Search - Roy Buchanan :: Roy Buchanan & the Snakestretchers

Great Early Buchanan Recording

J. Lamb | Columbia, Missouri USA | 04/18/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This CD is clearly Buchanan at his earliest and at his best. Buchanan's style and original Telecaster sound comes through and is sure to please any fan of the late great Roy Buchanan. The cover of Neil Young's "Down by the river" and Buchanan's own "Since you've been gone" are the stand out tracks on the CD. The one drawback to the CD is the poor conditions under which the recordings were made. The inside sleeve states that the music was recorded live using a reel-to-reel tape deck and an RCA mic. hung from the ceiling over the stage in the club where he was playing. While the recording is poor by today's standards it is none the less a must have for fans of Roy Buchanan.

Addendum: I thought that I would clarify that when I indicated the poor conditions that the CD was recorded under my comments were directly solely at the quality of the sound reproduction and NOT the atmosphere which as another reviewer has pointed out was expertly captured on this CD."

Buch in a great early recording

Daniel Moraes | Brasilia, DF Brazil | 04/27/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I finally found an original of this album on Ebay. It actually came in a burlap cover. The great thing about the CD is that I can listen to it over and over again without worring about damaging it. This is an album you'll listen to over and over again. Although Jay felt the condition of the recording was a draw back, I think that's what gives it the extra star. You feel like your in that smoked filled room sitting right up close to the stage."

Worth it for "The Messiah Will Come Again" alone

BurtRose | Washington, DC area | 08/17/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Oh yes, the recording is primitive, but it so evokes those blessed nights sitting transfixed at The Crossroads in Bladensburg, MD, listening to Roy play his magnum opus: "The Messiah Will Come Again." Each note stabs. And then the song explodes inside of you. And makes you wince, cry and smile at the same time. I think recording in studios flummoxed him a bit. But this song is the early, penetrating, unvarnished real thing right here."