5 comments about All the Way from Stockholm to Philadelphia: Live 71/72.

1. Disc 1: 5 stars. Disc 2: 1 star. What can I say? There are two different albums here. The first disc is a short set of songs from a concert in Stockholm. The second disc was recorded in Philadelphia. Disc 2 suffers from sound problems. This 2-record set contains a booklet with many intriguing comments from Mott bassist Overend Watts; it nicely supplements the more standard-issue historical booklet found in the 2-CD box, "The Ballad of Mott: A Retrospective," an excellent introduction to this underappreciated British band. I found "All the Way..." musically valuable for its first disc. It's got two searing numbers, "Thunderbuck Ram" and the Mountain cover "Long Red," which you'll love if, like me, you're into the heavier Mott material. The other songs are fine too, but the disc is also fascinating for Ian Hunter's between-song patter, where he is clearly chagrined at being unable to get any enthusiastic crowd response from the small Swedish audience. Hunter's sardonic comments recall what Watts says in the booklet about Hunter having had a much more difficult childhood than the other Mott members, who seem to have been much more securely middle-class in their upbringing. The booklet goes a long way toward explaining Mott's early appeal and comparing them with the then-current scene, namely Oasis. So, I'd say this album is a good supplement to your Mott collection if, like me, your interest was first whetted by Columbia-era Mott albums like "All the Young Dudes" or "Mott" or by one of the Columbia compilations, like "Ballad" mentioned above, and you'd like to have more biographical, historical, and musical information about their early years. Disc 2 of "All the Way..." is quite forgettable; mid-period Mott is represented better on Mott the Hoople's "Live" album on Columbia--the record released in 1974 or thereabouts that shows three of the members in 3/4 profile on the cover.



2. For those Mott the Hoople fans that could make the transition between their earlier Dylanesque albums and the post "Brain Capers" glam period, this CD is a terrific bridge, linking together the legendary "Long Red" bootleg with a newly ressurected set from their first American tour after their Bowie conversion. The "Long Red" CD is the old Mott from '71 in their pre "Brain Capers" prime with a short but potent set of their then live standards, including Ralphs' haunting 'Thunderbuck Ram' from "Mad Shadows."

   The 'new' recording is from late '72 featuring the whole band with Verden Allen and Mick Ralphs, turning out a super set focused around the "All the Young Dudes" album. True, they don't yet have the confidence in their new roles as glam rockers (this was taped before "Young Dudes" and Mott hit big), but it is still a mighty fine romp through a whole bunch of (carefully performed) classics, including an extended 13 minute version of Ralphs' 'Ready For Love.' Having left behind their earlier emotional material, but not quite into the rave-ups yet, this tenuous period didn't last long for Mott and Verden Allen was gone within months of its recording, making it a welcome rariety to add to their catalog.

   Now why can't they dig up some of the '73 and '74 live stuff to replace the dismal "Mott the Hoople Live" recording? The fabulous "Rest In Peace" bootleg is certainly as good in fidelity as anything on "All the way from Stockholm."




3. I have owned Ian Hunter's "Welcome to the Club" for many years and it is one of my favorite live albums. I recently discovered that a large portion of those songs are actually old Mott the Hoople songs, so I figured I'd try the real thing. Being a big 70's hard rock fan as well, I had high hopes for this collection. I could barely listen to it and I will be selling it back to the used CD store soon. Not only is the sound quality HORRIBLE, the band itself seems sloppy and untalented. It's no wonder you hear a band member at one point chiding the crowd for being lifeless, not to mention the crowd sounds like it's about 10 people.



4. After Bowie gave them a shot in the arm by producing them (and, ironically enough, also helped facilitate the band's break up by encouraging Ian Hunter to take an active role as leader of the band), Mott showed new vigor in concert. This documents the band playing with the original line up just after All the Young Dudes was released. The first part of the first disc suffers from some sonic problems, but after that the sound is very good for a tape as old as this.

