Collectors Music Reviews

Methodical Slow-Burn In Honolulu (Godfather Records GR476)

International Center, Honolulu, HI – January 21st, 1973

(75:50):  Brown Sugar, Bitch, Rocks Off, Gimme Shelter, It’s All Over Now, Happy, Tumbling Dice, Sweet Virginia, band introduction, Dead Flowers, You Can’t Always Get What You Want, All Down the Line, Midnight Rambler, Live With Me, Rip This Joint, Jumping Jack Flash, Street Fighting Man

The Rolling Stones Methodical Show-Burn In Honolulu (GR476) contains the excellent sounding recording from the January 21st 1973 Honolulu show.  This tape first surfaced in 1994 and has been featured on Honey-Loo-Loo (Outsider Bird Records OBR 305CD024), Tropical Windsongs (Gold Standard ZA-32), Hawaiian Daylight (Shaved Disc TSD002), Hawaiian Top (Weeping Goat WG-025-026), disc 2 of In Exotic Honolulu (VGP-040) and In Exotic Honolulu (Akashic AKA-23).

The label unfortunately mistakenly attributes this as the January 22nd, 1973 early show, but it is indeed the so-called “Live With Me Tape” of the show from the previous day.  It seems Godfather were misled by the person who supplied them the tape into thinking this is the January 22nd show, but Harold Colson’s analysis is exhaustive, definitive, and beyond reproach.  In the two relevant passages in his analysis, he writes:

   “The Live With Me Tape” — A better quality tape of a hotter
         and longer show, including one song, “Live With Me,” not
         found on the other recordings.  Also marked by vocals from
         two gents near the microphone, one of whom repeatedly calls
         for “Jumping Jack Flash.”  First appeared on CD circa 1994
         without “Street Fighting Man,” then later releases added
         that show closer.  Most complete CD version, In Exotic
         Honolulu (VGP-040, disk 2), has 16 songs and runs 77:15.
         Also found (incomplete or edited) on: Honey-Loo-Loo
         (Outsider Bird OBR 305CD024), Tropical Windsongs (Gold
         Standard ZA 32), Hawaiian Daylight (Shaved Disc TSD002),
         Hawaiian Top (Weeping Goat WG-025/026).  Typically
         credited as 2nd show of January 21.

and,

Sunday, January 21, 8 p.m. show = “Live With Me Tape” = VGP-040, disk 2
A strong set of external and internal markers place the “Live With Me Tape” as coming from our very first Honolulu concert, the single gig on Sunday. (To their credit, the boot CDs are correct in dating the “Live With Me” show to January 21; their error is calling this concert the 2nd one of the day.) The Star-Bulletin review of the opening show quotes only one piece of Jagger dialogue (“I can’t see your faces, but I can see your binoculars. It’s like a lot of little cat eyes staring at ya.”), and this very comment is captured on our tape just before YCAGWYW. (Actually, these lines are preserved only on Honey-Loo-Loo, Tropical Windsongs, and In Exotic Honolulu, disk 2; Hawaiian Top and Hawaiian Daylight edit them out.) A second external marker is available through the Rolling Stone magazine story on the Hawaii sojourn. Here the reporter notes that at the “first show, January 21st,” Jagger altered the words to “Sweet Virginia” by singing “Thank you for your wines, Ah-No Lew-loo.” As with the distinguishing, one-time “cat eyes” stage line, this lyric change is found only on the “Live With Me Tape” (the others have the standard California wine reference). In addition, two internal markers provide further confirmation that the “Live With Me Tape” is the Sunday show. Just before “It’s All Over Now,” a fan near the taping microphone remarks, “I’m glad I’m coming back tomorrow night,” which makes sense only if it were spoken Sunday in anticipation of one of the Monday performances. Finally, Jagger inserts a unique “Would I lie on Sunday?” line into YCAGWYW.

It is very good, bordering on excellent sounding with wonderful dynamics of the incendiary performance.  These three Hawaii shows are legendary not only for being the final Stones shows with Mick Taylor in the U.S. but for the inspired playing of the band which in some ways rivals the best of the STP of 1972 and the  European tour later in the year.

The show starts off with a heavy “Brown Sugar,” and the set list follows the same pattern as the STP with minor variations.  Their 1964 hit “It’s All Over Now” is played, but in a slower, bluesier arrangement.  Afterwards Jagger jokes, “very ancient, thank you kindly.”  In “Sweet Virginia” Jagger alters the lyrics slightly to sing about “Thank you for your wines, Ah-No Lew-loo” (the only one of the three Hawaii shows to have this alteration.  The other two have the correct ”California.”)

“Dead Flowers” make a return to the set and is played at a very quick tempo compaerd to earlier versions.  Mick mentions to the audience that, “I can’t see your faces, but I can see your binoculars. It’s like a lot of little cat eyes staring at ya” before “You Can’t Always Get What What You Want” and in the song Jagger adlibs  ”Would I lie on Sunday?”

After “Midnight Rambler” they play ”Live With Me.”  This tune was a regular part of the set in 1969 and 1971 but was dropped for the STP.  It was played at the Nicaragua benefit in LA on January 18th and in this show before being dropped for the other shows.  The show ends with a “Street Fighting Man” meant to whip the audience up in a frenzy.  Methodical Slow-Burn In Honolulu is a nice improvement and is an impressive Rolling Stones release on Godfather which, despite the error in date, is definitive. 

Related posts: