Customer Reviews

Amsterdam 80

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

On audio alone, "Amsterdam '80" beats "Magnetic Hands" and "Railroadism," two of the other semi-official live Beefheart releases. This performance is also generally superior to that at Rotter's in Liverpool, recorded three days earlier (six songs from which appear on "Magnetic Hands"). However, I don't know if I would rate this performance higher than "I'm Gonna Do What I Wanna Do," which has become my benchmark for Beefheart performances - at least for the latter half of his career.

Yet, there are few of the Captain's so-called "duff" moments, the only major one being in "My Human Gets Me Blues," where Beefheart really loses his place.

The downside to this set is, of course, the absence of three songs from the actual concert: "Nowadays a Woman's Gotta Hit a Man," Gary Lucas reading the Captain's poem "One Man Sentence," and Lucas performing "Flavor Bud Living." So, according to this CD, Gary Lucas was wholly absent form the concert.

All 21 songs from the concert would have easily fit on one disc by omitting between-song banter, and "OMS" and "FBL" probably would have fit on this disc as it now stands (the CD clocks in at a little under 75 minutes). The label's rationale to omitting the three songs is "to preserve a live feel." I understand this desire to retain a live ambience, but, personally, I would rather have the concert in its musical entirety than near the Captain's interactions with a heckler, as funny as they are. Moreover, they omitted the concert's opening song rather than a one from later in the show, which I feel disrupts the flow of the concert. But, one shouldn't complain too much, since there is so little official Beefheart product, and this one blows away the boots in sound at least.

The packaging is thankfully devoid of any fluffy liner notes and contains some nice photos from another gig on the 80-81 world tour (Milwaukeee, I believe?). So, overall, I give the concert 4 stars and this edition of it 4 stars as well, and I'm sure any Beefheart fan already has it. If not, you really need to pick it up.

Everything technical aside - it's great music, from a great artist, and its live. Which, in my opinion is where it all matters.

YES, he spends too much time interacting with the hecklers - but if that's what he did, that's what we get, we should hear it.

He's got a great voice doing that!

He is off key for a couple numbers, and perhaps trips on a couple of others. But Face it, the Captain was not interested in easy music to perform.

His music is complex and full of variety and color, and spin (and other things we say quarks have).

there's a couple of astonishing highlights -- the Big Eye'd Beans from Venus finish is a glowing testament to the possibilities of this powerful psychedelic madness. And the One Red Rose that I Mean - Which is an instrumental, is FANTASTIC. Don't overlook it.

I only wish for more of his amazing harp playing.

i was live sound engineer for the concert! this album is a great flashback

THE ONLY OTHER COMPLETELY LIVE CAPTAIN BEEFHEART ALBUM THAT I HAVE IS RAILROADISM (I'M NOT COUNTING MIRROR MAN) AND THIS ONE IS MUCH BETTER. FIRST OF ALL, THE RECORDING QUALITY IS FAR SUPERIOR. SECONDLY, THE MUSIC SOUNDS BETTER. THIS IS CLASSIC BEEFHEART AT HIS BEST (MOST OF THE TIME). HE SINGS OFFKEY A FEW TIMES, AND THERE IS A VERY ANNOYING HECKLER IN THE CROWD ALL THROUGHOUT THE SHOW, AND BETWEEN SONGS, THERE IS A LOT OF BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN HIM AND THE CAPTAIN, WHO EVENTUALLY GETS PRETTY PEED OFF. BUT THIS IS A GREAT CD NEVERTHELESS. I AM GLAD I HAVE A GOOD LIVE RECORDING OF CAPTAIN BEEFHEART AND HIS MUSIC. HIS BAND SOUNDS GREAT, TOO (THE ZILLIONTH VERSION OF THE MAGIC BAND).

It's ironic that this concert has been around for years on CD as a bootleg from Europe and that the bootleg is complete unedited and on one disc?? But that aside classic Beef at his best.