   All the Way..puts the Live album the band released in 1974 to shame! While Morgan Fisher and Ariel Bender were both terrific musicians, there was a chemistry missing from the band when Ralphs left. Along with the BBC CD this is highly recommended.




5. This CD suffers from some sound problems, but it is well worth the money anyway. Disc 2 is basically a live version of the "All the Young Dudes" album, complete with a pathetic David Bowie accompaniment on "Dudes"(Bowie's voice is wimpy next to Ian Hunter's). The 13 minute "Ready for Love/Afterlights" is a Mick Ralphs tour de force!

No comments about Yesterday & Today.

1 comments about Official Live Bootleg 2000.

1. Great album - mostly Animals songs but DEFINITELY not "the same old thing" Made me think (wish !!) I was back at the concert. The "New Animals" are a great band and this album is absolutely well worth the purchase !!

5 comments about Bring Me the Head of Yuri Gagarin.

1. well, what can I say?..... WHAT A STINKER! Dave Anderson's a wanker!!! sound quality is very poor.... if ya buy it, it'll only collect dust! This is not an official release, and it sounds like someone stuffed a two dollar tape recorder down their trowsers!!!



2. First off,I'd like to mention that I can certainly understand as to why most people(even the most extreme Hawkfans)might strongly dislike this CD.The sound is not that good,but it is very listenable.I've heard a lot worse.I heard that Nik Turner was ACTUALLY paid not to put this recording out.But,'Bring Me The Head...' does serve the purpose of a fan hearing a halfway decent audience-like home made taped performance of the band from May,1973.I guess I've gotten used to the disc for what it is.It starts off with two tunes that are unavailable anywhere else "Gaga" and a decent Nik Turner poem "In The Egg".Soon after "Orgone Accumulator" there's another Turner poem "Wage War" which is pretty good,in my opinion.Other 'Wind classics are present,like "Master Of The Universe",a good version of "Urban Guerilla","Welcome To The Future","Sonic Attack" and "Silver Machine".I heard awhile back that a French label,Spalax reissued this title;with a 30% improvement remastering job on the sound quality.Also noticed that Turner isn't even listing on the back cover.Have to wonder why.



3. heavenly bliss if ever a drummer held UP, BANGED A BEAT FOR A BUNCH OF HEADS FIRMLY TOASTED BEFORE LIFT OFF SWIMMING down stream WASH OUTS simon king tries to KEPT A FLOAT[hawkwind here a [CAST OF BURNT OUTS [SHRILL DISCORDANT HISS mish mash mosh pit SLOP SLOSHEMP SPACE EXEECUTIONERSMILESMIRED behind IN THE SLUDGE TAR PIT,,]



4. All else aside, I've heard better sound quality from tape recorders placed under a chair than you can find on this one.

   To bad it is a waste of some decent cover art and a name for an album.




5. I felt I needed to contribute this review to drive the average rating further down. No offense to the person who gave this two stars, but this disc doesn't deserve ONE. The info on its dubious origins was new to me but not surprising. This one has almost an identical song list to one I have on vinyl but didn't see listed here (might've missed it among the other 121 entries), called "Live 70-74." That one is not the greatest recording either, but it's an audiophile's dream compared to this terrible offering. It would be worth it to get a copy of the hilarious "In The Egg," but find it on another release and don't bother with this one. In addition to the overall poor quality, the recording levels are almost nonexistent. Unless you crank it up to maximum volume you won't even believe there is ANY sound on this disc at all.

1 comments about Live and Rare.

1. There is Live and Rare, New Live and Rare, New Live and Rare V1, and New Live and Rare V2. Depending on the country of origin, the title may not have a volume or they even switch, but have the same cover! Originally, this was called Powerhouse.
   
