Customer Reviews

Raw Tomatos

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

 

 

All of a cow's output is valuable to SOMEone -- ice cream for kids, cowpies for the farmers' fields -- but their value goes down when you mix 'em together.

That's the problem with this collection, which bundles together unreleased live tracks from several editions of Little Feat. Each incarnation of the band is good and has loyal followers, but the 30-year span leads to some differences in tastes.

Me, I'm an old guy, and I think no rock band anywhere was better than the original Feat, so the Lowell George-era tracks in this collection are treasures to me. (I don't even mind the unpolished sound quality, a far cry from their gorgeous live classic, Waiting for Columbus). It's just a treat to hear him sing and play again, and to catch the group's magical chemistry, amazing drive, and humorous abandon. It's like finding a scrapbook of long gone friends - bittersweet for sure, but heartwarming.

But I can do without the most recent stuff, which though competent is unremarkable. The music is well-played but generic southern rock, sticking close to the studio versions. The current lineup has many rabid fans who will no doubt treasure hearing some new rockin' versions of "their" Feat (also with rough soundboard mixes and cassette fidelity).

So overall, this collection will really please no one but the most diehard fans, or those willing to ignore the parts not directed at them. If you don't count yourself in those categories, stick with their other releases.

To the previous writer...Sorry if the sound quality "stinks" but I think this record is pretty clearly not meant to be a state of the art representation of computerized music enhancement.

It's a "rarities" album, dude! That means one step above a bootleg. It means somebody did history the tremendous service of taping the then-obscure band's early shows and these tapes have been located, and for the fans who hunger for such material, it's here. Moreover, the band warned you, dude, by calling it "Raw."

The first 11 cuts get five stars from me, because they feature the first two incarnations of the band, which featured their founding genius, Lowell George. You get a duet on "Sailin' Shoes" with Bonnie Raitt, you get to appreciate that one of the minor songs from the first album, "Crack in Your Door" is actually an excellent tune, you get a plainive reading of "Long Distance Love." This part is great, and I hope they can find more.

The post Lowell George period has never struck me as particularly essential, despite the fact that some of the band's best songs, from the very beginning, were composed by Bill Payne or Paul Barrere, both also excellent musicians. But the remaining cuts on disc one and all of disc two that post-date George's death do hit some very high notes. I loved the version of "Honest Man" on disc two, for example. There's also a very compelling jam featuring a trumpet player on that disc that I enjoyed.

Overall, this record made me smile. And to Little Feat, I want to say, I don't care if the sound quality stinks, bring on more rare Lowell George!

what a brilliant set of rarities...for those who don't have it, and for those who don't "get it", raw tomatos (and its companion, ripe tomatos) could be categorized as authorized bootlegs, compiled and sanctioned by the group itself on their own new record label. the closest comparison that comes to mind is the "dick's picks" series that the grateful dead release, prizing performance over sonic sheen. and what performances - too many to list, but suffice to say that it is a gumbo of recordings that show off the breadth and depth of their musicianship and their uniquely skewed cartoon americana perspective.

with this (and hopefully much more of the same) little feat gives further evidence that their legacy equals that of the other great american bands - such as the allmans, the band, los lobos, steely dan and a very few others. not only that, but their continued musical growth is astonishing. buy this, and then go see them. if still not satisfied, i will gladly refund your ignorance.

The original Little Feat can be easily ranked among the five or ten most essential American Rock & Roll Bands of all time. Lowell George was simply brilliant as a songwriter, guitar player, vocalist, and bandleader. His untimely death in 1979 was as tragic as the passing of Joplin, Hendrix, Morrison, and Brian Jones.

Little Feat was a uniquely talented band, and the remaining members were able to regroup and become a substantial musical entity in their own right. This album, along with the complimentary release "Ripe Tomatos" provides compelling evidence that the current incarnation of Little Feat (Feat Mark III) is as relevant as any band on the planet today, in addition this set provides further validation of Lowell George as a bona fide musical genius.

i would recommend that newcomers begin with the following albums as the essential Little Feat primer:

Salin Shoes
Dixie Chicken
Feats Don't Fail Me Now
Waiting for Columbus (GET THE REISSUE)
Little Feat (first album)
Hoy Hoy
Last Record Album
Shake Me Up
Under the Radar

This solid CD compliments the others and has essential versions of Borderline Blues, Blue Jean Blues, Strawberry Flats (post Lowell version), among others.

Highly recommended from a lifelong fan.

Little Feat is one of my favorite bands, and it would have been wonderful had the material on these discs been the result of better presentation. There are many bands which have issued live or archival material with less-than-perfect audio quality, but I've never heard an official release where the material is so painful to listen to. It's sad if this is the best material they have -- that's a real loss to the many people who love Little Feat. Really, this material should never have been released.

In the early seventies when I first heard Little Feat, I thought they sounded like an American Rolling Stones. Actually, their musical path since has been more diverse and interesting than that, and today they are one of the best and hardest working groups you'll find coming to your town. As far as this collection is concerned, the "raw" early tracks justify my Stones comparison, with energy to spare and Lowell George sounding like a twisted young Howlin' Wolf. The later tracks demonstrate that Little Feat was not a one-man band but continue to be a collection of some of the finest musicians and singers in American music. These tomatos (sic) aren't the place to start in your Little Feat listening, but they're a darn fine place to end up.

Little Feat's beginnings go back to 1969 when Lowell George, Billy Payne, Richie Hayward and Roy Estrada recorded the self-titled debut album for Warner Brothers. 33 years later, they're still going strong. The band has gone through four incarnations. Estrada departed in 1972 when the band welcomed Paul Barrere, Kenny Gradney and Sam Clayton. They broke up in 1979 and later that year, founding member Lowell George died in the middle of a solo tour. In 1988, Payne, Barrere, Hayward, Clayton and Gradney decided to give it another shot. They added old friend Fred Tackett and recruited Pure Prairie League vocalist Craig Fuller. When Fuller left in '94, Shaun Murphy stepped in and is singing with the band still. Raw Tomatos and Ripe Tomatos are the 1st two releases on the band's own Hot Tomato label. Each two disc set features live recordings from the early days to the present as well as a few never-before-released studio tracks. It's a tremendous representation of the band's evolution and a must-have for any Little Feat fan. Both sets are obviously labors of love. They're touring now... don't miss a chance to catch this band at its peak.

what a brilliant set of rarities...for those who don't have it, and for those who don't "get it", raw tomatos (and its companion, ripe tomatos) could be categorized as authorized bootlegs, compiled and sanctioned by the group itself on their own new record label... and what performances - too many to list, but suffice to say that it is a gumbo of recordings that show off the breadth and depth of their musicianship and their uniquely skewed cartoon americana perspective.

with this (and hopefully much more of the same) little feat gives further evidence that their legacy equals that of the other great american bands - ... but their continued musical growth is astonishing. buy this, and then go see them...

Although sound quality may not be the greatest on all tracks Raw is still an awesome collection of some of the finest pieces of live Feat shows covering all era's- Lowell, Craig and Shaun.

About one third of this 2 cd set features Little Feat..that great band from the 1970's that had the distinctive and irreplacable Lowell George on vocals and slide guitar. The other two thirds of this albums features some other band playing Little Feat songs. If it had been all Little Feat, I would have rated it 5 stars.