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Delaware 1985 Soundboard 9.3 Nice to hear this period of Trower with a good, punchy board tape that does present a minimal amount of hiss (evident between songs) but other than that not much to complain about. W. Hollywood 1990 Soundboard 9.2 Technically speaking this would rate much higher as it is what one would call a “pristine” board tape. Yes it sounds crystal clear and Robin is literally singing in your ear (a bit much perhaps), but the rating reflects what I personally consider to be a downside of board tapes…the lack of atmosphere and reliance on perfect mix. This was probably mixed for the benefit of what was coming from the stage and not for the sake of the recording being made. It’s a reference tape is what it is. Contrast this to the next show in the set and you’ll begin to understand why I always say a great audience tape beats a board tape. Karlsruhe 2009 Audience 9.5 This show gets a stellar rating because while it is not technically a superior recording (mainly due to the very slight amount of overdrive) it represents most of what I love about great audience recordings. This recording captures the lightning into a bottle so to speak. The fact that there is just a slight bit of overdriven energy (for lack of a more technical term) or lets call it “saturation” for the sake of the audiophiles out there – either way the point is that this recording will get more repeat plays than the board tapes in this set. Robin Trower Three Decades 1985-2009 Disc 1 The Stone Balloon Newark,Delaware,U.S.A. 1985-07-24 01 -Too Rolling Stoned 02 -Into Money 03 -Keeping A Secret 04 -Day Of The Eagle 05 -Bridge Of Sighs 06 -None But The Brave Musicians Robin Trower - Guitar Dave Bronze - Bass & Vocals Martin Clapson - Drums Disc 2 The Roxy West Hollywood CA. March 25th 1990 01 -Intro 02 -Too Rolling Stoned 03 -Rock Me Baby 04 -Sea Of Love 05 -Day Of The Eagle 06 -Bridge Of Sighs 07 -Turn The Volume Up Disc 3 08 -No Time 09 -Ev'ry Body's Watching You 10 -Daydream 11 -Tear It Up 12 -Natural Fact 13 -Little Bit Of Sympathy 14 -The Ring 15 -Extermination Blues THE BAND Robin Trower guitar Davey Pattison vocals Glenn Letsch bass Dee Johnson drums Disc 4 Jack Bruce & Robin Trower Karlsruhe (GER) Tollhaus 2009-02-25 01 - Seven Moons 02 - Lives Of Clay 03 - Distant Places Of The Heart 04 - Sunshine Of Your Love 05 - Carmen (New song, unreleased) 06 - She's The One 07 - We're Going Wrong 08 - So Far To Yesterday Disc 5 09 - Just Another Day 10 - Perfect Place 11 - Bad Case Of Celebrity 12 - The Last Door 13 - Come To Me 14 - I'm Home 15 - White Room 16 - Politician Musicians: Jack Bruce: b, v Robin Trower: g Gary Husband: dr -
Audience 9.6 - A beautiful, lush and atmospheric document. I love the stereo separation here, it’s a sound field that envelopes you in a way that makes you feel you are sitting in the first row staring up at the band. This is a must have without question! Frank Zappa Leroy Theatre Pawtucket, RI 23 October 1977 Early show Disc 1 01 -Intro 02 -Peaches En Regalia 03 -The Torture Never Stops 04 -Tryin' To Grow A Chin 05 -City Of Tiny Lights 06 -A Pound For A Brown 07 -Bobby Brown 08 -Conehead 09 -Flakes 10 -Big Leg Emma 11 -Envelopes 12 -Disco Boy Disc 2 13 -I Promise Not To Come In Your Mouth 14 -Wild Love 15 -Titties 'n Beer 16 -The Black Page 17 -Jones Crusher 18 -Broken Hearts Are For Assholes 19 -Punky's Whips 20 -Camarillo Brillo 21 -Muffin Man -
