Customer Reviews

Live At Cedar Rapids 12/10/87

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

 

 

John Denver always was at his best in a "live concert" setting, so this release of the concert he performed on Dec. 12, 1987, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, is another fine addition to his legacy of work. Hard-core fans such as myself will love it. But even lesser fans of the man will enjoy it.

Several years ago, PBS released a six-song CD entitled "Live and Unreleased," which they used to solicit money during their pledge breaks. Those songs came from this show. Apparently the release was popular enough that PBS released a Vol. II a couple of years later which contained six more songs from the same show.

Those releases only whetted the appetites for Denver fans who wanted the whole show. Well, here it is, thanks to Collector's Choice Music's new "Live" branch label.

The first part of the show _ 14 tracks including one in which Denver talks to the audience _ are acoustic. It is just Denver and his guitar.

Then the first disc closes with him performing "Flying for Me," the song he wrote as a tribute to the astronauts who were killed in the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger in early 1986. His intro description of how he thought for a time that he would be going on that mission is most interesting.

As he did in other shows during that period, he elected to sing live accompanied by the "Flying for Me" track recorded in the studio for the "One World" album. In effect, it is Denver doing karaoke to his own song, something many performers often do for television appearances. While he did that, he had a video play behind him that was produced from NASA's archives with their cooperation. Of course, the CD listener cannot see the video, which is really too bad. He performed the song that way when I saw him in concert late in the summer of 1986, and it was very effective. So it is really cool to have an "audio souvenir."

Denver switches gears for the first seven songs of the second CD by bringing a string quartet on stage to accompany him. It is another solid choice.

After that, Denver turns into political activist. He uses a spoken rendition of Joseph Malens' "The Ambulance Down in the Valley" to lead into a spoken intro of his anti-arms race song "Let Us Begin (What Are We Making Weapons For?)."

The intro to "Let Us Begin ..." is not preaching, but an effective way of asking his audience to think about the nuclear arms race that was going on at the time between the United States and the Soviet Union. Though the Soviet Union dissolved a few years after this concert, the danger of nuclear arms proliferation is still with us 10 years into the 21st century. So in that context, the presentation remains very valid.

When Denver performed "Let Us Begin ..." in concert during this period, he sang to the studio track, but with a twist. Unlike the version on the "One World" album, he included the version containing the duet track vocal of Russian artist Alexander Gradsky and another video, both of which were very effective. So on this CD, Gradsky's vocal is present, although the video is not, which is again unfortunate. But perhaps it and the "Flying for Me" video can be included on a future DVD release of Denver in concert.

After "Let Us Begin ...", Denver returns to the guitar-only format for five more songs to close the concert. Among those five songs is "Annie's Song," in which Denver sings a verse in Russian, showing even more versatility.

I hope there will be many more releases of Denver "Live" like this one from the vaults. In particular, it would be cool to have the full show from "Live at the Sydney Opera House," recorded in 1977. That one, which has been only excerpted so far, contrasts with "Live at Cedar Rapids" in that it was with a full band and a small orchestra in Denver's heyday. I'd also like to see releases of the full shows from Wolftrap with the Washington National Symphony in 1995 and Saratoga Springs, N.Y., in 1980. And a DVD of the Red Rocks show in Colorado in 1982. There are others I could mention, but that's enough for this forum. I'm greedy, and I make no apologies for it.

But to get back to the "Live at Cedar Rapids" release, it is another great addition to Denver's legacy. The sound quality is excellent. I can't recommend it highly enough.

This CD is a must have for John Denver fans. Mere words cannot express the emotions that I have after listening to it. However, I will attempt to do so. It's also ironic that today is Earth Day, and I got and listened to this CD on that day.

From the first note, it was an incredible CD. I'm a Massage Therapist, and I enjoy listening to John's CDS while I work. (I even have converted a few of my clients to JD music.) The passion in John's voice had my spirit soaring like an eagle, and it came through in my work. There were some songs that I succeded in holding back my tears (Matthew)while others that I couldn't help but cry. (What are we Making Weapons For? Flying for Me, and Falling Leaves.) After the last note played for "Falling Leaves" Leslie and I prayed together.

