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From the ashes of the Moving Sidewalks, former members Tom Moore and Dan Mitchell decided to carry on playing the blues once Billy Gibbons formed ZZ Top and was doing straight up Texas style blues rock. Featuring Hammond B3 organ, the band had a different approach to blues rock but executed with the same kind of unique Texas panache. A single 7" was released but the band recorded quite a bit of material which never saw the light of day. This CD gathers most of those recordings along with a disc full of rare live tracks, of which include Ottis Coleman (Honest John, 1900 Storm, Texas Blend) replacing Tom Moore and Dusty Wakeman (bass) who also happened to be in The Barons and engineered the Honest John album in 1975. -
Audience 8.8 - This is better than I give it credit for, mainly because it has all the elements needed to be very enjoyable - namely: clarity, separation of instruments, and atmosphere. Where it lacks the necessary qualifications to enter into 9.0 and above rating status is more in the dynamics range (is low end low, is high end high, are mids clear and punchy?) which here are expressed mostly with the lovely, brassy and defined bass sound. This is good! But perhaps we are spoiled now with all the audio riches we have at our disposal. This is a very good old tape, with a re-mastering I assume it would rise to the 9.0 level, but the bones are here. E.L.P Odeon Theatre Birmingham, UK 1972-11-24 Disc 1 01. ABADDONS BOLERO 02. HOEDOWN 03. TARKUS 04. ALAN FREEMANS THEME 05. THE SHERIFF 06. TAKE A PEBBLE Disc 2 07. LUCKY MAN 08. PIANO IMPROVISATIONS - TAKE A PEBBLE 09. PICTURES AT AN EXHIBITION 10. NUTROCKER 11. RONDO -
Audience 8.7 - Loud and brassy, with some distortion on the cymbals at the high end. Taper must have been in the front row on the PA side of the stage. That being said, this is what makes this recording frightening to the ears, a terrifying journey into the unrelenting power and charisma of ELP in their mid 70's prime. There is nothing sedate about this live concert experience, and because it was recorded on very good equipment, even despite the overwhelming loudness of it, it's a rather true representation. Side Note: Jerusalem is a song with more mellow passages and here this recording absolutely shines, jumping quickly to a 9.2 rating and actually remaining better even during the loud segments as it starts to even out - this could be due to taper either moving further back, or making some other minor adjustment. Something certainly is changing with the recording as tape noise increases but the distortion lessens, this could mean he lowered the gain, so the volume had to be boosted during the transfer as his recording levels were much lower. Either way, it had a net positive effect. Unfortunately not the complete show. Emerson, Lake & Palmer Long Beach Arena Long Beach, CA February 3, 1974 01 Introduction 02 Hoedown 03 Jerusalem 04 Toccata 05 Tarkus -
Soundboard 8.8 - a rather dusty old tape but oh how glorious it is! So many years later and this unpolished gem finally surfaces! You can tell it's age, sure, but the bones are all here and the band is ferocious. Opening for Black Sabbath, yeah, they had to bring it and history knows the rest. The inclusion of the recently surfaced film footage adds to the excitement of these finds, even if the footage is not the same San Diego show of the same year. Van Halen San Diego Sports Arena San Diego, California December 3rd, 1978 01. I'm On Fire 02. I'm The One 03. Bass Solo 04. Runnin' With The Devil 05. Atomic Punk 06. Drum Solo 07. Jamie's Cryin' 08. Ice Cream Man 09. Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love 10. Eruption 11. You Really Got Me Bonus Disc Pro Shot film footage San Diego 07-08-78 -
