Live at Montreux 1991 1992

Tori Amos | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 30, 2008)
• Original Release Date: 2008
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Eagle Records
• ASIN: B001DXF9M2
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #44,246 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

These two concerts from Montreux in 1991 and 1992 catch Tori Amos right at the start of her solo career. The first, from July 1991, was filmed a few months before the release of her "Little Earthquakes" album and the second from July 1992 followed a few months after. There is a fascinating progression from one year to the next as she grows in confidence and skill as a live performer, buoyed by the critical and commercial success of the album. Naturally most of the songs are taken from "Little Earthquakes" but there are also rare songs from her various EPs released across the two years which didn't make it onto the album including her distinctive takes on Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love" and "Thank You" and Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit".

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars not the full release.... read on., September 30, 2008

By 

D. W. Shelby II (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Live at Montreux 1991 1992 (Audio CD)

For whatever reason... and this totally baffels me for such a specific release... this USA 1 disc release, is not the complete version. The UK issue of this same title includes both shows in their entirety on 2 CD's.

In the year 2008, it seems to me that there would be a very specific audience that a live recording release from shows 16-17 years ago would appeal to. If this is the case, why on earth would the record label decide to put out an abrivated version of this release in the USA, while the UK gets the full 2 shows?

NOTE : the DVD release is the same, with both full shows, on both sides of the pond.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Like an old pair of jeans and a cup of hot cocoa, September 30, 2008

By 

E. Rohman "Rhiannons_Childe" (Mt Pleasant, MI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Live at Montreux 1991 1992 (Audio CD)

In the year 1997 I was introduced to Tori Amos. What can I say? 11 years later, several hundred dollars spent on rare EP's, limited editions, LP's, out of print DJ copies of promo items, concerts, etc etc, you could say that I was, and still am to an extent, a rabid Tori fan. My rigorous love for her may have faded over the course of her last three studio albums, but, you will still find me jamming out to 1992's "Little Earthquakes" every now and again, and remembering every emotion and thought I had when I first listened to it 11 years ago.

Live at Montreux brings the old, familiar Tori that we have been pining for since "Scarlet's Walk" dropped back to us. The girl who used to throw on some jeans over a bathing suit and pound away at a piano for a couple hours and tell quirky stories about her church going days, and the value of southern fried chicken. Listening to this performance (which pre-dates the official release of "LE") is very interesting. The songs are still new to Tori, and fresh. There is a quality about them that is still freshman in nature. She is still the girl who told stories between her songs about nothing in particular. The 1992 songs reveal a sharper, more polished version of Tori, but still one that hadn't been jaded by her label, and by legions of critics who would later label her as a "kook".

This CD is also pre Marcel and Mark, so the mighty Bosey sounds completely different. They didn't know how to mic it back then, so it sounds totally different. I, at first, thought there was something wrong with the sound quality of the recording. I was mistaken. There's nothing wrong with it at all, that's how it sounded then.

So, in short, for whatever the future holds for Ms. Amos (her recent split from a major label leads me to wonder what future material will be like), this blast from the past is a reminder of what was - that special moment when you first discovered Tori Amos, and curled up under a blanket, crying to yourself as she sang "China" for the first time to you.

*Edit* After purchasing the DVD, I see why the piano sound quality is so wonky on the 1991 performance. She was playing some odd, plug in 90's version of an electric/acoustic piano. It just sounded weird.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nothing new, but very satisfying nonetheless., October 11, 2008

By 

T-Bone "Tony407" (Portland, OR) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Live at Montreux 1991 1992 (Audio CD)

First of all, thank you VERY MUCH to the reviewer(s) that mentioned the disparity between the U.S. and European releases. Having this in mind, I went to the Amazon UK website and purchased this CD there. It cost more once you converted over to U.S. dollars, but you get both CDs with the complete 19 tracks. Very helpful information!!

As I read on here, the Bosendorfer sounds different than what I'm used to, but it WAS the way she sounded back then on her recordings. While I've heard most if not all of these versions at one point over my long Tori following, this compilation is very welcome indeed. I too have lost a great deal interest in Tori's new music, so I welcome this CD to my vast Tori collection. I'd say avid Tori fans will be pleased with this CD for the most part, even if this is nothing new for them. However, if you've never heard Tori live from her early years, this blast from the past will surely impress.

I'm definitely going to buy the DVD next.