The Glorious Burden

The Glorious Burden
Studio album by Iced Earth
Released	January 12, 2004
Recorded	Morrisound Studios, Tampa, Florida
Genre	Power metal, Heavy metal
Length	78:47
Label	SPV
Producer	Jim Morris Jon Schaffer
Iced Earth chronology
Tribute to the Gods (2002) The Glorious Burden (2004) The Blessed and The Damned (2004)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]
Metal Storm	(8.1/10)[2]

The Glorious Burden is the seventh studio album by the American heavy metal band Iced Earth. It is a concept album, which explores various moments in military history, such as the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Revolutionary War, and Waterloo. It also pays tribute to world events such as World War I, the World Trade Center attacks and the ravages of Attila the Hun. See the track list for links to the historical context of the songs.

The album includes a trilogy entitled Gettysburg (1863). Each of the three songs represents one day in the Battle of Gettysburg, the largest battle ever conducted in the Western Hemisphere and considered the turning point in the American Civil War.^[3]

This album features the debut of lead singer Tim 'Ripper' Owens, formerly of Judas Priest. 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. 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."^[4] 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, and he is credited with co-writing two songs.

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 three different formats: a limited edition 2-CD version in digipak format, an American version and a European version.^[5] See the track list 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.

Track listing

Limited edition digipak version

Disc 1

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Length
1.	"The Star-Spangled Banner"	(instrumental)	John Stafford Smith	1:14
2.	"Declaration Day"	Jon Schaffer	Schaffer	4:59
3.	"When the Eagle Cries"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:06
4.	"The Reckoning (Don't Tread on Me)"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:57
5.	"Greenface"	Schaffer	Schaffer	3:03
6.	"Attila"	Matt Barlow, Schaffer	Barlow, Schaffer	5:36
7.	"Red Baron/Blue Max"	Tim Owens	Schaffer	4:05
8.	"Hollow Man"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:25
9.	"Valley Forge"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:46
10.	"Waterloo"	Barlow, Schaffer	Barlow, Schaffer	5:50
11.	"When the Eagle Cries (Unplugged)"	Schaffer	Schaffer	3:35

Disc 2: Gettysburg (1863)

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Length
1.	"The Devil to Pay (July 1, 1863)" (references "When Johnny Comes Marching Home," "The Star Spangled Banner" and "Dixie")	Schaffer	Schaffer	12:13
2.	"Hold at All Costs (July 2, 1863)"	Schaffer	Schaffer	7:06
3.	"High Water Mark (July 3, 1863)"	Schaffer	Schaffer	12:36

American version

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Length
1.	"The Star-Spangled Banner"	(instrumental)	Smith	1:14
2.	"Declaration Day"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:59
3.	"When the Eagle Cries"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:06
4.	"The Reckoning (Don't Tread on Me)"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:57
5.	"Greenface"	Schaffer	Schaffer	3:03
6.	"Attila"	Barlow, Schaffer	Barlow, Schaffer	5:36
7.	"Red Baron/Blue Max"	Owens	Schaffer	4:05
8.	"Hollow Man"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:25
9.	"Valley Forge"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:46
10.	"The Devil to Pay (July 1, 1863)"	Schaffer	Schaffer	12:13
11.	"Hold at All Costs (July 2, 1863)"	Schaffer	Schaffer	7:06
12.	"High Water Mark (July 3, 1863)"	Schaffer	Schaffer	12:36

European version

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Length
1.	"Declaration Day"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:59
2.	"When the Eagle Cries"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:06
3.	"The Reckoning (Don't Tread on Me)"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:57
4.	"Attila"	Barlow, Schaffer	Barlow, Schaffer	5:36
5.	"Red Baron/Blue Max"	Owens	Schaffer	4:05
6.	"Hollow Man"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:25
7.	"Valley Forge"	Schaffer	Schaffer	4:46
8.	"Waterloo"	Barlow, Schaffer	Barlow, Schaffer	5:50
9.	"The Devil to Pay (July 1, 1863)"	Schaffer	Schaffer	12:13
10.	"Hold at All Costs (July 2, 1863)"	Schaffer	Schaffer	7:06
11.	"High Water Mark (July 3, 1863)"	Schaffer	Schaffer	12:36

Personnel

^[6]

Iced Earth Tim "Ripper" Owens − lead vocals Jon Schaffer − rhythm guitar, lead guitar, acoustic guitar, backing vocals James MacDonough − bass guitar Richard Christy − drums Guest musicians Ralph Santolla − guitar solos on "Declaration Day", "Red Baron/Blue Max", "Hollow Man" and "Valley Forge" Jim Morris − guitar solos on "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

Production Jim Morris - producer, engineering, mastering Jon Schaffer - producer Tom Morris - mastering Leo Hao − illustrations Travis Smith - layout

References

1. Thom Jurek (2004-01-13). "The Glorious Burden - Iced Earth | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-05-18.
2. "Iced Earth - The Glorious Burden review". Metal Storm. Retrieved 2014-05-18.
3. "ThinkQuest". Library.thinkquest.org. 2013-07-01. Retrieved 2014-05-18.
4. Jon Schaffer explanation of Matt Barlow's departure.Archived February 5, 2004, at the Wayback Machine.
5. "Interview with Tim "Ripper" Owens of ICED EARTH". Metal-Rules.com. 2004-01-26. Retrieved 2014-05-18.
6. The Glorious Burden album credits. SPV. 2004.