favorite live album?

[elle]

Originally Posted by Lindsfan

#4 BASS HALL

CAD is great, though even better on OMS!
I LOVE - It Was You
SUD is also great, though I like it WAY better the way he plays it on OMS Tour...faster, louder, more aggressive!
IKINW is okay.

The rest of it does nothing for me. Zzzzz.


#3 SOUNDSTAGE

Kind of a mixed bag for me...

LIKE - Someone's Gotta Change Your Mind
LOVE -Trouble
LOVE - Big Love
LOVE - Go Insane

Two songs I absolutely love, but not here:
Down On Rodeo
Peacekeeper

LOVE - Red Rover
LIKE - Never Going Back Again (better on LIB)
LIKE - Say Goodbye
LOVE - Murrow Turning Over in his Grave
DON"T LIKE - Go Your Own Way
LIKE - I Am Waiting

#2 OMS It would be perfect if you could hear an audience, though I understand why there isn't since it was recorded by Lindsey and a couple of his guys. His performance is beautiful, though <3 Really, really great, and it means so much to have an official recording from this tour.
Problem for me is on a live CD I like to hear the audience the way it actually sounded, so it feels like you're there. I miss the audience on this. That's my only complaint. Also, Stephanie and SUD are way better on the Fort Worth bootleg ( and of course, you can hear the crowd loud and clear too), but we're not counting bootlegs, so...

#1 SMALL MACHINE

Like redtulip with OMS, I'm partial to this one since I was there, and it was my first time seeing Lindsey live, solo. Plus it has songs from my favorite album, SWS

I skip Trouble and NGBA because they're both waaaayyyy to slow on that tour, but everything else is sublime. High energy all the way! In particular, UTS with three acoustic guitars was so cool IOOT, TTWTLG, POI, NGBA, and GYOW all are kick ass ISA is stellar SWS is so, SO beautiful Just an amazing live album.

great analysis!

for me, Bass and Soundstage share spots #3 and #4.

Small Machine beats the Soundstage and Bass hands down - performance is much livelier and the selection of songs is great. SWS songs on it are spectacular and SHN and Tusk versions are much much better than any recent versions of those 2 songs, whether mac or solo.

but i have a special love for OMS. songs he did alone on Small Machine are not nearly as good as on OMS. and So Afraid on OMS is to die for - like it was during every actual show i saw (and as Viv also said above!).

so it's between Small Machine and OMS for me. of course, too bad that Small Machine CD doesn't have Turn It On, and that OMS doesn't have Rodeo and RAB.

[Lindsfan]

Originally Posted by mylittledemon

Soundstage for me. I think the DVD could've been more well-rounded if Buckingham had done another 2-3 songs (So Afraid for starters). I just like the ambiance of the show more than the others.

If we were talking DVD instead of audio I'd completely agree with you (Small Machine I love the audio, but not the video so much). The audience is totally into Lindsey, and he's all over the board, emotionally, throughout. It really makes me wish I had been there.

Originally Posted by elle

but that's why it is actually disappointing to me - because all those songs that i just LOVE are kinda done boringly on Soundstage - Rodeo and SYHA are completely ruined, Red Rover is good but not great, only BL, Go Insane, NGBA are great (neither of them are from GOS1). it feels like missed opportunity to me, every time i listen to it.

on the other hand, if i just watch it - well. LB in one of his most beautiful phases (Soundstage plus LiB!), so for the eye candy aspect yeah.

I forgot all about SYHA I knew that list looked short...anyways, definitely a "love" for me. I agree with you re. Rodeo, but SYHA and, especially, Red Rover are really good on Soundstage.


Um, beautiful is an understatement He's extremely easy on the eyes...okay, he's hot No argumant there!

[CADreaming]

The Soundstage version is my favorite. Stevie's there and those harmonies... 1000% makes it extra special - especially the Frozen Love nod.

Plus, DOR. Probably my fav version.

I think he was at a peak during this time. My second choice would be Live at Bass Performance Hall.

Overall, I've been disappointed with the OMS recording with the exception of having live version of "Stephanie" for the first time.

[KindOfWoman90]

I picked Small Machine - Shut Us Down and So Afraid are absolutely amazing on this one!

That's such a hard decision though, especially because I cherish the OMS album so much since it was my first time seeing him live, solo

[KindOfWoman90]

Originally Posted by Lindsfan

Um, beautiful is an understatement He's extremely easy on the eyes...okay, he's hot No argumant there!

I swear, whether he can actually see into the audience at times, when you think he's looking right at you, it's like he's looking into my soul! It's unnerving in the best way possible I had a moment like that when he was singing Come - honest, I looked away for a second, he's so intense!