Audience 9.0 - This is one of those recordings that really grows on you. You kind of have to adjust a little, especially through the first couple of songs. Taper begins to slowly sort of find the spot, and the recording gets better, a good mix actually although I wasn’t crazy about Tony’s guitar tone around this time…and it’s only Tony who is still original Sabs but his crew is highly competent (not crazy about the big rock stadium mannerisms of Tony Martin). I like the vocals of Martin, don’t get me wrong, but the between song banter is a little over the top. Listen to this without bias, it’s not Sabbath but it’s a great fucking band with Tony Iommi on guitar. Black Sabbath Olympiahalle Innsbruck, Austria 1990-10-09 Disc 1 101 Intro - Ave Satani - The Gates Of Hell 102 Neon Knights 103 Iron Man 104 Children Of The Grave 105 Die Young 106 The Sabbath Stones 107 Bass Solo 108 Heart Like A Wheel (A Part Of) 109 Guitar Solo 110 Headless Cross 111 When Death Calls 112 The Law Maker Disc 2 201 Anno Mundi 202 Black Sabbath 203 Heaven And Hell 204 Paranoid 205 Heaven And Hell (Reprise) -
Audience 8.8 - A wide open and bright recording that highlights the fact that you are in a big venue. The show has that huge feel to it, the vocals sort of slightly echo off the walls (not in a bad way), and the P.A. system pushing out a massive wall of sound…not pinpoint accurate but it gets the job done. Rush Lawlor Events Center Reno, Nevada June 1, 1992 DISC 1 01 - Intro 0:45 02 - Force Ten 4:42 03 - Limelight 4:19 04 - Freewill 4:04 05 - Distant Early Warning 4:27 06 - Time Stand Still 6:13 07 - Dreamline 5:04 08 - Bravado 6:36 09 - Roll The Bones 6:15 10 - Show Don't Tell 6:16 11 - The Big Money 6:09 12 - Vital Signs 4:44 13 - The Analog Kid 5;16 DISC 2 01 - Ghost Of A Chance 5:47 02 - The Trees 4:50 03 - Where's My Thing? 5:30 04 - The Rhythm Method 7:44 05 - Closer To The Heart 4:41 06 - Xanadu 6:41 07 - Superconductor 5:05 08 - Tom Sawyer 6:06 09 - The Spirit Of Radio 4:46 10 - 2112 Overture 3:19 11 - Finding My Way 2:05 12 - La Villa Strangiato 3:15 13 - Anthem 1:44 14 - Red Barchetta 1:34 15 - The Spirit Of Radio Reprised 0:47 16 - Cygnus X-1 0:51 -
Boston 1981 FM Broadcast 9.0 This is not bad, I detected maybe a little trace of signal interference but not enough to destroy this audio. It may be kind of like a background “fuzziness” or something but I find this to be a very good representation especially being a crowd that knows the music and the band very well. I think the band responds and delivers an exceptional performance. San Francisco 1981 FM Broadcast 9.4 Very strong in every category, a recording with depth and a band that delivers the goods. London 1981 Audience 8.8 A decent tape with maybe a little “crunchiness” to it but overall it rates well and can be thoroughly enjoyed. Billy Squier Stroke Me in 1981 Disc 1 Carling Academy Boston, Massachusetts USA 1981 1. -In the Dark 2. -Rich Kid 3. -My Kinda Lover 4. -Whadda Do You Want From Me 5. -Lonely is the Night 6. -Young Girls 7. -I Need You 8. -The Stroke 9. -Too Daze Gone 10. -The Big Beat Disc 2 San Francisco, California USA 1981 1. -Introduction 2. -In the Dark 3. -Rich Kid 4. -My Kinda Lover 5. -Whadda You Want From Me 6. -Guitar Solo 7. -Lonely is the Night 8. -Young Girls 9. -I Need You 10. -The Stroke 11. -You Should Be High Love 12. -The Big Beat 13. -Band Intros 14. -You Know What I Like Disc 3 Hammersmith Odeon London, UK. 05-29-1981 1. -Intro - In The Dark 2. -Rich Kid 3. -My Kinda Lover 4. -Whadda You Want From Me 5. -Lonely Is The Night 6. -The Stroke 7. -You Should Be High Love 8. -Too Daze Gone Billy Squier - Vocals & Guitars Mark Clarke - Bass Alan St. Jon - Keyboards Bobby Chouinard - Drums -
