Just a Game | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | January 10, 1979 | |||
Recorded | Fall & Winter 1978 | |||
Studio | Sounds Interchange Studios, Toronto and Metalworks Studios, Mississauga, ON | |||
Genre | Hard rock, heavy metal | |||
Length | 36:22 | |||
Label | Attic, RCA, TML | |||
Producer | Mike Levine | |||
Triumph chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Lay It on the Line"" on YouTube | ||||
Music video | ||||
"Hold On" on YouTube |
Just a Game is the third studio album by Canadian hard rock band Triumph,released in 1979. The album contains one of Triumph's most popular songs on FM album-oriented radio,"Lay it on the Line",and the Top 40 hit "Hold On",which peaked at No. 38 on the Billboard Hot 100 and at No. 33 in Canada.
The vinyl LP version of the album featured a sleeve that folded open to reveal a board game (though later pressings just contained a regular vinyl sleeve without this). According to a Rockline interview,the board game was Rik Emmett's idea,but Mike Levine was the one who actually designed it and decided to make it impossible to win.
The front cover of the album revealed a futuristic world where every symbol depicts a song featured on the album.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
The Globe and Mail wrote that,"as Rush has become bogged down in a sea of pretention,Triumph has stuck to the basics and honed its heavy-metal drone to a steely edge." [2]
Side 1
Side 2
Chart (1979) | Peak position |
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Canada Top Albums/CDs ( RPM ) [3] | 19 |
US Billboard 200 [4] | 48 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Canada (Music Canada) [5] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
United States (RIAA) [6] | Gold | 500,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Triumph was a Canadian hard rock band formed in 1975 that was popular in the late 1970s and the 1980s,building on its reputation and success as a live band. Between its 16 albums and DVDs,it has received 18 gold and nine platinum awards in Canada and the United States. It was nominated for multiple Juno Awards,including the 'Group of the Year Award' in 1979,1985,1986,and 1987. It was inducted into the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame in 2007,into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2008,and into Canada's Walk of Fame in 2019.
Rock &Roll Machine is the second studio album by Canadian hard rock band Triumph. It was first released in 1977 by Attic Records. The album contained in the band's first hit,a version of Joe Walsh's "Rocky Mountain Way".
Thunder Seven is the seventh studio album by Canadian hard rock band Triumph,released in November 1984. Three songs on the second half of the album follow a concept based on time-related themes.
Triumph is the debut studio album by Canadian hard rock band Triumph,released in 1976. The album was remastered and re-released with a new cover and name in 1995 called In the Beginning.
Richard Gordon Emmett is a vocalist,guitarist,and member of the Canadian rock band Triumph.
Progressions of Power is the fourth studio album by Canadian hard rock band Triumph,released in 1980. The album reached number 32 on the Billboard 200 and the single "I Can Survive" hit number 91 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1980. The single "I Live for the Weekend",though not a success in the band's home country,gave them their only charting single in the United Kingdom,where it peaked at number 59. The album was re-released in 1985 on MCA Records,then on TRC Records in 1995,and remastered in 2005 and re-issued on the band's own label TML Entertainment.
Allied Forces is the fifth studio album by Canadian hard rock band Triumph,released in 1981. It reached #23 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart assisted by the singles "Magic Power" and "Fight the Good Fight," which hit #8 and #18,respectively,on the US Mainstream Rock chart of 1981. The title song was the first single from the album which was released a month before the album came out. A remastered CD was first released in 1985 on MCA,then again in 1995 on the band's TRC label,and for a third time in 2004 on the band's label TML Entertainment. It is considered their signature record.
Never Surrender is the sixth studio album by Canadian hard rock band Triumph,released in 1982. The album reached #26 on the Billboard Albums chart assisted by the singles "All the Way","A World of Fantasy" and "Never Surrender" which hit #2,#3 and #23,respectively,on the Billboard's Mainstream Top Rock Tracks chart in 1983. "All the Way" was Triumph's highest charting song on the Top Rock Tracks chart,but did not sustain that level of popularity with Triumph fans as the song is not included on their 1985 live album Stages,the later Classics or 2005's Livin' for the Weekend:The Anthology album.
Stages is a live album by Canadian hard rock band Triumph,released on October 14,1985 by MCA Records. The tracks were recorded from various performances over the prior three years 1981–1984 although two new studio tracks were added:"Mind Games" and "Empty Inside".
