Customer Reviews

Classics Live

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'll give this one 4 stars just based on the songs but that's about as far as it goes. You get classic tunes like "Dream On" as well as lesser known masterpieces such as "Kings and Queens." However, for a band that has such a high reputation on the stage, they can do better than this. And they have. "Live Bootleg" as well as all other live albums since have surpassed "Classics Live 1" just based on the energy put into it.

The problem with the production of this record was that it was recorded msotly during the band's dark years of the early 80s. As a result, you don't get the classic lineup on most of the tunes. Jimmy Crespo and Rick Dufay are no match for Perry/Whitford. You really feel the difference on this record. It shows you what the basis of Aerosmith's sound is all about and how this album doesn't contain it.

This is definitely a valuable purchase if for no other reason than that it contains "Major Barbara", which is aware nowhere else. But in the end, this should not be your last stop for live Aerosmith.

I don't think any band does better live than Aerosmith[the best band in the world.]They do well on all of the songs[ecspecially ''train kept a rollin'']Aero ROCKS so get this Cd[or cassette]now!

This album is a live collection of the songs that made Aerosmith famous (except for Three Mile Smile, Reefer Headed Woman and Major Barbara) and, as everyone knows, Aerosmith rules live! Sometimes Aerosmith's songs are best when recorded live. If you want real good live material get this and Live! Bootleg.

I Like this album... the only thing that is bad about it is that it was too short for a live album... also it didn't have alot of the really good songs... though it did have some good ones like Dream On, Sweet Emotion, and Kings and Queens. Dream on is my favorite Aerosmith song and for some reason i liked the way it counded on this album... I actually like the way it sounds on this album better than the origional recording... same thing goes for kings and queens... anyway.. it sounds good but it's too short.

The MP3 songs sound great, but my copy of this on cassette has long since vanished, so I couldn't tell you how the digitized versions compare (at least until my purchase of the old vinyl version arrives). I remember picking this one up in the $3 bargin bin back in '86, and it's one of those tapes that stuck with me until cassette players became obsolete in the early 90's.

As far as I know, you can't find the amazingly good song that is "Kings And Queens" anywhere else. And if you're at least a 70's Aerosmith fan, how sad for you, that you've been denied that tune for this much of your life, if you haven't heard it.

I'm not so sure I'd consider their performance here "sloppy," other than some hard to hit notes and off-key singing briefly at times, by Steve.

The versions here are excellent, energetic, raw, and recorded in their prime when these songs were at the peak of their popularity, versus the over-done classic rock radio staples they are today (at least as far as Sweet Emotion and Dream On are considered).

Joe Perry and Brad make this album what it is, they are tight and perform to their usual standards. But here you get to actually listen to them play, versus listening to them being funneled through various digital effects and dubs you do today in their older age.

I guess I'm a big fan of Mama Kin, Lord Of The Thighs, and prefer the older classics like Dream On and Sweet Emotion, so this one appeals to me. And there is nothing wrong with Three Mile Smile/Reefer Headed Woman, or Major Barbara either, fun, catchy, but complex hard rock-blues at it's finest. Again just some rare tunes you don't hear very often, or can't find anywhere today by them, from their best era.

It sounds great and like most Live Aerosmith, a great party album.

HOW??? can anybody hate this album its the best live album ive evr heard. standouts: tracks 1-8!! if you dont like this album your not an Aerosmith fan

This CD features Aerosmith at their most slick-sounding and consistently rhythmic; the opening "Train Kept A Rollin'" is their most moving version of this song (it's also featured on Get Your Wings and Live Bootleg among others) and the next song "Kings and Queens" - along with #4 "Dream On" - is melodic and melancholly. "Sweet Emotion" is superbly performed, perhaps not any more so than any of their other versions (from Toys In The Attic or Live Bootleg or a half dozen other albums...) but, as said before, it's the most slick sounding version in their career back catalogue. The "side 2" (as is on the cassette version - which was the 1st type I bought...) isn't quite as good, and if you've listened to this CD a few times already, you might find tracks 5-8 pretty boring actually. But it's good kickin' noise to have in the background if you can't stand the oh so terrible silence (whatever!)...; in my opinion "Major Barbara" falls short of the expectations prompted from the lyrics...unless you have a photographic memory, you might go back to that song thinking it's gonna be a tragic-weepytype song, but you'll be disappointed (if you have any taste, that is...). I agree with one or more reviewer(s), that CL#2 is quite better...I'll review that another time.

i absolutely love this cd. one of my favorite songs is dream on. sweet emotion is also really good. if you love classic aerosmith youll love this album

This CD is a must have for any Aerosmith fan. The true essence of the band with all original members really shines through with the magical chemistry the exude when they play!! This CD I feel is much better than their recorded work on their '70's album 'Bootleg' as it has more of a "being there" ambiance of their actual concerts, and if you have ever been to one of them, then you are in for a real treat...it sounds like you are in the audience for sure. This CD mix is very good sounding and it sounds great at a louder than average volume. The band is actually making a comeback when it was recorded and it shows on this CD here. They have the hunger of a starving wolf on the prowl and when they pounce on their prey there is no mercy!! The attack and kill are imminent! For all you fans...Buy this one here, you won't regret it!!

The fact is, if Wikipedia didn't tell us which guitarists played on which tracks, we wouldn't be able to tell the difference. The performances from "Classics Live," whether they were driven by the guitars of Joe Perry and Brad Whitford or their brief replacements Jimmy Crespo and Rick Dufay, are fiery and raw, though most times a bit muddy. Taken into account these recordings come from a band in tense splinters, the first volume of "Classics Live" is quite a solid disc of proof that Aerosmith were consummate showmen. 'Sweet Emotion,' 'Train Kept a-Rollin' and 'Dream On' are highlights, though the studio outtake 'Major Barbra' is a bore. 'Kings and Queens' is the biggest surprise, departing from the studio wizardry of its original and turned into a blistering rendition.