Black & White Night [EXTRA TRACKS] [LIVE] [ORIGINAL RECORDING REISSUED] [ORIGINAL RECORDING REMASTERED]

Roy Orbison

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 25, 2000)
• Original Release Date: 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Extra tracks, Live, Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
• Label: Orbison Records
• ASIN: B00003TL18
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #94,254 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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  #13 in	Music > Rock > Live Albums > Oldies
  #73 in	Music > Pop > Live Albums > Vocal Pop
  #86 in	Music > Indie Music > Rock > Oldies & Retro

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording
All-star tribute events can take on a patronizing air as in-the-spotlight performers with shaky staying power prop up legends past their prime, displaying equal parts noble largesse and unseemly smugness. With Black and White Night, however, one gets the sense that the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, k.d. lang, and Bonnie Raitt are in total awe of the man of the night, and for good reason. Orbison's vocal range circa 1987 is nearly a match for his 1960s prime, when he was rock's greatest balladeer. This 2000 remastered reissue adds only one track to the original 1989 concert LP ("Claudette"); the program leans almost entirely on Orbison's early hits, adding Costello's "The Comedians," a highlight from his then-new (and winning) comeback effort, Mystery Girl. Meanwhile, music director T Bone Burnett adorns a crack core group (built around Elvis Presley's old combo) with guest stars who know their roles--and are only too happy to enjoy their close proximity to a legendary performer in what would prove to be his twilight. --Steven Stolder

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

70 of 71 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ROY ORBISON'S GREATEST LIVE PERFORMANCE!, December 1, 2000

By A Customer

When Elvis Presley stated that Roy Orbison is "The world's greatest singer", he wasn't kidding. This CD is a testament to that. I have heard this performance countless times, and I just cannot hear it enough. On "A Black And White Night", Roy Orbison is in top form, backed by an all-star group of musicians, including members of Elvis' back-up group, and also the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Marshall Crenshaw, T-Bone Burnett, Bonnie Raitt, and countless others. My favorite tracks here are "The Comedians", "Ooby Dooby", "Down The Line", "Uptown", "It's Over", and "All I Can Do Is Dream You". Anyone who loves the music of Roy Orbison should not be without this CD. Also worth getting is the video of this concert. You will not be disappointed. In fact, one listen and you will want to hear more and more.

57 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful celebration of the man and his music, September 10, 2003

By	Daniel Jolley "darkgenius" (Shelby, North Carolina USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This remarkable recording from September 1987, the only commercially released live album of Roy Orbison's career, is a source of great joy as well as comfort to this Roy Orbison fan. None of us knew that this recording which ushered in the second coming of rock music's most remarkable voice would soon also stand as a powerful tribute to a man who was to be taken from us far too soon. With the success of this remarkable live album and the posthumously released Mystery Girl, Roy Orbison went out on top, restored to the level of popularity and immense musical respect he deserved but had not enjoyed during the preceding couple of decades. Looking back on it now, the last sixteen months of Roy's life could hardly have been scripted any more fittingly.

Roy was not alone on the stage for these incredible Coconut Grove sessions. Around him were a number of superstars in their own right, each of them more than happy to play even a small part in what truly is a great tribute to one of music's undeniable legends. These included Bruce Springsteen (who once said he wished he could write like Bob Dylan and sing like Roy Orbison), T Bone Burnett, Elvis Costello, Tom Waits, Jackson Browne, K.D. Lang, and Bonnie Raitt. As for Roy, he was in stellar form. His voice may not have reflected the power of its youth, but every word from his throat came out mellifluously, and he proved he could still nail the high notes in songs such as Crying and Running Scared. His voice, to my ears, was incredible and simply ageless; he had not sounded so good in many, many years. As for the songs, they run the entire gamut of his career, from Move On Down the Line, the first song he ever wrote, to The Comedians and (All I Can Do Is) Dream You, two incredible tracks from the studio album that would turn out to be his last, Mystery Girl. Many of his classics are here. No one touched the human heart the way Roy did with classic ballads such as Only the Lonely, In Dreams, Leah, Crying, and Running Scared. Of course, one can also never forget such rocking classics as Dream Baby, Ooby Dooby, Mean Woman Blues, and Oh Pretty Woman. Then there is It's Over, perhaps the most moving song of Roy's career and easily my favorite.

A Black and White Night Live is the ultimate tribute album to a legendary performer, and the fact that this is the only legitimate live recording of Orbison's career makes this album special beyond words. I still can't listen to this album without thinking about Roy's passing, but I am comforted at the same time with the knowledge that A Black and White Night Live is really and truly a glorious celebration of this legendary singer's life and career.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Roy, Oh Boy!, August 8, 2001

By	Ernest (burleson, tx United States) - See all my reviews

What a voice-strong and gutty. This is a classic and all the more important since his "friends" were there and working with him. I just can't get over the Dream You and all the other standards. The video is well done, but this cd is solid from top to bottom. Great instrumental work and the "extended" section of Pretty Woman was worth the price by itself. There isn't a single second that you are not a part of the action. You know, most of his songs are short. However, the intensity is spine tingling and full of fun. I can (and do) play it over and over and over and...