Gary “Mägpie” Bowler marks Record Store Day with a 12″ vinyl version of the recent single Dancing With The Devil. The track is a version of the Cozy Powell hit and features performances by Neil Murray, David Stone, Frankie Aiello and Bernie Tormé.
There is a competition to win a test pressing of the vinyl. To enter the competition, you need to name the bass player on the original Cozy Powell hit in an email to magpiecomp1@hotmail.com. The winner will be announced on 17 July.
Mägpie told MetalTalk that the song idea “came from a drum intro for a track on the Satan’s Empire album Rising. The track starts with an improvised drum fill. The first intro take did not feel right, so I insisted on a retake, and I decided to incorporate a reference to the track Dance With The Devil – Satan’s Empire. Do you get the link?
“I thought nothing of it and did not really think that it would be noticed, but it was. Paul Madden, who was engineering the album, contacted me months later and suggested I covered the original track. I wasn’t really interested, as the track had been done many times as the original version, and I didn’t see the point.”
Mägpie eventually decided that his version should be different to the original. “Strangely, whilst on holiday sitting poolside, the melody [Hendrix’s Third Stone From The Sun] came into my head, and I began to wonder if words could fit the melody, Gary says. “I dashed out to the nearest shop, bought a notepad and pen and began to work on a potential new drum arrangement and lyric ideas.”
The song would become the last that Bernie Tormé would play on. “Bernie was a fabulous person to work with,” Mägpie says. “I spent a few hours with him on the day of the recording at his studio. We talked about music a lot, a recent meet-up with Ozzy, and his Final Fling tour plans.
“In his hallway, he had all the equipment and merchandise ready for the tour. He loved my drum sound and complimented me on my playing. In the track arrangement, there is a musical bridge that leads into the middle section. ‘I f**king hate funk! I just can’t get that groove.’ He nailed it, though.
“The solo outro he worked on for a while, trying ideas until he was happy with his playing. A unique player, which was exactly why I asked him to play on the track. I’m so very glad I did.”
For more details, visit recordstoreday.co.uk/releases/rsd-2021-drop-2/magpie/
