"Play It Loud" is the second studio album by the British rock band Slade, released in November 1970. It was the band's first album released under the Slade name, following the band's earlier debut album, Beginnings (1969), which had been issued under the name Ambrose Slade. Play It Loud did not chart upon its release and is considered a commercial failure at the time. However, it later gained recognition, particularly in Canada, where it achieved success in 1973, reaching No. 40 on the charts.
After the lackluster commercial performance of Beginnings, Slade's manager, Chas Chandler, recognized that the band needed to reinvent itself. One of the first steps in this transformation was for the band to begin writing their own material. Chandler also felt that a change in image was crucial. The band adopted a skinhead image — characterized by Dr. Martens boots, braces, cropped hair, and aggressive "bovver boy" posturing — in an effort to generate interest and create a more defined, youthful identity. Guitarist Dave Hill and bassist Jim Lea were reportedly unhappy with the image, but the band agreed to go along with it for the time being.
Around the same time, Ambrose Slade changed their name to just "Slade," which was used for the band's October 1969 single, "Wild Winds Are Blowing." Unfortunately, that single, like many others that followed, failed to chart. Despite the name change and the new image, commercial success remained elusive.
By March 1970, the band released another single, "Shape of Things to Come," which also failed to chart. This prompted Chandler to move the band from Fontana Records to Polydor Records in the hope that a higher-profile label would help boost sales. With this new label, Slade continued to work on their next album, Play It Loud, with Chandler assuming the role of producer. Most of the material for the album was written by the band itself, marking a significant step in their musical development.
In September 1970, Know Who You Are was released as the debut single under Polydor Records, but like its predecessors, it was unsuccessful in the charts. When Play It Loud was released in November 1970, it also failed to gain commercial traction, and the album did not chart in the UK.
Despite the lack of success in the UK, Play It Loud later found an audience in Canada in 1973, where it achieved a more favorable reception, reaching No. 40 on the charts. In retrospect, lead vocalist Noddy Holder explained in a 1975 interview that while the album initially sold only a modest amount, its slow but steady sales over time helped it eventually achieve recognition. He mentioned that it had sold around 10,000 copies initially, but its sales picked up significantly over the following years as the band began to gain popularity with hits like "Get Down and Get with It" in 1971.
One of the most notable aspects of the Play It Loud era was the band's adoption of the skinhead image, which was widely controversial. While the skinhead look and aggressive posturing were initially part of Slade's attempt to connect with a more working-class, rebellious audience, the image ultimately became a source of friction within the band. As they became more recognized, the band began to move away from the skinhead look, opting for more colorful and flamboyant outfits that would eventually define their later, more glam rock-inspired style.
In Holder's words: "We got a lot of flak for being a skinhead band, so gradually we changed. We replaced Doc Martens with platform boots. We became more colourful and then it all went berserk – Dave the Superyob with his spacesuits and all the rest. It was a great laugh."
Although Play It Loud did not achieve success upon release, it is often looked back on as an important step in the band's development, both musically and in terms of their evolving image. The album’s lack of commercial success was short-lived, as Slade would go on to become one of the most successful and influential British rock bands of the 1970s, achieving major hits like "Mama Weer All Crazee Now," "Cum On Feel the Noize," and "Skweeze Me, Pleeze Me" in the years following Play It Loud.
In a broader sense, the album also highlights the band's early struggles and their eventual transformation into one of the leading acts of the glam rock era. It was reissued and gained a cult following as the band’s fame grew, and in retrospect, many fans and critics now see it as a significant entry in Slade's catalog.
