HORSLIPS LIVE

OK it's not really prog; it's Celtic rock. If that's all you're bothered about, stop reading now and look elsewhere - you're the loser. However, if you want a live album full of amazing material and brilliant musicianship which will have you singing along and dancing like a lunatic, look no further. This is one of, if not THE best live performance by any band that has ever been committed to LP (or CD). It contains many of their best tracks from their first 4 albums as well as 2 singles.

The down side is that the sound quality is mediocre. However, the music makes up for it in spades since every track is, to a greater or lesser degree, a gem; there's not a duff track in sight. Of particular merit on disc one are Mad Pat, The Silver Spear, The High Reel and Hall of Mirrors. The second CD is perfection with an extended version of Furniture, the sheer energy of King of the Fairies and, of course, Dearg Doom with its killer riff, to which no other even comes close. The encores of Comb Your Hair And Curl It and Johnny's Wedding finish it off with a bang. Johnny Fean wields his Les Paul like a scythe at times whilst at others it's like Guinness; smooth and fluid. Devlin's bass and Carr's drums drive the band along like Dervishes and Jim Lockhart resembles an octopus on a bewildering array of keyboards, whistles, pipes and flute - and NOONE plays the flute as well as he does. O'Connor alternates between mandolin, concertina and his fiddle, giving the band its distinctive, unique Celtic feel and making those who liken them to Jethro Tull look ridiculous.

I saw them 7 times in the 70s and their energy and originality, combined with the quality of their material and their musical skill, made them consistently unforgettable. This captures the essence of their gigs; 2 hours of jigging, reeling and singing along to great songs. Their reemergence after 25 years to release a live DVD of their 70s act (Return of the Dancehall Sweethearts) is phenomenal news and has reminded me just how good they were - the best Irish band of all time, by far. 6* for the music, less 1* for the poor sound quality so - 5*. Less would be an insult.

Mad Pat's on the road!

This was Horslips' first live album, recorded and released right in the middle of the best and most progressive period of their career. At this time they had a handful of studio albums under their belts already, including the excellent concept album The Tain. Horslips Live showcases a somewhat rockier side of Horslips than can be found on their studio albums from this period. It contains lively and energetic performances of a good selection of tracks from their early albums and as such it is an excellent addition to any Prog (Folk) collection. Some people would perhaps prefer this over the studio albums, while others would have the opposite preference. Personally, I like both for slightly different reasons, and I think they have different virtues. I would say that Horslips Live is an excellent complement to the band's studio albums, but it is by no means an accurate replacement for the studio albums.

There are several sections of continuous music with songs that flow into each other and Prog fans will take note of a 15 minute version of Furniture. Compared to the band's other live albums, the present one is in my opinion not quite as good as the recently released Live At The O2, but certainly better than The Belfast Gigs.

Highly recommended!