I know that if you pay your money for this CD, that you will be well pleased too. It is well worth your hard earned money.

By the time John Denver performed this 1987 concert in Cedar Rapids, IA, he was a decade past his commercial peak of the mid-70s. He'd found continued success into the early `80s, but his most recent release, 1986's One World, was both the last he'd recorded for RCA and the first album in fifteen years to miss the chart entirely. The album's single, "Along for the Ride ('56 T-Bird)," had only middling success on the Adult Contemporary chart, and was left out of this set. Denver had forged a non-music public role as an activist, philanthropist, humanitarian, and social critic, but always remained an in-demand live performer. By this point in his career, his non-music activities flowed seamlessly into his stage performances.

This two-hour, twenty-eight track live set touches on fan favorites, social and political commentaries and well-selected covers. Denver's voice hasn't the youthful elasticity of his earlier years, but his investment in the songs, even those he'd been touring for fifteen years, is enthusiastic and resolute. He sings the hits at full length, rather than mashing them into medleys, and performs covers (Lennon & McCartney's "Mother Nature's Son" and Randy Sparks' "Toledo") that had been in his live set for nearly fifteen years. He was an endearing performer, as engaging with a story or a joke as with a song, and his invitations to the audience to sing-along are as warm as a summer campfire.

Denver performs most of the songs solo with his acoustic 12-string, adding a taped background for "Flying for Me" and welcoming a string quartet on stage for disc two. His material is drawn from throughout his career, going back as early as the title song of his debut album, Rhymes & Reason, and as current as "For You" (which was dedicated to his soon-to-be second wife) and the set-closing "Falling Leaves (The Refugees)," which he'd record the following year. His newer material is easily woven into the set, making evident that it wasn't the quality or appeal of Denver's music that had waned, only the interest of radio and the new generation of record buyers.

Disc two includes Denver's statements on the arms race and world hunger and a segue into his then-current "Let Us Begin (What Are We Making Weapons For)." He reaches back to 1971 for the thoughtful "Poems, Prayers and Promises" and climaxes with a crowd-pleasing trio of hits. A dozen of these tracks appeared previously on a pair of PBS promotional releases [1 2], but having the entire concert start-to-finish gives fans an opportunity to relive the magic of Denver's stagecraft. Collectors' Choice delivers the discs in a double-digipack with a four page booklet (with liner notes by Gene Sculatti) tucked into a tight pocket beneath disc two's tray. [©2010 hyperbolium dot com]

As it turned out, the day I happened to see this release in one of the few places left I can still go and actually pick up a CD, I also got Tommy James' "Complete Singles Collection", the main selling point of which is that the early hits are in their original mono versions. Who woulda thunk that I'd get home and find that this unreleased concert from John recorded in '87 would also be in.... mono??? Which isn't so bad for most of the show when it's just the man and his guitar, but when the strings make their appearance, and especially when the orchestral backing track is played for "Let Us Begin...", it really makes me wish it had been more professionally done. This is most noticeable, of course, when using headphones. The other problem with the recording is that the audience level is way too low, which is most obvious when John invites a little singalong action ("Back Home Again", "Today", etc.) and you have to wonder where everybody went. And if you're wondering why disc 2 begins with John chiding... "Gimme a break"... crank it up and you'll hear a few audience members reminding him of his longtime "catchphrase". The only real exception to this is after "Fly Away" when someone lets out a "whooop" and a few handclaps that seem to come from right next to a microphone. Strange. I believe this show took place shortly after JD finished up his long association with RCA, so whoever was responsible for making the recording probably was not thinking in terms of any commercial release. As far as the packaging, it took a few minutes to realize there was actually 3 pages of liner notes tucked in the slot behind disc 2 (which may contain some factual errors, as another reviewer pointed out). All this being said, the recording of John himself is fine, and some of his performances remind you just how talented a singer he was. I wouldn't describe myself as a hard-core Denver fan, as some of you undoubtedly are, but I've always thought John has been incredibly underappreciated as a singer/songwriter/performer, rarely even getting airplay on "oldies" stations for any of his massive hits of the mid-to-late 70's. Not to mention his activism/humanitarianism.... I couldn't believe it when I read that his desire to take part in "We Are the World" in the 80's was denied due to his "image". Go figure. But back to this collection... in spite of the flaws, well worth it for even a casual fan; but if they have any more like this in the future, they should really have some sort of disclaimer, or call it "The Bootleg Series" along the lines of the Bob Dylan sets. 5 stars for the performances and between-song dialogue - 3 stars for technical quality.

