THE GLORIOUS BURDEN

'''The Glorious Burden''' is the eighth studio album by the American Heavy Metal band Iced Earth. The concept album explores various moments in American military history, such as the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Revolutionary War, and American Civil War. It also pays tribute to world events such as World War I, the World Trade Center attacks and the ravages of Atilla the hun.
The album's centerpiece is the last three songs which together form a trilogy entitled ''Gettysburg (1863)''. Each song represents one day in the Battle of Gettysburg, which is the largest battle ever conducted in the Western Hemisphere and considered the turning point in the American Civil War. ^[1]
This album features the debut of lead singer Tim 'Ripper' Owens, formerly of Judas Priest. The album was first recorded with Matt Barlow on vocals, but band leader Jon Schaffer was not satisfied with his performance. Due to the events of September 11th, Barlow became more interested in law enforcement than the music business, and according to Schaffer "Matt's heart was not in it and it showed in his performance."^[2] As a result, Matt left the band and the album was shelved until a new vocalist could be found. However, some of Barlow's initial recordings remain on the record as backing vocals.
Tim Owens, who at that time was still in Judas Priest, was asked to do the vocals as a side project. However, he joined the band full time after Judas Priest reunited with Rob Halford.
This record is the only Iced Earth album to feature Ralph Santolla on lead guitars. This was the last studio album for bassist James MacDonough and drummer Richard Christy.
The album was released in 3 different formats: a limited edition 2-CD version in digipak format, an American version and a European version. ^[3] See the tracklist for the differences.
"The Reckoning (Don't Tread on Me)", "Declaration Day", and the acoustic version of "When the Eagle Cries (Unplugged)" were all released as music videos.

Contents

Track listing

Personnel

Notes

Track listing

'2 Disc Limited Edition'
''Disc 1''
#"The Star-Spangled Banner" – 1:13
#"Declaration Day" – 4:59
#"When The Eagle Cries" – 4:06
#"The Reckoning (Don't Tread On Me)" – 4:56
#"Greenface" – 3:02
#"Attila" – 5:36
#"Red Baron/Blue Max" – 4:05
#"Hollow Man" – 4:25
#"Valley Forge" – 4:46
#"Waterloo" – 5:48
#"When The Eagle Cries (Unplugged)" – 3:34
''Disc 2: Gettysburg (1863)''
#"The Devil To Pay" – 12:13
#"Hold At All Costs" – 7:05
#"High Water Mark" – 12:35
'American Version'
It was released as a single disc that did not contain "Waterloo" or the unplugged version of "When the Eagle Cries."
'European Version Version'
It was also released as a single disc. It featured "Waterloo," but did not contain the "Star-Spangled Banner," "Greenface" or the unplugged version of "When the Eagle Cries."

Personnel

★ Jon Schaffer - Lead & Rhythm Guitars, Backing Vocals

★ Tim 'Ripper' Owens - Lead Vocals

★ Ralph Santolla - Lead Guitar

★ James MacDonough - Bass Guitar

★ Richard Christy - Drums
with:

★ Jim Morris - Guitar solos in When The Eagle Cries and When The Eagle Cries {Unplugged})

★ Matt Barlow - Backing Vocals

★ Sam King - Backing Vocals

★ Jeff Day - Backing Vocals

★ Howard Helm - Piano

★ Susan McQuinn - Flute & Piccolo

★ Michael LoBue - Bagpipe

★ Prague Philharmonic Orchestra - Gettysburg (1863) Trilogy
Cover art by Leo Hao.

Notes

1. Thinkquest.org page about Battle of Gettysburg [1]
2. Jon Schaffer explanation of Matt Barlow's departure.[2]
3. Metal-Rules interview with Tim Owens. Jan. 26, 2004 [3]