The Doobie Brothers - 1975-10-26 - Von Braun Center, Huntsville, AL (plus bonus tracks)

The Doobie Brothers

1975-10-26
Von Braun Center, Huntsville, AL
FM Broadcast recording, very good quality
Available in both Lossless (FLAC) and Mp3 (320 kbps) versions

Here's another classic show from The Doobie Brothers, a couple years after the last one posted, which was still when they were a guitar-driven rockin' band, but also at a time when major changes were coming. The band followed up the success of Captain and Me (1973)  with another blockbuster album, What Were Once Vices are Now Habits (1974). Shortly after finishing recording their next album, Stampede (1975), in late 1974, it was obvious that Tom Johnston's health  was in bad shape. He needed to take time off, but the band started a promotional tour in early 1975, which Johnston started, but couldn't finish, as he required emergency hospitalization for severe bleeding ulcers and an extended recovery time. In order to finish the tour, the band brought in vocalist-keyboard player Michael McDonald (who Jeff Baxter knew from his Steely Dan days), divided up the vocal responsibilities, and split-up the dual guitar parts between Baxter and Simmons, and continued the tour quite successfully.  After the tour, the band was at a crossroads: Johnston, who was their primary songwriter and singer, would be unavailable for the foreseeable future, but the band were contractually required to release a new album in 1976. Fortunately, new addition McDonald was a seasoned songwriter as well, and bassist Tiran Porter also contributed some new songs, which along with Simmons' solid songwriting was just what they needed. So, McDonald's addition became permanent. However, McDonald's more laid-back, jazzy keyboard style and soft- spoken vocals took the band in a very different direction and style than the hard-rockin' Johnston, and thus their next album started a whole new phase of the Doobie Brothers music. But that's a story for next time. Right now, we are still focused on the more rockin' version of the band. Here is a combination of a couple of radio shows from 1975, an almost complete recording from Huntsville AL in October, as well as some tracks from an earlier show (with Tom still performing) in March, and topped off finally with a complete performance of 'Without You' (which has been cut in both of the previous recordings featured here. The shows feature new songs from Vices and Stampede, in addition to favorites from the earlier albums.
 

Tracklist:
01 Jesus Is Just Alright
02 Rockin' Down the Highway - Road Angel
03 South City Midnight Lady
04 Eyes of Silver
05 Black Water
06 Long Train Runnin'
07 China Grove
08 Without You (cut)

Bonus Tracks:
1975-03-23 - San Francisco CA
09. Neil's Fandango
10. Take Me In Your Arms
11. Workin' On You
1975-10-08 - Memphis, TN
12. Without You

Patrick Simmons - guitar & vocals
Jeff "Skunk" Baxter - guitar
Michael McDonald - keyboards, vocals (except 03-23 tracks)
Tiran Porter - bass, vocals
John Hartman - drums
Keith Knudsen - drums, vocals
Tom Johnston - guitar & vocals (1975-03-23 tracks only)

FLAC - Doobie Bros_1975-10-26_Huntsville+_FLAC.rar

mp3 - Doobie Bros_1975-10-26_Huntsville+_Mp3.rar

 

The Doobie Brothers - 1973-05-31 - Ultrasonic Studios, West Hempstead, NY

The Doobie Brothers

1973-05-31
Ultrasonic Studios, West Hempstead, NY
FM Broadcast (WLIR-FM) recording, very good quality
Available in both Lossless (FLAC) and Mp3 (320 kbps) versions

