Customer Reviews

Live at the Old Quarter

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Next to Cash's Live at Folsom, this is the best country/folk/Americana live album ever made. I personally have always considered Bob Dylan far and away the premier songwriter of his time and I was put off by Steve Earle's oft quoted statement that TVZ is the best songwriter in the world (and he will stand on Bob Dylan's coffee table in his cowboy boots and say that).

Ahhhh, this album shows Earle to be very close to being right. Townes' songs are PERFECTLY written, every word and phrase in their exact places. Like Mozart hearing his opera in his head fully formed, Townes seems to do the same, like an angel sent down to Earth to be a conduit from the Creator to us mere mortals. Like Van Gough, his work will prove to be timeless, growing in stature and value as the ages roll.

Dylan's work is, of course, wonderful,immense, historical - a body of work that will stand the test of time as surely as any of the great classical composers.

Van Zandt's work is different. It's poetry in its pure form. It's lovely and understated and complex and timeless and it, too, is a great body of work. Not revolutionary, no anthems, just songs to be sung and LISTENED to and enjoyed. Songs that grow with every listening, songs that stand as art, songs that sound like every other song until it hits you that they are like no other songs.

Recorded at The Old Quarter in Houston, TX over five steamy nights in July 1973, Live at The Old Quarter captures for posterity the genius that is Townes Van Zandt at the artistic height of his live performances.

My reaction to this double album is total disbelief. Disbelief that it took me thirty years to find this, after encountering Townes van Zandt's songs through so many other musicians over the years. But more importantly, disbelief that the power of his performance riveted a rowdy, sweltering Houston barroom to pin-drop silence. What on earth was he doing, writing songs like that, going to places outside of time that few others can go?

Don't talk to me about 'unplugged' albums -- "Live at the Old Quarter" is the original, and probably the greatest one. It features Townes van Zandt in top form, performing a lifetime's worth of stellar songs, at the age of 29. His poetry set to music is original source material, seemingly channeled from a different and better place:

To live is to fly
All low and high
So shake the dust off of your wings
And the sleep out of your eyes

"Live at the Old Quarter" is a treasure trove and a masterpiece.

I haven't listened to this since about 1985 which I had on an album and I was very glad to be able to purchase it on C.D. It has brought back some old memories and inspired me to play some more of his songs on guitar, some of which I learned from my guitar teacher when I was a teenager. I hope more people buy this and realize how good of an artist Townes Van Zandt is and know he is the person who wrote the song "Pancho and Lefty"- not Willie Nelson. Thanks Amazon for providing me the access to be able to get this recording again.

This is simply the best album I've ever heard. The depth and sophistication of Townes' lyrics are plenty evident, but the performance is nearly flawless too. He's in his prime, playing his songs the way they were meant to be played, and playing them flawlessly. I honestly consider this to be a major work of art on par with anything--music, painting, literature...anything--anyone has ever done.

Everyone who loves or even likes singer/songwriters has to buy this CD... It is without a doubt one of the top five finest cd's ever made...

Buy this as soon as possible.

Peace.

This album is a must have for any fan of Townes or any newbie to his music. The recordings are of the artist performing solo, live with Townes' signature sense of humor and idiosyncracies all thrown in as a bonus. His hypnotic guitar playing and mesmerizing lyrics will not disappoint. This collection of Townes' music is intelligent, witty, and emotional all rolled into one. A fan of good, pure songwriting would buy this album right now.

If you are new to Townes Van Zandt, this is a great first purchase. It is Townes at his best - live, relaxed, and having fun.

A great cd for those of us who were not blessed to see and hear Townes Van Zandt live during his lifetime. If you have never experienced the unbelievable talent of this Texas Troubadour, then this is the perfect cd to make his acquaintance and fall in love.

This is probably the only review I'll ever write.

I stumbled upon Townes through the Big Lebowski. We watched that movie ad nauseam my Junior year of college, and I found the closing track, "Dead Flowers", to be profoundly haunting. I bought this album sight unseen, and it was the greatest purchase I've ever made.

As a direct result of buying this album, I bought an acoustic guitar and learned to play most of these songs. I've shared it with those closest to me, and I went out of my way to visit Wrecks Bell at his (former) bar in Galveston.

Townes had an ability to put words together that was truly unique - no one has ever spoken to me like he has, before or since. This album captures him at his best: in a small, enthusiastic live acoustic setting. Just him, his guitar, and a crowd of maybe 40 listeners. I would kill to have been there.

This album has touched my life.

Townes Van Zandt Live at the Old Quarter came to mind immediately when I saw Amazon's "Greatest One Hundred Albums of All Time," and noticed it's complete absence from the list. I own most of Amazon's top 15 albums and quite a few of the rest, and Live at the Old Quarter's no-show is more about Amazon's attempt to generate sales than to honestly rate live albums by those who know and love great music. This album has most likely caused more people to pick up a guitar or learn to fingerpick than any other. Townes' ability to connect with his audience comes across so well on this album. I have heard more Townes' shows than I can accurately count, and as hard as it may be to believe, many, particularly in the mid 80s around the time of the release of No Deeper Blue, were even better. After that time, a backslide into alcohol and substance abuse diminished his voice and instrumental skills, but he was still able to summon up his powers on ocassion, as was demonstrated by his powerful live endpiece Live at Union Chapel. For all the devotees of Live at the Old Quarter, we can only hope the tapes were rolling in the mid 80s, and that Townes' manager and wife can end their differences and work to make sure these sounds are not lost forever.