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Rating:
Tracklist:
1. Come On
2. Sweet Talker
3. Walking in the Shadow of the Blues
4. Love Hunter
5. Fool for your Loving
6. Ain’t gonna cry no more
7. Ready’an Willing
8. Take me with you Live at Hammersmith from '78
9. Might just take your life
10. Lie Down
11. Ain’t No Love in the Heart of the City
12. Trouble
13. Mistreated
David Coverdale Vocals - Ian Paice Drums - Micky Moody Guitars - Bernie Marsden Guitars - Jon Lord Keyboards - Neil Murray Bass
These days, a live album magically came back to my mind, which probably represents the brightest and most radiant image of a band that has undoubtedly written unforgettable and memorable pages in the sphere of hard rock, Whitesnake. This band, which artistically was born in the latter half of the '70s as a "branch" of Deep Purple, shows, at least in the initial part of their career, a marked influence of the Purples, not surprisingly the same lineup includes a certain Ian Paice on drums and John Lord on keyboards. However, the charisma of David Coverdale and his precise desire to give a highly personal imprint to the group would lead, over the years, to wide evolution and changes not only in terms of musicianship but also, and most importantly, in terms of musical content.
This live album was made in 1980 and is actually the sum of three concerts, two of which took place in the same year during the tour of "Ready an Willing", while the third dates back to 1978 and, more specifically, is the famous performance held at Hammersmith. The aspect I believe is important to highlight about this work is the unique and extraordinary ability of the group to interpret anthems like "Come On", "Fool For Your Loving", or "Walking in the Shadows of the Blues" with a feeling and a rendition even superior, if possible, to the respective studio versions. The credit for all this goes to many factors, among which undoubtedly the experience gained over several years of performing on stage between Coverdale, Paice, and Lord, and not to be underestimated, the presence of two great, amazing guitarists, true masters of blues, the Moody & Marsden duo, who imbue Whitesnake with an absolutely unique sound, full of warmth and expressiveness, which unfortunately would later decline in the following years with their departure and the arrival of guitar players with typically virtuous characters like Vivian Campbell, Sykes, up to the formidable Steve Vai. The setlist contains a total of 13 tracks and perfectly exemplifies the best offered by the early Snake phase, with the presence of other unforgettable tracks alongside those previously mentioned, like "Love Hunter" or "Ready an Willing", both eponymous to their respective albums, or the magnificent cover "Ain’t No Love In The Heart Of The City" or still "Might Just Take Your Life" and the timeless "Mistreated", legacy of the magical Deep Purple Coverdale - Hughes era.
What else to add, except to say the true Whitesnake, in their golden splendor, are all encapsulated in this live, a true little gem of the era, which will only offer great emotions and perhaps even a note of subtle nostalgia to all fans and lovers of high-class hard rock.
Tracklist Lyrics and Samples
02 Sweet Talker (04:16)
I can tell by way you walk,
You give it all away
By the sweet way that you talk, yes you do
You got long legs, a black girl sway,
The way you shake your booty
Gives your schoolgirl game away, yes it does
You're just a sweet talker, bad daughter,
An' you've just begun
The bitch is in heat,
So you better run
I know you know
You got what it takes,
You got the fever,
But, you give me the shakes, yes you do
Straight out of Lolita
With nothing to lose,
When I got your number
My juke box blew a fuse, yes it did
You're just sweet talker, bad daughter,
An' you've just begun
The bitch is in heat,
So you better run, you better run,
So you better run, you better run
Or you better hide
Sweet talker, bad daughter,
You've just begun
The bitch is in heat
So you better run, you better run,
You better run, you better run,
Or you better hide
I can tell by way you walk,
You give it all away
By the sweet way that you talk, yes you do
You got long legs, a black girl sway,
The way you shake your booty
Gives your schoolgirl game away, yes it does
You're just a sweet talker, bad daughter,
An' you've just begun
Sweet talker, bad daughter,
An' you've just begun
The bitch is in heat,
So you better run
03 Walking in the Shadow of the Blues (04:50)
I love the blues,
They tell my story,
If you don't feel it you can never understand
So many times I thought about it
And now I know just what it means to be a man
Everyday I realize you can see it in my eyes
I never wait, or hesitate.
'Cos I love the life I live,
I'm gonna live the life I choose,
You gotta understand
I'm walking in the shadow of the blues
All of my life I've had the same reputation,
I've been the black sheep of the family all along
I never know if in my heart I'm really guilty
But, I've been accused of never knowing right from wrong
Everyday I realize you can see it in my eyes
I never wait, or hesitate.
'Cos I love the life I live,
I'm gonna live the life I choose,
You gotta understand
I'm walking in the shadow of the blues
My father said you're crazy,
He said what you gonna do?
I left with my guitar and said
I'll leave it up to you
I'm gonna live the life I love
And live the life I choose,
And I'm walking in the shadow of the blues
I love the blues,
They tell my story,
If you don't feel it I will tell you once again
All of my life I've been caught up in a crossfire,
'Cos I've been branded with the devil mark of cain
Everyday I realize you can see it in my eyes
I never wait, or hesitate.
'Cos I love the life I live,
I'm gonna live the life I choose,
You gotta understand
I'm walking in the shadow of the blues,
I'm walking in the shadow of the blues
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