Let's continue with a theme of radio-friendly '70's bands. Here's The Doobie Brothers! The band was originally formed in 1970 when singer-guitarist-songwriter Tom Johnston and drummer John Hartman teamed up with singer-guitarist-songwriter Patrick Simmons and bassist Dave Shogren. They never actually wanted or intended for the name of the band to be The Doobie Brothers, but they were having trouble deciding on a name for their new band and were jokingly dubbed The Doobie Brothers by a musician friend, and thus used that for few early gigs. Although they always planned to come up with a better name, they never did, and the Doobie Brothers stuck. The band featured hard-driving dual electric lead guitars, three-part harmony vocals, and strong drumming, and soon established themselves as an up and coming band in Northern California, and a record contract with Warner Brothers followed. Their first album (The Doobie Brothers-1971) didn't quite capture the drive and energy of the band, being more acoustic, but it was a strong start. Later in 1971, singer-songwriter-bassist Tiran Porter replaced Dave Shogren, and they added a second drummer, Michael Hossack, which cemented the classic early lineup. The band's next album, Toulouse Street (1972) was their breakthrough, with the radio hits 'Listen to the Music', 'Rockin Down the Highway', and 'Jesus is Just Alright' and a solid album of songs. But their third album, The Captain and Me (1973) is what I consider to be their masterpiece, a near-perfect pop-rock album, just great from start to finish. With both Johnston and Simmons being top-notch singer-guitarist-songwriters with different but complementary styles, Johnston being more of a rocker, with a gritty R&B sound, and Simmons with a more laidback fingerpicking, they mesh and interplay perfectly with Johnston's hard-driving guitar rockers like 'Long Train Runnin', 'China Grove', and 'Without You', perfectly balanced with Simmons' acoustic beauties like 'South City Midnight Lady' and 'Clear as the Driven Snow'. Add in some funk, great harmonies and melodies, and it is just a classic '70's album. Their next album, What Were Once Vices are Now Habits (1974), continued their winning streak, with more big hits ('Black Water', 'Eyes of Silver', 'Another Park Another Sunday') and another strong album. There were however some changes in the band, as Michael Hossack left and was replaced with Keith Knudsen, and Jeff 'Skunk' Baxter (Steely Dan), who appeared as a session player on previous albums, joined the band full-time (due to the transition of Steely Dan from a real band to Becker-Fagen and session musicians). Also, by the end of 1974, after completing recording for their next album, Stampede (1975), Johnston's health  rapidly declined, needing to be hospitalized for bleeding ulcers and needing to take an extended break from the band. This would result in some major changes in sound and direction for the band in the coming years. But that is another story for another time. Today we focus on the those early glory days with Johnston and Simmons et al, and this great rockin' set from the Captain and Me tour.   

Tracklist:
01.South City Midnight Lady
02.Tuning
03.Clear as the Driven Snow
04.Long Train Running
05.Listen to the Music
06.China Grove
07.Rockin' Down the Highway
08.Tuning
09.Disciple>
10.Jesus is Just Alright>Disciple
11.Tuning
12.Without You (cut-fadeout)
Bonus Track: Midnight Special TV performance - date unknown)
13.Natural Thing

Tom Johnston - guitar & vocals
Patrick Simmons - guitar & vocals
Jeff "Skunk" Baxter - guitar
Tiran Porter - bass
John Hartman - drums
Michael Hossack - drums, percussion

FLAC - DoobieBros_1973-5-31_Ultrasonic_FLAC.rar

mp3 - DoobieBros_1973-5-31_Ultrasonic_mp3.rar
New Links! Updated 06/25/23

The Best (w/Keith Emerson) - 1990-09-26 - Yokahama, Japan

The Best
(Keith Emerson, John Entwhistle, Joe Walsh, Jeff "Skunk" Baxter, and Simon Phillips)
September 26, 1990
Yokohama Arena,
Yokohama, JapanSoundboard (from TV broadcast), Very Good Quality
Now available in Lossless! (FLAC) version!

