Quicksilver Messenger Service - At the Kabuki Theatre

Recorded in December of 1970 in San Francisco, this is the Last Show Recorded with Members John Cipollina and Dino Valenti. Includes 18 Live Tracks and a Bonus Four Studio Tracks Recorded in 1969 with Nicky Hopkins. Album Details

Not the best QMS but quite enjoyable

As someone who was there in San Francisco and Los Angeles in the late 60's and early 70's, I saw QMS a number of times. I should have been at this show but couldn't decide between the Dead at Winterland or QMS up the street at the Kabuki....so I went to a New Year's party and listened to both. The Dead were on KSAN and QMS were on KMPX.
I have to say the Dead were way better that night but QMS was at the end of their rope and the Dead were just starting to rev up to the stratosphere.
A little background to this concert:
John Cipollina had already left the group when this was recorded. A dismal gig at Winterland three months earlier (I was there) headlining for the Dead and the Airplane was the last straw. Obviously, he was unhappy with the direction of the band under Dino Valente's increasing influence. He wasn't the only one. Quicksilver was booed almost off the stage by the hometown crowd when they showed up with a 5 man horn section and stunk up the joint. Everyone was so primed for them after great sets by the Dead and Airplane and they came out and fell flat on their face.
This gig was a last hurrah. They brought John back one last time and the results are the usual uneven. Sure, it had only been 3 months since they played live, but they are not as tight as they were earlier in the year. Nicky Hopkins was gone by this time, as well. Too bad.
While there are great moments (how can there not be when you have Cipollina and Duncan together), too much Dino Valente was the recipe for disaster with this group.
For years I've been pleading with whoever will listen and has access to release some of the gigs from early in 1970, (3/21/70 at the Olympic in LA would be heaven) when this band was at their absolute peak-the original 4 plus Nicky Hopkins and Dino Valente before he became overload. Maybe someday we'll see some of those concerts on CD. In the meantime, the Kabuki will have to do. August 24, 2008

Worth it for it's historical value alone

A lot of people have complained about the poor sound quality of this release, and those complaints are, for the most part, justified. This is not the best sounding live CD you'll ever own, to put it very charitably. In fact, at times the sound is pretty abominable, and the mix is often terrible. Occasionally, in the middle of a song, it will sound as if they spliced in a piece from an entirely different (and quite inferior) recording of the same performance. This may, in fact, be exactly what was done as part of the restoration process. At the same time, in all fairness, at times the sound is actually reasonably decent, all things considered. But the point is, don't expect this to be a professional sounding recording.

That having been said, if you are a fan of this band, buy this. Many of the actual performances, sound quality aside, are very good. There is also some on-stage banter, and at one point even a station ID for KMPX (San Francisco's original "underground FM" radio station), adding historical perspective and indicating that this was recorded from a live broadcast (which may also explain some of the technical problems). More importantly, this is the last live recording of QMS with both Dino Valenti and John Cipollina present-- and in fact, the only one I'm aware of. Certainly there are a few bootleg audience recordings or perhaps some soundboard tapes that may surface someday, but for now, this may be all we have. And since neither artist is still with us, there will never be a reunion concert.

All of which makes this recording, warts and all, of significant historical importance. Besides which, if approached with the right frame of mind and a tolerance for the less than stellar recording quality, this is a truly enjoyable album. If you love this band, this is something you really should have. Taken for what it is, on its own merits, it's darned near priceless. I'd recommend it. June 6, 2008

Quicksilver quick to impress

I just heard the new Quicksilver cd - Live 07. Probably on my top 10 for the decade of greatest albums. They've had such a great impact on the music world with their unique sound. They're one in a million. Check it out...Hits the streets on June 24th May 29, 2008

Just Listen To the Music Itself! It's the Live Music that Counts!

While I started digging the music of the QMS in the late 60s, I missed all their live performances as I was living out of the country till the mid 70s. So for me to be able to hear their amazing live performance like this is absolutely PRICELESS!! For anyone who didn't get a chance to hear them in their prime, this album, along with the "Unreleased Quicksilver - Lost Gold and Silver," is a rare and precious opportunity to hear their timeless sound!!!

Despite the ill-engineered sound quality, the essence of the music of this musical unit of highly and uniquely talented musicians is quite well-captured on this recording, and lets you travel back in time where the music really happened, and did it ever!!!

Many of their originals released on their JFL and WAM albums sound different in this live performance, and I particularly like "Freeway Flyer" and "Subway" better on this release because they sound more energetic and candid. Duncan's guitar work on "Freeway Flyer" in particular is one of the most dynamic and wickedly kinetic stuff I've ever heard on any 1-4-5 number! He's definitely got MOJO and voodoo in his guitar playing... If Miles Davis ever had a chance to hear him, he'd have hired Duncan along with or instead of Stern or Robben Ford.

Also, I really enjoy listening to the QMS renditions of the old Blues classics like "Doctor Feelgood" and "Not Fade Away" because you'd get to hear Duncan's live-wire guitar solos just jump out and RIP. When it comes to playing Blues guitar and taking it to another height, Duncan is right up there with the Blues guitar virtuosos like Albert King, Mat Murphy, Phil Upchurch, John Scofield, and Barry Finnerty. Cipollina also added some nice slide-like work to these tunes.

All throughout their entire performance, the excellent rhythm work laid by Greg Elmore and David Freiberg provides such a great platform for the other instruments and vocals to take off on. In fact Elmore's great drum work is another grossly underrated aspect of this exquisite jam band which deserves way more attention and credit.

If you are musical enough to appreciate the true essence of their highly charged and timeless music in their exciting live performances regardless of the recording quality, you will be greatly rewarded when you listen to this "Live At Kabuki." September 30, 2007

Hooray For Licorice!!!!

I thought that this compilation of live performances at the Kabuki were quite good - however, there were several moments (such as in Pride of Man), where the vocals seem to suddenly leap out at you and way overlap the instruments. Other standards by QMS - Subway, Mona, etc. were way up there in the best of this 2 CD Set.

On the whole, this is pretty reflective of what the band sounded like in those days - raw and naked energy as it happened (and as I can remember them!(I'm surprised that I still can) - no cover ups nor re-dubs - like the Dead - they are like licorice - either you like them or you don't!

Hooray for licorice!

PW September 24, 2007

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