Customer Reviews

Live at Paradiso

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

 

 

This 1969 live recording documents the early, pre-fusion Softs performing their 2nd LP in concert. The performance is quite excellent though occasional technical difficulties like microphones cutting out, leading to some missing vocals, make it less than technically perfect; but that is what it's all about, a bare bones sound board tape re-ceating a real live gig without any touch ups. Recommended for serious Softs fans.

This album is essential for any Soft Machine fan. The first 12 tracks are from a live gig in Amsterdam in '69 and are one continuous song, with excellent sound. Wyatt's singing is top notch and the repetitive keyboard riffs are trance-inducing. The remaing bonus tracks, however, are of poor quality but the album is more than worth it for the live set.

Live at the Paradiso is Soft Machine at their best! It captures what they were on stage, live. Keyboards, bass, vocals are all distorted. Keyboards careen out of control, playing at a frenetic pace. This is just an outstanding album from the Progressive Rock years. Live at the Paradiso is loud, raw, and straight out of the amps. This is my top pick from the Soft Machine catalog.

I wonder if I will ever stop feeling old and decrepit, but these guys have reason to probably never do that. I have no idea where and when this concert was. I don't know anyone who has any idea of what they were doing that far back, but for some reason these guys ran the tape machine at just the right time, and recorded what now are their very young selves.

The result is brilliant. I can't put it any better than the other fan from Victoria - it's one continuous song, permuted and multiplied and divided, and never anything other than elegant.

Trouble is, it makes you rather sad that this just doesn't seem to happen any more. None of these guys were any older than 20 odd when this was done, and just listen to the pyrotechnics and imagination! Will we ever get that good? Will I? I doubt it... But thanks very, very much young fellas. Sure like to see you some day.

In the days when guitar distortion and feedback were all the rage, wot's a trio of Brit lads to do with only an organ, bass & drums?

Answer: turn everything up to 11 and fuzz the hell out it. Hugh says: "We used to wear earplugs, but there must be a lot of Softs fans out there with tinnitus by now." Amen! Maybe it's dedicated to you (or Hugh) and you WERE listening, but you're standing perfectly still in the deaf corner.

WARNING SOFT MACHINE FANS. ALMOST ALL OF THIS CD IS ON THE ANTHOLOGY: MAN IN A DEAF CORNER ANTHOLOGY 1963-1970. that 2 cd set contains 1 cd of very early free jazz experiments and a 2nd. cd of live recordings including almost all of "live at the paradiso 1969". the music is of somewhat limited interest over all with the live recordings being much better than the free jazz. "live at the paradiso 1969" in particular reveals the missing saxophone (on this recording) as the key to their later success and drummer vocalist robert wyatt as the band's main talent. 3 and 1/2 stars.