Genre: progressive
Rating: 4 stars ****
Title: 801 live
Company: Island
Catalog: ILPS-9444
Year: 1975
Country/State: UK
Grade (cover/record): VG / VG
Comments: UK pressing
Available: 1
GEMM catalog ID: 4959
Price: $10.00
801 started out as a mid-1970s side project for Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzanera. Featuring an eclectic collection of friends including former Roxy Music keyboardist Brian Eno, Quiet Sun bassist Bill MacCormick and Bad Company drummer Simon Phillips the group only played a handful of concerts before making their 1976 debut with "801 Live". Recorded in September 1976 at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall, one reference I've read says this was only their third performance, the second having been at the Reading Festival a few days earlier. Regardless, the ten selections featured a mixture of material drawn from earlier Manzanera solo efforts, as well as a couple of tracks from Eno's catalog and a pair from Quiet Sun's "Mainstream" LP, though in most cases these live versions beat the crap out of studio originals (check out Manzanera's 'Diamond Head'). The set was rounded out by an interesting pair of covers - The Beatles 'Tomorrow Never Knows' and The Kinks 'You Really Got Me'. The results were certainly quirky, bouncing around genres including jazz-rock instrumentals ('East of Astroid') out and out experimentation (Eno's sound effect laiden 'Sombre Reptiles'), early stabs at what 'world' music, blazing guitar rock ('Miss Shapiro') and even surprisingly commercial tracks (check out their cover of The Kinks' 'You Really Got Me''). That very diversity may be one of the reasons the album's such a charmer. Forget pretense, here the six principals actually sounded like they were having fun ... Album highlight was The Beatles cover - simply one of the best you'll ever hear (Eno turned in an amazing stoned vocal performance).
"801 Live" track listing:
(side 1)
1.) Lagrima (instrumental) (Phil Manzanera) - 2:31
2.) T.N.K. (Tomorrow Never Knows) (JOhn Lennon - Paul McCartney) - 6:14
3.) East of Astroid (instrumental) (Phil Manzanera - Bill MacCormick) - 4:59
4.) RongWrong (instrumental) (Hayward) - 5:03
5.) Sombre
Reptiles (Eno) - 3:26
(side
2)
1.) Baby's On Fire (Eno) - 5:03
2.) Diamond Head (instrumental) (Phil Manzanera) - 6:21
3.) Miss Shapiro (Phil Manzanera - Eno) - 4:20
4.) You Really Got Me (Ray Davies) - 3:32
5.) Third Uncle (Eno) - 5:12