Audience 9.0 - So you have to deal with the annoyance of the beginnings of almost all of the songs missing as, I assume, taper was trying to preserve tape. I think it’s a reasonable trade off to have this quality recording over the old source which was borderline unlistenable…but complete. I’d rather have this! This is well worth hearing. Led Zeppelin Pacific Coliseum Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada August 19th, 1971 Disc 1 01 Since I've Been Loving You 02 Black Dog 03 Dazed and Confused 04 Stairway to Heaven 05 Going To California 06 That's The Way Disc 2 01 What Is And What Should Never Be 02 Celebration Day 03 Gallows Pole 04 Whole Lotta Love 05 Weekend 06 Rock and Roll 07 Communication Breakdown -
Soundboard 9.4 - This is great, not only a very good, strong and clear board tape but also a superb performance by everyone. There is one small caveat here, starting at Bambele and extending through 5 more songs there is the presence of tape hiss (not too bad during the songs but very noticeable when quiet) which was probably the result of the engineer using a tape brand different to whatever he used for the rest of the show which has no tape hiss at all. Santana The Arena St. Louis, MO February 14, 1973 Disc 1 01 Going Home - A-1 Funk - Every Step Of The Way 02 Samba Pa Ti 03 Look Up (To See What’s Coming Down) 04 Just In Time To See The Sun 05 Incident At Neshabur 06 Bambele 07 Stone Flower 08 Batucada Disc 2 09 Xibaba (She-Ba-Ba) 10 Stone Flower (Reprise) 11 Waiting 12 Castillos De Arena, Part 1 (Sand Castle) 13 Free Angela 14 Promise Of A Fisherman 15 Aranjuez 16 Mantra 17 Castillos De Arena, Part 2 (Sand Castle) 18 Earth 19 Se A Cabo 20 Savor 21 Toussaint L’Overture Carlos Santana (guitar/percussion/vocals) Douglas Rauch (bass/guitar) Michael Shrieve (drums) Jose “Chepito” Areas (percussion) Armando Peraza (percussion/vocals) Tom Coster (keyboard/vocals) Richard Kermode (keyboard) -
NEW SOURCE Audience 8.7 This is a major upgrade to the previous version (see old review below for comparison) and as such we felt that it had to be offered here as a replacement. If you purchased the previous version (the artwork is untouched, only the music has been replaced in this set) than you are entitled to receive replacement discs without charge (pay postage cost only). Just reach out to us and we will take it from there. If you have never bought this title, than consider this one worthy of the collection. I will offer this caveat though - it is a recording that still shows its share of shortcomings, such as maybe a touch of overload during more bombastic passages (not nearly as bad as previous!), and the last track is incomplete (better an incomplete but listenable track than a totally un-listenable mess). OLD SOURCE Audience 7.2 This one is rather mediocre, although it is not “unlistenable” at all, but compared to other 1977 recordings it is what I would classify as “for completists only”. That being said, I can point out a few moments of this concert that I found interesting in a lot of ways. Like, during Pigs On The Wing Pt.1 you hear large explosions from the audience (possibly fireworks or maybe PA problem?) and you immediately think of Roger and how he’s probably disgusted with the whole thing by this time. Pink Floyd Spectrum Theater Philadelphia, PA, USA 29 June 1977 Disc 1 01 Sheep 02 Pigs On The Wing, Part 1 03 Dogs 04 Pigs On The Wing, Part 2 05 Pigs (Three Different Ones) 06 Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V) Disc 2 07 Welcome To The Machine 08 Have A Cigar 09 Wish You Were Here 10 Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts VI-IX) 11 Money 12 Us And Them -
