Customer Reviews

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Ry Cooder put this incredible band together in the late '70's, combining the soul stylings of vocalists Bobby King and Terry Evans with conjunto king accordianist Flaco Jimenez, and Ry's own amazing slide guitar work. This is a band in the truest sense, traversing American music and bringing fresh, creative interpretations of songs like Woody Guthrie's "Do-Re-Mi", r&b classic "Smack Dab In The Middle", and the Mexican torch standard, "Volver, Volver". This album introduced me to Flaco, and led to a series of trips to furniture stores in Denver's Mexican neighborhoods--the only places you could find his albums,at that time. Leave it to a master musician and musicologist like Ry Cooder to find these talented people, and create something so unique. This is a live album in every way.

"There is so little live Ry available, it's great to find a live CD from a great era of Ry's work. This CD comes from the era of transition from Chicken Skin Music to Bop Till You Drop, with most from the former (along with similar stylings).

This is a superlative live recording of Ry Cooder and his band in fine late 1970s form. Great songs and great performances by Ry, Bobby King, Flaco Jimenez and others. Not a weak track on this album. Should have been (or could be? Expanded release perhaps) a double disc. The fun is over much too quickly.

Ry Cooder live. Not a typical live show. With Flaco Jimenez and well recorded. Different versions of songs previously released on studio albums.

My Showtime stolen with car player. Replacement disc very hard to find but tracked down in US. Excellent result, bargain price, very reasonable p&p, quite fast.

I got this around it's release (30+ years ago) and I still consider this a high point of Ry Cooders recorded work. He is the soulful musicologist: Hawaiian, blues, Texas border, jazz, Cuban, African, Indian (Asia) and more. Here it is folk, Texas border, blues, and gospel. Warm, fun, and sincere.

Seeing only an expensive import (Japan) and not available from U.S. purblisher is disappointing. Maybe time for Amazon to snap up some of the classics and provide a reasonable priced offering?

To be honest, I only like one song on this CD. The rest is pretty bad, in my opinion, with a chorus of black singers and Ry mostly in the background. HOWEVER, the track "Jesus on the Mainline" contains an UNBELIEVABLE and epic slide solo by Ry. This solo (greatest slide playing ever recorded?) makes this an essential disc. Definitely the best guitar playing by Ry this side of A Meeting by the River. Its soo good that this is a must have, even though [I personally think] the rest of the CD pretty much sucks. BUY IT ANYWAYS!!!!