Continuing with the Keith Emerson, ELP saga: While ELP was still on tour in 1977, they released their follow-up to Works, Vol. 1, Works, Vol. 2, a single album this time, and made-up primarily of miscellaneous and leftover tracks from previous recording sessions, and all short songs. Because of this, the album was not nearly as popular as its predecessor, but nonetheless still contained some very impressive tracks. In particular, Emerson's piano work, from his version of Scott Joplin Rag-time to the wonderful Meade Lux Lewis's 'Honky-Tonk Train Whistle Blues', as well as Keith's self-penned version of a honky-tonk piano song. Anyway, the band continued on their epic Works tour, through much of 1978 as well, then back to the studio for what was their final album of their original tenure. Unfortunately, the magic was gone by this time, and Love Beach (1978) is generally considered the nadir of their career; with the album tanking and their popularity plummeting, they pulled the plug on the group, each going their own way. Keith did a couple solo albums and music for movies throughout the eighties. He re-grouped with Greg Lake in another power trio with drummer Cozy Powell, dubbed Emerson, Lake and Powell in 1986, for what was the most successful, albeit short-lived (1 album), of the ELP imitation groups. This was followed closely by 3 (Three) in 1988, which featured Emerson and Palmer with multi-instrumentalist Robert Berry, but their only album was not well-received. Then in 1990, Keith joined a new group with a supertstar lineup, for the short-lived supergoup, The Best. Featuring Joe Walsh, Jeff "Skunk" Baxter, John Entwhistle, and Simon Phillips, along with Emerson, the band was avery eclectic mix of superstars from diverse bands. Although they only played a few shows in Japan before splitting up, this band was a really intriguing oddity, a strange mix of styles and talent that produced some very memorable versions of each of their respective hit songs. As far as I know, this was the only time Keith ever played in a band where his keyboards were not the primary and dominant component, and playing here with 2 great guitarists and songs that are not really 'keyboard' songs, the results are very interesting. Now, I have already posted and featured this show from a Japanese broadcast before, but now I have upgraded the show to lossless, for all those wishing to have it in better quality. For more on the show, see the previous post here , but let me summarize with this excerpt ..."Although on some songs, like 'Life in the Fast Lane' and 'My Wife', it is a bit disconcerting to hear Emerson's constantly moving keyboards in the background, some of his additions are positively breathtaking, such as his skillful piano licks in 'Bodhisattva' and 'Reeling in the Years', or putting everything from the 'Jaws Theme' to classical pieces like 'Night on Bald Mountain' into 'Boris the Spider'. And it is very interesting and exciting to hear Skunk and Walsh combine guitar forces (and different styles) on several songs, like 'My Wife', 'Life in the Fast Lane', 'Too Late the Hero', 'Reeling in the Years', and especially 'Bodhisattva'..." , as well as their guitar additions to the Emerson 'keyboard' songs. So, if you haven't checked this out previously, be sure to do so now, as it is one of Emerson's most interesting and unique contributions, and of course, the band itself is awesome, if just a bit odd in their mixing of musical styles.

Tracklist
01. Seven Bridges Road / Life In the Fast Lane
02. My Wife
03. Bodhisattva
04. Fanfare For the Common Man
05. Rikki Don't Lose My Number
06. Simon drum solo
07. Rocky Mountain Way
08. Too Late the Hero
09. America / Look At Us Now
10. Boris the Spider
11. Reelin' In the Years
12. Takin' It To the Streets

John Entwistle - bass
Jeff "Skunk" Baxter - guitar
Joe Walsh - guitar
Keith Emerson - keyboards
Simon Phillips - drums
with:
Rick Livingstone - vocals
Hamish Richardson - backing vocals
Angus Richardson - backing vocals
Fergus Richardson - backing vocals

FLAC: The Best_1990-09-26_Japan_FLAC.rar

For mp3 version, see previous post here see previous post here 

Steely Dan - 1974-05-20 - London (Remastered) Lossless

Steely Dan
1974-05-20
Rainbow Theatre, London, UK
Stereo soundboard, 2010 Remastered Edition (Remasters Workshop), excellent quality
Lossless (FLAC) files
Artwork included

So, here is another excellent show, and fine soundboard recording, from the 1974 Steely Dan tour. This one is the full-length show, featuring 4 additional songs ('My Old School', 'Dirty Work', 'Showbiz Kids', and substitutes 'Brooklyn' for 'Any Major Dude') not included in the earlier LA radio broadcast (see previous post), as well as an extended version (complete with dual drum solos, duet?) of the Dan rarity 'This All Too Mobile Home', which was only performed on this tour, and never recorded or released in any form. In addition, this is a recently remastered  (Remasters Workshop, August 2010) version of this classic show, so the sound quality is top-notch, and presented here in lossless for maximum sound quality. So, here you get the full treatment, and can witness the original Steely Dan Band live in all it's glory, in what was really the only time ever (this tour, that is). This was Steely Dan at their best. A must for any fan of the band.