[michelej1]

Originally Posted by KindOfWoman90

I swear, whether he can actually see into the audience at times, when you think he's looking right at you, it's like he's looking into my soul! It's unnerving in the best way possible I had a moment like that when he was singing Come - honest, I looked away for a second, he's so intense!

That's so funny, because I do look away sometimes too and it's silly because cerebrally I know he can't see my eyes, but it feels like eye contact and it makes me feel a little weird.

That reminds me of one time my mother told me when she is playing Wheel of Fortune on the computer and she know the answer she tries not to look at the other contestants (computer generated people), because she doesn't want them go guess what she's thinking.

Michele

[KindOfWoman90]

Originally Posted by michelej1

That's so funny, because I do look away sometimes too and it's silly because cerebrally I know he can't see my eyes, but it feels like eye contact and it makes me feel a little weird.

That reminds me of one time my mother told me when she is playing Wheel of Fortune on the computer and she know the answer she tries not to look at the other contestants (computer generated people), because she doesn't want them go guess what she's thinking.

Michele

I'm glad I'm not insane for doing that then, well...heh at least I'm not alone in that feeling

Hehe that's adorable about your mom Hey, it very well might help her!

[redtulip]

Originally Posted by CADreaming

The Soundstage version is my favorite. Stevie's there and those harmonies... 1000% makes it extra special - especially the Frozen Love nod.

Plus, DOR. Probably my fav version.

I think he was at a peak during this time. My second choice would be Live at Bass Performance Hall.

Overall, I've been disappointed with the OMS recording with the exception of having live version of "Stephanie" for the first time.

What about the recording disappointed you?

[CADreaming]

Originally Posted by redtulip

What about the recording disappointed you?

I made myself listen to the entire thing yesterday so I could give you an accurate description for my disappointment.

Here are the basic things that stand out:

• His age is more evident in his voice in this recording and sounds thin a lot.

• The whoops & hollers from the audience bug me. (And rarely does that bother me in live recordings but it does here.) At one point the track cuts off the hollering abruptly which was jarring. Poor editing on someone's part. Needed to fade out/into next track better.

• The backing tracks stand out a little too much making it annoying as heck to listen to. (Particularly strange/distracting are his own harmonies on GYOW. WTH - don't do that! LOL. & the clicking/clapping on ISA. Hate it.

• BTLH is a HOT MESS. He is slightly behind himself and it totally ruins this song for me. It's like his fingers are tired and the tone of the melody on the bass strings - it's either slightly out of tune or I don't like the tone of the guitar he is using. Also, his screeching at the end is grating - sounds like he's gonna cough up a loogie. I love this song - both of the other versions and wish he had just left it out of the set now.

• SUD, another one of my favorites, felt rushed and detached. It lacked the emotion he gave it during the GOS tour and that was what really drew me into the song. This just felt like he was trying to get it over with.

• Missed the "Southern" speech/BN reference. I know this wasn't recorded in the South, but maybe it should have been.

• Overall, I miss production or better editing/mixing and it showcases more "flubs" than I want to admit Lindsey has in his playing. It's a little sloppy.

And, to soften the blow I'll list the things I appreciate:

• Stephanie live

• The new twist on ISA solo

• Having the intro to NGBA which is just sweet

• One of the best versions of NTL which is not usually one I enjoy

• Also, I enjoyed this version of Come probably more than others, the backing track on this actually works nicely, meshes into his live playing better

• His delivery of "you know you should never believe what you read" with the little chuckle in NTL. One of his best stage performances.

So, this live recording was an epic fail for me. I much more enjoyed being at the shows I was able to attend in person.

[elle]

^ nice analysis, really interesting to read what different people like and dislike.

see to me your pros alone would be worth having this recording.

btw NGBA intro is also available on Small Machine so having that on OMS is not unique. same with availability of different released versions of live SUD.

i love love love this ISA, backing track and all - loved it at every show, loved it at every bootleg, love it on OMS . but tastes are different.

i'd much rather he puts out slightly imperfect recordings than having him tinker with stuff for 10 years like he did in the past, so to me choice there is no brainer. remember, he released this basically while on tour, within a month of it being performed and recorded. i love lindsey being fast with his releases and will never ever complain against that.

i do agree with you about some unnecessary editing - seems that he re-recorded some parts of his spoken intros - there's no audience noise and also people who were at that show tell me that he was saying different stuff than what's on recording. so that's annoying, i'd rather have it with all the audience hollering and screaming (which you would like even less ).

