Muddy "Mississippi" Waters Live Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)If you like the blues at all, you'll be absolutely blown away by this live performance. Just the first 15 seconds thrill: Muddy Waters' deep deep vocal tones with an abrupt break to the familiar guitar/drums/bass/harp riff of his classic, "Mannish Boy." (And that's not even the best song on the CD.)
The audience is totally into it, both on this song and the entire album--screaming, yelling, whistling, shouting--making this almost as exciting as "James Brown at the Apollo," and certainly among the best live blues ever recorded. The sound quality is excellent, credit the mix to Dave Still at "The Schoolhouse and Hit Factory."
The group is unbelievably talented and plays with great empathy: Muddy Waters on vocals and guitar, "Pine Top" Perkins (piano), James Cotton (harp), additional guitar from Johnny Winter, Luther "Guitar Jr." Johnson, and many others. I don't hear any softening of Muddy Waters' voice; he is as authoritative, soulful, and unique as ever. Muddy Waters set a very high (probably unsurpassed) standard for anyone who followed. It's sheer delight to hear his inventive singing and slide guitar so well recorded and backed.

Perhaps the most memorable concert I ever attended was a late 1970's performance at the Roxy in L.A. As Muddy Waters walked up to the stage, I felt a sense of transcendentalism, as if History were climbing the stairs. And then he tore the roof off. Although only about 40 minutes long (and with notes limited to personnel descriptions), the music on this CD recaptured some of that experience for me.
Along with "Mannish Boy" and the great "She's Nineteen Years Old," other Morganfield compositions (there's one number written by Sonny Boy Williamson) include "Streamline Woman," "Baby Please Don't Go," "Howling Wolf," and "Deep Down in Florida." 'Wolf' features Waters' bee-stingingly intense slide guitar, one that can righteously cut through the thickest, meanest heart and soul. With just a few perfectly played notes, Waters' slide guitar dredges buckets of emotion. "Gainesville'--perhaps the best song here ("Yeah I believe I'll go back to Gainesville...just to see an old friend of mine.")--has amazing solos by "Pine Top" Perkins, Johnny Winter, and James Cotton, who blows some of the purest and most stirring harp notes in blues.
This is the liturgy of the blues, the thick ooze of the traditional and the familiar wrapped with enough personal style to uncover new emotion. Powerful, raw, and spine tingling, this is the blues as only McKinley "Muddy Waters" Morganfield could play it.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Muddy "Mississippi" Waters Live

Muddy "Mississippi" Waters Live -Muddy Waters
This product is manufactured on demand using CD-R recordable media. Amazon.com's standard return policy will apply.

Click here for more information about Muddy "Mississippi" Waters Live

Breakin It Up: Breakin It Down Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Muddy Waters' work on Chess Records from the late 1940s to the early 1970s is truly amazing. He was the most powerful blues artist and one of the best songwriters. Many fans think he was in decline in the mid-1970s when "Breakin' It Up, Breakin' It Down" was recorded. This concert document should dispel those thoughts. It might have taken Muddy longer to build up a head of steam, but when he got rollin', he was as "mannish" as ever. With old pal James Cotton blowing away on harp and Johnny Winter (who ignited Muddy's revival by producing his later records on Blue Sky Records) as his co-stars on the 1977 tour, Muddy was pushed to the heights he regularly reached in his 1950s and 1960s heyday ("Pinetop" Perkins on piano, and Bob Margolin on guitar also shine). The live version of "Can't be Satisfied" - the second cut on the disc - is as strong as any live recording in his career. I saw this band at Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C. and the three stars were on fire and having a whale of a time. When I bought "Breakin' It Up, Breakin' It Down," I thought, "there is no way this recording will be as good as I remember the show." But not to worry, it's all here and hearing it again made me smile at the memories of Muddy, James, and Johnny pouring out electric blues. A rousing "Got My Mojo Working" (the encore) finishes things up nicely. Someone once said, "In Muddy Waters' hands 'the blues' is a misnomer."