Audience 9.7 - Is it live or is it Memorex?? It's both. It's a capture onto magnetic tape that sounds like it's real life. I totally life-like sound, immersed in the audience but placed ideally in front of the stage and getting a great mix. Your friends surround you, enjoying the moment as are you. Fuck this is a great recording! Kinks Beacon Theatre New York City, NY March 16, 1987 Disc 1 01 Low Budget 02 Come Dancing 03 Working At The Factory 04 Lost And Found 05 Welcome To Sleazy Town 06 The Video Shop 07 Living On A Thin Line 08 Guilty 09 Misfits 10 A Well Respected Man Disc 2 11 Lola 12 David Watts 13 State of Confusion 14 A Gallon of Gas 15 All Day and All of the Night 16 I Gotta Move 17 Better Things 18 Celluloid Heroes 19 Dedicated Follower of Fashion 20 Till the End of the Day 21 You Really Got Me 22 Victoria -
Audience 9.7 - For me, this right here encapsulates the 70's for me growing up. When I first discovered rock and roll, the radio was on repeat with the Frampton Comes Alive! album, and everyone in the neighborhood had a copy. I had it on 8 track. This live recording is the bomb, just a wonderful document of a great moment in 70's rock music history. I love the atmosphere too, everything about this actually does "come alive" and for that it deserves the high rating. Peter Frampton The Forum Inglewood, CA December 9, 1976 Disc 1 01 One More Time 02 Baby I Love Your Way 03 Sail Away 04 Fanfare 05 Alright 06 I Wanna Go To The Sun 07 Something's Happening 08 Doobie Wah 09 Lines On My Face 10 Show Me The Way Disc 2 11 (I'll Give You) Money 12 (I'm A) Roadrunner 13 Signed Sealed Delivered 14 It's A Plain Shame 15 Do You Feel Like We Do 16 Shine On 17 White Sugar 18 Jumpin' Jack Flash 19 I'm In You -
Soundboard 9.7 - I give this a stellar and glowing review and consider it an absolute must have for any self-respecting ACDC….no, wait, any self-respecting rock music fan. Why? Because, even though the old tape has an occasional drop out (rarely), it is so fucking electrifying, exciting, and pure that you can’t help but bang your head to it…the entire show! The combination of the superb live mix that maintains 100% live energy, there’s no mixing the life out of this bad boy, and the amazing performance all contribute to must have status. I love how I can hear Malcolm so distinctly, and even the bass notes come through…but the drums, that insistent rat a tat snare just makes this tape a winner bar-none. The bonus concert on disc two is also a board tape, and it has a different feel to it but it is also amazing. Get it man!
ACDC Austin, Texas, USA Erwin Centre October 11, 1985 *Bonus Tracks: Dallas, Texas, USA Reunion Arena October 12, 1985 Disc 1 01 Fly On The Wall 02 Back In Black 03 Shake Your Foundations 04 Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap 05 You Shook Me All Night Long 06 Sin City 07 Jailbreak 08 The Jack 09 Shoot To Thrill 10 Highway To Hell 11 Sink The Pink 12 Whole Lotta Rosie Disc 2 01 Let There Be Rock 02 Hells Bells 03 T.N.T. 04 For Those About To Rock (We Salute You) 05 Back In Black * 06 Shake Your Foundations * 07 Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap * 08 You Shook me All Night Long * 09 The Jack * 10 Shoot To Thrill * 11 Sink The Pink * 12 Let There Be Rock * 13 T.N.T. *
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Soundboard 9.8 - This is a new phenomenon in the modern era of bootlegs. The producers have taken the soundboard from this legendary show and given it an AI powered multi-band compression re-mastering and it’s night and day. Not only that but also a meticulous editing to present what SHOULD have been officially released to the public and if I were Jimmy, well, I would steal this and package it and sell it ha ha! It’s that good.LED ZEPPELIN THE GOAT GARDEN TAPES MADISON SQUARE GARDEN July 28, 1973 DISC ONE 01. Introduction 02. Rock And Roll 03. Celebration Day 04. Black Dog 05. Over The Hills And Far Away 06. Misty Mountain Hop 07. Since I've Been Loving You 08. No Quarter 09. The Song Remains The Same 10. The rain song DISC TWO 01. Dazed And Confused 02. Stairway To Heaven 03. Moby Dick DISC THREE 01. Heartbreaker 02. Whole Lotta Love 03. The Ocean