for me his fuller and mature voice as is now is a plus on his live recordings, but that's up to everybody's taste. i don't think he should stop recording live stuff because someone might not like his current voice . but then again i can't stand his thin young voice and some people seem to have loved it (i don't remember whether you do or not, CAD).

what i think is a serious flaw of OMS release is no availability of Rodeo that he also did in Des Moines. i would love to have that (although he probably didn't think it was good enough so that would make you dislike OMS even more! ).

and he should have added RAB recording from one of the shows. i just listened to the Ft Worth bootleg in my car, and i had to put it on once again... it made me cry. especially when i know i won't have a chance to hear it live again for a long long time, if ever.


can you also analyze Soundstage like this? b/c i almost feel about Soundstage like you do about OMS - while i think on OMS most of his songs and versions are better than they were in the past (see my comparison of acoustic parts of SM vs OMS), i think Soundstage versions (again, see my analysis somewhere above) didn't do justice to most of his great GOS1 songs, and made them sound much worse.

[redtulip]

Originally Posted by CADreaming

I made myself listen to the entire thing yesterday so I could give you an accurate description for my disappointment.

I appreciate that you took the time to re-listen to the album.

• His age is more evident in his voice in this recording and sounds thin a lot.

I find that his voice has gotten better with age, and I don't really think it sounds much different than it did on Soundstage, which you said was your favorite.

• The whoops & hollers from the audience bug me. (And rarely does that bother me in live recordings but it does here.) At one point the track cuts off the hollering abruptly which was jarring. Poor editing on someone's part. Needed to fade out/into next track better.

It is a live album, so you have to expect that you will hear the audience. I do agree there was one point where the audience was cut off abruptly, I think it was the transition to GYOW, but in the grand scheme of the album, I don't find it that big of a deal.

• The backing tracks stand out a little too much making it annoying as heck to listen to. (Particularly strange/distracting are his own harmonies on GYOW. WTH - don't do that! LOL. & the clicking/clapping on ISA. Hate it.

I do agree you hear the backing track to GYOW more on the album than you did at the show, but I don't find the backing tracks distracting at all. In fact, the backing track for ISA is one of my favorite parts of the song. I love this version of ISA so much, and this song has never been a favorite of mine. I'm actually dreading it on the upcoming FM tour because I don't think it will ever sound as good with the band as it does on OMS.

• BTLH is a HOT MESS. He is slightly behind himself and it totally ruins this song for me. It's like his fingers are tired and the tone of the melody on the bass strings - it's either slightly out of tune or I don't like the tone of the guitar he is using. Also, his screeching at the end is grating - sounds like he's gonna cough up a loogie. I love this song - both of the other versions and wish he had just left it out of the set now.

I can't agree with any of this. The OMS BTLH is head and shoulders above all the other versions to me. I love how it's sped up and I think that his voice really conveys a lot more emotion in the OMS version than it does in any other version. This is easily one of my favorite songs on OMS. I don't hear any screeching or think he sounds out of tune. Being the perfectionist he is, if it was out of tune at all he would have fixed it or not released it.

• SUD, another one of my favorites, felt rushed and detached. It lacked the emotion he gave it during the GOS tour and that was what really drew me into the song. This just felt like he was trying to get it over with.

I hear plenty of emotion.

• Missed the "Southern" speech/BN reference. I know this wasn't recorded in the South, but maybe it should have been.

I'm not sure why you think the "Southern" speech would/should be included. He only did it at shows in the south, not on the majority of the dates. I think even if he had used one of the shows recorded in the south, he would still have edited this out. This seems like a really random mark against the album and I don't get why it's an issue.

• Overall, I miss production or better editing/mixing and it showcases more "flubs" than I want to admit Lindsey has in his playing. It's a little sloppy.

I don't hear these flubs. And I think the sound and production are pretty good, especially when you consider how quickly he was able to put this out.

So, this live recording was an epic fail for me. I much more enjoyed being at the shows I was able to attend in person.

This really doesn't make sense to me because I was at 10 shows, and they all sounded remarkably like the OMS album (but, I was also at the Des Moines show the album was recorded at). Obviously there are some differences between shows, but since they are all very similar, I would think if you enjoyed the live show you would enjoy the live album as well.

[redtulip]

Originally Posted by elle

can you also analyze Soundstage like this? b/c i almost feel about Soundstage like you do about OMS - while i think on OMS most of his songs and versions are better than they were in the past (see my comparison of acoustic parts of SM vs OMS), i think Soundstage versions (again, see my analysis somewhere above) didn't do justice to most of his great GOS1 songs, and made them sound much worse.