Click Here to see more reviews about: Breakin It Up: Breakin It Down

Click here for more information about Breakin It Up: Breakin It Down

Irish Tour Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Let's just say that "Irish Tour," which has sold the most copies of any of the late Rory Gallagher's albums, captures one of the finest blues-rock guitarists of our time in peak form. This gem of a live recording was assembled from various gigs across Mr. Gallagher's troubled native Ireland in 1974, and he clearly relishes playing for the home crowd.
Mr. Gallagher and company churn through some longer versions of Walk on Hot Coals, Too Much Alcohol, and Who's That Coming, which allows Mr. Gallagher to improvise and experiment a bit. (There's not a bad number here, but why is Just a Little Bit not included on the CD version?)
I'm not prone to lavish adjectives on recordings, but there is more than enough intensity, passion, and virtuosity here to help the uninitiated learn what all the fuss is when it comes to Rory Gallagher's place in rock history.
Why four stars instead of five? It has nothing to do with Mr. Gallagher but rather a display of frustration about the omission of any bonus material!


Click Here to see more reviews about: Irish Tour

Digitally remastered reissue of the late bluesy Irish rockguitarist's 1974 concert album, first released on Polydor.Contains all 10 of the original tracks. Also featuresredesigned artwork & new liner notes. 1998 Strange Music/Capo/ RCA/ BMG release.

Click here for more information about Irish Tour

Rory Gallagher: Live at Montreux (2006) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)American Fans Rejoice. For years we've had to settle for the dreadfully directed "Irish Tour" movie, or inferior quality bootlegs sold on Ebay. Well, your prayers have been answered. "Live at Montreux" is a stunning collection of live concerts that captures Rory at his very best, from every stage of his career. There are four shows (75, 77, 79, 85), each about half an hour in legth, plus the entire concert from '94, and a bonus compillation on acoustic tracks. In all, there's about four and a half hours of material. The sound quality is amazing (dolby digital and DTS). The lighting, cinematography, and editing are all top notch. The performances are superior to any of Rory's live CDs.
Rory tears through "Tatoo'd Lady" and "Cradle Rock", delivering impassioned solos which are far superior to previously released live versions. "Garbage Man" is a slow blues tour deforce. On "Laundromat", Rory pulls out all the stops. The '75 performance was shot on film rather than tape, and the cinematography is amazing, adding drama and tension which serves to compliment the music.
By 77, Rory begins to move away from strictly blues-rock, and his music takes on a harder edge, as can be heard on the tracks, "I Take What I Want", "Shin Kicker", and "Shadow Play". "A Million Miles Away" is breathtaking and impassioned as always. On "Too Much Alcohol", "Out on a Western Plain", and particularly on "Pistol Slapper Blues", a textbook example of piedmont style taken to insane new heights, perfectly shows that, as a master of the blues, Rory was a virtuoso at every form.
What more can be said? This is the best music DVD in my collection. For pure molten pleasure, it holds up against the Led Zeppelin DVD, Jimi at Woodstock, and even Stevie Live at the el Macambo. So kick back, crack open a cold one, and get ready to rock. 5 stars is not enough.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Rory Gallagher: Live at Montreux (2006)

