Thin Lizzy – Cold Sweat (Live, 1983)

Live at the Regal Theatre Hitchin, London 1983

“Cold Sweat” – Single by Thin Lizzy from the album Thunder and Lightning
B-side: “Bad Habits”
Released: February 4, 1983
Label: Vertigo
Songwriters: John Sykes, Phil Lynott
Producers: Thin Lizzy & Chris Tsangarides.

The song is known for Sykes’s guitar solo, which features a tapping playing style that was becoming popular at the time of the album’s release, though also used at the time by players such as Eddie Van Halen and Randy Rhoads.

With its tough riffs and pounding drums, the song was about as close to straightforward heavy metal as Thin Lizzy ever got, but its lyrics were vintage Lynott storytelling, delving into bad habits and mob connections (“I put my money in a suitcase, and headed for the big race/Stone cold sober and stone cold sweat running down the back of my neck/To lose means trouble, to win pays double and I got me a heavy bet”).