zorolulu | Los Angeles, CA United States | 09/26/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"These guys were awesome. Too bad they didn't stay together for couple of more albums. Maybe not as good composers, but certainly as good, or better performers than Led Zeppelin.
Absolutely finest American Hard Rock.
Recommended 100%.
P.S.
Jim McCarty went on to play for Rockets from Detroit, and they issued couple of great albums, especially "No Ballads", but are impossible to find on a CD. I think Rhino should isssue their albums next. As far as I know only their Live album was issued on a CD (by Capitol) in a very limited quantity, about 12 years ago.
They had a huge hit with Peter Green's "Oh Well"."
Lead Guitar Ne Plus Ultra
mrfrank | new york | 09/03/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Jim McCarty gives a tour de force performance as the driving force of this band.
Any one learning rock/blues lead guitar needs to hear him play!When you listen to him play on these recordings you hear how he influenced many ,many players ,and all of them should stand and recognize this great American player."
"How can you go wrong with the world's best rhythm section from Vanilla Fudge, Carmine Appice and Tim Bogert? And Jim McCarty on the gits from Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels? This is some great early 70's rock! Playin' some great covers of Little Richard, Ray Charles and other blues covers in their own rendition! This band had mucho energy!"
Two bands for the price of one
J. Talsma | Amsterdam, Netherlands | 02/05/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Cactus consisted actually of 2 bands under that name, originally with Rusty Day, vocals/harmonica, Jim McCarthy, leadguitar, Tim Bogert, bass and Carmine "Animal" Appice on drums, they recorded 3 classic studioalbums "Cactus", "one Way ... Or Another" and "Restrictions", afterwards (without Day/McCarthy but) with Peter French on vocals, Werner Fritzschings on guitar and Duane Hitchings on keyboards released the final "Ot 'n Sweaty", with only a handfull of new songs and a live side, captured here. Although renamed "Swim" and "Bad Mother Boogie" with credits to the new bandmembers this is actually a live rendition of "Let Me Swim" from the first album and "Big Mama Boogie - Parts 1 & 2" from the second. Those final 4 tracks are energetic and the organ adds up to it. The other performances are by the original band and for a great part taken from their final show in Memphis, just before the end of 1971. They played a few songs from the albums and went into long jams. "No Need to Worry" exceeds the 20 minutes. "Let Me Swim" and "Big Mama Boogie - Parts 1 & 2" are also extended versions with interludes. It takes a long time before the latter finally exploses. Two other cuts (both also on the first set) hail from the "Isle of Wight" festival and another two of Gilligan's in Buffalo, NY. The band showed what they were up to, having a good time with the audience and enjoyed playing. Not only were they able to deliver great rocksongs in the studio but they could do the same on stage. This 2 CD set showcases that and hands you a fine document of an often unjustfully forgotten, overlooked or underrated seventiesband who did not stand in the shadow of many other great acts but was just that on its own. In 2006 they emerged again with threequarters of the first hour bandmembers (Rusty Day is not longer among us) and released "V" whilst are performing again but the former glory can not return."
Strange night in Memphis
JBF-wheatdude | 01/18/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Wow! Seeing that the tapes of the Memphis concert were finally released brings back some specific memories of that strange December night.
I thought some of you Cactus fans might get a kick out of a scan of my ticket (see customer images) for the original Cactus' last performance in Memphis' Auditorium Music Hall (touted to be acoustically perfect) on December 19, 1971. It was a memorable night. In the days following the concert, we found out that the band had a "falling out" and that the lead guitar (Jim McCarthy) had quit and that the live album would not likely be released. In retrospect, there may have been a lot of tension on the stage that may have contributed to the intense energy of this Memphis performance.
Fully Unleashed: The Live Gigs
Some of you with sharp eyes will probably question whether I really attended the concert since my ticket is obviously not torn in half. That segues into a rock concert almost-disaster story that I've never seen reported. My friends and I had just arrived home for our Christmas break during our first semester of college and were fired up about unwinding with a @#%$ kickin' rock concert. Cactus was just the band for the occasion. We got really good seats on the lower level about halfway back in the middle and were anxious to get in the Auditorium and get to rockin'. We arrived with the first wave of fans and were allowed into the foyer areas of the auditorium, but the doors into the Music Hall were barred, so we all stood and waited.......and waited..........and waited. Someone spread the word that since it was to be recorded for an album they were being very ticky about their sound checks. Tickets were to be taken as attendees entered the Music Hall so no one was stopping the crowd from entering the foyer area and it began to get more and more crowded and packed with people and began to get extremely claustrophobic and very hot. As people continued to pack into the foyer areas outside the entry doors, we began to get squeezed together so compactly that I distinctly remember thinking that I could pick both feet up from the floor and that I would not likely move. But still we waited...and the crowd got tighter...and we waited...and it was getting scary-crowded and hard to breathe. As I began to almost panic from the ever-increasing pressure from the folks around me, there was a tremendous "boom" sound and the crowd began to surge towards a door like water breaking through a dam. We were literally swept into the lower level of the Hall by the surging crowd, but miraculously, no one fell down and got trampled. At least I was not aware of any injuries, and was personally so relieved to be out of that situation that a natural "high" set in from the adrenalin rush of escaping the danger. We found our way to our seats without ever encountering anyone to take tickets. We later learned that the force of the crowd had broken in two of the double doors leading into the arena. There was then an announcement over the PA that the concert would not be allowed to start until everyone went to their actual ticketed seats. Amazingly, it seemed like everyone immediately complied. I don't recall seeing any arguments over seats.
FINALLY Cactus took the stage and gave one of the most intense, butt-kickin' boogie-rock performances that I had ever seen. I remember thinking that I had never seen a bass player take front-and-center and tear off lead-like riffs the way Tim Bogert did on at least one of the numbers. As I recall, he was up front in a semi-crouch with his bass held almost vertically just riffing the heck out of it. I'm not sure, but that may have been the number that a very attractive girl walked slowly towards the stage down the aisle to our left and removed her halter top and clutched it over her bare chest staring dreamily at Cactus. (this was NOT a common occurrence in Memphis in 1971!) What a concert!
In hindsight, perhaps the long delay wasn't due to sound issues......maybe the band was deciding whether even to perform or not. The rumor was that Jim quit Cactus that night after the concert.
Forgive an old guy his youthful ramblings, but seeing these CDs kinda took me back to a most-interesting era. Hope you don't mind my sharing my memories of Cactus' "last gig". Keep on rockin'. J. B. Fogleman