I would be interested to hear your analysis of Soundstage as well.

[CADreaming]

Some of my opinion of the audio of OMS may be based on desk speakers I am listening through. I'll have to try it in my car or home stereo to see if the sound quality changes.

Originally Posted by redtulip

I can't agree with any of this.

You asked me why I felt it was a disappointment to me and I gave you the details. It's not important enough to me to debate with you on it.

I do want to point out that as a singer and a guitarist, I do hear the flubs and when something is out of tune. There is one song - can't remember which one - where it was so obvious I cringed. And, I think Lindsey has gotten a little more lax in his "perfectionism" in his senior years, especially when it comes to his solo work.

Originally Posted by redtulip

I would be interested to hear your analysis of Soundstage as well.

I don't think it's worth my time just to have you debate every point with me. I appreciate Elle's attempt to converse on it though.

Elle, I would like to throw this out there from your comments -- I think what you call Lindsey's "thin" voice in his younger days is actually his higher register. As a person ages, their voice tends to "thin" in singing. It's inevitable -- it's rare that an older person can maintain a true fullness in their voice in their 60's+. That's not to say that Lindsey isn't able to have moments where his voice is full -- he does. And, I think probably even more now -- my guess is that he has used techniques he picked up from vocal coaching that they didn't really have as much in the old days, much like Stevie has done. But, there are still a lot more instances now (that are just purely due to his age) where his voice gets thin. It's not horrible, I just hear it and when I listen to young Lindsey back to back with now Lindsey -- it's obvious.

[KindOfWoman90]

I actually really like his voice now. I like that it's a bit rougher and definitely deeper. However, I actually think he still sounds more like he did say 10 years ago than Stevie does unfortunately. I'm not saying she doesn't sound good, but it seems like Lindsey has a bit more range than she does as of right now.

[michelej1]

Originally Posted by CADreaming

Elle, I would like to throw this out there from your comments -- I think what you call Lindsey's "thin" voice in his younger days is actually his higher register. As a person ages, their voice tends to "thin" in singing. It's inevitable -- it's rare that an older person can maintain a true fullness in their voice in their 60's+. That's not to say that Lindsey isn't able to have moments where his voice is full -- he does. And, I think probably even more now -- my guess is that he has used techniques he picked up from vocal coaching that they didn't really have as much in the old days, much like Stevie has done. But, there are still a lot more instances now (that are just purely due to his age) where his voice gets thin. It's not horrible, I just hear it and when I listen to young Lindsey back to back with now Lindsey -- it's obvious.

I definitely think that Lindsey's younger voice was more flexible, limber and that he could move up and down the scale while still holding the key rather effortlessly. I appreciated the gymnastic talent he had then (just as I appreciated Stevie's vocal athleticism circa Wild Heart) and I did love his higher voice, although I enjoy the way he sounds today and think it such an improvement over the SYW era that I'm thrilled and impressed whenever I hear him and remember back.

Your comments make me wonder how Chris would have been live. Her voice sounded deeper and rich on Meantime, but there were signs of . . .you know how you can hear an old tree bend in the wind . . . well you could sense that in her sound, just a tiny creak, which added emotion to the record, but I wonder how that would stand up on tour.

Lindsey is great on tour because even though he sings (often screams) fearlessly and you think he's going to have to pay for it eventually, he doesn't. I don't know the difference between singing from your diaphragm or singing from your navel, but even though he might be using more disciplined vocal techniques in the old days than he used to, and they pay off endurance wise, I don't sense that they restrain him. Whereas, I do think Stevie restrains herself.

As far as him being less meticulous in his later years, this last year has disappointed me. I'd love to see him tour without a band again, but I hope he ditches both ISA and (sacrilege!) GYOW. I really loved the ISA vocals and actually found them a refreshing take which made me rethink the song's meaning all over again, but musically, after 33 years of live shows, solo and FM, I've never seen the latter, instrumental part of the song fail to peak the way it did this last tour and the same thing with GYOW. With ISA, Lindsey even physically (not just musically) seemed less dynamic to me. So, going forward, if he's alone again, I hope he's not afraid to drop those songs or rework them drastically.

I'm glad to have the OMS. I want every single tour documented and I mourn Gift of Screws, because I think the performance of the title track alone, short as it was, was worth the price of admission to those shows. I want a DVD of that. So, I'm very grateful to have OMS and I'm glad he was on the road anyway, rather than being at home and out of the public eye, but it was my least favorite tour and listening to it reminds me why.

Michele