Mott The Hoople - Fairfield Halls, Live 1970
Details: CD, Angel Air, 2007
We’ve had a bit of a recurring theme over recent weeks with posts about forgotten live albums popping up once or twice. Pat Travers’ superb “Go For What You Know” got a well overdue reissue as part of the “8+8″ compilation, whilst The James Gang Live In Concert post generated a bit of a response too. This album though definitely sits in the forgotten category as it sat on the shelf for 37 years before Angel Air finally released it last year.
Capturing the formative first line-up of Mott The Hoople, featuring Ian Hunter and Mick Ralphs, this recording should have been Mott’s first live album yet the idea was forgotten due to perceived sound issues with the recording. The extensive sleeve notes tell the full story, but suffice to say rather than “issues” what is actually captured turns out to be electric in a way that it often seems only 70s era live album can.
Playing as support to “Free”, early Mott were quite different to the glam-rock “All The Young Dudes” singing, Bowie approved group of just a dew years later. Certainly captured delivering a more raw form of rock, the opening track “Ohio“, a Neil Young cover, is formidable. Heavy, loud and instantly engaging it’s a foretaste of a powerful, if short set that’s only potential negative is that it perhaps indicates an early lack of suitable concert material as further covers are served up in the shape of The Kinks “You Really Got Me” and Little Richard’s “Keep A Knockin’“, both extended to over 8 minutes!
The original material is outstanding though. Ian Hunter’s “No Wheels To Ride” builds to simply epic proportions and “Thunderbuck Ram“, from the band’s 1970 second album “Mad Shadows”, proves every bit as good in concert form as you’d expect, with the intro haunting and the interplay between the superbly heavy guitar, keyboards and vocals really demonstrating the power of Mott’s early performances superbly. Ralphs’ “Rock ‘n’ Roll Queen” stands out well too, a pre-cursor of what would become the more recognised Mott though ironically perhaps not until after his departure. A contrast in styles is nicely evident as well mid-set in the organ and vocal only track “When My Mind’s Gone” demonstrating Ian Hunter at his impassioned best.
Of course a 45 minute support set might have been suitable source material for a vinyl release back in the 70s but today it falls some way short of filling a cd, so Angel Air have added five tracks from the following year record in Sweden. Only “Thunderbuck Ram” is repeated and again a reliance on covers is evident with Mountain’s “Long Red” and Sonny Bono’s composition “Laugh At Me” the choices this time.
It’s rough and ready sounding in places for sure but any flaws evident whether in sound or voice only serve to enhance the experience, making this a fine document of early Mott and a terrific live album better for the absence of studio based overdubs.
Highlight: Thunderbuck Ram (Fairfield Halls)
Score: 3.5/5
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BL
