Rating : 10/10

1 December 2004

This concert video was never commercially released Australia. I heard it one night as part of a simulcast on radio and was completely blown away. Unfortunately I had decided to tape the whole thing - Unfortunately I used a onto a cheap audio cassette and played it to death -The tape got chewed by my crappy walkman at least a dozen times (those were the days!!!) and I rescued it with sicky tape and decreasing degrees of success on each occasion, till eventually the Gods of Copyright smote it a death blow from which it never recovered. (Sad to admit, but I still have its dismembered remains in a bag of junk as I'm too loath to throw it away.)

This remains my favourite live rock recording of all time. It is a fine example of how a live rock concert should sound, with just about every number lifting the original version to a new level. Yes, Pages' STH goes off - I actually enjoy it without vocals more than the original. "Pump" is way cool. "Rita Mae" rocks. "Sundown" is a memorable cigarette lighter waver. I'd always considered "HiHo" one for the cheeseaters, but this version bounces along with a real rock & roll "joy de vivre" and makes me long to hear it played live at a festival with a bunch of aging hippies, flowers in the hair and weed in the air. However the standout track for me was "Gimme Some Lovin". I've never heard this song played since with this intro riff that continues as a backing figure- it sends the number into a totally different dimension that is just so right. The percussion treatment is the icing on the cake, creating a truly infectious groove for what has become a bit of a Soul chestnut.

I'll order one of the "poor quality" Brazilian releases and get to see the video for the first time - can't wait. Though I pray the owners of this baby get round to remastering the thing before it is lost to the world for good - It's too precious a commodity to be allowed to fade into the background of music history, especially when you consider the kak being foisted on us by record companies today.

This is rock played by true masters As God Intended - live, tight, passionate, and with a huge sense of fun.