Live At Leeds

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
Anyone who owned the vinyl copy of Live at Leeds will barely recognise its digitised namesake. While the 1970 record offered a mere six selections, the 1995 CD reissue is fleshed out with a full 14 tracks. Revelling in the augmented Leeds prompts one to wonder why in the name of "Heaven and Hell" they didn't put out a double record in the first place. No matter. This Live at Leeds is actually superior to its revered predecessor. The Who are at their Maximum R&B peak here, bringing an almost proto-metal aggression to supercharged covers of "Young Man Blues", "Summertime Blues", and "Shakin' All Over" (all from the original record) and treating fans to originals familiar ("I Can't Explain", "My Generation", "Magic Bus") and less known ("Heaven and Hell", "Tattoo", "A Quick One"). An improved-upon classic. --Steven Stolder

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Amazon.co.uk Review
There are only a handful of genuinely seminal albums, but The Who's Live At Leeds is undoubtedly one. Recorded in the comparatively intimate environs of the University Refectory, Leeds, in February 1970, the two-hour-plus show was heavily truncated and clocked in at a mere 38 minutes upon it's release as an album later the same year. Despite this, the album's six tracks showcased the thermonuclear dynamics that established The Who as the best live rock band in the world. This long overdue deluxe edition features the entire 33 song set, including the bulk of rock opera Tommy, plus full-length versions of previously lopped cuts. Throughout the proceedings, The Who's blitzkrieg barrage is propelled by the octopus limbed Keith Moon-the-loon and John Entwistle's elasticated, DC10-booming bass, topped with Pete Townsend's tumultuous windmilled power chords and Roger Daltrey's howl. Such is the potency of their attack that they even invest those hoary standards "Summertime Blues" and "Shakin' All Over" with a thrilling savagery, while their rampant charge through Tommy reminds you that the original 1969 double-album--unlike Ken Russell's ridiculously excessive film version--was an audacious attempt to tinker with rock's building blocks. --Chris King

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From Amazon.com
Anyone who owned the vinyl copy of Live at Leeds will barely recognize its digitized namesake. While the 1970 record offered a mere six selections, the 1995 CD reissue is fleshed out with a full 14 tracks. Reveling in the augmented Leeds prompts one to wonder why in the name of "Heaven and Hell" they didn't put out a double record in the first place. No matter. This Live at Leeds is actually superior to its revered predecessor. The Who are at their Maximum R&B peak here, bringing an almost proto-metal aggression to supercharged covers of "Young Man Blues," "Summertime Blues," and "Shakin' All Over" (all from the original record) and treating fans to originals familiar ("I Can't Explain," "My Generation," "Magic Bus") and less known ("Heaven and Hell," "Tattoo," "A Quick One"). An improved-upon classic. --Steven Stolder

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Customer reviews

review by: date: 2008-10-27 rating:
Assault and battery
Live at Leeds, with its distinctively minimalist sleeve, is that rarest of commodities: a great live album from a great rock band. Roger Daltrey is at his growling best, whilst Keith Moon, John Entwistle and Pete Townshend provide a suitably hard-hitting, hard rock accompaniment. They absolutely assault a number of rock-and-roll standards (`Young Man Blues', `Summertime Blues' and `Shakin' All Over) and batter through their own material with brio. Listening to the lean, focussed `Substitute' and lengthy `Magic Bus' you can see why the album was positioned at 170 in music magazine Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time [2003].

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review by: date: 2008-09-15 rating:
If it ain't broke...
Fortunate enough, though we didn't realise it at the time, to see The Who at Bournemouth's Pavilion Ballroom in the mid to late '60's, the venue was packed out shoulder-to-shoulder, of course. Privileged as we were to see Keith Moon, (was he the only drummer who didn't use a Hi-Hat?), he was up to his usual antics at one of the shows by pouring vodka over the tom-tom drum skins, and thus creating great fountains as soon as he hit them when the next song began; much to his extreme amusement.
We enjoyed 2 amazing gigs there, the third showcased the 'Tommy' album, (which, other than the monumental 'Pinball Wizerd' track, didn't do a great deal for me as the balance of the songs were quite weak by Townshend's earlier standards; but hey, they went global with it, so I'm the oddball!), and Bournemouth never saw The Who grace any of their stages ever again.
Fortunately, just pre-'Tommy,' 'Live At Leeds' was recorded and released on a vinyl LP with about half the tracks this 14 track re-issue has, and, I believe, was all the better for it. The maxim always was 'If It Ain't Broke, Don't Fix It,' and although the extra cuts are enjoyable, they have taken the bombast and punch away from the original and seem to have watered it down greatly.
Whilst 'newer' Who fans won't be aware of the original release, perhaps, then, a re-issue such as this may well be quite joyous, and it is, but for impact, the original was the best.
As later songs like 'Won't Get Fooled Again' proved, the 'Rock Operas,' popular as they were, just seemed to take the guts and volume out of The Who, especially as a Live Attraction. Here, 'A Quick One' does just that, and the toe dipping into the 'Tommy' era with 'Amazing Journey / Sparks' also demonstrates this well. I adored The Who for their thrash, their bash and their extremely loud volume, which the Rock Operas, sadly, diluted.

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review by: date: 2008-07-21 rating:
the defintive Live album
Much legend surounds 'Live at Leeds' but it is truly the greatest live album of all time, it is match by none for sheer energy and performance, Keith moon steals the show playing brilliantly on every song and not loosing an ounce of energy. Daltrey's sining is brilliant while Entwistle bass rumbling causes my floor to rumble when 'My generation' kicks in, Townsends guitar roars during 'sparks', but he truly shines in 'my generation' that lasts 15 mins with Townsend creating a number of improv riffs and solo's that make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

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review by: metalmaz date: 2008-01-25 rating:
Good, but not a classic
I've never really been much of a fan of The Who's rock opera stuff, I've always found it rather pseudo. The Who should stick to what they do best, rock and roll and not try and appeal to Guardian readers.

The first half of Live At Leeds is very good, with fantastic versions of I Can't Explain, Young Man Blues, Substitute, Summertime Blues and a wonderful medley of My Generation.

It's dragged down by an overlong Magic Bus and one of The Who's worst songs, Happy Jack. We also have to endure incessant yammering from Daltry and Townsend. It would have been nice for then to shut up and have an extra song instead.

Most of side 2 - the rock opera Tommy, is dreary.

It's a good live album, but not up with the greats


review by: date: 2007-08-06 rating:
A great live album, but not the best...
The thing i have found with The Who's music is that it ranges from the very best, to very boring. I purchased this album in the hope it would live up to it's name as the best live album ever. Put simply, it doesn't. I don't know about you, but i like to hear the crowd on a live album, so i can get into the atmosphere, but they seem to have been filtered out of the mix on this record. When instruments aren't playing i expect to hear a crowd going absolutely crazy, for example before/during the chorus of 'Shaking All Over', but on this album you don't hear anything. I know that's not the musicians fault, I'm just making a point.

Another complaint i have is that some of the performance seems very sloppy at times. Townsend's lead playing is uninspired (however his rhythm is the best in the business). Roger's voice also seems to crack and shriek in a cringe worthy manner. At points it's quite embarrassing and laughable.

However enough about the negatives. There's some great music to be found here. It's what you'd expect of The Who. Loud, messy hard rock with an edge. There's some good improvisation ('My Generation' lasts near enough 15 mins) and some brilliant tunes. So a must for Who and rock fans in general, but for the best live album, look for Van Morrison's 'It's Too Late To Stop Now' or Thin Lizzy's 'Live And Dangerous' - true classics.

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