Review by Paul H Birch
Having released Made in Japan mere months back, and a British package tour only just put to bed, can even the faithful cough up money for yet another collection of Whitesnake playing a greatest hits set so soon?
Well, recessionary concerns to one side, there are some different songs on offer but better still, listeners won’t be embarrassed by the frontman being ready and willing but not fit for purpose. For the most part, Coverdale avoids excess wear and tear to his vocal chords by letting his sidemen join in with backing vocals and the home crowd lead the way on choruses. When he does opt to scream and howl, we hear spirited renditions of ‘Give Me All Your Love’, ‘Here I Go Again’ and ‘Still of the Night’.
Featuring the same line-up who performed on Made in Japan, there’s less bludgeoning metal boogie on offer and more Foghat-meets-Aerosmith here, as typified by tracks like ‘My Evil Ways’. Whereas old fans may be perturbed by the guitarists steering ‘Ain’t No Love in The Heart of The City’ into Steely Dan territory I rather liked it. ‘Is this Love?’ works far less well with the backing vocals too cloyingly upfront, likewise the acoustic campfire singalong renditions of ‘Fare Thee Well’ and others fail to engage me, though ‘Forevermore’, as it shifts from acoustic to blistering electrics, works nicely thank you.
We can do without the extended guitar solos, especially when they start widdling all over the place on ‘Pistols at Dawn’, and the rhythm section come across flatulently loud at times, but while the depth and resonance of the lead singer’s voice isn’t what it was it still has charm and character on these recordings, taken from the heart of Newcastle to as far afield as Sao Paolo in Brazil. So why on earth did Made in Japan come out first? Or at all?
Come the end of this two CD live collection there’s a crowd chomping at the bit on Deep Purple songs recorded before most of them were even born. The “Whoah-a-whoah-a-whoahs” sung along to the riff of ‘Burn’ are so loud and passionate that there’s no need for a band, the guitar and keyboard solos, and musical exchanges are so well established they’re in their singing along to them too, the only thing lacking sound wise is the way Ian Paice’s drums kicked the song into its chorus on the original; and when Whitesnake interpolate the song with ‘Stormbringer’ the crowd are on it like they’re at a militant rally. Why buy this record if you’ve got so many of the songs already? To hear the roar of the crowd, it’s undoubtedly why Coverdale is still traipsing the boards.
6.5 out of 10
Track listing:
CD1
- Best Years
- Give Me All Your Love
- Love Ain’t No Stranger
- Is This Love
- Steal Your Heart Away
- Forevermore
- Love Will Set You Free
- My Evil Ways
- Fare Thee Well
- Ain’t No Love in the Heart of the City
- Fool For Your Loving
- Here I Go Again
- Still of the Night.
CD2
- Bad Boys
- Slide It In
- Lay Down Your Love
- Pistols at Dawn
- Snake Dance
- Can You Hear the Wind Blow?
- Fare Thee Well
- One of These Days
- The Badger
- Deeper the Love
- Soldier of Fortune
- Burn/Stormbringer
