Although their earlier releases contained Satanic themes and imagery, from the third album on, the band's primary subject matter centered around pirates, sailing and other historical events. In 1987, the band released the album Under Jolly Roger, which was a switch to pirate-based and historical themes, creating and influencing the later named pirate metal subgenre of heavy metal in the 2000s in the process. While the historical lyrics were very superficial at first, the lyrics for later albums were intensively researched, by frontman Rolf Kasparek in particular.
After this album, from 1988 to 1992 (for the albums Port Royal, Death or Glory, Blazon Stone and Pile of Skulls), Running Wild mainly wrote historically based lyrics. In addition to lyrics about pirates, the band also addressed subjects like the Wars of the Roses, the Battle of Waterloo, or the colonization of the New World by the Conquistadors.
In April 2009, Kasparek announced that Running Wild had split up. Their intended last show was at Wacken Open Air in July that year. It was recorded for CD and DVD release and appeared as The Final Jolly Roger in 2011. The split would prove temporary as they reunited in 2012. Running Wild played live for the Wacken Open Air festival in 2015. As of 2021, the band have released 17 studio albums, with their most recent being Blood on Blood.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Running_Wild_(band)
Studio albums
Gates to Purgatory (1984)
Branded and Exiled (1985)
Under Jolly Roger (1987)
Port Royal (1988)
Death or Glory (1989)
Blazon Stone (1991)
Pile of Skulls (1992)
Black Hand Inn (1994)
Masquerade (1995)
The Rivalry (1998)
Victory (2000)
The Brotherhood (2002)
Rogues en Vogue (2005)
Shadowmaker (2012)
Resilient (2013)
Rapid Foray (2016)
Blood on Blood (2021)
Live albums
Ready for Boarding (1988)
Death or Glory Tour – Live (1989)
Live (2002)
The Final Jolly Roger (2011)
Compilation albums
The First Years of Piracy (1991)
The Story of Jolly Roger (1998)
The Legendary Tales (2002)
20 Years in History (2003)
Best of Adrian (2006)
Black Demons on Stage (2010)
Greatest Hits (2011)
Riding the Storm: Very Best of the Noise Years 1983-1995 (2016)
Singles and EPs
"Victim of States Power" (1984)
"Bad to the Bone" (1989)
"Wild Animal" (1990)
"Little Big Horn" (1991)
"Lead or Gold" (1992)
"The Privateer" (1994)
"The Rivalry" (1998)
"Revolution" (2000)
"Crossing the Blades" (2019)
Jennings' Revenge
Running Wild Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The Spanish fleet ran out of luck
The weather was stormy
The sea was lashing, furious
Lightning and thunderstruck
Three hundred men
Fighting hand in hand
Tons of 'pieces of eight'
The 'Flotilla' was driven
Down to the reefs
The wooden hulls of the vessels
Were cracked
300 000 'pieces of eight'
The fleet of that year
Was totally wrecked
Three hundred men
Fighting hand in hand
Abandonment or raid
Tons of 'pieces of eight'
The viceroy commanded
To furnish a squad
60 soldiers to dreg up the plate
Fool all their salvage
To a small camp ashore
Lack of suspicion
No thought of a raid
Jennings came up
With a hazardous plan
The Spanish garrison
Was taken by guise
Three sailing vessels
Three hundred men
300 000 their glittering prize
Three hundred men
Fighting hand in hand
Abandonment or raid
Tons of 'pieces of eight'
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
The Spanish plate hauled off by raid
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Jennings' trick a painful kick
During their escape
They happened to spy
A gorgeous Spanish merchant ship
'In for a penny, in for a pound'
They got them in their steely grip
And several thousand
'Pieces of eight'
To fill their ships up to the deck
Jennings' fleet sailed out to sea
No one ever found his track
Three hundred men
Fighting hand in hand
Abandonment or raid
Tons of 'pieces of eight'
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
The Spanish plate hauled off by raid
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Jennings' trick a painful kick
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Impudent tries will win the prize
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
No soldier pack will find his track
The lyrics of the song "Jennings' Revenge" by Running Wild talk about the events that happened in 1714 when the Spanish fleet had an unlucky encounter with a storm. The weather was so bad that it caused the fleet to wreck, leaving behind a treasure trove of 300,000 pieces of eight. The Spanish command, unaware of the threat, sent 60 soldiers to recover the treasure. However, this is where the story takes a turn, as a pirate named Jennings comes up with a clever plan to steal the fortune.
