Customer Reviews

Live at Manchester University

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

 

 

Astonishing. The songs covered here were uniformly wonderful in their studio versions, 801 was a very good band, & Manzanera is one of the best, most versatile guitar stylists. But this should never have been released. Trust me on this -- I love these guys, & I couldn't listen to this disc more than twice before getting rid of it.

The previous reviewer obviously confused this disc with the original 801:Live (ASIN: B000003S0W), which is one of the great performances of the 70s. This disc, however, should not have been released. Only the true Phil Manzanera afficionado would want this if only to have every version of "Diamond Head" ever recorded. Otherwise, skip it. Get the original 801:Live for "Tomorrow Never Knows," "Miss Shapiro," and the definitive "Diamond Head." Get any Roxy Music recording of "Out of the Blue." This one is unlistenable. Get a Kinks (or Van Halen) album if you want "You Really Got Me."

original much , really much, really,... very much better!

And to; What, no headphones, if you're still listening. I always took it for granted, 801 was the spin ratio of a wheel. 8 to 1, as in "true wheel" from, Eno's 1974 "Taking Tiger Mountain

". Although I could be wrong.

Disregard the previous reviewer's lack of insight. Let's turn the clock way back to 1977, which was the first year of punk, as it came to be known. What the hell does that have to do with Manzanera/801? Damned if I know, except that this is a timepiece for recorded slick performance and technical wizardry, as much as punk was crying out simultaneously for precisely the opposite trim downs in style and technicalities. The performance of this concert was immaculate, no dropped tunings or missteps, but technologically, the fidelity of this performance was way ahead of its time. I remember when I had to have the import version of the LP years before CDs came along, and how outstanding the mix and performances were...absolutely flawless. I can't understand how one pines for the original studio work, when everything there is here, and in much greater precision and brilliance, such as it would have to be to come through live, which it surely has and does!
Now if someone could just tell me what the 801 # meant!