Soundboard 9.6 - All excellent soundboard recordings and sourced from first generation cassette masters. Explore this wonderful and important originator of West Coast psychedelic rock. Quicksilver Messenger Service West Coast Live 1967-1970 Disc 1 Winterland, San Francisco, CA 1967-12-31 (Sunday) 1. -Instrumental 2. -Pride of Man 3. -Who Do You Love 4. -If You Live 5. -Too Long 6. -Smokestack Lightning 7. -Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You 8. -Gold & Silver 9. -Dino's Song 10. -Back Door Man 11. -Mona Disc 2 01. -The Final Jam (Winterland 1967 cont'd) Fillmore East, New York, NY June 7,1968 02 -Smokestack Lightning 03 -Codine 04 -Light Your Windows 05 -Who Do You Love 06 -The Fool Disc 3 Fillmore East, New York, NY June 8,1968 01 -Pride Of Man 02 -If You Live 03 -Dino's Song 04 -Backdoor Man 05 -Acapulco Gold And Silver 06 -Mona Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA 18 June 1970 07 -Edward, The Mad Shirt Grinder 08 -It's Yours (Take It) 09 -10 After 2 Jam John Cipollina - guitar, vocals David Freiberg - bass Nicky Hopkins - piano Greg Elmore - drums -
Audience 8.6 - A tape that has gone through extensive rehabilitation and is now something I can recommend to fans. First off, you no longer have a low volume, crowded tape – this new re-master has the sound panned wider which allowed the muddier channel to be dealt with properly…all the work has paid off because, quite frankly, any 70’s-‘80’s Priest tape needs to be considered as historically valuable, right up to around 1986 IMHO. Judas Priest Long Beach Arena Long Beach, California May 24, 1981 World Wide Blitz Tour 01. -Solar Angels 02. -Heading Out To The Highway 03. -Diamonds And Rust 04. -Hell Bent For Leather 05. -Breakin' The Law 06. -Sinner 07. -Beyond The Realms Of Death 08. -Grinder 09. -Desert Plains 10. -Hot Rockin' 11. -You Don't Have To Be Old To Be Wise 12. -Victim Of Changes 13. -The Green Manalishi (With The Two-Pronged Crown) 14. -Livin' After Midnight 15. -Tyrant - outro -
Soundboard 9.4 - A love the sound on this, just full of energy and sounds fresh as if it happened last week. Great performance the band had to have been just having a blast. Bob Dylan The Warehouse New Orleans,LA. May 3, 1976 - Evening Show Disc 1 01 Mr.Tambourine Man 02 Love Minus Zero / No Limit 03 Vincent Van Gogh 04 Maggie's Farm 05 Mozambique 06 Isis 07 Railroad Boy 08 I Pity The Poor Immigrant 09 Shelter From The Storm Disc 2 01 Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again 02 You're A Big Girl Now 03 Rita May 04 Lay Lady Lay 05 Idiot Wind 06 Knockin' On Heaven's Door 07 Gotta Travel On -
Soundboard 8.8 - A grungy, dirty piece of heaven! I used to listen to this band when I was young man not yet in my 20’s. I was so happy to finally hear what they were like live…and be able to hear it! I shy away from a lot of this old metal only because it was so hard to record them live unless it was through the board or professionally. This is cool shit! Nasty Savage CBGB New York, NY 11 27 85 1. No Sympathy 2. Gladiator 3. Fear Beyond the Vision 4. Asmodeus 5. Metal Knights 6. Unchained Angel 7. Instigator 8. Psychopath 9. Dungeon of Pleasure 10. The Morgue 11. Indulgence 12. Witches Sabbath 13. End of Time 14. XXX 15. Savage Desire -