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Audience 9.2 - A nice and bright tape, very clear, very clean, instantly you feel as though these tapers came with serious intention. How I was not familiar with this tape is a head scratcher because it is great. Pink Floyd Miami Baseball Stadium Miami, Florida 1977-04-22 Disc 1 01. -Sheep (10:58) 02. -Pigs On The Wing (Part 1) (1:21) 03. -Dogs (18:18) 04. -Pigs On The Wing (Part 2) (2:28) 05. -Pigs (Three Different Ones) (17:33) Disc 2 01. -Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts 1-5) (13:38) 02. -Welcome To The Machine (7:55) 03. -Have A Cigar (5:27) 04. -Wish You Were Here (6:21) 05. -Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts 6-9) (22:06) 06. -Money (9:38) 07. -Us And Them (7:49) -
Studio 8.8 - This is a band recorded project obviously. Like it was done on a boom box, but a good boom box because you can just tell it was loud in the room and it’s not ideal but it gets the job done. So, it’s a tad overdriven in a good way – raw, and loud, and VAN HALEN in about as real a way as it could be. Very fun to listen to and classic fly on the wall stuff. VAN HALEN 1979 Tour Rehearsals 1 -Running with the devil 2 -On Fire 3 -Bass 4 -Your No Good 5 -Talking 6 -Bass - Drums 7 -Bright lights Big City 8 -Somebody get Me a Doctor 9 -Light up the Sky 10 -Dave Talks 11 -Dance the Night Away 12 -Beautiful Girls 13 -Eddie Guitar Solo Jam - Sound Check 14 -Eddie Acoustic Jam Home Demo 15 -Bass and Drums 1 16 -Bass And Drums 2 17 -Bass And Drums 3 18 -Bass And Drums 4 19 -Bass And Drums 5 -
Audience 8.8 – This is NOT the Monsters of Rock show, it’s actually the last DLR (classic era) show and it’s pretty good! It’s not super close up or terribly far from stage, seems to be in a nice spot and everything is clear with decent dynamics. Now, it’s a recording from a rowdy crowd but even with that I felt they did not ruin this or intrude unnecessarily – in fact it seemed they wanted to listen to the band and not hold conversations or stupid hooting and whistling during songs. Fantastic! Van Halen Stadion am Dutzendteich Nurnberg, Germany 1984-09-02 Disc 1 01. -Unchained 02. -Hot For Teacher 03. -Drum Solo 04. -On Fire 05. -Running With The Devil 06. -Little Guitars 07. -House Of Pain 08. -Bass Solo 09. -I’ll Wait 10. -Everybody Wants Some Disc 2 11. -Oh, Pretty Woman 12. -1984 13. -Jump 14. -Guitar Solo 15. -Panama 16. -You Really Got Me 17. -Happy Trails – You Really Got Me (reprise) Disc 3 Single cam (on stage) video w/sound. DVD -
FM Broadcast 9.4 - Brilliant quality, and that is great because this band was just reaching their zenith around this time with the release of their FM radio optimized masterpiece Lovedrive. The Scorpions ChicagoFest, Navy Pier Chicago, IL. June 8, 1979 1. Pictured Life 2. Backstage Queen 3. We'll Burn The Sky 4. Loving You Sunday Morning 5. Lovedrive 6. In Trance 7. Always Somewhere 8. Life's Like A River 9. Fly To The Rainbow 10. He's A Woman, She's A Man 11. Another Piece Of Meat 12. Top Of The Bill 13. Robot Man 14. Steamrock Fever -
Soundboard 9.8 - Damn near perfection here. There are a couple of very desirable boards from this tour and this, by far, is one of them. Grab it! Rush Blockbuster Pavilion Charlotte, North Carolina June 14, 1992 DISC 1 01 - Force Ten 5:01 02 - Limelight 4:21 03 - Freewill 4:04 04 - Distant Early Warning 4:26 05 - Time Stand Still 6:16 06 - Dreamline 5:07 07 - Bravado 6:53 08 - Roll The Bones 6:06 09 - Show Don't Tell 6:17 10 - The Big Money 6:30 11 - Ghost Of A Chance 5:32 DISC 2 01 - Vital Signs 4:52 02 - The Analog Kid 5:24 03 - The Trees 5:12 04 - Where's My Thing 5:28 05 - The Rhythm Method 7:46 06 - Closer To The Heart 4:43 07 - Xanadu 6:39 08 - Superconductor 5:07 09 - Tom Sawyer 6:03 10 - The Spirit Of Radio 4:50 11 - 2112 Overture 1:28 -
