 |
|
|
Artist:
Bob Dylan
One of the many oddities of Bob Dylan's long and unruly career has been the rather cursory recording treatment given his stint as ringleader of the Rolling Thunder Revue. It's a shortcoming that's rectified with the release of Live 1975. Prior to the appearance of this two-disc collection, Rolling Thunder's eclectic road show was chronicled only in the infrequently screened, Dylan-directed Renaldo & Clara film and the bafflingly brief and one-note 1976 live set, Hard Rain. In contrast to its predecessor, this set, culled from four appearances made in November and December of '75, captures the breadth and subtleties of Dylan's Rolling Thunder performances. "Tonight I'll Be Staying Here with You," formerly a coda from Nashville Skyline, is given a rather incongruous bite here, while "It Ain't Me, Babe" is colored brightly by multi-instrumentalist David Mansfield along with erstwhile David Bowie guitarist Mick Ronson, the sparkplug of the gratifyingly ragtag group that coalesced on short notice. Solo acoustic performances weave through caterwauling full-band treatments of songs old ("The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll) and new ("Hurricane" and four other ...
List Price: $19.98 |
Our Price: $10.01 |
|
|
|
|
|
Artist:
Bob Dylan
Nineteen ninety-eight: The same year he dances with Soy Bomb at the Grammys, his record label finally issues Bob Dylan's ultimate live document. A classic case of not giving the audience what they want but what they need, Mr. Dylan's oft-bootlegged 1966 gig begins with lovely and supple folk that foreshadows folk music's turn from protest song to introspection. The album's true highlight is the legendarily ill received and rocked-out electric set, with Dylan backed by members of the Band. There are too many perfect, on-fire guitar solos by Robbie Robertson to count, and Dylan himself responds to the audience's angry bewilderment with equal parts menace, grace, and brilliance. --Mike McGonigal
List Price: $19.98 |
Our Price: $11.05 |
|
|
|
|
|
Artist:
10,000 Maniacs
List Price: $7.98 |
Our Price: $2.56 |
|
|
|
|
|
Artist:
Eva Cassidy
Recorded live at Blues Alley, Washington, D.C., Jan. 2, 1996, where the late folk singer/songwriter had a loyal following. 13 tracks, including four that appeared on her breakthrough 1998 album, 'Songbird'. Blix Street.
List Price: $16.98 |
Our Price: $11.44 |
|
|
|
|
|
Artist:
Harry Chapin
"Stories" is the operative word here. The late Harry Chapin penned tales that touched a chord in listeners regardless of their age, background, or truth be told, regardless even of the type of music they normally listened to. Chapin always came across as a tough guy with a heart of gold, a brainy type who wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty--much like the protagonist of "Taxi" (a terrific rendition of which is contained herein). In addition to radio staples like "Cat's in the Cradle," the 1976 recording also sheds light on slightly lesser-known pieces like "Circle" and "Mr. Tanner." Chapin's affable manner shines through the entire album, giving it a disarming quality that's not always present on the studio versions. --David Sprague
List Price: $11.98 |
Our Price: $7.28 |
|
|
|
|
|
Artist:
Loreena McKennitt
An enchanting musical performance, set beneath the stars in the breathtaking Moorish heart of medieval Spain. Captured in concert in September 2006, singer/composer Loreena McKennitt leads viewers through the multi-textured landscapes of her catalog, from traditional Celtic ballads to literary narratives and highlights from her latest recording, An Ancient Muse. Filmed in rich HDTV, Nights from the Alhambra evokes the otherworldly magic of Granada's palace of dreams, the fiery and inspired performances of a stellar cast of supporting musicians and, of course, the unforgettable voice and songs of Loreena McKennitt herself. The package includes the complete footage on DVD and 2 separate audio CDs that encompass the complete evening.
List Price: $26.98 |
Our Price: $19.58 |
|
|
|
|
|
Artist:
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
Young has recorded many live albums, but none capture his two dominant musical personalities with as much power as 1979's Rust Never Sleeps. The acoustic side opens with "My, My, Hey, Hey (Out of the Blue)," a devastating anthem about the state of rock & roll. Comparing the Sex Pistols' Johnny Rotten to the late Elvis Presley, Young delivers perhaps his most famous line: "It's better to burn out than to fade away." Side 2 demonstrates the emotional power of Young's hard-rocking quartet, Crazy Horse, with the scathing political songs "Powderfinger," "Welfare Mothers," and the loud reprise of "My, My, Hey, Hey." --Steve Knopper
List Price: $13.98 |
Our Price: $7.50 |
|
|
|
|
|
Artist:
Odetta
List Price: $17.98 |
Our Price: $12.24 |
|
|
|
|
|
Artist:
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
Mere months passed between the release of Neil Young's mid-career milestone Rust Never Sleeps and this 1979 tour recording, which documents a late-'78 San Francisco performance. Indeed, Live Rust boasts four songs from the album that gave it its name. It's also sequenced in the same spirit as its studio sibling. As with Rust Never Sleeps, Live Rust opens with steady-flowing acoustic numbers before swirling into an electric vortex. What was side 4 off the original two-record version--"Like a Hurricane," "Hey, Hey, My, My," and "Tonight's the Night"--is arguably Young and Crazy Horse at their peak as a live unit, with all due respect to 1991's estimable Weld and 1997's desultory Year of the Horse. Few rock bands rank with Young and his stalwart electric trio, and Live Rust presents them in all their raging glory. --Steven Stolder
List Price: $18.98 |
Our Price: $8.88 |
|
|
|
|
|
Artist:
Bob Dylan
The brooding Bob Dylan of the 1966 live collection in the Dylan bootleg series gave way to an even more hooded character on the second live bootleg album from 1974. Which makes the jump back to a younger Dylan in this set all the more jarring. Here is Dylan as an eager-to-please 23 year old with nothing between him and his worshippers but a guitar, a harmonica, and, for four songs, his lover, Joan Baez. In marked contrast to the acerbic electric Dylan of the mid-'60s and the tight-lipped living legend of the mid-'70s, here is Dylan as entertainer. Joking and bantering with the crowd, Dylan deals up some favorites ("The Times They Are A-Changin'," "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right"), but is already shedding his earnest folkie persona; imagine another artist a mere two years into his career declining to perform a hit on the scale of "Blowin' in the Wind." But Dylan was moving fast. Having completed the last all-acoustic collection of his early years three months before the Philharmonic concert, he would record the half-electric/half-acoustic Bringing It All Back Home three months later. Three of the four acoustic songs from that album are presented here, as are a handful of t...
List Price: $21.98 |
Our Price: $11.98 |
|
|
|
|
|
