In the Classic Albums documentary on the making of Ace of Spades, Gerry Bron of Bronze Records admits: "The first time I heard Motörhead was when I listened to a single that I put out without hearing, which is "Louie Louie," and when I heard it I was absolutely horrified.

[8] In the 2011 book Overkill: The Untold Story of Motörhead, biographer Joel McIver quotes guitarist "Fast" Eddie Clarke: "We had so many false starts and disappointments by the time Overkill came around in 1978 we had stored up a lot of energy and ideas – and we were just waiting for the opportunity to show what we could do.

Also we had a great following, and we always felt we owed the fans who had been with us from the beginning.." Speaking to James McNair of Mojo in 2011, frontman Lemmy concurred: "[...] by the time of Overkill we were getting our sound together.

In his autobiography White Line Fever, Lemmy claims that he wrote the words to "Metropolis" "in five minutes" after seeing the movie of the same name at the Electric Cinema in Portebello Road, and also claims that he always wanted Tina Turner to record "I'll Be Your Sister", insisting: "I like writing songs for women.

"Joe Petagno, the sleeve artist, had this to say about the cover of the album, which he felt rushed into because the band could not find him: "I had about a week and a half to get it finished...

In June 1979, "No Class" was lifted from the album as a follow-up single, backed with a previously unreleased song, "Like a Nightmare".

While the Chiswick album Motörhead had been a hasty affair (although it had a sub-bootleg quality which some fans found appealing) Overkill had more spring and bounce, and a title track that would become a show-stopper for years to come.

It is considered by many to be a vast improvement over the band's debut and the album where they laid the foundation for their classic sound.

AllMusic stated that, "Motörhead's landmark second album, Overkill, marked a major leap forward for the band, and it remains one of their all-time best, without question.

[19] However, it has also been criticised for being one dimensional, sloppy and unskilled[20] Writing in the 2011 book Overkill: The Untold Story of Motörhead, biographer Joel McIver called the album "a revelation.