   1. Hush (Live, CONCERTO FOR GROUP AND ORCHESTRA reissue)
   2. Painted Horse (WHO DO WE THINK WE ARE reissue)
   3. Cry Free (IN ROCK reissue)
   4. Child in Time (Live, CONCERTO FOR GROUP AND ORCHESTRA reissue)
   5. Strange Kind of Woman (A-Side, SINGLES A's & B's and FIREBALL reissue)
   6. I'm Alone (B-Side, SINGLES A's & B's and FIREBALL reissue)
   7. When a Blind Man Cries (B-Side, SINGLES A's & B's and MACHINE HEAD reissue)
   8. Wring That Neck (Live, CONCERTO FOR GROUP AND ORCHESTRA reissue)

1 comments about Live Album.

1. I bought this double-CD album from Japan in 1989 for Yen 4,200. When I went to study at a business school in Dallas, TX during 1993-1995, I found this album availabled in single-disc format, made-in-Holland CD. I still don't have a chance to juxtapose mine with the Dutch or even US discs. But, from my experiences, sound of the Japanese CDs are usually sharp and crisp. Probably the Nippons prefer the sound like that.

   These Japanese-made CDs are manufactured by Toshiba-EMI in the Past Master series. Its inner sleeve reissues the original poster of the band playing at the Atlanta International Pop Festival on July 5,1970. Although the sound is very raw, less bright than that of the 1975 Caught in The Act album, but I prefer the Live Album since it gives the exact feel of outdoor performance. Listen to this album and you then see what a non-overdubbed live album is. Grand Funk's debut is no doubt. They are one of a few American Bands which can duel with British rock bands in that era.

No comments about Extended Versions.

No comments about Blues Collection.

2 comments about Live: We Walk 1--Shorts.

1. This is an unusual live album, in that all of the 11 songs were singles. All of the songs are from the "Genesis", "Invisible Touch", and "We Can't Dance" albums (recorded on the stadium tour for the latter album), and since these albums included nearly all of Genesis' biggest hits, the album doubles as a Greatest Hits album. This nudges it up half a star. The album works best when combined with "The Longs" album (the long songs from the tour) in your CD programmer or on a tape.

   My favorite cuts are "Throwing It All Away", with an endearing call-and-response between Phil Collins and the audience at the start and end, "Jesus He Knows Me", given a brief guitar solo and Collins' patter at the end, and "In Too Deep", which just comes off sounding better than on the original album. "Mama" loses a verse, and "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight" is stopped in mid-song to go into a closer of "Invisible Touch". The pacing gets thrown off a little with a late album sequence of "Hold On My Heart" (by far the weakest song here), "That's All", and "In Too Deep"--"That's All"'s mid-tempo isn't enough to perk things up between these two slow ballads. The closing section of "No Son of Mine" seems to be begging to be sped up a little, but it doesn't happen. This may be a side-effect of most of these songs being written using drum machines; the same MIDI click track was probably being used to run the light show.

   (1=poor 2=mediocre 3=pretty good 4=very good 5=phenomenal)




2. This is a good live album. The recording quality is excellent and Phil's vocals soar. I would give this album 4.5 stars just because I'm not very partial to 80's Genesis songs. Invisible touch, Jesus he knows me, Mama, and No Son of Mine are excellent however. I would recommend "The Longs" over this if you are more into old Genesis.

1 comments about Lights Out in Tokyo- Live.

1. This CD is from a show recorded 6/20/92 at Tokyo's Club Citta shortly after UFO finished work on the High Stakes and Dangerous Men album. The live versions of the five songs covered from that album absolutely destroy the studio versions. The band was HOT this night! The remaining tracks are classic UFO tunes from the Lights Out and Obsession period including killer versions of Cherry, Doctor Doctor and Lights Out. The real surprise here and the best kept secret of the rock guitar world is lead guitarist Lawrence Archer. His playing style maintains the melodic Schenker touch but adds the technical horsepower of Yngwie Malmsteen and Eddie VanHalen. The incredible version of Rock Bottom is alone worth the price of this CD and may be the best ever recorded by any incarnation of UFO. It's unfortunate that after turning in the performance of a lifetime, Lawrence parted ways with UFO and basically disappeared when he should have been a superstar guitarist (does anybody know where he went to?). Overall, the performance on this album gives Strangers in the Night a run for it's money and should be in every UFO collection.