Customer Reviews

Headstone

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Headstone is a must have UFO Live cd taken from their very last show with very very underrated guitarist Paul Chapman in the Spring of 1983. This shows how great of live band UFO really were all the years of hard touring & hard work really shines here. Its not a wonder why bands like Def Leppard,Iron Maiden,Tesla,etc rate UFO as one of the best bands ever and look up to their legendary status with great acclaim. This cd will make you wish you were there witnessing the show.For one the remastered sound in incredible secondly the performance is top notch all the way through every member is dead on. I havent heard one wart anywhere on this performance. This will do any UFO fan proud!!Great packaging as well Love it!!

Couldn't be happier that EMI decided to ditch the redundant "friends and relations" concept of the original "Headstone" in favor of this all live disc. Spectacular playing by Paul Chapman- one of his best ever live recorded perfomances, the band is firing on all cylinders, and the recording quality is excellent! If the whole show where here this would be the Chapman-era answer to "Strangers in the Night". A must have for all Chapman -era fans!

definitly a great cd to add to your UFO collection , contains live recording from the making contact tour. It was originally released in vinyl in 1983 as a swan song for the band containing best of as well as family, friends tracks (Scorpions , Whitesnake Etc....) on sides 1-3 , with side four containing 5 live tracks from this recording. Now this is only the live show with 6 more songs added, very good recording and great performance from the band we grew to love.

Since there's no option of a half star to add to my 3, I'll expand a bit on my reasoning behind this rating. First off, Most fans whom have come to know and love UFO know that the real reason why we are fans in the first place is because of Michael Schenker. And yes, it's known fact that Paul Chapman was involved within the stew of the band tracing back to '74-75 as a second guitarist for the purpose of live reproductions within the studio material. And while in the years of Schenker's tenure in UFO, Chapman did fill in for Michael at certain times and did eventually wind up as his replacement for the subsquent five years thereafter. Therefore, while this release captures the band within the throes of their last gasp(at least for this phase of the group), it proves to show that Paul Chapman is no slouch on the six-string and that there is ALOT of latter day material presented here, thus raising the question: Was the Chapman era more worthy than that of the classic Schenker era? Fact of the matter is, that while the latter day albums( No Place to Run thru Making Contact) show some growth and spirit, also seem like more polished over and perhaps, half baked ideas that don't seem to really ROCK like they should. Like I've stated earlier, I do appreciate Paul as a player and feel that he is overlooked as a consumate musician within the rock world, but with material that was brimming thru like Lonley Heart, Doing It All For You, We Belong To The Night and Let it Rain, it makes me wonder what happened to this band. I think of the time period and realize the need for the tired AOR approach that keeps a band in business, but its lost in what was once the group that did songs like Rock Bottom, Shoot Shoot and Natural Thing. I feel the musicianship is impeccable on this release, yet the songwriting is coasting. The Chapman era is an aquired taste and sometimes(if you're a serious fan) can enthrall you, but this is why I give 3 and half stars to this release. There is passion, precision and persistence in this performance, yet, its nothing revelatory or legendary...

It was very diappointing when Michael Schenker left the band. He's a great guitarist, but Phil Mogg and company did a great job in bringing in Paul Chapman. Although there sound changed some Chapman did a great job as you will hear if you purchase this live cd with the best of UFO's music with Paul Chapman. They still put out some great music. Phil Mogg was as good as ever and they continued to rock people with the post Schenker albums. You will enjoy this live cd, and see what a great band they still were and are today.

I can only chime into say that this cd is truly phenomenal...the band is firing on ALL cylinders, and this is a definite companion piece to the Strangers lp. Also check on the whole BBC show from 1980 also available from Amazon mp3, a complete show with Schenker classics.

I am a UFO fan from the get go with Schenker. I've met and photographed Michael plus spent a day with Pete photographing him. I've always been partial to the Schenker era but loved the first first Chapman disc and also the time when he and Micheal shared guitar duties.

This is an excellent disc. Chapman is on top of his game here. The band is tight. Phil sounds great and the quality of the remaster disc is stellar.

Even if you are a Schenker only UFO fan, this is a worthwhile disc.

It is exceptional.

If you are a fan of the Paul Chapman era UFO studio albums, then you are going to love this live recording. Mine has a release date of 2009 and is a remaster.
P.S. (Warning)
Make sure you buy "NEW"... The NEW version of HEADSTONE, with only live tracks from UFO's farewell show at Hammersmith in England. Not the old version which has only a smaller part of that show and a bunch of other stuff on it which can be purchased separately. The new version is actually released by Chrysalis!

I have the original "headstone" and it has more studio tracks from ufo related bands and half of the live show featured on this version. So this version adds five more live tracks from the 1983 show which sound great. Thankfully the band reformed a few years later; which is why the "headstone" album cover hand is not carving a date into the headstone on the cover. Ufo lives on and that is a great thing, and no there's tons of great live shows from their career; and this is a good one to own. The songs are mainly from their 'making contact' era with a few songs from earlier albums. 'electric phase" and 'no place to run" (recorded 1979 released 1980) and 'mystery train" are all from the seventies era and sound great when played by the then current 1983 lineup. If you enjoy hard rock live then this is a good one to get however I would start with the universally critically acclaimed 1978 release 'strangers in the night" first and then grab this one.

Excellent live CD from a great band at the peak of their powers. Paul Chapman plays his ass off and Paul Gray replaces Pete Way easily on bass.All rock guitarist should listen to CD because they could learn something about bending those strings and wringing that neck. Highly Recommended.