Live in Boston audio CD is putting me to zzz...

CarneVaca · #1 06-15-2004, 03:44 PM

All right. Not quite. But, I gotta tell you, this audio CD, which is all I have had a chance to play so far, is a big disappointment. Eyes of the World and Stand Back are really the only stand-out songs. And Stand Back doesn't even belong in this set, if you ask me. It really doesn't fit with the rest of the songs. While, in concert it's fine -- it's a great song -- on CD it's a bit jolting.

Be that as it may, the CD is a snoozer. I like the sound because it seems to have more a of a live feel than The Dance, though there's something about it that's bothering me. I haven't quite put my finger on it. The main vocal seems to be slightly right of center, but that may be because I am listening on crappy headphones at work. On Go Your Own Way, for instance, the backup vocalists take over. You can't hear Lindsey much and Stevie is inaudible.

Eyes of the World is really the jewel here. What a fantastic arrangement. I'm glad I got to see IKINW live, and now I get this rocking version of Eyes. I daresay this sounds better to my ears than the Cradle tour version. That thunderous backbeat is tremendous and the guitar work is excellent.

Speaking of guitar work, whoever mixed Stevie's songs deserves a huge kick in the ass. The keyboard on Rhiannon totally overpowers the song. Lindsey's guitar work is buried. How stupid is that, considering that guitar riff is the most recognizable part of the song? And I noticed Go Your Own Way had the same screwy mix as when I saw the band last week: Lindsey's solo at the end is buried while the riff played by one of the backup guitarists overpowers the lead guitar. This is obviously intentional. Too bad. I would have preferred Lindsey's guitar upfront in the mix.

Anyhoo, just my initial reactions. More later.

hauntedsong16 · #2 06-15-2004, 03:46 PM

The vocals are right of center. I thought it was just my car speakers, but apparently not.

dissention · #3 06-15-2004, 04:30 PM

I like the majority of songs, but not all.

To enjoy Rhiannon, you have to see her perform it. It kinda sucks by itself, IMO.

Landslide is boring, they're both just going through the motions.

Silver Springs? She sounds terrible until the end. She's REALLY straining herself on that sucker.

Eyes of the World, Come, Stand Back, and ISA are the real highlights for me.

MacMan · #4 06-15-2004, 04:48 PM

Haven't listened to the cd yet... But did take a quick spin through the dvd at lunch and I love the way Eyes Of The World Sounds... It's pretty great I agree!!

CarneVaca · #5 06-16-2004, 09:02 AM

OK, I wasn't terribly generous with my initial commentary. Upon further listening, here's my take.

Turns out Lindsey's guitar on Go Your Own Way only is lowered at the very end when one of the other guys keeps doing the riff repeatedly. This is when Lindsey lets the crowd paw the guitar. Overall, I like this version of the song.

Big Love lacks the sonic intensity of the Dance version. I played them back to back. This new version takes up a sliver of the stereo field, while the Dance version resonates through the whole field. The song therefore sounds much fuller and brilliant in the Dance version. Really, including it here was completely unnecessary. Say Goodbye would have been a better choice.

Stand Back is good. I wish the percussion intro had been mixed a little fuller. While in concert, it sounded like Taku was going to bring down the place with his banging, on the audio CD it sounds kind of confined. Again, the stereo field should have been used better. Otherwise, the song is great. This is a fantastic version of it.

Eyes of the Wold rocks. Without a doubt, it's the best thing on this record. It would have been a great way to open the concert and then easy into the Chain.

On Landslide, Stevie sounds more road-weary than in the Dance version. And this is true of all the songs for Stevie and Lindsey. It adds a dimension of grit to this recording that makes it more authentic than the Dance.

Come is great, but why the hell do they mix that initial riff so softly? In concert, the riff leaps out and you like a tiger and goes for the throat. Here they turned it into a timid kitten like in the album. The rest of the song is tremendous. This song is much better live.

Overall, not bad. The song selection sucks, and I guess that's what I was reacting too initially. A better song selection would have been

Eyes of the World
Say You Will
Come
Landslide
Say Goodbye
I'm So Afraid
Beautiful Child
Silver Springs
Tusk
Go Your Own Way
Goodbye Baby

DownOnRodeo · #6 06-16-2004, 09:13 AM

Say Goodbye and Goodbye Baby really should have been on the CD! Unless the Boston versions were terrible, which I doubt, these two songs sound amazing live and in bootlegs. Possibly moreso than the album versions.

**mylittledemon** · #7 06-16-2004, 10:08 AM

Yeah I was disappointed. I think the 10-track listing should've been:

The Chain
Eyes of the World
Never Going Back Again
Come
Landslide
Say Goodbye
Whats the World Coming To
Beautiful Child
I'm So Afraid
Stand Back

glitter_fades · #8 06-16-2004, 10:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DownOnRodeo

Say Goodbye and Goodbye Baby really should have been on the CD! Unless the Boston versions were terrible, which I doubt, these two songs sound amazing live and in bootlegs. Possibly moreso than the album versions.

I didn't like Say Goodbye on the DVD at all. The rest was about the same for me as everyone else. EOTW is the breakaway hit at our house!

MikeVielhaber · #9 06-16-2004, 12:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mylittledemon

Yeah I was disappointed. I think the 10-track listing should've been:

The Chain
Eyes of the World
Never Going Back Again
Come
Landslide
Say Goodbye
Whats the World Coming To
Beautiful Child
I'm So Afraid
Stand Back

i think go your own way is their signature song and really should be included on any live cd

Hawkeye · #10 06-16-2004, 01:33 PM

I agree the CD is not the right 10 songs. Of course I kind of new that way back when we found out the tracklisting. The biggest mistake is by far BIG LOVE. It SHOULD NOT be on there. It's identical to The Dance, but Carne hit the ball on the head, I was thinking the same thing but am not as technically inclined as you so I didn't know how to say it. It doesn't fill the speakers like the dance. But it's alot better on the DVD. And believe it or not Landslide was the suprise of the CD for me. It's really alot different then the dance and frankly I like it better, it sounds great. The 2 songs that aren't on this CD that NEED to be here are Beautiful Child and expecially GDW. Man they are both Stevie's highlights on the concert. Having Dreams in there is retarded. GDW should replace Dreams and BC should be in place of Landslide which I did say was good though. Here's what i think the listing should've been:

The Chain
Gold Dust Woman
Eyes of the World
Rhiannon
Come
Never Going Back Again (Another one that it was a CRIME to leave off)
Beautiful Child
I'm So Afraid
Stand Back
Go Your Own Way.

But danm it in the end they should've just made the CD 12-14 songs long. Why did they put the minimum amount of songs possible