One Night Only: Live 1999 [Live]

Thin Lizzy | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 11, 2000)
• Original Release Date: July 11, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Live
• Label: Sanctuary Records
• ASIN: B00004TQSP
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #241,356 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The quintessential live rock album...never mind the critics., March 20, 2001

By 

A.M.E. "boscha" (Lake Zurich, IL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: One Night Only: Live 1999 (Audio CD)

Live albums, usually a lazy attempt to fulfill contractual obligations or fill the time between studio releases, have generally been a sloppy affair for most rock bands. Only a select few can claim the right to be "must-haves" in people's collections. In my eyes, the perfect live album achieves three things: it pumps new life and energy into an existing catalogue, it updates and refreshes the sound quality and sterility of the original studio recordings, and in the best possible cases, revitalizes interest in the members' bodies of work. Surprisingly, (considering the awkward circumstance of lacking their late founder,) Thin Lizzy's "One Night Only" does all these things beautifully. Yes, many say this not a true Thin Lizzy record without Philo. But how can you fault the earnestness and fire with which original Lizzy members John Sykes, Scott Gorham, and Darren Wharton deliver with the capable and furious backing of Marco Mendoza and Tommy Aldridge? Just last month, I caught the real thing at a small hall in the Midwest, and this album is an accurate, poignant document of what the 21st-century Lizzy is capable of. Old favorites "Jailbreak", "Rosalie", "Cowboy Song", and "Boys are Back in Town" jump out of the speakers with amazing new bite, and the oft-underlooked gems such as "Alibi", "Don't Believe a Word", and "Sun Goes Down" prove that Lizzy never had much album filler, just deftly crafted perfection. John Sykes not only does a competent Lynott impersonation, but offers a convincingly loving take on Philo's quirky vocal phrasing and "hey there, girls" throatiness. His guitar work is a delight (no disrespect to Robbo, Eric, or Gary, but Sykes was really the one who took the gunslinger gauntlet and ran with it!). If you've never heard Thin Lizzy before (other than the ubiquitous "Boys") and love well-written hard rock, this is an excellent introduction. If you are a die-hard Lizzy fanatic with serious bias against any cheap attempts at reformation, this recording should make you a believer that their music, no matter when or how it's executed, is still the best stuff around.....

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Totally Impressed, September 18, 2000

By 

David B. Gardner "WAYNETIP" (Brighton, Michigan USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: One Night Only: Live 1999 (Audio CD)

I am always in search of good live albums (I prefer live to studio any day). I was never a Thin Lizzy fanatic, but I always thought they had some cool tunes, so I thought I'd give this one a chance when I read that Tommy Aldridge was the drummer and that Sykes' voice sounded just like Lynott's. This album totally ROCKS!! My only other TL album is the Live and Dangerous double-album. While that is a great album and is the "real thing", I always thought it would have been better if it was a little heavier (the drums are kinda wimpy in my opinion). Basically this album gave me what I wanted: TL classics delivered in a much heavier, grooving, head-banging style. And yes, John Sykes does an EXCELLENT job on vocals (much better Lynott impression than, say, Ripper Owens doing Rob Halford, which I rate about 6 on 10 scale). I would have to give Sykes at least a 9, it is totally impressive how much he is able to sound like Lynott. I will agree with another reviewer that Sykes' guitar playing, while awesome, sometimes does get a little overaccelerated. That is one area that is better on "Live and Dangerous". Scott Gorham's guitar on that album jumps right out at you, while on this new collection he does get a raw deal compared to Sykes. I disagree that Gorham is boring, though. He has a lot of soul in his playing, but his sound is really thin and buried on this album. (I also noticed that while he used to play a Les Paul he now plays a Strat, which quite frankly doesn't help. Sykes' Les Paul sounds 3 times as loud and clear as Gorham's muffled Fender). That, however, would be my ONLY complaint, and not enough to give it less than 5 stars.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A bit unnecessary...., September 16, 2000

By 

John F. Moore (Albany, New York United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: One Night Only: Live 1999 (Audio CD)

First off, as a huge Lizzy fan I think its great that Gorham, Sykes and Wharton are touring as Thin Lizzy and playing these songs, mostly because I'm too young to have ever seen Lizzy with Phil Lynott. However, this CD is totally unnecessary--every single one of these tunes is available on Lizzy's other live albums with Phil singing, so unless you're a hardcore Lizzy fan there's NO reason to buy this when you can get the same songs with Phil and Brian Downey playing 'em live--get "Live & Dangerous" or, for the John Sykes lineup "BBC Radio 1 Live In Concert", which is awesome as well. However, having said that, this is a pretty good CD for what it is--the version of "The Sun Goes Down" is great and the playing is tight as you'd expect from Sykes and Gorham, although for some reason Gorham's guitar is mixed WAY too low. Not bad, but really don't bother unless you want to complete your collection.