Track listing:
01  Bodhisattva
02  The Boston Rag
03  Do It Again
04  Brooklyn (Owes The Charmer Under Me)
05  King Of The World
06  Rikki Don't Lose That Number
07  Pretzel Logic
08  introductions
09  My Old School
10  Dirty Work
11  Your Gold Teeth II
12  Reelin' In The Years
13  Show Biz Kids
14  This All Too Mobile Home

Personnel:
Donald Fagen (keyboards, vocal) • Walter Becker (bass) • Denny Dias (guitar)
Jeff 'Skunk' Baxter (guitar) • Royce Jones (percussion, vocal)
Michael McDonald (keyboards, vocal) • Jeff Porcaro (drums) • Jim Hodder (drums)

Note: For this edition, approximately three minutes of applause and tuning were removed to fit the show on one disc.

New Link! (Updated 06/10/12)
FLAC: New Depositfile Link

Steely Dan - 1974-03-20 - Los Angeles, CA (Pre-FM)

Steely Dan

1974-03-20
The Record Plant
Los Angeles, CA
KMET - Live
Pre-FM Master Reel, Excellent quality recording
New! Now available in both FLAC and mp3 (@ 256 kbps)

Finally, I am posting something from another of my very favorite bands, the truly unique, different, and compelling, Steely Dan. The only reason I haven't posted them sooner was simply that much of their stuff is already available on other sites. But listening to Skunk Baxter and The Best's version of 'Bodhisattva' last month, reminded me again of just how great these guys were, particularly in the early years, and as a live band. Now, any Steely Dan is great, but the first three allbums, in particular, were, for me, by far their best stuff. Before Fagen & Becker and their assemblage of various studio musicians settled into their midtempo, cool, jazz-funk groove (exemplified by Aja and Gaucho) in the later years of the band, in those early years they were still more of a rock band, a real, live, rock band (unconventional, yes, but still rockin'). With the dual guitars of Skunk Baxter & Denny Dias, there was more rockin and jammin' than in later years, and they put on some great live shows. Unfortunately, they only had one full tour as a headlining act (1974), after which Fagen & Becker told the band that they would not tour anymore (they were never comfortable performing live), and that they would continue solely in the studio with a variety of studio musicians. Thus, this was essentially the end of the 'band' phase of Steely Dan, as guitarists Skunk Baxter & Denny Dias, and drummer Jim Hodder left (Baxter went to the Doobie Brothers, Dias & Hodder still played on some Dan tracks, but were not 'members' anymore). Thus, there are only a handful of live recordings from this phase of the band. Fortunately, there are a few very good quality ones among these. Although Steely Dan continued making albums through 1980 (and achieved their greatest success with Aja and Gaucho),  we would not here any live Steely Dan again until 1993, when Fagen & Becker got back together (along with a large Jazz Band) for a big world tour. They have been touring on and off (and released new albums in 2000 and 2003) ever since. Thus, most of the live Steely Dan shows around have been from these reunion tours. But, great as these more recent reunion shows are, make no mistake, the band was still best back in their early days, and the 1974 tour, which featured songs from their two best albums, Countdown to Ecstacy and the as-yet unreleased Pretzel Logic, presented Steely Dan as a full-fledged jazz-rock band for the only time ever.  This show, an excellent Pre-FM recording from a radio show early in the tour, is fantastic, and marred only by the fact that it is not their full-length set (obviously shortened for a 1-hr radio broadcast, as was the usual practice). Probably the best sounding recording available from the '74 tour.

tracklist
01 - Introduction/Waiting for drummer
02 - Bodhisattva
03 - The Boston Rag
04 - Do It Again
05 - Any Major Dude
06 - King Of The World
07 - Rikki Don't Lose That Number
08 - Pretzel Logic
09 - Your Gold Teeth II (Jam)
10 - Reelin' In The Years
11 - This All Too Mobile Home

Lineup:
Donald Fagen – piano, vocals
Walter Becker – bass
Jeff Baxter – guitar
Denny Dias – guitar
Jim Hodder – drums
Jeff Porcaro – drums
Royce Jones – percussion, backing vocals
Michael McDonald – electric piano, backing vocals

Steely_Dan_-1974-03-20_-_LA_(Pre-FM)_FLAC.rar

mp3 - Steely_Dan_-1974-03-20_-_LA_(Pre-FM).rar

Note that a remastered version of this same show is also now available here.

Stay tuned for more great Steely Dan. Since this was not their full-length show, next I'll post another excellent recording from this tour that features additional songs not included here.

