Motörhead To Release 1976 ‘Lost Album’ ‘The Manticore Tapes’ - Noise11.com
Lemmy Phil Taylor and Eddlie Clarke photo by Sheila Rock supplied by BMG

Lemmy Phil Taylor and Eddlie Clarke photo by Sheila Rock supplied by BMG

Motörhead To Release 1976 ‘Lost Album’ ‘The Manticore Tapes’

by Paul Cashmere on May 9, 2025

in News

Motörhead will release the 1976 recordings ‘The Manticore Tapes’ that were originally intended for an album at the time but then discarded.

The band was the ‘Three Amigos’ era of Motörhead, Lemmy (bass/vocals), Fast Eddie Clarke(guitar) and Phil ‘Philthy Animal’ Taylor (drums).

The recordings tool place at Emerson, Lake and Palmer’s Manticore Studio in Fulham. Now after 49 years, the unreleased recordings will finally be made public.

The dogged struggles Motörhead faced in the first four of their 50 years are well documented and the almost accidental manifestation of this album – and the circumstances under which it was recorded – present a previously barely known new element in the band’s history from that time when it’s very future looked bleak had events not taken a different course.

Part of that early story involved a little-mentioned man called Frank Kennington, who roadied for The Who before moving into management and briefly taking on the struggling Motörhead. One of Kennington’s moves was booking the trio into the converted ABC cinema on Fulham Palace Road that served as prog supergroup Emerson, Lake and Palmer’s HQ – which was known as Manticore. Named after the mythical beast in Persian folklore that adorned their album sleeves, Manticore was one-stop shopping for bands, with the projection room housing offices while the seatless main auditorium provided a useful soundstage for bands to rehearse in. Motörhead were ensconced at Manticore recording their set on Ronnie Lane’s mobile studio, which was operated by Ronnie’s trusted mate Ron Faucus.

Faucus did a fine job capturing Motörhead’s blossoming raw power and high velocity onslaughts on songs that would remain in their live set until 1979. These aging tapes were brought to life with restoration duties dutifully handled by longtime Motörhead collaborator Cameron Webb at Maple Studios in California and mastered by Andrew Alekel at Bolskine House in Los Angeles. The result is a truly historical moment in the evolution of hard rock’s finest heavy icons, restoring and bringing to the public eye for the first time ever a vital part of Motörhead’s evolution and history.

TRACKLISTINGS

Deluxe Expanded Bookpack:

LP1
Intro (Instrumental)
Leavin’ Here
Vibrator
Help Keep Us on the Road
The Watcher
Motörhead

Witch Doctor (Instrumental)
Iron Horse / Born to Lose (Instrumental)
Leavin’ Here (Alternate Take)
Vibrator (Alternate Take)
The Watcher (Alternate Take)

LP2 Live: Blitzkreig on Birmingham ’77
Motörhead
Vibrator
Keep Us On The Road
The Watcher
Iron Horse
Leavin’ Here
On Parole
I’m Your Witch Doctor
Train Kept a-Rollin’
City Kids
White Line Fever

7″ Live at Barbarella’s Birmingham ’77 (previously unreleased)
Motörhead
Keep Us On The Road

LP & CD
Intro (Instrumental)
Leavin’ Here
Vibrator
Help Keep Us on the Road
The Watcher
Motörhead
Witch Doctor (Instrumental)
Iron Horse / Born to Lose (Instrumental)
Leavin’ Here (Alternate Take)
Vibrator (Alternate Take)
The Watcher (Alternate Take)

Stay updated with your free Noise11.com daily music news email alert. Subscribe to Noise11 Music News here

Be the first to see NOISE11.com’s newest interviews and special features on YOUTUBE and updated regularly. See things first SUBSCRIBE here: Noise11 on YouTube SUBSCRIBE

Noise11.com

Follow us at https://bsky.app/profile/noise11.bsky.social

Noise11 on Instagram

Comment on the news of the day, join Noise11 on Facebook

Related Posts

George Thorogood and the Destroyers Play Melbourne #Review

George Thorogood formed The Destroyed in 1973, ZZ Top started in 1969. Combined, George’s 53 years as a Destroyer and Billy Gibbons 56 years as a Top gives this night an incredible combined 109 years of experience on stage.

1 day ago
ZZ Top Without Dusty and Frank Must Be Bittersweet for Billy Gibbons

It must be a strange feeling for Billy Gibbons to have to celebrate 50 years of ZZ Top on tour without his co-founders and best friends Dusty Hill and Frank Beard. The good news is that Gibbons is continuing the legacy of one of America’s greatest Blues-Rock bands.

2 days ago
Keith Richard by Ros O'Gorman, the Rolling Stones Melbourne 2014
Rolling Stones Tequila Sunrise Creator Bobby Lozoff Dies Aged 77

Fun fact: The Rolling Stones made the Tequila Sunrise famous first, not Eagles.

2 days ago
Pink Floyd in Pompeii
Pink Floyd Look Good For UK No 1 Album This Week

Pink Floyd are on course to claim their seventh UK Number 1 album this week, as Pink Floyd at Pompeii – MCMLXXII dominates the midweek Official Albums Chart.

3 days ago
Brian James of The Damned from his Facebook page
Brian James of The Damned Buried At Sea

The Damned guitarist Brian James has been buried at sea.

3 days ago
James Baker photo from Hoodoo Gurus Facebook page
James Baker of the Hoodoo Gurus, Beasts of Bourbon Dies At Age 71

James Baker, a founding member and drummer for The Hoodoo Gurus, later with Beasts of Bourbon and The Dubrovniks, has died at the age of 71.

3 days ago
Cold Chisel Flemington 25 October 2024 photo by Winston Robinson
Cold Chisel The Big Five-O Melbourne Sidney Myer Music Bowl To Screen on 7

Cold Chisel’s 2024 performance from the iconic Sidney Myer Music Bowl in Melbourne last November will screen on the 7 Network in Australia this Sunday.

4 days ago