Hall & Oates - Greatest Hits Live [Live]

Hall & Oates | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 6, 2001)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Live
• Label: RCA
• ASIN: B00005RDCB
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,327 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #60 in Music > R&B > Soul > Blue-Eyed Soul

Editorial Reviews

Greatest Hits Live by Daryl Hall & John Oates

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars We finally get a decent Hall and Oates live album., November 21, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Hall & Oates - Greatest Hits Live (Audio CD)

In their peak years (the early 80s), Hall and Oates and their band were touring the country relentlessly, and their concerts were absoultely outstanding. The music was re-arranged for a live performance, and with some studio polish worn away, the live version of a certain song was usually far superior to its studio incarnation. For years, many Hall and Oates concerts from the early 80s that were lucky enough to be recorded officially lie in the vaults forgotten.

With GREATEST HITS LIVE, we finally get a Hall and Oates live album containing an entire show (although a twenty minute intro has been edited out, according to the liner notes). There were two live albums from the duo's recording career. 1978's forgettable LIVETIME was taken from several different concerts. 1985's LIVE AT THE APOLLO was brief, half of it featuring Temptations David Ruffin and Eddie Kendricks, and the other half featuring only a handful of the Hall and Oates's hits; clearly part of a much larger show. It was good, but not satisfying enough.

GREATEST HITS LIVE changed that. If you own this CD, try to apply it to a huge sound system and turn it up...loud. It's just like being there. This recording was an outstanding one, having the quality of a studio recording. The performances, as with many Hall and Oates live shows from this period, are also outstanding. Featured is nearly every major hit from their career, along with the genius of such musicians as Hall and Oates, G.E. Smith, Charlie DeChant, T. Bone Wolk, and Mickey Curry.

Are there standouts? Since there are so many songs that are excellent, standouts are at first a hard pick. Especially fascinating is "Kiss on my List," turned from a soulful piano song to a fiery, rocking performance. "Sara Smile" finds Daryl Hall pleading for Sara near the end in a unique arrangement of the song. "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)" was heard before on the LIVE AT THE APOLLO album, but GREATEST HITS LIVE features a more organized attack of this song. "Rich Girl" is a charmingly soulful performance, with G.E. Smith's guitar giving it a heavier feel. But perhaps the most remarkable tracks on this album are "Did It in a Minute," "Mano a Mano," and "United State," which are furious, with Daryl, John, and G.E. playing away on distorted guitars.

Is GREATEST HITS LIVE a worthwhile purchase? Certainly is. It is of excellent quality, and is packed with enough worthwhile performances. But there could be a better Hall and Oates live album. Something like a concert recorded sometime in 1984 or 1985, with songs from H2O, ROCK 'N SOUL PART I, and BIG BAM BOOM part of it. But that does nothing to diminish the pleasures of GREATEST HITS LIVE; for now it's the best one out there.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I hear the voices, March 15, 2002

By 

Thomas Calhoun "Tom Calhoun" (Charlotte, NC United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hall & Oates - Greatest Hits Live (Audio CD)

Finally RCA is doing something with the H&O catalog. Where's the box set though? This is a great live recording. Unlike a lot of acts, this is a great live band. Daryl and John really take the live shows seriously and it shows. This set contains some of my favorite H&O songs including rocking renditions of How Does it Feel.., Kiss on my list, Diddy Doo Wop and United State. The recording and mix are both good and thankfully editing is very minimal. I wish the would have left a little of the between song banter in though. Guess you can't have everything and finally we are getting something. There is a lot more in the vault, now there's hope we get to hear it. Buy this NOW.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Live Recording, December 29, 2001

By 

tacfire "FFE" (Fishers, IN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hall & Oates - Greatest Hits Live (Audio CD)

An excellent recording of Hall & Oates in great voice.