LIVE IN BUENOS AIRES. OFFICIAL LIVE BOOTLEG

"The official live bootleg" is of course not a bootleg at all, but a bona-fide live album. The performance took place in Buenos Aries, Argentina in 1993, Rick being joined by his son Adam throughout. The band is completed by Alan Thompson on bass and Tony Fernandez on drums.

The centrepiece of the night is a complete instrumental rendition of "Journey to the centre of the earth". With both Rick and Adam featuring on keyboards, it can be difficult to discern who is taking the lead, but the overall sound is naturally very much Wakeman. Since the original album was recorded live, it may seem superfluous to have another live version, but this performance is sufficiently different to be worthwhile.

The other epic piece is a collage of music from the "King Arthur" album, once again without vocals. Father and son combine to create some wonderfully symphonic sounds which more than make up for the absence of an orchestra.

The only track originally recorded by Wakeman and Wakeman is "Lure of the wild", a rather ordinary piece in relation to its peers here. The rest of the album is made up of tracks which can be described in two pairs. Two "Catherine.." tracks from "Six Wives of Henry VIII" are included. "Catherine Howard" is largely a faithful rendition while "Catherine Parr" includes a lengthy improvisation and is somewhat faster than the original. It thus becomes a 10 minute venture which develops the original piece superbly.

Two non Wakeman compositions complete the set. "Eleanor Rigby" is of course the classic Beatles song given a classical interpretation. The Rolling Stones "Paint it back" already has a classic theme, which Rick simply exploits to the full.

In all, a fine, well recorded live album which captures Wakeman and Wakeman in good form performing some very familiar material.

Note that this album contains a different concert to the 1997 one which appears on the DVD "Live from Buenos Aries".