Customer Reviews

Rockin Down the Highway

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have this CD and the video and I highly, highly recommend both for a look and a listen to one of America's greatest, cleanest sounding and most talented rock and roll bands, who provide grand doses of not only rock but also country, jazz and blues. Buy the CD for your stereo, and the video for your television. And share both with your children so they can learn and understand what great seventies rock and roll really is. Amazon offers great prices on both the CD and VHS (and NO, I don't work for them!) Guaranteed to please.

Having been a Doobie Brothers fan for 20 plus years, it wasn't until 1990 that I saw them perform live. I have seen them 3 times since. I was convinced their onstage live energy couldn't be captured on "vinal" or CD. I was wrong. This is a terrific double album. Crystal clear sound, great selection of classic hits spanning the last 25 years.Even non touring ex-Doobie-Michael McDonald appears in several tunes (I guess there are no ex Doobies). Highly recommended!!!added for a few tunes.

If you want one Doobie Brothers live album, get WOLF TRAP.

If you want two Doobie Brothers live albums (and aren't exclusively a Johnston-era fan), get WOLF TRAP and FAREWELL TOUR.

If you're enough of a fan that you're thinking of getting all of their live albums, don't hesitate to check out this one! (But DON'T get the one that's just a one-disc version of this; contrary to what the AMG review says, it has nothing that's not on this set.)

Michael MacDonald shows up in three places on this album, singing the songs he's best known for. But these sound out of place here. No, this album is about the Tom Johnston version of the Doobies.

If you have (and enjoy) the other two live albums, you may consider some of the tracks on this album to be redundant and non-essential. The MacDonald tracks, in particular, add nothing to the FAREWELL TOUR versions of the same. But there is enough worthwhile stuff here to make up for that. Besides several songs that aren't on the other live albums, you have the best live versions of songs such as "Dangerous" and "Clear As The Driven Snow." "Without You" is highly different from the original studio version, and "China Grove" has an instrumental intro not heard elsewhere. As with FAREWELL TOUR there are two new songs: "Slow Burn" and "Wild Ride." Both are excellent, and the latter is my favorite track on the set.

This concert CD is the perfect greatest hits CD. For a concert CD the sound is superb! From early Doobie Brothers to the days with Michael McDonald. This is a great sampler.

I really wanted to give this CD 3.5 stars, but Amazon doesn't give me that option.

It's an OK live album for any casual fan who knows the hits and hasn't seen the band in concert - at least not for about 30 years. That makes it a Three Star CD.

As a hard-core Doobie fan, I like this concert (which is actually two shows mashed into one so that they could include three songs performed with Michael McDonald), but not as much as "Live at Wolf Trap". That makes it Four Stars.

For a GREAT Doobie Brothers concert on CD, you want Live at Wolf Trap, which is even better on DVD: Doobie Brothers: Live at the Wolf Trap. It came out 8 years after "Wildlife" and the band had fine-tuned their live show. "Wolf Trap" is Five Stars.

The plusses: The performances here are well done and you get some extended jams (similar to "Wolf Trap"), a couple of new songs (both good, and NOT available on any other recording), and some unique arrangements featuring the late Cornelius Bumpus.

The minuses: The CD production. Solo vocal tracks are often weak - I don't mean poor singing, I mean poor recording - and the guitar solos aren't as strong as they should be. Listening straight through this CD makes me wonder if the band was involved in the production at all. If you're familiar with a typical Doobie concert set, the song order on this CD is... well... strange. And it doesn't match the DVD! To hear "China Grove" long before the end of the show just isn't right - it should either wrap up their core set, or be part of the encore. Separating the McDonald songs was a mistake - was I supposed to think he was part of the entire show? It's very obvious when you see the DVD. And the placement of "What a fool believes" sucks energy from the end of the "concert". One of these days I'm going to burn my own version of this CD with songs rearranged in an order I find more appropriate. Better yet, I'll make an iTunes playlist that combines songs from "Wildlife" and "Wolf Trap" for a totally unique concert exactly the way I want it!

Summary: get it only if you're a true Doobie fan. Otherwise, buy "Wolf Trap" for the Doobie concert experience.

Excellent sound quality. After seeing the band this past summer we went looking for some authentic Doobie CD's, we only had to buy one cd set... Although Michael Mcdonald does not sing on many of the songs, the band sounds just as good - if you get the chance to see them live - go, and bring your 10 & 11 year old kids!! - they will have a new respect for their parents taste in music - not to mention that they will recognize the sound when you turn up the volume! Enjoy!

I consider three 1970's groups (Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Allman Brothers Band, and The Doobie Brothers) the originators of Southern rock. The Doobie Brothers were the gentlemen of Southern rock. These gentlemen's personalities shine in "Rockin' Down The Highway: The Wildlife Concert", a recording of an extremely fun, happy, and energetic 1996 concert for the Wildlife Conservation Society. The Doobie Brothers' support for the Wildlife Conservation Society is appropriate. Nearly twenty-five years after their first recording, The Doobie Brothers still are rockin' down the highway and their wild life continues. That's an extremely long playing record!

This excellent recording presents The Doobie Brothers' lyrics more clearly than some of their studio recordings. Two selections: 'China Grove' (with its outstanding guitar solos) and 'Listen To The Music' (a great concert arrangement) are examples of Southern rock's best. Another 8 selections are particularly outstanding. 'Take Me In Your Arms (Rock Me A Little While)', 'Minute By Minute', and 'What A Fool Believes' feature Michael McDonald's outstanding vocals. 'Takin' It To The Streets' features saxophone solos and Michael McDonald vocals. 'Slow Burn', 'The Doctor', & 'Without You' feature outstanding guitar solos. 'Excited' features vocal and guitar solos plus a rolling arrangement reminiscent of "The Lizzies" scene in the 1979 Michael Beck cult movie "The Warriors".

The Doobie Brothers have polished their artistry and style for over twenty-five years. That artistry and style shines in "Rockin' Down The Highway: The Wildlife Concert". I recommend this fun live recording both for Doobie Brothers fans and also for those unfamiliar with The Doobie Brothers' music.

Saw the Doobies Labor Day 1999 at a festival. Found this CD to be on par with that concert. This CD captures all the musical excitement that a festival setting can give. I recommend this CD to any Doobies fan or fan of music from the 70's.

For anybody that doesn't know The Doobies from a hole in the ground, this album is a great choice. It has all my favorite songs plus some new stuff that should get your attention. The sound is just as though your there live, without the smell of cannibus wafting in the breeze--pee-u!

This is a great album for anyone who has not heard the Doobie Brothers before and wants to get to know the band. For anyone who has a lot of Doobie albums, this cd probably is not a good buy. The songs are simply recycled and there is no creative spin to make the cd unique. This cd is best for new fans or the Doobie obsessed.