Clear sound and an interesting song selection make this disc a must-have for every fan of John Denver. JD was a great performer whether with a band, an orchestra or in this case with just a guitar, and actually this may be the perfect way to hear many of these songs - in their purest form. JD's personality shines through as clear as his lyrics.
I highly recommend the CD, but don't believe everything you read. There are two glaring mistakes in the packaging... the inside booklet says that "Take Me Home, Country Roads" was written by Steve Gillette - the writer was probably thinking of Darcy Farrow. Bill Danoff, Taffy Nivert, and John Denver are correctly credited on the back cover as the song's writers. Then you get to the song "Today" which JD sang throughout his career, but he didn't write it as is indicated on the cover. The song should have been credited to Randy Sparks from the New Christy Minstrels.
You may think that I am just being picky, but with a recording as good as this one I would expect the record company to bring the same quality to the packaging - JD deserves the best.

Sometimes I run out of adjectives to describe the music of John Denver. I will begin by saying that I really think this is an excellent and thoroughly enjoyable CD from a time in John's career when he was really reaching his peak vocally and as a performer.

The majority of this concert is just John and his guitars, although he does add a string quartet to enhance the love song section of this concert. The year was 1987 and the music scene in this country had moved far away from the acoustic guitar/piano based singer-songwriter style of music so prevent from the late 60s to the mid to late 70s and John Denver was no longer soaring to the tops of the charts. But this CD is a testament to the fact that although the fickle tastes of the American public may have moved on, John's growth as a singer, song writer and performer continued to develop.

This double CD is packed with his old hits along with songs that were new at the time but have since become as well loved as the classic hits. John is in very fine form and some tracks are simply some of the best renditions of his work. I don't think I have ever heard more heartfelt poignant renditions of Back Home Again and Matthew. The love song section with the string quartet delivers moving versions of How Can I Leave You Again?, Shanghai Breezes and My Sweet Lady. How much more of an intimate performance can one get while listening to John's opus Poems, Prayers & Promises with just him and his guitar? This solo version of Rocky Mountain High soars as majestically as the mountains he sings about. John's talent as a vocalist is evident in his rendering of Calypso and the bell like high notes that punctuate the end of this song will leave the listener in amazement.

All in all from start to finish this is a stellar live performance of from an artist whose timeless message still needs to be heard.

I bought John Denver Live at Cedar Rapids. I thought the cd was very good. It was a pleasure to listen to it. If you are a John Denver fan this cd is for you. I would highly recommend it .

Absolutely loved it - a must have for any John Denver fan. Familiar songs, best part is John speaking to the audience.

I live in Cedar Rapids and was very lucky to have went to this (and several other) John Denver concerts. This may not appeal broadly, but for those of us who were John Denver fans it is a great add to your music collection. For me it brings back fond memories and I was extatic to add it to my collection!

Personally, even though John Denver's early music is wonderful, even iconic, I find his voice in mid to late career richer and more interesting and that is evident in this wonderful live concert. He was always most fun to listen to interacting with an audience. At this point in his career the audience knew all of the words to everything and it's sort of like listening to old friends interact. The sound of his guitar is especially distinct in this recording and it reminds us of what a great guitar player he was, too. This is such a treat! I agree with the reviewer who said they'd love to see the video of the concert.