DOES HUMOR BELONG IN MUSIC?

This is a pretty decent live recording of various FZ shows performed between October - December of 1984. It was originally released in 1986, but not in the U.S. Apparently, this original recording did not have a quality sound, so it was re-released in 1995 in a remixed form and the sound quality improved tremendously. The track "Let's Move to Cleveland" also got another minute added to it's playtime. The reissue is the one to own if you are looking into purchasing a copy. There was also a video of the same name which also has some of the tracks on the CD, but they are all different versions, so these particular recordings are all exclusive to the CD only (and a bootlegged copy in vinyl).

As I said, the reissue is an excellent recording. The album has a lot of "eyebrows" or special unique moments not available on other studio or live recordings of the same tracks. The tracks are all substantially different also, especially the many many guitar solos evident here. The solos are all very well done and worth the purchase alone. One of the bad points, at least in my opinion, is that all of the vocal tracks except for "Whippin' Post" is sung by FZ as the lead. If it weren't for the great guitar solos, the first half of the disc would be lacking a lot.

However, the last two tracks, which are over 16 minutes and 8 minutes respectively are excellent and really make this a great recording. "Let's Move to Cleveland" demonstrates how wonderfully the band at this time played off of one another. The 16 minute track flows along without hardly a boring minute and seems like it's a lot shorter than what it is because it is so good. You get solos from most all of the musicians here and they are all top rate. Even the percussion solo is entertaining with some really great moments verging on avant gard, but not quite. "Whippin' Post" is also an excellent cover that is a worthy conclusion to the album. The amazing guitar solo is done by Frank's son Dweezil and he proves to be a great understudy.

So, this being a mostly guitar/rock oriented concert (nothing really difficult to listen to) with a lot of humor mixed in the first half with original material scattered throughout that make this recording unique makes this a very accessible FZ album and a good way to introduce someone to his music. I wouldn't call it the best live collection, but there are plenty of things about this album that make it an excellent addition to your collection. 4 stars.