Jennings and his crew come up with a strategy and take the Spanish garrison by surprise, ransacking the camp and stealing the glittering prize. During their escape, they spot a beautiful Spanish merchant ship and decide to take it as well, filling their ships to the deck with the several thousand pieces of eight. With their loot secured, Jennings and his fleet sail off into the sea, never to be found.
The song has a clear theme of piracy and adventure, transporting the listener to the high seas where danger and riches could be found in equal measure. The lyrics showcase the cunning strategies and risk-taking of pirates, while also highlighting the ruthless and brutal nature of their actions.
Line by Line Meaning
1714 that was the year
The events described in this song took place in 1714
The Spanish fleet ran out of luck
The Spanish fleet encountered misfortune
The weather was stormy
The weather was characterized by storms
The sea was lashing, furious
The sea was raging with fury
Lightning and thunderstruck
There was lightning and thunder during the storm
Three hundred men
There were 300 men involved in the events described in the song
Fighting hand in hand
The men were fighting in close combat with their hands
Abandonment or raid
The men had two options: abandon the situation or go for a raid
Tons of 'pieces of eight'
There was a large amount of 'pieces of eight', which was Spanish currency at the time
The 'Flotilla' was driven
The fleet was pushed by the storm
Down to the reefs
The fleet was brought down to the reefs by the storm
The wooden hulls of the vessels
The ships' wooden hulls were damaged in the storm
Were cracked
The wooden hulls were damaged to the point of cracking
300 000 'pieces of eight'
There was a total of 300,000 'pieces of eight' involved in the story
The fleet of that year
The fleet in question was the Spanish fleet of that year
Was totally wrecked
The fleet was completely destroyed
The viceroy commanded
The viceroy gave the order
To furnish a squad
To provide a group of soldiers
60 soldiers to dreg up the plate
60 soldiers were sent to retrieve the 'plate', which likely refers to valuable items like 'pieces of eight'
Fool all their salvage
The English men tricked the Spanish soldiers and took all the valuable items for themselves
To a small camp ashore
The English men took the valuable items to a small camp on the shore
Lack of suspicion
The Spanish soldiers were not suspicious of the English men
No thought of a raid
The Spanish soldiers were not expecting a raid to take place
Jennings came up
Jennings devised a plan
With a hazardous plan
Jennings came up with a dangerous plan
The Spanish garrison
The Spanish military forces stationed in the area
Was taken by guise
The English men tricked the Spanish garrison
Three sailing vessels
Three ships that sail on water
300 000 their glittering prize
The English men obtained 300,000 'pieces of eight', which were dazzling and precious
During their escape
While they were getting away
They happened to spy
They saw by chance
A gorgeous Spanish merchant ship
A beautiful ship owned by Spanish merchants
'In for a penny, in for a pound'
They decided to go all in
They got them in their steely grip
They captured the Spanish merchant ship
And several thousand
There were a few thousand
'Pieces of eight'
Presumably more Spanish currency
To fill their ships up to the deck
They filled their ships with the valuable items, all the way up to the top of the deck
Jennings' fleet sailed out to sea
Jennings and his men left the area by sailing out to sea
No one ever found his track
No one was able to find Jennings and his fleet after they left
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
This line does not convey a specific meaning
Impudent tries will win the prize
Bold and daring attempts will achieve success
Jennings' trick a painful kick
The trick that Jennings used was a harsh blow to the Spanish soldiers
No soldier pack will find his track
No group of soldiers was able to track down Jennings and his fleet
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ROLF KASPAREK
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind