If this 1989 live cd is the only Rare Earth live cd/album/cassette that you ever hear, you'll love it. If you have heard the mesmerizing "Rare Earth In Concert," you'll want to give that one 6 stars and this one 4 stars.
Standing on its own, this cd rocks, and the track selection is cool. If you are looking for a captivating concert "feel," you won't get that here. At times, you'll wonder whether this is a studio or live cd. Nevertheless, you get great tracks and over 73 minutes of music.
The band introduces "Get Ready" by saying that it "was" the longest song ever recorded. True. Then came a Led Zepp huge version of Dazed And Confused and The Allman Bros kicking out a pantload of "Instant Live" cds with some songs topping 40 minutes long. I did wonder why Rare Earth would brag about "Get Ready" which had been done (yes, on Rare Earth In Concert) over 23 minutes long, and then only make it a bit over 10 minutes long here. (Actually, the music stops under 10 minutes, then there is filler.)
This version of "Celebrate" is listed as 7:52, but it is much less music than that. It digresses into boring intros to members of the band.
This version of "I Know I'm Losing You" is over 12 minutes long. Cool, but it's over 14 minutes long on REIC.
The inclusion of the Motown hit "Smiling Faces" is fun, and over 7 minutes long.
"Born To Wander" is here over 7 minutes long, and they blend in some Motown lines from Papa Was A Rolling Stone.
Overall, this cd is more blues/jazz (notably more sax), while REIC is more blues/rock (notably more captivating guitar). REIC pulls you in and sails along seemlessly. This cd is more choppy and has the feel of the band doing it "one more time." Also missing here is the band-to-audience interaction. Hey, when the same lead singer isn't leading the way, you can't help but be different.
Sorry for continuing to compare this little sibling to its "big brother," but if you've hear REIC, you know what I mean. If you freak out by seeing the price of the few available copies of REIC, ask me for a $10 way to solve that problem.
