106.9 THE BEAR Featured Artist

Live 1973-2007 [8 CD/3 DVD]

RELEASE
September 29, 2009
LABEL
GENRES
Pop/Rock, Soft Rock, Prog-Rock, Adult Contemporary, Art Rock, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Album Rock

Album Review

The last in a series of four deluxe box sets reissuing the entirety of Genesis' catalog (excepting their all-but-disowned debut recordings, produced by Jonathan King), Live 1973-2007 contains four of the group's five live albums -- 1973's Live, 1977's Seconds Out, 1982's Three Sides Live, and both volumes of 1992's Genesis Live: The Way We Walk, sequencing the two into concert order -- adding an empty slot for 2007's Live Over Europe, which is not included in this set. Some longtime fans will be disappointed over the decision not to include the version of "Supper's Ready" that was deleted from Live, owing to the extra LP side it would have entailed (that particular concert album was intended to fill the gap between studio recordings, but a three-sided double LP didn't make economic sense at the time) -- as is explained in the wonderfully extensive annotation, this collection is less a vault-raid than a re-configuring of the group's live history, cleaning up the sound and placing it all in coherent order, so there were no alternate takes chosen, or expansions of existing established recordings; and it was felt that the "Supper's Ready" from Live at the Rainbow -- a concert already partly released in excerpts on previous sets -- was superior to the long-missing rendition in question. As is explained in the notes, in addition to polishing up the audio on everything (especially Live, which does sound better than ever) the producers endeavored to release 5.1 surround sound mixes on DVD of anything not otherwise available that way and already on DVD (which is why Three Sides Live and The Way We Walk are here only as CDs). There are still limitations on the 1973-vintage material in terms of resolution, but the DVD versions of those concerts are worth acquiring -- you get a real sense of stage ambience and spatial relationships on Live, and the presence of everything is enhanced in a way that fulfills what longtime fans have long known was there, waiting to be brought out. And the DVD versions of Seconds Out is every bit as impressive -- what's more, the makers haven't been afraid to push the volume, which is good and loud for a change. The only complaint, apart from not seriously considering the "lost" "Supper's Ready" -- which is more than made up for by the complete Rainbow show, in phenomenal sound and good photographic accompaniment on each song -- is the packaging; was it really necessary to put the DVD of Seconds Out in a sleeve so tight that it will likely be scratched over time from normal use, no matter how careful the owner is? Otherwise, a lot of this will be a dream-come-true, omissions aside, for longtime fans.
Stephen Thomas Erlewine & Bruce Eder, Rovi

Track Listing

  1. Watcher of the Skies
  2. Get 'Em Out by Friday
  3. The Return of the Giant Hogweed
  4. The Musical Box
  5. The Knife
  6. Back in N.Y.C. [*]
  7. Fly on a Windshieldack]
  8. Broadway Melody of 1974s Track]
  9. Anyway [*]
  10. The Chamber of 32 Doorsack]
  11. Watcher of the Skies [*]
  12. Get 'Em Out by Friday [*]
  13. The Return of the Giant Hogweed [DVD]
  14. The Musical Box [DVD]
  15. The Knife [DVD]
  16. Back in N.Y.C. [DVD]
  17. Fly on a Windshield [DVD]
  18. Broadway Melody of 1974 [DVD]
  19. Anyway [DVD]
  20. The Chamber of 32 Doors [DVD]
  21. Squonk
  22. Carpet Crawlers
  23. Robbery, Assault & Battery
  24. Afterglow
  25. Firth of Fifth
  26. I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)
  27. The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
  28. The Musical Box (Closing Section)
  29. Supper's Ready
  30. Cinema Show
  31. Dance on a Volcano
  32. Los Endos
  33. Squonk [DVD]
  34. Carpet Crawlers [DVD]
  35. Robbery, Assault & Battery [DVD]
  36. Afterglow [DVD]
  37. Firth of Fifth [DVD]
  38. I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe) [DVD]
  39. The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway [DVD]
  40. The Musical Box (Closing Section) [DVD]
  41. Supper's Ready [DVD]
  42. Cinema Show [DVD]
  43. Dance on a Volcano [DVD]
  44. Los Endos [DVD]
  45. Turn It on Again
  46. Dodo
  47. Abacab
  48. Behind the Lines
  49. Duchess
  50. Me & Sarah Jane
  51. Follow You, Follow Me
  52. Misunderstanding
  53. In the Cage Medley: Cinema Show/The Colony of Slippermen
  54. Afterglow
  55. One for the Vine
  56. The Fountain of Salmacis
  57. It/Watcher of the Skies
  58. Land of Confusion
  59. No Son of Mine
  60. Driving the Last Spike
  61. Old Medley: Dance on a Volcano/The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway/The Musi
  62. Throwing It All Away
  63. Fading Lights
  64. Jesus He Knows Me
  65. Home by the Sea/Second Home by the Sea
  66. Hold on My Heart
  67. Domino: In the Glow of the Night/The Last Domino
  68. The Drum Thing
  69. I Can't Dance
  70. Tonight, Tonight, Tonight
  71. Invisible Touch
  72. Turn It on Again
  73. Mama [*]
  74. That's All [*]
  75. In Too Deep [*]
  76. Dancing with the Moonlit Knight [*]
  77. Cinema Show [*]
  78. I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe) [*]
  79. Firth of Fifth [*]
  80. More Fool Me [*]
  81. The Battle of Epping Forests Track]
  82. Supper's Ready [*]
  83. Watcher of the Skies rack] [DVD]
  84. Dancing with the Moonlit Knight [DVD]
  85. Cinema Show D] [DVD]
  86. I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe) [DVD]
  87. Firth of Fifth [DVD]
  88. The Musical Box D] [DVD]
  89. More Fool Me VD] [DVD]
  90. The Battle of Epping Forest s Track]
  91. Supper's Ready [DVD]