Winterland Arena, San Francisco, March 25, 1977

San Francisco Winterland Arena March 25, 1977 GASP - 020

Overall:

A clear and detailed soundboard recording from the Wind & Wuthering Tour. The sound is good except that there isn't much bass to be heard most of the time. When the pedals come through, they're deafening. Much of the new material doesn't seem to work in a live setting, giving us some insight as to why Afterglow was the only W&W song to make the live Seconds Out album. I wanted to blame it on being early in the tour, but we're several months in at this point. Steve's guitar sound is obnoxious and all over the place on this recording, at times drowning out other instruments. The show doesn't really come together until Supper's Ready.

Sound: * * *
Inconsistant. Through most of the show, Tony, Phil, Chester. and Steve come through quite clearly. Mike is inaudible most of the time. The bass pedals rattle the speakers when they can be heard. At times, Steve's guitar drowns out everything with an obnoxious, nasal sound. I'm wondering if he was having trouble with his effects rack.

Mix: * * *
See above. Inconsistant.

Performance: * * *
The new songs just don't seem to work, but the older ones are performed tightly. The show doesn't really take off until toward the end, however.


Raw Notes

Disc One
1. Squonk - Left channel drops out for the first minute or two. Seems like this could have been fixed. Good stereo mix. Good tight performance, especially toward the end. Phils tambourine can be heard clearly. Crowd is there, but seems distant like many soundboard records. Phil chats up the crowd as Tony tests the Mellotron.

2. One For The Vine - Steve's guitar in the intro sounds a bit nasal with lots of echo. Something is missing during "Then one whose faith had died...". Maybe Tony moving from the electric piano to Mellotron. Phil's voice dissappears during the falsetto "Follow me". Phil blows his whistle during the instrumental section coming out of the quiet part. This loud section is quite different from the Duke tour version on 3SL. Not enough power during "They leave me choice". I don't think band were quite comfortable with this song yet. Probably why it was left off Seconds Out. But this is the only tour where we hear Steve play these W&W songs.

3. Robbery, Assault & Battery - Story: Harry the robber robs the Rice-a-Roni factory (for the San Fran crowd). I just figured out what's missing: Mike Rutherford. There doesn't appear to be much bass on this recording. Strange becasue everything else is clear and distinct. Tight performance. Some bass suddenly kicks in at the very end.

4.Your Own Special Way - Mike's story: Myrtle the Mermaid. A sailor demonstrates the mating dance of Myrtle? I'd like to be able to see this. Heh, "The new single is roaring up the Venezulean charts." Tony uses an annoying shrill synth sound over the nice strummed guitar. Phil flubs the lyrics... "You've followed me long, long enough." Again, the band seems uncomfortable with the new material. Can definitely see why this one was left off Seconds Out. Static in the left channel throughout.

5. Firth of Fifth - Phil introduces Steve as the only used car dealer who plays guitar. Steve intro's the song. "This one is short. Only seven minutes. Short for us." Still not enough bass, but this leaves lots of room to hear Steve. Phil changes the melody on "An inland sea, his symphony". Sounds like Chester is drumming on a wood block during the quiet instrumental section. Very nice performance of the loud instr section and guitar solo which Steve plays almost note-for-note from the record. Wow, bass pedals! Mike is back in the mix. So loud, it almost distorts. You can even hear some bass guitar.

6. Carpet Crawlers - Recording cuts directly to this song. ...and the bass is MIA again. No wait... it's there. Mike must be over on the next street somewhere. Decent performance. Could use a bit more energy.

7. ..In That Quiet Earth - Phil gives a scary laugh, then introduces Chester. Introduces this as three songs, but it's really two. They don't play Unquiet Slumbers. Something doesn't sound right at the beginning. Does Steve start on the wrong note? No bass. Chester and Phil do some syncopation. Drums and lead guitar are about the only things clear here. Again, new material. They are trying hard, though. Seques, of course, into...

8. Afterglow - This is the only song from W&W that made it onto Seconds Out. The lack of bass really hurts this one. Wow, then the pedals and Mellotron kick in and we have a wall of sound! Steve's guitar still sounds tinny.

9. I Know What I Like - The tambourine announces that it's time. Here we go, a fun three minute song stretched out into an endless nine. Phil's voice fades in the chorus and we can hear the background vocals pretty well. Not sure who that is. The Dance. Chester hits a gong at the end of it. Reference to the Gong Show which was on the air at the time? The Stagnation bit sounds nice as always, but too short.

