Customer Reviews

Cheap Trick At Budokan: The Complete Concert

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It is usually a rare feat when a band hits it big as a result of a live recording. Normally a band will release a live recording to sustain the momentum of the band without having to record new material. Such was the case in 1978, when Cheap Trick released "Live at Budokan". Cheap Trick hadn't had any major success in the U.S. up until this point - but it was "Live at Budokan" that put them on the map. "Live at Budokan" is a legendary live album. Back in the late 1970s, live albums were very much the "in thing" on the music scene. Some have even gone as far to say that "Live at Budokan" might be one of the greatest live albums in the history of the music business. Regardless on where "Live at Budokan" stands, one can't deny its impact - it was a huge commercial success for Cheap Trick and put them on the map. This CD isn't the 1978 "Live at Budokan" - this is an expanded set called "Cheap Trick - At Budokan: The Complete Concert". It actually is a take of the original Budokan album and 9 of the 12 tracks from a 1993 "Budokan II" album (the 3 remaining songs not included were actually from 1979 - a follow-up tour. As a result, the 2 CD set "Budokan: The Complete Concert" is a much better product than the 1978 album - this due to the inclusion of the "Budokan II" material and the power of digitial remastering.

I think it is appropriate to discuss the liner notes early on. Although there are no lyrics included, the liner notes go into amazing detail of the story of Cheap Trick's performance at the Budokan. For such a legendary live recording, the liner notes do an outstanding job at telling the story. The interesting part is how they went to Japan and never planned on this album being the worldwide success that it turned out to be. Another interesting story is that the original Budokan album featured the songs that were more "pop" in nature and preferred by the Japanese audience. The less pop (or now called these days 'alternative' side of the band) wasn't released until 15 yeas later on "Budokan II". It is also worth noting that this CD does a nice job with the production credits - including a comparision to the 1978 original "Budokan" album.

So if you are new to Cheap Trick - what is the legend of Budokan? For starters, I think Cheap Trick doesn't get a lot of credit as being a bridge from the early 70s sound to the new-wave 80s sound. As a band, they have always been underrated in their careers. You'll hear the old Hendrix-style guitars of Rick Nielson in "Can't Hold On", yet hear the almost altenative type sound in "Elo Kiddies" to the 80s anthem-like rock in "High Rollers". As a result, they were able to come up with a very unique sound. This unique sound translates brilliantly into a live performance. You will feel the full energy of this concert - from the band's standpoint and from the fan's standpoint. There will be times when either: Robin Zander's vocals will shine (such as "I Want You To Want Me"); Tom Petersson's Bass will be in the limelight ("Speak Now or Forever Hold Your Peace"); Rick Nielson's Guitar will roar (like in "Can't Hold On"); or Bun E. Carlos drums will be as loud as thunder (such as "Elo Kiddies"). The digital remastering even does better to make a 3 dimensional effect with the sound. This is also a full concert. There won't be breaks between the songs - the whole concert flows real nice - from the opening band, to the 2 song encore. Live albums such as Bon Jovi's "One Wild Night" which don't encapsulate a single performance are sorely lacking because they don't have the continous flow. Finally, Robin Zander does a great job at connecting with the audience and this is very evident as you listen to the tracks.

The 2 CD set also features some video footage. The first CD contains the video performance from Budokan of "Auf Wiederschen" while the second CD contains the video performance of "Surrender". The first CD also features a short video interview clip from Bun E. Carlos and Robin Zander, while Rick Nielson and Tom Petersson are on the second CD. The videos can be played on either the Mac or PC. They do use some dated Quicktime technology, but they do get the job done in terms of bringing a visual element to Budakon that wasn't available on the original CD. I kind of wish they included some other videos or even released the DVD or VHS or the Budakon concert. Perhaps that is something to come in due time.

I've heard Cheap Trick live and studio - the live version is the way to go with this band. If you've heard about the legend of Budokan, I'd strongly advise just getting this 2 CD collection - you'll do much better here as opposed to buying the original and the "Budokan II" CD. All of the great things you'll hear about this collection are true and it will become a cornerstone of your collection for years to come.

