gcczep
Ever Onward...
or 
In one corner you have Aerosmith’s “Live Bootleg!” a compilation of tracks recorded during their 1977-1978 U.S. Tour. This is arguably the height of the band’s creative zenith. Tyler’s raspy vocals at the forefront augmented by the dueling and interplay of Perry and Whitford’s guitars along with the solid rhythm section of Hamilton on bass and Kramer’s drumming. It is devoid of frills or subjected to studio clean-ups but all attitude. You can feel the “stadium” feel renditions [firecrackers included!] of the familiar numbers but there are also tracks recorded in an intimate club setting such as “Come Together” from The Warehouse and “I Ain’t Got You/Mother Popcorn” from the Pall’s Mall in 1973. As I commented in another thread, under Tyler’s directive the band opted for cassette recordings for their master sources as their gigs were broadcasted over FM radio. It is also unfiltered as Tyler shouts expletives during “Dream On” and at the climax of “The Train Kept’ A-Rollin’” It reps the 1970’s well before corporate sponsorships took over promotion and arena names.
From across the pond, we have Queen’s output “Live Killers” culled from their 1979 European Tour. This is Mercury’s masterful showmanship and soaring vocals at its best. Hear him lead the crowd in sing-alongs on “Love Of My Live,” or in a contest during “Now I’m Here”. There is also May’s guitar pyrotechnics during “Brighton Rock” with his clever use of echo. The band also have an acoustic sit-down with “Dreamers Ball,” the aforementioned “Love Of My Live” closing with the footstomp of “’39”. Though there were no overdubs or edits, this is a “cleaner” sounding set the band carefully assembled and mixed. Drummer Roger Taylor though hated the sound. The group’s ability to interact with its audience though is undeniable. Mercury really knows how to work a crowd. Besides the well known songs, there are some fast, in your face workouts of “Keep Yourself Alive” and “Sheer Heart Attack”. All in all, a well paced chronicle of their live act.
The original vinyl releases of each were both cool gatefold albums with tons of concert photos plus picture inner sleeves. The “Live Bootleg!” set came with a limited edition poster. A hilarious advert was also made of unseemly participants in a dingy room making copies with nothing but a table and a stamp. Queen on the other hand did a more regal approach as expected. You can also enjoy reading the well written and witty liner notes that accompanied the releases. Sadly, while those are included in the CD artwork it just ain’t the same. So which would you pick as you turn up the volume, the lights down and transported back in time when music did not involve five sets of microphones, lip synching or a choreographed backing dance troupe?
