Live at the BBC (Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel album)
| Live at the BBC | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Compilation album by Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel | ||||
| Released | 15 August 1995[1] | |||
| Genre | Pop, Rock | |||
| Length | 57:08 | |||
| Label | Windsong International Records | |||
| Producer |
Tony Wilson (tracks 1-5) Jeff Griffin (tracks 6-9) Paul Williams (tracks 10-14) | |||
| Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel chronology | ||||
| ||||
Live at the BBC is a live compilation album by Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel. The collection of fourteen tracks features three different sets of performances for the BBC: two in 1974 and one in 1992. The album was released in the UK by Windsong International Records.[2]
Background
The collection is made up of three performances the band played for the BBC. The two 1974 performances featured the original Cockney Rebel line-up that split by the end of the same year. The first five tracks were recorded for John Peel on 28 May 1974, while the following four tracks were recorded Live in Concert on 22 January 1974. The final five tracks featured Harley with a different line-up of musicians, and were recorded for Nicky Campbell in 1992.[3] This performance followed the recent release of Harley's Yes You Can album. There are two abridged versions within the 1992 tracks, "Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me)" and "Riding the Waves".[3]
In 2012, the remastered four-disc box-set anthology compilation Cavaliers: An Anthology 1973-1974 was released. This featured the same two 1974 BBC performances, as well as a performance on the Old Grey Whistle Test during the same year. The notable inclusion on the anthology was an additional track as part of the Live in Concert performance. The song "Hideaway" was not included on the Live at the BBC compilation.[4]
Release
The album was issued on CD in the UK only by Windsong International Records. The independent label specialised in releasing recordings made for or by BBC Radio One for broadcast on the In Concert radio programme. In 1998, the album was re-issued under a new title: On Air. Both versions used the same close-up photograph of Harley on the front cover.[5] Both editions of the album have since become out-of-print.[6]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Bed in the Corner" | Steve Harley | 3:27 |
| 2. | "Sling It" | Harley | 2:42 |
| 3. | "Mr. Soft" | Harley | 3:16 |
| 4. | "Sweet Dreams" | Harley | 1:47 |
| 5. | "Psychomodo" | Harley | 3:57 |
| 6. | "Crazy Raver" | Harley | 3:44 |
| 7. | "Loretta's Tale" | Harley, Hugh Nicholson | 4:17 |
| 8. | "Sebastian" | George Harrison | 7:16 |
| 9. | "Death Trip" | Harley | 10:31 |
| 10. | "Mr Raffles" | Harley | 4:34 |
| 11. | "Victim of Love" | Harley | 5:01 |
| 12. | "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me) (Abridged)" | Harley | 1:14 |
| 13. | "Star for a Week (Dino)" | Harley, Robin LeMesurier | 4:21 |
| 14. | "Riding the Waves (Abridged)" | Harley | 1:01 |
Critical reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [7] |
Dave Thompson of Allmusic reviewed the album, and wrote: "Two groups of sessions recorded 18 years apart certainly make for a disconcerting listen. Live at the BBC begins, as one would wish, with a straightforward examination of the original Cockney Rebel legacy. Then vocalist Steve Harley presses the fast-forward button and suddenly it's 1992, and he's on another of those interminable comebacks, mixing old classics with new half-hopers and, though you can kind of see the connection, it's still hard to believe that the verbosity, vision, and doom-laden prophecy of the olden days could ever have become so self-satisfied. In 1974, Harley sung with the desperation of a man clinging by his fingertips to the last shreds of decency and sanity, while crazed violins curdled his blood and fairground melodies haunted his daydreams. In 1992, he didn't. Simple (and sad) as that. So don't play the later stuff. The early performances alone are worth the price of admission and then some. Rearranged with brutal simplicity, the Psychomodo material is vastly different than the album versions. The live material, cut earlier in the year, captures Cockney Rebel in even more uncompromising form. The biggest disturbance is the crash of your chair falling over, as you race to switch the CD off before the last five tracks begin. But that's a small price to pay for all that came before."[7]
Personnel
- Steve Harley - vocals (all tracks), acoustic guitar (tracks 1-9), guitar (tracks 10-14)
- Jean-Paul Crocker - violin (tracks 1-9)
- Milton Reame-James - piano (tracks 1-9)
- Paul Jeffreys - bass (tracks 1-9)
- Stuart Elliot - drums (tracks 1-9)
- Milton McDonald - guitar (tracks 10-14)
- Nick Pynn - guitar, violin (tracks 10-14)
- Ian Nice - keyboards (tracks 10-14)
- Tony Wilson - producer (tracks 1-5)
- Jeff Griffin - producer (tracks 6-9)
- Paul Williams - producer (tracks 10-14)
References
- ↑ "Steve Harley - Live At The BBC CD". cduniverse.com. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
- ↑ "On Air". harleyfanzone.com. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
- 1 2 http://www.discogs.com/Steve-Harley-Cockney-Rebel-Live-At-The-BBC/release/2404114
- ↑ http://www.discogs.com/Cockney-Rebel-Featuring-Steve-Harley-Cavaliers-An-Anthology-1973-1974/release/4079127
- ↑ "Official Steve Harley Website UK - Live At The BBC". steveharley.com. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
- ↑ "Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, Live at the BBC by Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel: Amazon.co.uk: Music". amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 16 May 2015.
- 1 2 Dave Thompson. "Live at the BBC - Steve Harley - Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 May 2015.