Live in San Francisco 1979

Graham Parker, Graham Parker & the Rumour | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (December 8, 2009)
• Original Release Date: 2009
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Renaissance
• ASIN: B002U6CJQ0
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #168,668 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Discovering Japan

2. Local Girls

3. Thunder and Rain

4. Don't Get Excited

5. Back to School Days

6. Passion Is No Ordinary Word

7. Mercury Poisoning

8. Heat Treatment

9. Stick to Me

10. You Can't Be Too Strong

11. Love Gets You Twisted

12. Clear Head

13. Hey Lord, Don't Ask Me Questions

14. Saturday Night Is Dead

15. Nobody Hurts You

16. Protection

17. Soul Shoes

18. I Want You Back

19. Pouring It All Out

20. New York Shuffle

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Get Excited!, January 24, 2010

By 

Timothy P. Young (Rawlins, WY, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Live in San Francisco 1979 (Audio CD)

There's only one way to describe this album--awesome. In 1979, Graham Parker was at the peak of his powers--a top selling album with Squeezing Out Sparks, and several tours into his association with the Rumour, one of the best live bands of the 70s. This show from San Francisco hits all the great moments from the aforementioned album, as well as tunes from previous albums, and each and every one of them sounds better in this iteration than they did in the studio.

Bob Andrew's keyboards lend piano flourishes to songs such as "Discovering Japan" and "Back to Schooldays," which adds a new texture to songs that were already great on record. Brinsley Schwartz is at his best, his lead guitar weaving in and out of each song, bringing something new to it while still serving the song. Bodnar and Goulding keep things pinned down nicely, and Martin Belmont's second guitar provides the perfect backing for Brinsley to do his thing.

And then there's Parker himself. His songs, always urgent, gain even more immediacy in this setting...every song seems to be a matter of life and death to Parker at this point, and his vocals show that without becoming histrionic at any point. From sharp to soft to full throated, you'll never hear Parker sing better than this.

This album is electric in all the right ways. The few bits of stage patter that are included here sound a little bit forced, but that just adds to the tension. Compared to the easy banter of his excellent 1988 acoustic tour documented on Live! Alone in America, Parker here sounds like someone who wants nothing more than to get back to sharing the music. And that's a very good thing here.

For those of you who are fortunate enough to already have 'Live Sparks,' the promo album included on the first 'Squeezing Out Sparks' remaster 13 years ago, and are therefore waffling about this one (same tour, after all), this is completely worth it. To have a full show from that era, and not just live versions of the 'Sparks' songs makes this into a must-buy.

Parker's always been good, often great, but rarely better than here. Get excited.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great live recording!, January 16, 2010

By 

Noise2Go (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Live in San Francisco 1979 (Audio CD)

The is a great sounding live recording of Graham Parker and The Rumour during the best time of their career together. I was lucky enough to see them twice during this tour in 1979, once at the Spectrum (opening for Cheap Trick), and later that summer as headliners at the Shubert Theater in Philadelphia. This CD brings back great memories of those smokin' hot shows. If you love GP, you will love this complete show. Includes a spirited Mercury Poisioning, and ode to their former label.

23 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect Parker!, December 31, 2009

By 

Dean Sciarra "True Music Fan" (PA - USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Live in San Francisco 1979 (Audio CD)

I'm not sure what the other reviewer is listening to but this is "Perfect Parker." The sound of this album is as good as you'd ever want for a live recording. There is no hiss - it has great bottom and punchy mids. Unless he's listening at a volume too loud for humans to bear, he must have a hearing problem. And I should know since I mastered this recording! If you want to listen to full 2 minute samples just go to ItsAboutMusic-com. If you're a real fan of this band then you will not want to be without this recording.