Disc Two
1. Eleventh Earl of Mar - Mike introduces. Tells the crowd where Scotland is. Heavy stereo effect on the guitar. I know the lines kind of overlap, but it seems like someone could have sung the "Eleveth Earl of Mar couldn't get them very far" line. It is the title of the song, after all. "See the bishop on fire?" Steve's buzzy, tinny guitar fades between channels. Chester on wind chimes and sleigh bells during the quiet instrumental. Nice. A great song, but I've yet to hear a great live version. Though this one has a lot of energy, it just doesn't quite take off. Mellotron choir rattles the speakers. Tape Flip.

2. Supper's Ready - Phil Story: Romeo and Juliet in the back of his '57 Chevy. "Romeo, Romeo. Don't come one step closer with that thing!" Some hiss in left channel. "We will rock you, little snake" recording a bit loud. Lyric change: "The fight has begun, we've been released."Steve makes some wild sounds during Willow Farm that I've never heard before. At first, I thought the right channel was dropping out going into Apocalypse, but it's that heavy stereo effect on the guitar again. Loud echo effect on Phil's voice. Sounds cool when he holds out the note on "Better not compromise, it won't be easyyyyyyyyyyy!" Bass is gone again during the organ solo. Echo makes it sound like he sings "6666". Eggs is Eggs played a bit slow, but it works. Steve's final solo sounds like it's coming through a cheap transistor radio. Very nice performance. Some bass even audible in places. Easily the high point of the show so far.

3. Dance on A Volcano - Some guitar tuning before the song. Tony tests the Mellotron again. Never heard the band mess this one up. Steve's strange guitar sound finally doesn't sound out of place. Good job all around. "You'd better start doing it right... you know what I mean?" Seques into...

4. Drum Duet - Played a bit faster than usual... nailed as always. Short, but amazing. Segues into...

5. Los Endos - Cymbals jump between speakers. You can hear Steve scrap his hand across the strings clearly. During the Squonk reprise, his guitar effect finally goes out of control and starts to drown overthing else out. Good performance.

6. The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway - after a tape flip. Tony sometimes hits some sour notes trying to play this intro on an electric piano, but not here. Nice performance. Segues into...

7. The Musical Box (closing section) - Hey, bass pedals! Phil really growls the "NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW!" part. Good job! Tape cuts off immediately.

Convention Center, West Palm Beach, January 10, 1975

West Palm Beach Convention Hall,
January 10, 1975
Soundboard
SAB 06

Overall:

A good clean recording from the Lamb tour. The band seems loose and uninspired in the early songs, but pulls it together about a third of the way in, beginning with "Hairless Heart". The sound is stark and clear, but raw. The mix could have used a tad of reverb, but it's well-balanced between the instruments. The Mellotron is quite loud through most of the recording, so if the listener is a fan of Banks playing, they might want to give this one a listen. Also, one can hear the infamous Slipperman costume making it hard for Peter to sing into the mike. There is occasional feedback and Peter struggles with the lyrics in places, but overall a worthy listen.

Sound: * * * *
Crisp, stark soundboard recording. Could use some reverb for ambiance.

Mix: * * * *
Well-balanced. Mellotron slightly loud in places.

Performance: * * *
Starts out somewhat uninspired, but redeems itself about a third of the way through.

Raw Notes

1. The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway - Fades in during the opening notes of the song. Very dry keys and vocals. Feels a bit slow. Good mix balance, but no ambiance whatsoever. Peter a bit flat. Surprisingly uninspired performance. Tony flubs some notes during "The lamb seems right out of place".

2. Fly On A Windshield - Crowd responds. The Mellotron choir is distinct and a little loud. Leaves a noticable hole when Tony stops playing. Better performance, if still a tad slow. Nice intensity.

3. Broadway Melody 1974 - This is the boot for Mellotron fans. Distinct and loud. Peter seems to be waking up here.

4. Cuckoo Cucoon - Pete's mic malfunctions. Strange vocal effect. Flanger? Tempo finally feels better.

5. In the Cage - Thump-thump, thump-thump. Crowd responds. Peter on tambourine? Straining on some of the high notes. Interesting to hear background vocals on this which aren't there once Phil takes over lead. Tony nails the keyboard solo. Tempo picks up. Peter completely loses the lyrics in the last verse. Growls the "round...round.." part. I love the untitled instr passage at the end.