There are just some albums that everyone must own. "Cheap Trick at Budokan" is one of them. This is one of the 3 best live recordings ever (The Who's "Live at Leeds" and "Frampton Comes Alive" being the others). Now it has become even greater, and all the more essential, in this new version including all the material off of "Budokan II" and re-arrainged in the original set-list from the concert. The sound quality has never been better (even rivaling the gold edition floating around); Columbia/Legacy have built a good reputation in their fine remasters. And this is no exception, especally with the added material. You are THERE, in the crowd. Tom's bass sounds positivly chunky, Bun E.'s drums are crisp & deep, Rick's guitar soars & Robin is truly amazing. From the opening scorch of "Hello There" thru the all-out assult on "Clock Strikes Ten", the crunch of "Auf Vedershen" & "Surrender" and the pop jump of "I Want You to Want Me", it's all here. The defining pop/rock sound that is often imitatded, never been duplicated. This is the sound that all of the 90's wanna-be alt-rockers have been trying to emulate (Billy Corigan & Kurt Cobain freely admitted it). If you're a serious rock fan, you need to own this. If you have the original, time to trade up. It all starts here. Truly timeless kickin' rock & roll.

I always thought "Live at Budokan" seemed incomplete from the time I bought it--the sound, the songs were great, but it just felt like there should have been more. "The Complete Concert" is quite simply the best live rock'n'roll album by any band, even the Ramones. Period. I saw these guys in Boulder last year on two consecutive nights and they hadn't lost a thing from when I saw them at least 18 years before. The performances kicked massive ass and so does this album. If you're a Cheap Trick fan (even if you only occasionally listen to them or already have "Live at Budokan"), you should go out and buy this album, crank it up to wall-shaking, neighbor-bothering levels, and listen to it as it was meant to be heard--in its entirety. "The Complete Concert" is real rock'n'roll from a great band with great songs, not some lame imitation thereof (like so many other 'live' albums).

I was a big fan of Cheap Trick at Budokan when the LP was released in 1979. This CD compilation goes it one better. The concert is presented complete, with the tracks in the original order (including several that didn't make the cut to LP in '79). To top it all off, the whole shebang has been digitally remastered.

How does it work, you ask? I don't think the word "excellent" does it justice. This two CD set, as at least one other reviewer noted, should be a seminal part of any serious CD collection. This set packs a sonic whallop and says unflinchingly that Cheap Trick was at that time (and for the most part still is) one of the most dynamic live acts in rock n' roll. Bonus tracks include PC/MAC video performances of Auf Wiedersehen and Surrender.

I have only one minor complaint. A small bit of dialogue that occurred prior to the final track, Clock Strikes Ten, was omitted from the mix. Robin Zander introduces the tune with "here's one I'm sure you all know" in the original LP but curiously this was missing on the intro in the "Complete Concert" set. This is a minor point however and should not seriously detract from the enjoyment of what I consider to be one of the best live rock albums ever made.

Although the original Budokan was a great album, much was missing from it. This edition rectifies the ommissions (excepting the banter before "Clock Strikes 10"- "Here's one I'm sure you all know!") and features more songs from their first 3 albums.

Like on the original, "Hello There" opens the set (and adds dialogue between members just as they're getting ready to rock!) and follows the playful "Come On, Come On". "Elo Kiddies" (a sassy shuffle) and the more complex "Speak Now or Forever Hold Your Peace" (both of these from their debut) are added. The menacing "Big Eyes" (featuring Robin Zander going up and down on the octaves and Bun E Carlos starting it off on drums) and the adventurous "Look Out" are back, albiet in reverse order! Then you have the moody "Downed", the desperate "Can't Hold On", and the rockin' "Oh Caroline" (from In Color) all added to this set.

From the original, Robin introduces "Surrender" (which pays homage to Kiss on the last verse) as "the 1st song on our [then] NEW album!" and Rick Nielsen adds a flamboyant coda not found on the studio version! "Auf Wiedersehen" (also from Heaven Tonight and featured here for the 1st time) is pure bone-crunching rock.

