One more time ice cream man!
Jason Tharp | Wolverine, MI United States | 06/17/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"After "Rock & Roll With...", this is my favorite post Jerry Harrison Modern Lovers album (just ahead of "M.L.s 88"). A few weeks before this new Castle edition was released the Amazon listing for it mentioned something like 33 bonus tracks that were to be included on a two disc set. Apparantly they couldn't clear that extra material in time (hopefully bootlegs will start appearing now of those shows). What is here is the same great album you probably already have, but with rare photos & newsclippings that are actually rare as well as remastering. The best live albums for me are the ones with great new songs to make them worth buying. The four new songs are classics. "I'm a Little Dinosaur", "My Little Kookenhaken" & "I'm a Little Airplane" (which has been featured on "Sesame Street") are his best kiddie songs & "Morning of Our Lives" his best anthem about optimism & self esteem. "Hey There Little Insect" is the only old one they improve on, but the rest are just as infectious as the originals. Jonathan's good natured confrontations with the audience are priceless & even the umpteenth false stop of "Ice Cream Man" has a certain charm. Anyway, it depends how important artwork & remastering are to you. & if you could never find this cd before (or want to pay the collectible price), here it is for you to discover (excavate?)."
When 5 Stars is Not Enough
Steve Lanzarotta | California, USA | 10/28/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"What makes a great live album? A faithful reproduction or superior reinterpretation of a studio classic? Audience rapport? Great guitar solos? Fantastic new songs? All of the above?
Have I got the album for you.
For post-Beserkley Chartbusters Jonathan fans, this is THE album to have. It kicks off with I'm a Little Airplane, which is available nowhere else. Until the applause kicks in at the end of the song, it is as tight as Jonathan's best studio recordings from the era. It's goofy lyrics (yes, he really is a little airplane), joined with fun riffs and a guitar solo so good that Jonathan requested a second one, result in a thoroughly enjoyable two minutes. The song immediately segues into audience banter where a heckler accuses Jonathan of wearing the same shirt for two consecutive nights. Of course, Jonathan objects! Fortunately, he is not thrown off form and counts into a version of "Hey There Little Insect" that is superior in every way to the studio version. If you don't know the song, it's everything its title promises. From there, the band moves on to their biggest hit, the instrumental "Egyptian Reggae." Doesn't this album sound fun already?
And I haven't even gotten to the marathon rendition of "Ice Cream Man" that closes side one of the old album. This is a far superior version to the studio recording that brings out all of the song's promise of waiting for the ice cream man on a hot summer's day when you were six years old. The fake endings of the song as the audience begs for more is the high point of the album and guaranteed to bring a dumb smile to your face.
Side two has a hard time living up to side one, but that's like saying side one of Abbey Road doesn't hold up to side two. Not much to complain about here. A guided tour to the land of dinosaurs, New England, South America, and Kookenhakens is more than most of us deserve. The final song, "The Morning of Our Lives," is so sweet-natured and kind; do the cynic inside of you a favor and give this song a listen. It will make you wish you never grew up.
All in all, this is my favorite live album by any artist. Jonathan's hero, Lou Reed, did well with "Rock 'n Roll Animal," but this is better.
Buy it and have a great time!"
Modern Lovers still alive!
Ton Verhulst | Netherlands | 09/09/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"It must have been more than 25 years ago I listened to this album for the first time. It's one of these you must have in your collection. Songs like "I'm a little airplane" and "Icecream man" still lingered in my mind and over the years I trapped myself regularly I was humming or singing these songs when I was in a good mood. Now I can make every mood good! I put on this CD and the sun is shining again!"
Track Listings (9) - Disc #1