Slade Live Collection (2CD) [Original recording remastered]

Slade are probably remembered now for three things. A Christmas record that will just not go away, wearing daft clothes and for being one of Britain's top premier live bands. Anyone who saw this band live will testify that they were second to none. Six years of slogging around the country BEFORE they had their first hit paid off. By the time of that first hit (Get Down And Get With It) they had so fine tuned their performance to their peak, they simply could not fail in the live stakes.

This compilation brings together all of Slade's live recordings.

The first, Slade Alive stayed in the charts for over a year. Recorded in front of 600 fan club members. Slade Alive contains seven numbers of their best set of the time. A cover of Stepphenwolf's 'Born To Be Wild', would never be played this long again. It just goes on and on and it is all the more wonderful for it. The very Little Richardish 'Keep On Rockin' is just wonderful. 'In Like A Shot From My Gun' was never released as a studio number. Maybe because it would never sound better than this. Noddy Holder is so much in command of his audience. Slade would never sound better on record (or CD) than this. Alive is considered by most to be Slade's best ever live recording.

'Alive Volume Two' is a much more sober affair. By this time, Slade had been in the USA for two years, only to return to the UK shores to find new wave music was all over Britain. After bands like The Sex Pistols and The Clash, Slade were frowned upon. However, as those faithful fans would again testify, punk rock had energy but no staying power. Slade's American influence is there on tracks like 'One Eyed Jacks' but they still knew how to rock. This remastered version so improves on the Polydor version released some years ago. Union Square have done a great job to bring us this piece of Slade history

'Slade On Stage' was really back to form. Slade were back in the charts and this gave them new tracks like 'Lock Up Your Daughters' and 'We'll Bring the House Down' and a confidence that shows through the whole CD. This much heavier Slade, were just awsome. No pretence, just good old rock'n'roll played with gusto, with audience particaption that sent everyone home with ringing bells in their ears but many happy memories.

Finally Slade's swansong was Reading 1980. Slade had Ozzy Osbourne to thank for the next live effort. Reading Festival 1980 and Ozzy had pulled his band 'Blizzard of Oz' from the line up. Slade were asked to step in at the last minute. Lead guitarist Dave Hill had more or less left the band. Thier manager, Chas Chandler had to persude Dave that they should do it if only to play thier last gig to a huge audience.

Slade had been slogging around Britain playing anywhere that would have them. At the Reading festival they played a set they had been playing in all the fleapits around the country. Most thought they were doomed to fail with a heavy rock audience. They went on and conquered and undoubtlably stole the show. Bassist Jim Lea later commented "It was hot and dusty and we felt like gunslingers at high noon, we were strutting through this area holding up someone else's Roller behind us. I refused to move...why should I? I had written more bloody hits than (the rest of the bill) put together."

This release has been remastered by Tim Turan and it a gem of a collection. The artwork includes some great live pictures and a booklet with some wonderful comments.

If you never saw Slade live, you missed one of the best working bands ever to walk a stage. Buy this, get the headphones on loud and you might just get 25% of how good it really all was. For the rest of us, we already know. An essential purchase. Keep On Rockin!!

I have lived,breathed and slept slade for almost 37 years now.I know them and everything about them,luv them to bits and always will,but for many years now Ive been dreaming of the Reading Festival set being released on cd(I think we can safely say we will not get it on film).So here it is,a reasonable quality transfer with no real research of what was played at the festival and WHAT WASNT!!!!!!!.Dear oh dear Union Square,the cassette tape I have recorded from Radio One back in 1980 is not only better quality but has much more content!.Why didnt you put on "Take me bak ome"?,its readily available you know(extra disc in the Ruby Red double pack)and ultimately,why oh why did you include "Okey Cokey",if any of you guys in charge at US had bothered to at least have a chat about this importand and excellant piece of musical history over a cup of tea you may have come to the conclusion that this track was a desperate stab at getting back into the limelight long before the Reading Festival and was re-mixed with a live audience to make the "non-Slade fan" think that it was live.It was never "live" and to be perfectly honest its inclusion here is the final straw for me,I cannot and will not continue to purchase half-hearted & polished up re-releases from official sources when there is absolute experts out there who are given the "cold-shoulder" time and time again(Hi Gary & Dave,your time may come yet).Keep on Rockin,Mark Richards.

Over 35 years of gigging, I have been lucky enough to see some of the worlds greatest bands, topped by the mighty Led Zeppelin; but if there was ever one gig I regretted missing it was this one.

I bought this album on vinyl back in the early seventies, and still play it to this day.

The vinyl version contained only the first seven tacks listed on this CD version, and showed Slade at their rocking best.

It even included a bit of melody, with the track Darling Be Home Soon showcasing the fact that Noddy had one of the all time great voices of rock music.

My real reason for writing this review though is for one track alone, and that is Born To Be Wild.

Imagine lying between two speakers on your bedroom floor, trying to blow your eardrums out before your Dad shouted to turn the volume down.

Following the vocal section of the track it becomes a one off masterpiece in unsophisticated white noise.

If you buy this album please please please do not put it on at volume two for a quiet listen. Wait till the whole street is out, give it the full whack, and celebrate the pre over produced days, when a band could turn up at the town hall, erect a stack of Marshall amps that resembled the empire state building, and make a full on attempt to send you home deaf, but very very happy.