VARIOUS ARTISTS – Magic Power: All-Star Tribute To Triumph

There are certain bands that don’t get the credit they deserve and Triumph are one of those bands. The group was formed in 1975 by drummer Gil Moore and bassist Mike Levine in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. They originally started as a four-piece known as Abernathy Shagnaster, but when two of the members left, including their guitarist, the rock and roll gods blessed Moore and Levine with the recruitment of guitarist Rik Emmett. The latter came from an eclectic and progressive background, as opposed to Moore’s straight-up hard rock style. That, along with both of their singing abilities, gave Triumph enough variety and excitement to leave fans wanting more. When it came to their live shows, Moore, who never shied away from the latest technological trends, encouraged the band to try everything from lasers, pyrotechnics, moving lighting rigs, torches, and even dry ice.

From Then Till Now

Their most well-known album is Allied Forces (1981), which features the two Rik Emmett classics, “Magic Power” and “Fight the Good Fight.” Unfortunately, after nine studio albums with the group, Emmett left Triumph to pursue a solo career. He was replaced by Phil X and the group did one album together, Edge of Excess (1992), before calling it quits a year later. In recent years, however, there’s been a renewed interest in the band, thanks to their fans’ loyalty and the Triumph: Rock & Roll Machine (2021) documentary. Now, in 2025, music lovers can relive their favorite Triumph classics with Magic Power: All-Star Tribute to Triumph, an album that’s pretty self-explanatory. Conceived by producer Mike Clink, the album features a huge lineup of well-known rock acts such as Sebastian Bach, Slash, Tommy Aldridge, Nita Strauss, Deen Castronovo, Todd Kerns, and more!

The Rock & Roll Machine Goes On and On

Literally taking listeners back to the beginning, Magic Power kicks off with “24 Hours a Day,” the opening track from Triumph’s self-titled debut album from 1976, which was re-released and re-named as In the Beginning in 1995. Sung by Sebastian Bach, it’s only the first half of the song, which was probably the right call because the acoustic instrumentation transitions nicely into the scorching title track from Rock & Roll Machine (1977). That song suits Bach’s “won’t take no prisoners” attitude perfectly and the guitar playing is stellar, thanks to Bumblefoot. “Spellbound,” sung by Mickey Thomas, takes listeners back to the band’s mid ‘80s period, specifically the Thunder Seven (1984) album, and thankfully, it doesn’t shy away from the big keyboards that made the original version so great. The monstrous, pounding drums are courtesy of Tommy Aldridge. Dee Snider lives out one of his rock ‘n’ roll fantasies by covering “Lay It on the Line” from Just a Game (1979) and it sounds like he had a great time recording the track.

As a welcome surprise, Lawrence Gowan shows his love for “Somebody’s Out There” from The Sport of Kings (1986) album. Even with the modern production, it still sounds like it was recorded in the mid ‘80s. Deen Castronovo gives prime Rik Emmett some competition with his version of the title track from Never Surrender (1982) and man, he’s got some strong vocal pipes! The raw and powerful drumming sounds fantastic, thanks to Brooks Wackerman from Avenged Sevenfold. Going back to the The Sport of Kings album, Jason Scheff brings the power to power ballads with his version of “Just One Night,” which actually suits him better vocally than it did for Gil Moore. Scheff’s soulfulness gives the song the emotion it was missing on the original version. Like “Somebody’s Out There,” this revamped version sounds like it was recorded in the mid ‘80s.

“Follow Your Heart” from Thunder Seven is a lot of fun and though it’s not much different from the original version, that was probably for the best because why mess with a great song? Jack Blades does double duties by providing lead and backing vocals, the latter along with John Spiker. The guitar work by Phil X and Reb Beach is killer, as they literally pour their hearts into the performance, no pun intended. Speaking of Phil X, he does a brilliant version of the title track from Allied Forces. With his punk rock energy, the song suits him perfectly and the raw instrumentation works to his benefit. A major highlight of Magic Power, however, is a groovy, alternative rock version of “Blinding Light Show” from Triumph’s self-titled debut album. What’s special about this version is it’s performed by Envy of None, the supergroup formed by Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson.

Not All of Triumph’s Albums Are Represented

Before getting into the negatives, it’s worth noting that picking the tracklist for any tribute album is no easy task and because everyone has their own favorites, it’s impossible to please everyone. However, looking at the tracklist for Magic Power, there are two songs from the self-titled debut album, one song from Rock & Roll Machine, two songs from Just a Game, one song from Progressions of Power (1980), three songs from Allied Forces, one song from Never Surrender, two songs from Thunder Seven, and two songs from The Sport of Kings. Meaning, the last two Triumph albums, Surveillance (1987) and Edge of Excess, were left in the dust. That’s kinda sad, considering Phil X was part of the all-star lineup for the Magic Power album. Also, why are there two versions of “Fight the Good Fight”? That makes no sense because no disrespect to Nancy Wilson, but her version is terrible because it doesn’t have enough balls. The encore version with Dino Jelusick is way better and his raspy vocals, along with the gutsy instrumentation, give the song the energy it deserves.

Final Assessment

With all that said, Triumph finally getting a tribute album is a big enough reason to surpass the negatives because it’ll not only introduce the band to new fans, but it’ll also bring together the fans that were there from the beginning. For those who are interested, give the Magic Power: All-Star Tribute to Triumph album a chance!

Album Tracklist

1. 24 Hours a Day (sung by Sebastian Bach)
2. Rock & Roll Machine (sung by Sebastian Bach)
3. Magic Power (sung by Joey Belladonna)
4. Spellbound (sung by Mickey Thomas)
5. Lay It on the Line (sung by Dee Snider)
6. Somebody’s Out There (sung by Lawrence Gowan)
7. Never Surrender (sung by Deen Castronovo)
8. Hold On (sung by Jeff Keith)
9. Just One Night (sung by Jason Scheff)
10. I Live for the Weekend (sung Dorothy & Tyler Connolly)
11. Fight the Good Fight (sung by Nancy Wilson)
12. Follow Your Heart (sung by Jack Blades)
13. Allied Forces (sung by Phil X)
14. Blinding Light Show (sung by Envy of None)
15. Fight the Good Fight (encore; sung by Dino Jelusick)