Search - Tim Buckley :: Live at the Troubadour 1969

Lorca/Blue Afternoon era BUCKLEY LIVE

W. T. Hoffman | Pennsylvania, United States | 11/28/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I am always totally amazed by this live album. For those of you that have DREAM LETTER from 1968, this concert just blows that earlier show out of the water. First off, apparently the smack had begun to flow up the shooter's neck, cos Tim makes a joke about it. No mystery there. The drug may have played into this free jazz-folk approach, but i like to think that Tim just had reached this stage of developement thru the natural esthetic evolution of his freedom loving muse. Some of the best cuts from LORCA, and BLUE AFTERNOON get fantasmagorical work outs here. The band has an uncanny ability to read Jeff's intensions and direction. Lee Underwood keeps a nice syrupy lead guitar dripping around the arrangements, CC Colins on Congas puts some neat percussive colors and textures on the proceedings, enhancing the total sound, and merging perfectly with drummer ART TRIP. (Art Trip was in the Mothers of Invention, right before this album. Zappa only used the best.) And John Balkin's bass playing is, well, more like a lead instrument than a bass. Often he can be heard jumping around the fretboard, performing sonic leaps and acrobatics with his bass lines that are a perfect match for Tim's vocal style. And, let's not forget that Tim was no slouch on acoustic guitar either. It's a five peice jazz/folk band, in the tradition of Van Morrison's ASTRAL WEEKS. As for the technical quality of the recording, I can't complain there. This is nothing short of a perfect live performance document, of a singer at his prime. The gig was at Venice Beach, so Tim felt confident, and at home, with an audience of fellow freaks. I feel, like everyone else, that we are being cheated because of STARSAILOR/BLUE AFTERNOON's lack of availability. However, buy this CD, and you can at least enjoy a piece of the LORCA - BLUE AFTERNOON work, that underscored his OPUS MAGNUM. Also, the CD includes a cool essay about Tim, which is informative and fun to read. I've listened to this Tim Buckley CD, more than any other CD of his that I have, and I have 7 different CDs. You can almost FEEL the wind chimes, ocean breezes, and hot sun seducing you into a dreamy, trance like mood, when this CD is spinning under the lazer."