Often times, the BBC concert is the one to get, if only due to superior sound quality. But in the case of early Dire Straits live music, that's not the case. I found a different concert recorded for a radio station that beats either of the 1978 BBC shows, in my opinion. The sound quality is great despite the fact that it's a bootleg, and it's a bit longer than either of the other two. It's a concert recorded for a radio station in Liverpool about six months before the band's debut album was released.
There were no problems with this recording. It's impressive how good this sounds considering that it's lucky that this concert bootleg has survived at all. It contains the same songs as the "Live at the BBC" album except it has "In the Gallery" instead of "What's the Matter Baby." (I'm not counting "Tunnel of Love" on the official album, since that doesn't belong there. It's not from the same concert as the others, and although it claims to be from a BBC TV show, it actually is from a concert in Germany.)
01 talk (Dire Straits)
02 Down to the Waterline (Dire Straits)
03 Six Blade Knife (Dire Straits)
04 talk (Dire Straits)
05 In the Gallery (Dire Straits)
06 talk (Dire Straits)
07 Eastbound Train (Dire Straits)
08 talk (Dire Straits)
09 Water of love (Dire Straits)
10 Lions (Dire Straits)
11 Sultans of Swing (Dire Straits)
12 talk (Dire Straits)
13 Wild West End (Dire Straits)
14 talk (Dire Straits)
The cover photo shows the band playing at the Paradiso club in Amsterdam, Netherlands, in 1978.
Hi, Paul, thanks for this post - in the UK we had local independent radio stations from the early 1970s which offered live recordings until local radio changed dramatically in the early 80s.
ReplyDeleteThis recording is from Radio City based in Liverpool (as mentioned in the final track before the fade) and as you say is a rarity - unlike the BBC who at least tried to save some of their session and live recordings, the independent stations had a very hit and miss approach to archiving their shows, but they were also subject to unusual contracts.
I know someone who worked as a producer for Manchester's Piccadilly Radio who managed to get Frank Zappa to allow him to record and broadcast an hour of a show in Manchester on the clear understanding that the master tape was erased after one play!
I did manage to track down an off-air recording of the show a few years ago, but my friend wasn't allowed to keep a copy.
Thanks for the info. Is this from a station called "Radio City" and not "Radio Liverpool?" If so, I need to change the title.
DeleteSorry, Paul, haven't been back for a few days - yes, technically the Radio station is Radio City. Not many people will care, I'm sure!
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