PLAYS LIVE

If you want to know who is Peter Gabriel, you must listen this album (the original double one). It's one of the best live recordings ever. Most of the tracks sounds far better than in the original studio recordings, and takes Peter work to its highest level. The drum work by Jerry Marotta is just monstrous. The keyboards sounds fantastic and the rhythm guitars are well in the front. The voice of Peter is maybe in his best moment. All the sound is great and clear.

The set list is really good too. And the album is not contaminated with the more pop sound of Peter of So and his subsequent albums.

The album starts with a really aggressive version of the Rhythm of the Heat, far better than the original version, with a long intro and this powerfull drum sound.

Not one of us, I have the touch and Family Snapshot, sounds great, perfect. Some songs like DIY, Humdrum and specially On the air, are far far far better than the studio versions. Nothing to do. On the air becomes from a mediocre track in Peter Gabriel II to one of the best PG tracks ever in this version.

Biko gives here the best version ever of Peter from this track. His more hard and heavy version with a superb rhythm guitar and keyboard. The drum sound fills everything.

San Jacinto is other highlight. The voice and the drum makes everything and by a superb way.

Solsbury hill sounds great too, very catchy but rocking much more than the studio and other live versions.

Of course there's a some songs which are weaker than the originals, but still they are good. Those ones are Shock the monkey, No self control and I don't remember, in which the band can`t reproduce the aggressive feel that those tracks has in the original versions.

The album complete with Intruder, Family and the fishing net, and the unreleased I go swimming, all in good versions. Maybe Intruder is the weak one.

Not a masterpiece because it's a live album, not a truly progressive music, but essential and one of the best live recordings ever. The only Peter Gabriel album to which I give 5 stars.