Customer Reviews

Last Night in Hamburg

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

 

 

How does one review a title like this? What if I were to tell you I had an audio tape of Lincoln's Gettysburgh address? Or one of Beethoven himself playing the piano? How appropriate is it to even debate sound quality (presuming it is, in the least, AM radio quality)? This is a slice of Beatles history preserved; the four young lads in their leather suits, rockin' through their 1962 set in a smoky Hamburg bar. You know the bar, the Star Club. You know it because you read it in all those Beatles biographies, where there was always some comment about these being the best of times to see the Beatles perform. And you always thought, Damn! If only! If only I could have been there! Well, some guy rolled a tape one night, and here it is, incredibly having withstood the destructive sands of time. Sure, this is not a recording for everyone. But for Beatles fans, this is a time machine to the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. I can still remember the first time I heard it, getting tingles up my spine as they broke into "I saw her standing there". Close your eyes, take a sip and get carried away... This is the first time I've seen this on CD. I recommend you snap this baby up while the getting is good. And why only 4 stars? Well, what if a high-quality stereo tape of the Beatles in the Cavern turns up one day? I'll reserve the extra star for that!

"Last Night In Hamburg" makes a great addition to any Beatles' fan's collection. This CD captures The Fab Four in action at the Star Club in Hamburg, Germany. Here, The Beatles perform mostly covers of songs such as "Sweet Little Sixteen", "Hippy Hippy Shake", "Mr. Moonlight", "Your Feets Too Big", and "Long Tall Sally". Although the sound quality is slightly rough, the music and content found here more than compensates. If you want an idea as to how the Beatles started, this CD is a must. Thank goodness someone was there that night to record this great performance. This CD is not only for diehard fans, but also for those who have just discovered the Beatles. LONG LIVE BEATLEMANIA!

Before they became famous, the Beatles were building up to their enormous success in America by playing various clubs in Liverpool and Hamburg. Among the clubs they were playing was the Star Club in Hamburg. On December 31, 1962, their last scheduled date there, Adrian Barber used homemade equipment to record the Beatles. The tapes he made are beautifully preserved here. The interaction between the band and the audience is much different here than in other live shows they did later on. This seems like a much more relaxed atmosphere. And since there were no screaming girls yet, the music could be heard. Twenty-eight songs ae presented here in great quality. This album is a real treasure to any Beatles fan, so enjoy.

(If you listen to this CD through speakers,
not headphones, the sound quality is okay.)

I really like this recording of an early
Beatles performance. They show a prodigious
amount of talent and ability. Even through
the muffled lens of a poor original recording
you can tell that these guys are putting
out the real thing with tremendous energy.
They were unspoiled by all the hype and
promotion and show a professionalism that
we will probably never hear again in a
small club setting. As such, this recording
is an historical document that will be
revered by present and future generations.
True, the sound quality is far from 192 kHz
sampling frequency by 32 bit digital surround.
Remember, these guys probably had a total of
100 watts of amplifier power on stage. The
work they did with what they had at the time
was remarkable! True, they can be heard tuning
up the guitars. But they did it by ear without
a handy digital quartz guitar tuner -- and
they have better tuned guitars than Chuck
Berry (whose Gibson was always a little bit
out, but he bent the strings into tune as
he played). Given the fact that most vocals
released in the past few years have been
"sweetened," or digitally pitch-corrected,
the great harmonies of the four from 'Pool
don't require the modern refinements.
This collection of 28 tunes contains 26
covers of the "jukebox hits" of the time and
two originals -- "I Saw Her Standing There"
and "Ask Me Why." The first was better
recorded on "Live at the BBC," but both tunes
show the world-conquering ability of the four
respectful lads.
Until we have the sonic reconstruction
techniques equivalent to the photo-enhancing
methods shown in the futuristic "Blade Runner"
movie, this CD is the best available that shows
how it was way back when... and it was very
good indeed!

First, the good news: In my opinion, digital remastering has made it far easier to hear the lyrics this time around. But now, the bad news: Although there would have been more than enough room on this CD to avoid doing so, at least two of the songs listed here ("A Taste of Honey" and "Besame Mucho," the second of which has never appeared on any other Star Club CD reissue) suffer from a butcher's hand in the editing process. Why??????? I suddenly feel very sorry that I parted with my copy of the original European vinyl album years ago...!

When you look at the Beatles, and you think of all the problems they went through in 1962 -- playing for 8 hours every night at Hamburg, Pete Best, the first but not-so-good drummer, taking drugs -- after looking at all that, you think to yourself, "How could they do something this good?" These are good songs, not so great quality. In fact, on some tracks you can't hear the words. Also, 10 of these songs appear on LPs in the following 3 years, which tells you that clear, clean, crisp studio versions can be found. However, Hamburg started the Beatles, so for historical purposes, it's a good CD to have.

I bought this album in 2001. Beatles always have a 5 star rating, however this album is a 4 because of its lack of some songs. This is a great album because it includes the introduction of the Beatles and includes most of the songs from "Live at the Star Club Vol 1 and 2," but omits a few of them. It adds a few of them, but omits "Hully Gully" and "Reminiscing." If you are a fan of the Beatles and like Live at the Star Club, get this one and both volumes of Live at the Star Club to satisfy your Beatles craving of pre- "Please Please Me."

Although the quality of the sound is not at least to regulate, we must appreciate the historic value of these recordings... are beatles playing at the Star Club in Hamburg. The only thing that had lacked is to include all the songs of the Star Club. "Reminicing" and "Till There was You", also the incomplete "Road Runner" and the complete versions of "I Saw Her Standing There" and "A Taste Of Honey"... but it is the CD that brings you more songs that any other disc... 5 stars.

Si Bien la calidad del sonido no es siquiera regular, debemos apreciar el valor historico de estas grabaciones... son los beatles tocando en el Star Club. Lo unico que hubiese faltado para que sea excelente es incluir todas las canciones del Star Club.. Faltan "Reminicing" y "Till There was You" por no decir tambien "Road Runner" y las versiones completas de "I Saw Her Standing There" y "A Taste Of Honey"... pero es el cd que trae mas canciones que cualquier otro disco... 5 estrellas.

FIRST OF ALL, WHEN I FOUND OUT ABOUT "1962 LIVE AT THE STAR CLUB IN HAMBURG" I WANTED IT SO BAD, BUT I COULD'NT FIND IT. THE BEST I COULD FIND WAS THIS ON(WICH IS CLOSE). I WOUNDERED WHAT IT WOULD SOUND LIKE, IT WAS COOL TO HEAR THE BEATLES(BEFORE THE DAYS OF BEATLEMANIA).

IF YOU ARE A COLLECTOR OF THE BEATLES, OR OF HISTORICAL ROCK 'N' ROLL MUSIC: BUY THIS.

IT COMES WITH A POSTER INSIDE TOO!!!!

THIS IS A 5 STAR RATING FOR SURE

So I bought this CD because I hadn't heard any of the songs on it, expecting the sound to be aleast decent, because it's digitally remastered. Well it isn't, and the sound is ... and I want my [money]back. You can't hear any of the lyrics. Unless you're a Beatles collector and enjoy hearing bad tapings of the Beatles, don't waste you're money on it.