The Best (K.Emerson, J. Walsh, J. Entwhistle, J.Baxter, S.Phillips) - 1990-09-26 - Yokahama, Japan

The Best
(Keith Emerson, John Entwhistle, Joe Walsh, Jeff "Skunk" Baxter, and Simon Phillips)
September 26, 1990
Yokohama Arena,
Yokohama, Japan
Soundboard (from TV broadcast), Very Good Quality
mp3 @ 320 kbps

OK, here is a really intriguing oddity. Now, I know that most of the so-called 'supergoup' incarnations don't last very long, or don't live up to expectations, but here is one that came and went and I never even heard anything about them. This show was a shock to me when I came across it recently, as I had no idea such a union ever occurred. This was of interest because it was such an unusual mixture of talent and styles, Keith Emerson and Joe Walsh in the same band, with Skunk Baxter and John Entwhistle? A musical clash fusing early Steely Dan with ELP, The Who, and the Eagles? Wow, all bands I really like, so this looked very intriguing, but a seemingly odd combination of talent. A look at the setlist indicates that they basically played a selection of greatest hits from the bands of each of the members. I read that these were songs selected as the favorites by the rest of the band. And actually, the results are surprisingly good, and well-worth a download and listen.  Fortunately, these are not just mindless covers trying to duplicate the originals, rather the band really seems to take their roles seriously, and contribute some very different and unique versions of the songs, incorporating all the members musical expertise, and stretching out on extended jams. As far as I know, Emerson has never been in a band where his keyboards were not the primary and dominant component. Thus, it is very interesting to hear him in this band with 2 great guitarists, and his contributions on the other's songs (that aren't keyboard-oriented songs). Although on some songs, like 'Life in the Fast Lane' and 'My Wife', it is a bit disconcerting to hear Emerson's constantly moving keyboards in the background, some of his additions are positively breathtaking, such as his skillful piano licks in 'Bodhisattva' and 'Reeling in the Years', or putting everything from the 'Jaws Theme' to classical pieces like 'Night on Bald Mountain' into 'Boris the Spider'. And it is very interesting and exciting to hear Skunk and Walsh combine guitar forces (and different styles) on several songs, like 'My Wife', 'Life in the Fast Lane', 'Too Late the Hero', Reeling in the Years', and especially 'Bodhisattva' (which is probably Steely Dan's best song ever, and this version is truly unique and amazing). We also get other unique offerings throughout, such as epic versions of Emerson's 'Fanfare for the Common Man' and 'America' (complete with extended Entwhistle bass and Walsh guitar solos). It is a bit odd, though, that with all the musical talent here, they didn't bring in anyone who could sing, as they went with an unknown vocalist (Rick Livingstone), who actually does a pretty good job handling the different vocal styles of the various original songs. All in all, this is a very unique and entertaining show for anyone who is a fan of these varied musicians and bands. This was obviously a very short-lived collaboration. I don't know if there was ever any intent for them to do original songs as a band or not, but I'm sure that would have been quite unique, also. In actuality, I don't know if this band ever played anything more than these few shows in Japan. It would appear that this show, recorded for broadcast on Japanese TV is the only musical document that exists for this strange and unique 'supergroup'. But, I am so glad that I did get to hear these unique song versions by 'The Best'. And I hope you like them, too. I got this from TonyR over at the G101 forum, so thanks for making this unique show available Tony! If anyone knows anything more about this band, please let me know. Did they ever do any shows in the U.S. or Europe? or did they just implode after these Japan shows? Regardless, check 'em out, the once-and-only assemblage of monster talent, The Best. 

Tracklist
01. Seven Bridges Road / Life In the Fast Lane
02. My Wife
03. Bodhisattva
04. Fanfare For the Common Man
05. Rikki Don't Lose My Number
06. Simon drum solo
07. Rocky Mountain Way
08. Too Late the Hero
09. America / Look At Us Now
10. Boris the Spider
11. Reelin' In the Years
12. Takin' It To the Streets

John Entwistle - bass
Jeff "Skunk" Baxter - guitar
Joe Walsh - guitar
Keith Emerson - keyboardss
Simon Phillips - drums
with:
Rick Livingstone - vocals
Hamish Richardson - backing vocals
Angus Richardson - backing vocals
Fergus Richardson - backing vocals

New Link! (Updated 02/06/24)
The_Best_-_1990-09-26_-_Yokohama.rar

Lossless version also available here