Audience 8.7 - One of those tapes that you have to force yourself past the first song which gets mauled as the taper seemingly works to find his spot and get all his shit together…but then it just opens up to a much better experience. It kind of feels like going from the mud puddle to a waterfall, but in reality the tape is still only a little above average – but muddy it is not and that is great news to Van Halen collectors who seek every DLR recording in existence. Van Halen Rosemont Horizon Chicago, IL. 1984-03-13 Disc 1 01. -Unchained 02. -Hot For Teacher 03. -Drum Solo 04. -On Fire 05. -Running With The Devil 06. -Little Guitars 07. -Cathedral 08. -House Of Pain 09. -Bass Solo 10. -Jamie's Crying 11. -I'll Wait 12. -Keyboard Solo Disc 2 13. -Everybody Wants Some 14. -Girl Gone Bad 15. -1984 16. -Jump 17. -Guitar Solo 18. -Oh, Pretty Woman 19. -Panama 20. -You Really Got Me 21. -Ain’t Talkin’ ’Bout Love -
Chicago 1975 Audience 8.7 A strong tape showcasing Tony for sure as he comes through loud and clear. Ozzy is next in the sound mix followed by somewhat indistinct bass and drums in that they are not detailed, but they are still present as the power of the band is transferred to the tape – this is not a “transistor” radio recording by any means. Very enjoyable! Baltimore 1975 Audience 8.8 This tape is great although it is slightly subdued, but the live sound mix is extremely brutal, you really get a good feel for how powerful this band’s sound was at the time. I wish it was a little bit clearer maybe, but as this show plays you are so sucked into it you really don’t feel critical because it’s a devastating and great ’75 performance. San Bernardino 1975 Audience 9.2 A very open and bright recording that, even with some limitations of the analog tape being used, rates very high for the sheer excitement and power being displayed and thankfully captured so well. I also love the visceral audience reactions (especially when War Pigs gets going), seriously it gave me goose bumps! Love this! Black Sabbath USA 1975 Disc 1 International Amphitheatre Chicago, IL 1975-07-16 101 Supertzar 102 Killing Yourself To Live 103 Hole In The Sky 104 Snowblind 105 Symptom Of The Universe 106 War Pigs 107 Megalomania 108 Sabbra Cadabra 109 Jam - Guitar Solo #1 110 Sometimes I'm Happy 111 Drum Solo 112 Supernaut 113 Iron Man 114 Guitar Solo #2 Disc 2 Civic Centre Baltimore, MD 1975-08-02 201 Intro 202 Hole In The Sky 203 Snowblind 204 Symptom Of The Universe 205 War Pigs 206 Megalomania 207 Guitar Solo #1 - Jam 208 Sometimes I'm Happy 209 Drum Solo 210 Supernaut 211 Iron Man 212 Guitar Solo #2 213 Black Sabbath 214 Spiral Architect 215 Embryo - Children Of The Grave 216 Paranoid Disc 3 Orange Show Auditorium San Bernardino, CA 1975-09-05 301 Supertzar 302 Killing Yourself To Live 303 Hole In The Sky 304 Snowblind 305 Symptom Of The Universe 306 War Pigs 307 Sabbra Cadabra 308 Guitar Solo #1 - Jam 309 Sometimes I'm Happy 310 Drum Solo 311 Supernaut 312 Iron Man 313 Guitar Solo #2 314 Rock 'n' Roll Doctor Jam 315 Black Sabbath 316 Spiral Architect -
Soundboard 9.3 - There are quite a few board tapes from this period, so which ones do you get? After listening to this one, I really think it’s one of the ones to get. Great sound, but a really strong performance (when did they not?) too.
The Police "Live In Melbourne '81" Disc 1 01 Voices Inside My Head 02 Don't Stand So Close To Me 03 Walking On The Moon 04 Death Wish 05 Fallout 06 Man In A Suitcase 07 Bring On The Night 08 De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da 09 Truth Hits Everybody 10 Shadows In The Rain Disc 2 01 When The World Is Running Down 02 The Bed's Too Big Without You 03 Driven To Tears 04 Message In A Bottle 05 Roxanne 06 Can't Stand Losing You 07 So Lonely