Search - Lynyrd Skynyrd :: Lyve from Steel Town

Rest In Peace boys

Brian | Ohio, United States | 03/12/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Seen Skynyrd live twice now (luckily I got to see them before my man Leon passed away) and this CD and the video really help to supress the Skynyrd cravings until the next show comes around. I even like the new songs, and that is rare for me and classic rock bands. No, it isn't the same but it still rocks HARD."

In A Tie For Second-Best Skynyrd Album

12/11/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"LYVE FROM STEEL TOWN is tied with EDGE OF FOREVER, TWENTY, and THE LAST REBEL as the second-best Lynyrd Skynyrd album. The band is quite intense, as they should be, and the crowd really gives their all. At the very end is an interesting interview that reveals where the band was at that point in their career."

4 1/2 stars, really. Very enjoyable

Docendo Discimus | Vita scholae | 09/06/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"There is no shortage of live Skynyrd out there; two double live albums featuring Ronnie van Zant and two featuring the latter-day incarnation and little brother Johnny. And this one isn't really all that different from any of the others.

Johnny van Zant is a completely adequate replacement for his unfortunate brother, his slightly hoarse voice both flexible and expressive. And with the combination of original guitarist Gary Rossington and long-time members Leon Wilkeson and Billy Powell, and then-newcomers Owen Hale and Rickey Medlocke and the late Hughie Thomasson, the "old" songs manage to sound both authentic and fresh. They sound like you'd expect them to, with all the riffs in place, but they never come off stale.



The powerful three-guitarist combo is impressively tight, and there are some fiery (but tasteful) solos and lead breaks, a little more "hard rock" than in the 70s, perhaps, but Skynyrd and their songs sound all the more lively because of it.

The sound is excellent as well. No mush of overdriven guitars just droning away, everything is clear and well separated, and admirably produced. The piano is at the fore when it needs to be, the right guitarists are cued in at the right times, and Johnny van Zant's vocals are neither too loud nor too low in the mix. Well, maybe the bass is lacking just a little bit.



"Lyve in Steel Town" is a conscientious mix of classic Skynyrd material ("Sweet Home Alabama", "Saturday Night Special", "Gimme Three Steps", "What's Your Name" and the inevitable "Free Bird"), and a few songs from the post-1987 band's catalogue, or, more specifically, from their then-current album "Twenty": The opening "We Ain't Much Different", and "Bring It On" is classic Lynyrd Skynyrd even if it isn't, muscular Southern rock. The slightly John Fogerty-like "Voodoo Lake" is very good as well, and even if the final latter-day number, "Berneice", is sort of generic, it still packs a pretty decent punch.



I think it's a bit of shame that they didn't fill out disc 2 with a few songs from their other three post-87 albums rather than just a never-ending "Free Bird" jam and 20 minutes worth of interviews with various band members. And there's half an hour left on the disc as it is.

But the 7-minute "Sweet Home Alabama" is a treat, with plenty of great guitar and a rollicking piano solo. And "On The Hunt" sounds much better and more energetic live than on the original studio album.



All in all, if you like Skynyrd, it's very hard not to like this album as well. Again, a couple more surprises would have been great, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with what is here. Highly enjoyable!"