Alice in Chains - Live

While Live may be a stopgap measure to bide time for a troubled band that hasn't released an album of new material since 1995, it's also a cool and comprehensive live portrait of a sonically superb band. The 14 tracks, recorded at various venues between 1990 and 1996 and featuring both bassists--ex-member Mike Starr and replacement Mike Inez--show a vitality and looseness not evident on the band's serious studio albums. AIC's spirit is most evident on the countrified "Queen of the Rodeo," although their personalities shine throughout. Sequenced from a booming 1990 version of "Bleed the Freak" through "Dam That River," captured during AIC's stint on a 1996 Kiss tour, Live provides a striking cross section of performances from a seminal hard-rock band. --Katherine Turman Amazon.com

Long live ALICE IN CHAINS

The power of the vocals live cannot be denied. Track selection is very good and so is the editing. March 10, 2008

One of my favorite live collections

A couple of things come to mind right away while listening to this cd, the first of which is this: Layne Staley deserves any and all credit given to him for being an amazing vocalist. From the raw power he unleashes on tracks like Bleed the Freak and Love, Hate, Love, to the slower, softer Layne we hear on songs such as Rooster and A Little Bitter, Staley throws a five star performance at us.

The second thing I noticed was that Layne's voice does lose some of its power and range on the later recordings, no doubt a result of his ongoing drug addiction. If you listen to Bleed the Freak and then skip ahead to something recorded post '95 like God Am, he still sounds good, but at the same time he sounds very frail. The full capacity of his voice is rarely unleashed on these songs.

The last thing I thought after I stuck this in my cd player for the first time was that the song selection is top notch. Granted, I would have loved to hear more of their early recordings, and maybe one or two songs off of Jar of Flies, but this is as perfect as it gets on a live album. You get classics that everyone knows like Rooster, Man in the Box, and Would?, then you get some of the "sleeper" tracks you wouldn't necessarily expect to see on a live album like Junkhead, Dirt, and Dam That River, but you also get some rarities like Queen of the Rodeo and A Little Bitter (Neither track was ever released on a studio album).

There really aren't too many negatives to throw around with AIC Live. Jerry Cantrell does have a few minor screw ups on guitar, but nothing big enough to take away from the rest of the music. Kinney's drumming seems a little drowned out at times, but at the same time I realize Alice in Chains' sound was built around Jerry's riffs, not Sean's drumming. One final thing I noticed: on God Am, Again, and Them Bones, I don't know if it was because he was high or just having an off night, but Layne seemed to take some time to settle into the songs and struggled at first.

Some last thoughts on the album: I thought Cantrell handled his backing vocals very well, and I loved how clearly all the songs come through your speakers. Unlike a lot of live albums, on this one you can pick out any of the instruments at any time and listen to exactly what's being played. Also, I usually don't like when an artist releases a live cd with performances spanning a wide range of dates, but it works fine here.

This is a must have for any Alice in Chains fan, and it's also a nice addition to any rock or grunge fan's collection. December 17, 2007

Great live album by legendary band.

I give this four stars because the studio cuts sound better and the unplugged live album was a better album than this, but it is still an above average live album that includes many of the hits and fan favorites. If you are a crazy AIC fan, like me, then I suggest adding this to the collection. August 3, 2007

one word - layne

layne is the man! ive always loved AIC, and if this is the only official released live cd by em, its a good one! such a tragedy, but this cd is a great live one. a lot of live cd's dont deliver, either too overdubbed, or not enough, but this one just hits... feels like youre right there. too bad it isnt longer. RIP layne! August 29, 2006

Why not one whole show?

Why not one whole show? The sound quality is good, but why can't record labels just put one whole show instead of a collage of shows. I get really upset about this. August 17, 2006

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