Little Gems
King of the Gypsies | The Romanian Mountains | 08/16/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I am going to have to disagree with the first review. Yes the sound is spotty on a "few" tracks, and so intros are cut off, but the opener "Who Do You Love", and "Jole Blone" & "Brand New Companion-Cocaine" are the best I have heard, and I have heard plenty. It is worth the ticket price for the improving Townes does lyrically on "Cocaine" I have never heard the like.
What no one has mentioned is that these recordings offer a chance to hear Townes with a band, a rare thing. The band is not on every track, but they are on many. Usually it is a solo outing, as he prefered to be more mobile. Also these tracks are from the 80's early 90's before Townes "Bones" could be heard in his voice. Very little live stuff survives from the 80's.
In the end, Townes studio records never did him any kind of justice (with the exception of "At My Window"). I firmly believe in blowing them off and seeking out the live material. This is a keeper. Also recommended:
Highway Kind: Very dark and recorded at end of Townes life. Rare Songs, great "Still Looking For You" & Guy Clark's "Dublin's Blues"
Roadsongs: Excellent Covers like "Dead Flowers" "Racing In The Streets" "Ira Hayes" "Indian Cowboy"
Live and Obscure: Come back show in early 80's after 8 years MIA. Chilling version of "Nothing" with a ghostly flute. Best "Pancho & Lefty" yet released.
Live at Union Chapel: Wonderful show from 1994 in London, rare songs, great sound. A real winner. Recorded before his big decline in health.
Rearview Mirror 1: The classic Townes Songbook, A+ Recording. Essential."
The Sound Quality on This Is Just Fine
Smiley | 02/03/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"From the prior review I expected something along the lines of some of the Stooges or MC5 stuff released on Bomp and Revenge, some dodgy semi-legit Johnny Thunders release, or the plethora of Hawkwind product. Instead, with the exception of a little distortion on the guitar once or twice, the sound is, under the circumstances, pristine. The liner notes indicate that this record was compiled and supervised by Townes' long-time friend and manager and approved by Townes prior to his death. You know whether you need it or not (c'mon you know you do)."
A rip-off and an embarrassment
Joba | Bronx, NY | 10/10/2008
(1 out of 5 stars)
"I bought this because it intentionally trades on the credibility of the original Rear View Mirror, which is a great collection of Townes performances - meaning he plays well, sings well, and the sound quality is good. Well, congratulations on duping me. This is in no way similar to that album.
When I popped it in, I went right for Snowin On Raton. There's a great version of that on Live at Union Chapel, but his voice is not in the best shape for that performance. I was hoping maybe this one would be just as good or better. Well, I was immediately greeted with a sound that resembles the background noise of a 1980's home video - wavy, garbled, fuzzy. It sounds like he's playing under water. And it sounds like a bootleg because the coughing of people in the crowd comes in clear but Townes and his guitar do not. I honestly think that track was recorded with a cassette recorder on someone's lap at a show. And I just paid to listen to it. Awesome.
Sound quality is an issue on many tracks, but on some of them the issue is Townes. The man was not always on top of his game, which is why these tracks had never before appeared on an album. They're just not good performances. I got through the first few lines of Greensboro Woman before stopping it. He sounded like he was drunk. And not in a charming way. It's a good thing that's one of the few songs that isn't overproduced in its original album recording, because I haven't found a good live recording of it.
Get the original Rear View Mirror, Live at the Old Quarter, and Live at Union Chapel. Those three are the essentials. Forget this one."
Track Listings (18) - Disc #1