King Biscuit Flower Hour (In Concert) is a live album by Canadian rock band Triumph released in 1996. Taken from the Allied Forces tour stop in Cleveland on October 12,1981,this album features songs from the album of the same name in addition to some of the earlier hits.
Surveillance is the ninth studio album by Canadian hard rock band Triumph,released July 27,1987. The album was recorded at Metalworks Studios,Mississauga,Ontario,Canada. This is the last Triumph album to feature Rik Emmett until his return to the band in 2008.
Classics is a compilation album by Canadian rock band Triumph,released in 1989.
The Sport of Kings is the eighth studio album by the Canadian hard rock band Triumph,released in 1986. It was recorded at the band's home studio of Metalworks Studios from May to August 1986. A song from the album,"Somebody's Out There",was the band's biggest hit,reaching number 27 on the Billboard Hot 100 over a 15-week stay in the charts and hitting number 84 in the Canadian pop charts.
Edge of Excess is the tenth and final studio album by Canadian hard rock band Triumph,and the only one not to feature original guitarist and lead singer Rik Emmett who left the band in 1988,leaving Gil Moore as the sole lead vocalist. After a few years of inactivity,Moore and bassist Mike Levine recruited session guitarist Phil X to replace Emmett and released Edge of Excess in 1992. The song "Troublemaker" was featured in the 1992 movie Hellraiser III:Hell on Earth.
Live at the Us Festival is a live album and DVD by Canadian rock band Triumph,released in 2003. The massive Us Festival took place over three days,outdoors in San Bernardino,California,on May 28–30,1983. Triumph appeared on May 29,which was billed as "Heavy Metal Sunday" and included Ozzy Osbourne,Judas Priest,Scorpions,Mötley Crüe,Quiet Riot,and Van Halen. The number of attendees varied during the three days;the crowd was estimated to be about 500,000 strong on "Heavy Metal Sunday". The documentary-style part of the DVD gives a behind-the-scenes look at how their shows are put together;lighting,pyrotechnics,smoke,and lightning techniques are explained. Rik Emmett explains their songwriting process in his home. They interview celebrities like Ronnie James Dio that are at the show. Two videos are included,"Spellbound",and "Follow Your Heart",which showcases a live performance,all in DTS Surround Sound. Gil Moore and Mike Levine reminisce about the performance in a fifteen-minute interview from 2003.
A Night of Triumph is a concert video first released to VHS and LaserDisc,later released as a live album and DVD by the Canadian hard rock band Triumph. The concert was recorded on January 16,1987,at the Halifax Metro Centre in Nova Scotia during Triumph's Sport of Kings tour. The DVD bonus features included backstage footage from a Triumph concert at Wachovia Spectrum in Philadelphia. Also included is the video for "Just One Night" and a live performance of "When the Lights Go Down" from the band's appearance at the 1983 US Festival,which itself was previously released as a standalone DVD in 2003 called Live at the US Festival.
Livin' for the Weekend:The Anthology is a compilation album by the Canadian hard rock band Triumph. The most comprehensive Triumph anthology ever issued at the time of its 2005 release,this two-CD set draws material from most of the albums the band had issued,as well as adding a previously unreleased cover of "Love Hurts" and two live tracks:"Spellbound" from their 1985 release Stages and "Never Surrender" from their 1983 appearance at the US Festival that was released in 2003 on Live at the US Festival.
Triumph is a Canadian hard rock band that was popular in the late 1970s through the 1980s. Between the band's 16 albums and DVDs,Triumph has received 18 gold and 9 platinum awards in Canada and the United States. Triumph was nominated for multiple Juno Awards,including Group of the Year Award in 1979,1985,1986 and 1987.
Absolutely is the debut solo album by the Canadian rock guitarist Rik Emmett,released in 1990,after leaving the heavy metal band Triumph. The album was released in 1990 and went gold in Canada. The third cut on the album,"Saved by Love",was used for the closing credits of the movie Problem Child 2. The album includes ten songs and one instrumental track.
"Hold On" is a song by the band Triumph. It appeared on their album Just a Game (1979) and was also released as a single. The single was released on August 6,1979 and rose to number 38 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was written by Rik Emmett.