Megadeth Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good! CD

Deluxe Edition sees the entire record remixed by Dave Mustane and producer/mixer Bill Kennedy, completely digitally remastered, 4 original 1984 demo's are added as bonus tracks. Also includes original artwork intended to be on album packaging, song by song liner notes by Dave Mustane & bassist David Ellefson. Demo versions - 'Last Rites/Loved To Death', 'The Skull Beneath The Skin' and 'Machanix'. Loud Records.

Megadeth: Dave Mustaine (vocals, guitar, piano); Chris Poland (guitar); David Ellefson (bass, background vocals); Gar Samuelson (drums, timpani).
Producers: Dave Mustaine, Karat Faye.
Recorded at Indigo Ranch Studios, Malibu, California and Crystal Sound Labs, Hollywood, California in December 1984 & January 1985. Includes liner notes by Dave Mustaine, Scott Ian, and David Ellefson.
Digitally remastered by Tom Baker (Precision Mastering).
Personnel: Chris Poland, Dave Mustaine (vocals, guitar, piano); David Ellefson (bass guitar, background vocals); Gar Samuelson (drums, timpani).
Audio Mixer: Bill Kennedy.
Audio Remasterer: Tom Baker .
Liner Note Authors: Dave Mustaine; David Ellefson; Scott Ian.
Recording information: Crystal Sound Lab, Hollywood, CA (12/1984-01/1985); Indigo Ranch Studios (12/1984-01/1985); Malibu Sound Lab, Hollywood, CA (12/1984-01/1985).
Photographer: Megadeth.
After his exit from Metallica, Dave Mustaine regrouped with his own band on this debut album, accentuating his own chaotic, driving rhythm guitar work and careening, lightning-fast solos. The music here is as raw as Megadeth gets, and that can be both good and bad -- Megadeth's later precise, complex riffing and composition aren't completely developed, but the music is performed with a great deal of energy, while Mustaine's vocals (never his strong point) are amateurish at best. Highlights include a retooled version of Nancy Sinatra's "Boots" and "Mechanix," a Mustaine composition written with Metallica, which turned into the latter's "The Four Horsemen." ~ Steve Huey
After guitarist Dave Mustaine was booted out of Metallica in 1983, he immediately returned home to San Francisco and formed Megadeth. The new outfit was instantly compared to Mustaine's former band, and the comparisons haven't subsided since. Whereas both outfits shared such musical elements as muted guitar riffs and speedy rhythms, Megadeth's first album seemed to be more influenced by punk and hardcore. KILLING IS MY BUSINESS AND BUSINESS IS GOOD also saw Mustaine's debuting his lead-vocal skills.
Mustaine must have had a lot of pent-up anger to express, since KILLING is simply explosive from beginning to end. The brutal title track lyrically deals with a sniper who revels in hunting down his unsuspecting prey. Nancy Sinatra's hit "These Boots are Made For Walking" is redone as a blinding speed metal ditty. Other highlights include the album opening "Last Rites/Loved to Death" and the pro-heavy metal "Rattlehead." The album-closing "Mechanix" had previously surfaced-as "The Four Horsemen," with different lyrics-on Metallica's debut KILL 'EM ALL. While not as exceptional as Megadeth's subsequent albums, KILLING proves that Mustaine is a survivor.
If you have the original version of Megadeth's debut record, Killing Is My Business...And Business Is Good!, then there is no reason to go out and buy this slightly remixed 2002 version. Only the most hardcore fan would want to own both. It is a classic metal album, as good if not better than Metallica's or Slayer's debut records. Songs like "Looking Down the Cross" and "The Skull Beneath the Skin" are heavy, while sillier tunes like "Killing Is My Business" and Megadeth's cover of the Nancy Sinatra hit "These Boots" are a lot of fun. The guitar playing all over the record absolutely shreds. This was music from the glory years of metal and Megadeth was at the top of the game with many more and even better albums to come. But this 2002 version released on the rap label Loud suffers becauseQ (5/00, p.130) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Their debut has withstood the ensuing 15 years suprisingly well. Mustaine's vocals and bitter lyrics still sound fresh, and the nimble fretwork could still inspire an outbreak of air guitar..."