Fighting the World is the fifth album released by Manowar on 1987 (see 1987 in music). This was the first Manowar album to feature artwork by long-time collaborator Ken Kelly, and also one of the first heavy metal albums to be recorded and mixed entirely on digital equipment (prior to that, for example, there was the album Turbo, by Judas Priest).
Since Fighting The World, all Manowar album covers have been painted by Ken Kelly.
"Defender" features the speech of Orson Welles. The album was released 2 years after Welles died. The recording of Welles' speech was re-used from the original 1982 demo of the song.
"Black Wind, Fire and Steel" has been covered by Brazilian heavy metal band Immortal Choir, by Swedish punk band Venerea and by Spanish rock/punk band Reserva Dos, this last under the name "Viento negro, fuego y acero" (in Spanish).
References in Popular Culture
The cover is parodied in the Metalocalypse episode "Dethfashion". In the episode, Dethklok is visited by a sadistic fashion designer who is upset that their measurements for their fashion line were not reflective of their actual physiques. The designer used a cover of the band's previous album as a reference for his designs, and like the cover of Fighting the World, the band is standing shirtless on a pile of stones. The cover had been airbrushed to make the band members look much thinner and more physically fit than they actually were.