Legendary Irish guitarist Rory Gallagher played the renowned Montreux Festival on five occasions, spanning his breakthrough years in the mid-seventies right up to the year before his tragic early death at the age of 47 in 1995. This double DVD brings together material from all five shows to create the definitive Rory Gallagher live collection. Disc one features tracks from 1975, 1977, 1979 and 1985, while disc two has the whole concert from 1994 and bonus acoustic tracks from the earlier years.Tracklisting:Disc One 1975: 1. Tattoo’d Lady 2. Garbage Man 3. Cradle Rock 4. Tore Down 5. Laundromat 1977: 6. I Take What I Want 7. Calling Card 8. Secret Agent 9. Bought And Sold 10. Million Miles Away 11. Do You Read Me 12. Pistol Slapper Blues 1979: 13. Shin Kicker 14. The Last Of The Independents 15. Mississippi Sheiks 16. Too Much Alcohol 17. Shadowplay 1985: 18. Bad Penny 19. Moonchild 20. Banker’s Blues 21. Philby 22. Walking BluesDisc Two 1994: 1. Continental Op 2. Moonchild 3. I Wonder Who 4. Loop 5. Tattoo’d Lady 6. I Could Have Had Religion 7. Ghost Blues 8. Out On The Western Plain 9. Amazing Grace 10. Walking Blues 11. Blue Moon Of Kentucky 12. Off The Handle 13. Messin’ With The Kid 14. I’m ReadyDisc Two Bonus Features: Acoustic Tracks: 1975: 1. Pistol Slapper Blues 2. Too Much Alcohol 1977: 3. Out On The Western Plain 4. Barley Grape & Rag / Pistol Slapper Blues 5. Going To My Hometown 1985: 6. Walking Blues

Click here for more information about Rory Gallagher: Live at Montreux (2006)

Rory Gallagher - Irish Tour 1974 (1998) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Rory Gallagher is quite possibly the most criminally underrated guitarist from the seventies. He has been described as the Irish version of Eric Clapton or Johnny Winter. Like these two guitarists he is comfortable playing blues or rock but he can also play in a more folk oriented style or even a jazzier style if the situation warrants it. This documentary of his 1974 Irish Tour should go a long way to rectify the situation. While Gallagher's reputation may have suffered due to his fear of flying and his humble nature, his playing more than speaks for itself. This fact is evident during the interviews and non-concert footage from the DVD. Gallagher's primary motivation appears to be the music and his fans, not the money and acclaim. Rory appears almost embarrassed at times about his fame and while taking the time to sign autographs for his fans he appears almost shy. His stage apparel of jeans and a checkered shirt and battered Stratocaster are legendary and further prove that he is not on some sort of star trip.
The music itself is both incendiary and emotion filled. Aided by long time bassist Gerry McAvoy along with former Killing Floor members Rod de'Ath on drums and Lou Martin on keyboards Gallagher succeeds in translating the live concert experience to disk. The concert itself contains three numbers "Hands Up", "Going To My Home Town" and the raucous encore "Bullfrog Blues" lamentably not issued on the compact disk version of the "Irish Tour 1974". Gallagher is adept at both acoustic and electric guitars as evidenced by his acoustic cover of Tony Joe White's "As The Crow Flies". Rory was also an excellent slide guitarist and "Who's That Coming" provides a testiment to his slide guitar playing. His emotional reading of the slow blues "A Million Miles Away" is another highlight. The smile on Rory's face during the concert shows the viewer that he is both having a great time, which translates to the audience and is emotionally involved in the music. The concert footage is alternated with footage of Ireland and areas where Rory performed and grew up. This allows the viewer to identify with Gallagher's struggle to get his music heard outside of his native Ireland. Commentary is provided by both bassist Gerry McAvoy and Rory's brother and manager Donal. Some of the most interesting non-concert footage is of Gallagher jamming with the band before the concert and explaining the various styles and techniques he uses on both the acoustic and electric guitars. He also seems amused while shopping at a music store to find sheet music for some of his songs with his first band Taste.
I highly recommend this to fans of great blues and rock guitar playing. Rory Gallagher fans will find this essential due to the dearth of available live Gallagher footage and the three unissued versions of songs from the Irish Tour 1974. The film also provides valuable insights into Rory's background and personality. It also enhances the legacy of one of Ireland's greatest musicians.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Rory Gallagher - Irish Tour 1974 (1998)

Studio: Bmg Special ProductsRelease Date: 05/15/2001Run time: 80 minutes

Get 11% OFF

Click here for more information about Rory Gallagher - Irish Tour 1974 (1998)