Audience 8.7 - Do not be put off by the rating! This is a very strong 8.7 verging closer to 8.8. Why do I stress that? Because it has a lot going for it, the only black mark I hold against it is due to the lack of distinction between guitars and Paul being pushed back in the sound mix. That being said, it’s more the “mix” of the guitars that leads me to say that, not that you can’t pick each one up. I think I am just being picky though. Kiss Jai-Alai Fronton Miami, FL. 3-21-1976 01 Intro 02 Deuce 03 Strutter 04 C´mon And Love Me 05 Hotter Than Hell 06 Firehouse 07 She 08 Ace Solo 09 Parasite 10 Nothin´ To Lose 11 Shout It Out Loud 12 Gene Solo 13 100.000 Years 14 Peter Solo - 100.000 Years 15 Black Diamond 16 Cold Gin 17 Rock And Roll All Nite 18 Let Me Go, Rock And Roll -
FM Broadcast 9.3 - Great recording here, obviously being that it was broadcast it had to be done professionally but I really like how this was mixed to allow such an impactful guitar sound. PAT TRAVERS 1982-12-09 Civic Center Baltimore, Maryland U.S.A. Opening for BLUE OYSTER CULT w/Special Guest; BUCK DHARMA (B.O.C.) 1. -Introduction - THE FIFTH 2. -WHO'LL TAKE THE FALL 3. -LIFE IN LONDON 4. -I'D RATHER SEE YOU DEAD 5. -I LA LA LA LOVE YOU 6. -STEVIE 7. -AMGWANNA KICK BOOTY 8. -CAN'T STOP THE HEARTACHES 9. -STATESBORO BLUES 10. -SNORTIN' WHISKEY AND DRINKIN' COCAINE 11. -ROCKIN' 12. -BOOM BOOM (Out Go The Lights) 13. -SUNSHINE OF YOUR LOVE (Buck Dharma) Musicians PAT TRAVERS- Guitar/Keyboards/Vocals PAT THRALL- Guitars/Synthesizer/Backing Vocals PETER "Mars" COWLING- Bass SANDY GENNARO or DAVE LEVINE- Drums * BUCK DHARMA (B.O.C.)- Introduction & Guitar -
Sunrise, Fl. 1992 Audience 9.1 - A really nice and bright recording. It’s not as full on the low end but it’s there, everything is pretty clear and it is a pretty spacious, atmospheric tape. Groningen 1992 Audience 9.2 - This tape is bright, good balance, and a realistic live atmosphere. Black Sabbath 1992-07-24 & 09-17 Disc 1 Sunrise Musical Theater Sunrise, Florida 1992-07-24 101 Soundcheck (Vinny Appice) - Intro 102 E5150 103 The Mob Rules 104 Computer God 105 Children Of The Sea 106 Time Machine 107 War Pigs 108 I 109 Die Young 110 Guitar Solo - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath 111 Black Sabbath Disc 2 201 TV Crimes 202 Master Of Insanity 203 After All (The Dead) 204 Drum Solo 205 Iron Man 206 Heaven And Hell 207 Neon Knights 208 Paranoid - Heaven And Hell (Reprise) Disc 3 Evenementenhal Groningen, Netherlands 1992-09-17 301 E5150 302 The Mob Rules 303 Computer God 304 Children Of The Sea 305 Time Machine 306 War Pigs 307 I 308 Die Young Disc 4 401 Guitar Solo - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath 402 Black Sabbath 403 Master Of Insanity 404 After All (The Dead) 405 Drum Solo 406 Iron Man 407 Heaven And Hell 408 Neon Knights 409 Paranoid - Heaven And Hell (Reprise) -
Soundboard 9.4 - A nice, low gen board from what I consider the apex of this band. In fact I would say my favorite live Santana originates from the Lotus era. I will say this mix does highlight percussion in a way that you hear cymbals and other instruments in a different aural space, almost in stereo as they seem to phase across the speakers and sometimes may even give you the feeling you are hearing tape hiss but alas it is actually residual crash cymbal sounds and maracas. Interesting. Santana Metropolitan Sports Arena Minneapolis, MN March 19, 1973 Disc 1 01 Going Home - A-1 Funk - Every Step Of The Way 02 Samba Pa Ti 03 Look Up (To See What’s Coming Down) 04 Just In Time To See The Sun 05 Incident At Neshabur 06 Bambele 07 Stone Flower 08 Batucada Disc 2 09 Xibaba (She-Ba-Ba) 10 Stone Flower (Reprise) 11 Waiting 12 Castillos De Arena, Part 1 (Sand Castle) 13 Free Angela > Concierto de Aranjuez 14 Mantra - Kyoto 15 Castillos De Arena, Part 2 (Sand Castle) 16 Earth 17 Se A Cabo 18 Savor 19 Toussaint L’Overture