On "Need Your Love", Robin's vocals range from desperate pleas to bitter sneers and Rick jams away on guitar not dissimilar to Marc Bolan, Pete Townshend, and Brian May. "High Roller" is another rocker which allows Rick to jam followed by the more laid back "Southern Girls". "I Want You to Want Me" blows away the original version on In Color. A cover of the Move's "California Man" is at once, fast furious, and fun (and why this wasn't included on the original is beyond me!)!

Then Cheap Trick plays "Goodnight" (a reprise of "Hello There") and plays 2 encores- a raucous version of Fats Domino's "Ain't That a Shame" where Rick sneaks in a riff from the Beatles' "Please Please Me" and the finale allows Rick, Bun E, and Tom Peterson (bass) to trade solos (to think, in the days of vinyl, this was the opener to Side 2!). Finally, the anticlimactic "Clock Strikes 10" (with its Westminster chimes opening) puts this set in full circle!

If you had a copy of the original Budokan, you'll love this reissue!

This is one of a handful of albums that really belongs in any rock/pop record collection, whatever your tastes. It is arguably the best live LP ever released and a compelling document of one of the greatest working bands in rock and roll history. The band is so tight, so loud and so vital, even cynics will be impressed. Cheap Trick is an oddball band, and these songs hold up well. If anything, they sound better after 20 years. They are really smart and catchy... some of the lyrics are just plain cryptic, though. Even if they are playing theme songs for sit-coms now, they were once the greatest band on earth, and these scorching performances will remind future generations of that fact.

If I were on my way to a desert island and had to choose just one album to take with me, CHEAP TRICK AT BUDOKAN would be it. If I had to choose just one disc, it would be Disc 2, because it contains my favorite tune, NEED YOUR LOVE.
I originally bought the LP when I was 13, because I liked the cutesy I WANT YOU TO WANT ME. It quickly became my least favorite song. As for the rest of the music, I was bowled over by the raw and powerful guitar sound and vocals, and by the sheer energy of both the band and the audience.

The original 1979 "At Budokan" album was a rush job...in order to beat the bootleggers, Epic jammed a radio promo only Cheap Trick special release into the stores. History happens....

The Top Ten success of the album and the breakthrough of "I Want You To Want Me" put the Trick over the top, and for good reason. There was such a power and vitality to the live versions that even their incredible studio counterparts sounded pale. Think about that for a second. Cheap Trick already had produced three virtually perfect albums, and they managed to IMPROVE on them. Aside from Peter Frampton, no other act of the seventies could claim their live album had managed that feat. Any band to claim other wise was fibbing.

To commemorate the 20th anniversary of "At Budokan," Epic has managed to improve upon perfection. They dug back into the vaults for the nine cuts that went on the afterthought 1994 CD "At Budokan II," resequenced the concert into the original playing order, and gave the whole she-bang a re-master job. (The original CD sounded tinny and harsh.) There's little left to say other than this was Cheap Trick at their friskiest and fiercest. The songs are a little faster, Nielsen's guitar a little louder, Zander's singing just a touch more passionate, and the Japanese in the audience couldn't have been any crazier. They may have not known just what the were singing in "I Want You To Want Me," but there is no doubt that when they respond back to the "crying, crying, crying" chorus, they meant every word.

If there was ever any doubt as to the power of a live performance by Cheap Trick, this album shatters them. An unbelievable tour de force. Their studio work is great, granted cheesy at times, but the power and drive in their live performances comes through in this album, the 20th anniversary of the concert in Japan. The combination of Tom Petersson and Bun E. Carlos as a rhythm section is tight, and Rick Neilson's gutiar licks offer a great foil to Robin Zander's vocal. Just wish I could have been there. Highly recommended to any Cheap Trick fan, even more so to anyone else. Definitely one of, if not the, most underrated bands of all-time.

Though my tastes have changed over the last Oh my God 20 years..This album is still the best power pop album ever made. Even King Crimson/Belew fans can take a few lessons from Ricks weird guitar licks..Besides, most importantly, Its just FUN.