Oh no, not another SLF live album!
punkviper | Pittsburgh, PA USA | 03/07/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Ahh, but no. Somebody was thinking when they put this together. It is a "Greatest Hits" culled from 3 different SLF live albums; sort of a Greatest Live Hits venture. The three live albums that are anthologized on this 2-disc set are, in chronological order:"Greatest Hits Live" (also known as "Live & Loud," and "No Sleep Till Belfast") recorded on December 17th 1987, at The National Ballroom, featuring the lineup of Burns/Cluney/McMordie/Taylor."Fly The Flags" recorded October 27th 1991, at Brixton Academy, with Bruce Foxton of The Jam replacing Ali McMordie on bass."Pure Fingers - St. Patrix 1993" recorded March 17th 1993, at Glasgow Barrowlands, with same lineup as previous plus a guest appearance by Ricky Warwick of The Almighty.Keep in mind that this 2-disc set does not encompass EVERY live track from those three shows. It merely takes the "Best Of" them all and produces a 30-track highlight reel. And one must also keep in mind that all three of these shows were by a latter-day Stiff Little Fingers, long after their punk heyday had come and gone. Mind you, this doesn't mean that they play like fogeys, and it IS still the original lineup, but Jake Burns isn't going to knock you out of your chair with bile and vitriol like he did back in punk's heyday.There is plenty of live SLF to be heard. "Hanx" in SLF's heyday, the 3 shows represented by this Live Inspiration set, the Newcastle Riverside show from 1998 that served as the 2nd disc of the USA version of Hope Street, plus others not mentioned here (refer to SLF's website for details on more of their live releases, www.slf.com). And for rabid fans, it might be important to own each of these live albums, in their entirety, for collector's sake.But, if the casual fan were to only own 2 SLF albums, I think he/she would be well-served by picking up the 2-disc "All The Best" set, which would give you all the studio hits as well as a few other gems. And this 2-disc set, which culls 30 different top-notch live performances. That would, in my opinion, give you the best bang for your buck, in addition to covering all the best SLF bases (not to mention the sum total is 60 tracks over 4 CDs!!!) The sound quality on this set is very good, so don't let that put you off. In fact, don't let ANYTHING about this set put you off. It's a rousing collection of some of the finest and most talented socio-political punk done live that exists. And, as the liner notes take great pains to convey, Stiff Little Fingers were/are a GREAT live band. GO FOR IT!"
Best collection of live songs
jason | Myersville, Maryland | 03/30/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Now while i'm a fan of just 1 full live show and not just a bunch of songs mixed together my opinion changed when I first heard this cd. The mix of songs are excellent and i love how it just seems like 1 full show you are listening to! This in my is the 2nd best live punk album out ther (The Clash's From Here To Enternity is my fav and also happens to contain a few shows mixed together but it sounds like one show). Most people prefer Hanx over this album but I just cannot agree with them. Like The Clash (in my opinion both The Clash and SLF are the most important and best punk bands ever..The Ramones would be 3rd)Stiff Little Fingers must has branched out from the early raw punk sound of Suspect Device and Alternative Ulster to songs like Just Fade Away and Silver Lining, which are two excellent songs. Roots, Radicals, Rockers and Reggae is the highlight of this set for me mainly because it's my fav SLF song (it's also up there with The Clash's White Man In Hammersmith Palais as being the best punk tunes). I think my only problem with the 2 disc set is that the first disc seems like it should be the 2nd one. Alternative Ulster should be the final song on disc 2, not disc 1 and Roots should be the 1st song on disc 1! Opening up the 1st cd the way they do sounds like there is something missing. The first thing you hear is Jake explaining what the song is about and you can tell that that song wasn't played first at the show. Just some minor gripes but nothing major! Go buy this cd!"
Track Listings (30) - Disc #1