefold Tip-On jacket. Includes liner notes and rare archival photos. Thin Lizzy's second album is a nod to the past: Shades of Blue and Orphanage were former outfits of two of the band's members, their names combined to create an oddly evocative image-especially when combined with a sepia-tinted image cover of three small, shoeless children intended to represent vocalist Phil Lynott, guitarist Eric Bell, and drummer Brian Downey. Released in 1972, just three years after the band formed in Dublin, it's fair to say that Shades of a Blue Orphanage represents a group on the move, still finding their feet, and possibly bending to the will of a record label who didn't quite know what to do with a multiracial, multi-faith rock band from a sectarian country. Sales of their debut album, Thin Lizzy, had been poor, and Shades of a Blue Orphanage wasn't the one to turn their fortunes around. Still, it's fascinating listening for even those with a passing interest in their history.