Talkin’ About My Revolutions

Veteran music writer Dave Thompson will be contributing occasional reviews on hard-to-find rarities. Dave is the author of many well reviewed rock biographies, including the recent Virgin Books’ Red Hot Chili Peppers biography, works on The Cure and Kurt Cobain. He wrote Cream: The World’s First Supergroup which was published early last year. In the past, Dave has written for Live! Music Review and he is also a regular contributor to Rolling Stone, Mojo and Q magazines. Below, Dave reviews Alice Cooper’s Studio Demos.

ALICE COOPER
Studio Demos 1970-1973 [no label 2CD]
No location or dates. These are the demos for Love It To Death, Killer, Muscle of Love albums.VG-VG+ SBD stereo.

Without doubt the most significant Alice Cooper collection to have emerged in recent years, this 2CD set is precisely what it says on the label – demos for (or possibly out-takes from) four of the five albums that ensured the Cooper band’s megastardom between 1971-1973 – that is, Love It To Death, Killer, School’s Out and Muscle Of Love. (No Billion Dollar Babies. Shame!) And, from beginning to end, it’s a fascinating listen, a secret snapshot into the gestation of some of the most influential American music of the year, littered with starkly alternate arrangements, some staggering reworkings and even a handful of previously unreleased songs.

Of the seven cuts from the Love It To Death sessions, “Fields Of Regret” surrenders a glimpse into the genesis of Killer’s “Halo Of Flies”; from Killer itself, multiple takes of “You Drive Me Nervous” and a ten minute “Halo Of Flies” are punctuated by “Desert Night Thing,” realigning “Desperado” around completely different lyrics, but no less menace and moodiness. In fact, almost every performance across the first disc offers up something radically different to the familiar versions, be it the extra added whoops and whispers that percolate behind “Black Juju”; the markedly less frenetic arrangement that renders “You Drive Me Nervous” all but unrecognizable; or the completely over-the-top guitars that literally scythe through “Killer” itself.

Click here for the complete review.

Please feel free to send us your comments. We’d like to hear from you.

Welcome to Talkin’ About My Revolutions. If you dig what you hear on the BigO Audio Archives, and you have something to say or information to share, this is where we keep the history alive. We love to hear from each other.

+ + + + +

David Gilmour
An Island In The Bridgewater Canal [no label/3CD]

click on the panels for the artwork

Here are the remaining tracks from David Gilmour’s May 26, 2006 gig in Manchester.

Click on the highlighted tracks to download the MP3s (these are high quality, stereo MP3s – sample rate of 192 kibit/s). As far as we can ascertain none of the tracks have been officially released.

These tracks are no longer available for download. Kindly email us at singbigo@singnet.com.sg if you want to download these tracks at a later time.

CD One

Track 01. Track 1
Track 02. Track 2
Track 03. Track 3
Track 04. Track 4
Track 05. Track 5
Track 06. Track 6
Track 07. Track 7
Track 08. Track 8
Track 09. Track 9
Track 10. Track 10
Track 11. Track 11
Track 12. Track 12
Track 13. Track 13
Track 14. Track 14

CD Two

1. Shine On You Crazy Diamond (with Crosby and Nash)
2. Wearing The Inside Out
3. Fat Old Sun
4. Arnold Layne
5. Coming Back To Life
6. High Hopes
7. Echoes

Click here to find out more about CD 2

CD Three

Track 01. Wish You Were Here
Track 02. Find The Cost Of Freedom (with Crosby and Nash)
Track 03. Comfortably Numb

Click here to visit Allofmp3.com to order David Gilmour’s On An Island.

Here are some comments by readers requesting for the David Gilmour tracks:

i saw excerpts of that show on portuguese tv. the concert was presented there as “somethind for the old among us” – what a big nonsense, because where would be history of present “music” without their “ancestors”?

but anyway, couldn’t you offer the audio part as well in this “blog”? for “interested people”?

www
via email

Hello from New York. There is absolutely very strong interest in hearing the opening set for the David Gilmour Live at The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester, UK, May 26, 2006 show. Can you please, please post the entire recording as I am a tremedous fan. I am copying both my home emails, so you may respond to all my addresses. Again, having just seen David perform at Radio City (he is my favorite of all time), I would love it if you could post the rest of the setlist as soon as you can. Thx and keep up the great work!

Brad
via email

Of course we’d be interested in the first part of that David Gilmour-An Island In The Bridgewater Canal show!!! And the last part too! But thank you so much for offering the middle part for now.

John Fiorentino
via email

Yes, please post the rest of the David Gilmour concert from Manchester. That would be unbelievable. Thanks.

John
via email

What a great treat to hear part of Gilmours concert. Any chance of you releasing the rest of it as suggested in the forward. I’m sure I am not alone in this request. Keep up the the great work.

Kenny
via email

I want to express my extreme interest in obtaining the rest of the Gilmore show Manchester 2006. His tour schedule was so limited that not nearly everyone that wanted to see him was able to. The quality of this recording is outstanding, and i would like to say thanks for posting it up for download. Please make the rest of the show available as soon as humanly possible. Thank you so much for your time in consideration of this note. Peace.

Steve
via email

For more… email singbigo@singnet.com.sg with the message, “Put me on your mailing list.”

BigO is not responsible or liable for the views expressed in the articles or postings published on its website and does not necessarily agree with these views nor necessarily endorse the organisations linked to this site and is not responsible for the content of linked internet sites.