6. Grand Parade of Lifeless Packaging - Another effect on the vocals. Works better here. Another lyric flub. ..and another. Not Peter's night. Wow, Mellotron choir buries everything! Good audience response. Rael's story part 2. "Erogenous Zones and Where to Find Them".

7. Back in NYC - A bit slow again. Feels lazy, like LLDOB above. Peter avoids the high note at "filled up high with gasoline", but mostly, he's hitting them. "Off we go" section sounds clunky at this tempo. Bass pedals rattle the walls. Microphone feedback.

8. Hairless Heart - Steve's showcase. Is that Phil on xylophone? Nice somber performance. Nailed!

9. Counting Out Time - Good fun performance. Bands seems to be enjoying themselves. Peter and Phil having some trouble syncing up on the vocals.

10. Carpet Crawlers - Interesting to hear the full intro, which I miss on later performances of this song. Nice to have the background harmonies. Again, these would disappear after this tour. Nice performance. Instruments drop out while Peter and Phil continue singing the last chorus.

11. The Chamber of 32 Doors - Nice intensity in the intro. Band seems to have hit their stride since Hairless Heart. Good balance of instruments. Mike's 12-string sounds clear. Nice smooth performance. Nailed.

Disc 2

1. Story of Rael Part 3 - Meeting with Death. "One snuff and you puff it" oops! Slippermen have lumps and bumps, like Phil!

2. Lilywhite Lillith - Tight. Phil tears loose on the drum fills. You can hear him over the Mellotron! Nice.

3. The Waiting Room (Evil Jam) - Hmm, how to judge this? The band does a good job making scary noises. Crazy stereo effects on Steve's guitar. Tony tortures the Mellotron choir. The synthesizer meows. Strangely similar to the album version. Mike starts the guitar riff to slowly carry us into the instrumental section. Tony uses the "meowing" sound on the solo. Good performance.

4. Anyway - Applause probably meant for Waiting Room. "Time to meet the fish?" Peter has some more lyric trouble during "enrich the soil". Nice somber peroformance, though. Good intensity when other instruments kick in. Last verse just a bit slow.

5. The Supernatural Anesthetist - Phil does the high part "He's such a fine dancer" like on the album. Great job on the guitar solo. Extended eerie instrumental at the end, probably for Peter's Lamia costume.

6. The Lamia - Peter seems out of breath while he sings first verse. Operating that costume was probably taxing. Nice vibraphone. Microphone feedback. Nice emotional performance.

7. Silent Sorrow in Empty Boats - One of my fave Genesis instrumentals. Mellotron choir is loud again... but passes through like a breeze. Gorgeous. Nailed it!

8. The Colony of Slippermen - The band doesn't pause to update us on Rael; it's right into the strange instrumental passage that opens side four of the original album. I have to imagine Peter's theatrics during this. Phil counts 1,2,3,4.... into the main part of the song. More mike problems. You can hear where Peter was having trouble getting the mike close to his mouth. Tony nails his famous Raven keyboard solo. Peter is singing in a lower range than on the album. Really hard to hear him during some parts, but a good performance.

9. Ravine - Another great instrumental. Comes across a bit clunky. Mike's fade-in/fade out 12-string strumming on the guitar is not as smooth as the album.

10. The Light Dies Down On Broadway - Starts abruptly. May have had a tape edit going into this. Peter sings "Hey John!" in the first verse instead of "My Home!". Decent performance.

11. Riding the Scree - Nice transition into this. Tony nails his solo again, I think, but unfortunately he's buried in the mix. Very good performance. Sounds like a phaser on the drums after "Here I go!".

12. In the Rapids - Mike's 12-string is nice here. Good performance.

13. It - Nice, smooth transition into the last Lamb song. Steve's guitar stands out nicely here. Even more mike feedback. Lot of that on this recording. Peter sounds a bit winded again as the lyrics come fast and furious. Has some trouble with the high notes "It is shaken, not stirred". Return of the Mellotron strings toward the end. Nice, energetic performance.

14. Musical Box - Phil talks to the crowd. "We're going to play an older song." Crowd is thrilled to hear something they know. Intro is played very slowly. Some reverb trouble on the vocals in the first verse. This is the last tour where we'll hear this entire song. Some shows featured "Watcher of Skies" also for the last time in their entirety. A bit slow and meandering during the quiet section, but picks up nicely once the drums kick in. Good intensity during the guitar solo. Hard to hear Tony's organ. Peter has fun during the "She's a lady" section. Peter holds nothing back at the end! NOW! NOW! NOW! NOW! NOW! Very good performance.