Rough And Raw (Zeus Z 2021001)
Radstadion, Ludwigshafen, Frankfurt, Germany September 9, 1975
(68:58) Let It Roll, Doctor Doctor, Oh My, Built For Comfort, Out In The Street, Mother Mary, All Or Nothing, This Kids, Shoot Shoot, Rock Bottom, C’Mon Everybody, Boogie For George
1975 was an important year for UFO, they had a successful new record out, Force It that was getting critical acclaim on both sides of the Atlantic. they also added a keyboard player, Danny Peyronnel to flush out the sound during songs from their new record. The recording used for this cd is a very good to near excellent audience source that is focused more on the higher frequencies but has no real hiss to speak of and sound great at high volumes.
The performance is excellent, the core members of the band, Phil Mogg Pete Way Andy Parker and Schenker work as a well oiled machine. The band opens with a strong number from the new album, Let It Roll that plows over the audience, the band sounds very powerful in this recording with Michael recreating the solo for the record sounding at times like two guitar players. Doctor Doctor is well received and played early into the set, not quit the end of the set signature tune that it would become.
The band has to pause for a troublesome act before going into a heavy version of Willie Dixon’s Built For Comfort with some tasty blues licks by Michael and one of the tracks that would be retired after this tour. Danny Peyronnel is clearly heard during the next track, Out In The Street. His keyboards are faint in the back ground during the previous songs, the band’s playing is very tight and Michael plays his solo virtually note for note of the recorded version.
Mother Mary sound very similar to the album version and the band plays another track would disappear soon after, The Small Faces All Or Nothing. a curious fact the band recorded a studio version of the song that surfaced on the 2007 re master version of No Heavy Petting. A good live song the band plays it like its own and the audience enjoys it clapping along during the slow middle part and cheering wildly at its conclusion.
Two new tracks, a nice heavy This Kids with a phenomenal solo from Michael Scheneker and Shoot Shoot both wring the audience to a pulp but the song that caps the night is Rock Bottom. Clocking it a just over eight minutes, the crowd is excited as breaks into the song, the clap in unison until the first chorus. There is a cut a 2:55 that eliminates a minute or so and picks up as Scheneker is starting the slower part of his main solo, Danny Peyronnel can be heard playing some complimenting solo behind before Michael unleashes as solo that must have knocked him off the stage, his playing is so fluent.
The last song is the classic Eddie Chocram cover from their first album, C’mon Everybody, it works well as a vehicle for crowd participation as the sing along and clap in unison to the chorus. The crowd will not let the band go and cheer wildly till they return to the stage for a rowdy version of Boogie For George, another track from the first album that was very popular on Germany. Thankfully the sound was not butcher by Zeus who produced an excellent title with full color shots of the band on the front and rear cover. This title is recommended heavily for any fan of UFO and or Michael Schenker.
