Collectors Music Reviews

Live In Peace (Front Page FP-0040020/1)

Hiroshima Sunplaza, Hiroshima, Japan – December 6th, 1991

Disc 1 (73:02):  I Want To Tell You, Old Brown Shoe, Tax Man, Give Me Love, If I Needed Someone, Something, What Is Life, Dark Horse, Piggies, Pretending, Old Love, Badge, Wonderful Tonight

Disc 2 (71:03):  Got My Mind Set On You, Cloud Nine, Here Comes The Sun, My Sweet Lord, All Those Years Ago, Cheer Down, Devil’s Radio, Isn’t It A Pity, While My Guitar Gently Weeps, Roll Over Beethoven

The Front Page label released a series of titles documenting George Harrison’s December 1991 tour of Japan with Eric Clapton. Two titles cover two of the Tokyo shows: the December 14th concert on Live @ Big Egg 1st Night (FP-004006/7) and the December 17th concert on Live @ Big Egg 3rd Night (FP-004008/9), and the massive ten disc set Lost Mistral Tapes – Osaka 5 Days (FP-0040010-19) covering the five shows in Osaka. The Hiroshima show has been released previously on the no label Hiroshima (GH-001/-002). Live In Peace comes from a new tape source that is an improvement over the older one.

It is sourced from an audience stereo DAT tape that is very good, clear and powerful. The taper was a distance from the stage and there is a heavy echo and some “fuzziness” surrounding the music. The distance helps the music somewhat as it lends a weight that is largely absent from other tapes from this tour. It also helps that the audience in Hiroshima was very vocal and appreciative, giving loud support for Clapton’s slide leads.

The set list is the same as the other shows, no surprises. They did play “Fish On The Sand” in the early dates but was dropped before this. Some people have made negative comments regarding rock solid set lists. It would have been nice for the sets to be juggled somewhat and have newer and songs coming in and out. But I don’t think there is anything wrong with solid set lists either. What is looked for is the individual delivery of the songs on different nights and how they may sound different.

What is most obvious is how much more confident the band play as the tour progresses. As good as the Osaka shows were, this one is definitely better and more exciting. I really appreciate the live versions of “What Is Life?” which are much more raw and poignant than the studio versions. “Dark Horse” also sounds much better here where one can follow the melody line than the versions from the seventies. “Isn’t It A Pity” and the first encore “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” is a very depressing double whammy to come at the end of the show, but the rocking “Roll Over Beethoven” with the loud drum solo in the middle is a lot of fun. Overall Live In Peace is a nice title worth having.