LIVE AT THE RAINBOW

Live at the rainbow is not the most interesting Focus record. It is something to fill the space between III & Hamburger concerto. This live record opens with one of the best things Thijs van Leer ever wrote: Focus III. Immediadely followed by an Bert Ruiter/ Jan Akkerman composition: Answers? questions! Questions? answers! The first three minutes of that song are very exciting, but the second part is much too long. I'm glad if finally Focus II starts, another great song from van Leer. The masterpiece Eruption can be heard in a short version of only eight minutes. ( You can hear a better version on Jan's live album 10.000 clowns on a rainy day.) Focus continues with an excellent version of Hocus Pocus. My favorite part is the introduction of the band to the audience, by Thijs van Leer. Another song from his hand is Sylvia, a powerful rocksong with a strong melody. The Hocus pocus reprise improvisation was not a good choice to end the album. I guess it was the encore but it left me with questions as: where's House of the king on this album? It's not a bad record, but it deserves not more than three stars.