U F O One Of Those Nights: The Anthology CD

With countless live UFO sets issued over the years, is yet another one absolutely necessary? Before the denim jacket-wearing jury had a chance to decide, along came yet another live UFO release, the double-disc One of Those Nights: The Anthology. Instead of presenting a single gig in its entirety, you get an extended taster of two separate performances -- March 1979 in Midland, TX and June 1992 in Tokyo, Japan. And while both performance contain a healthy helping of Michael Schenker-era material, without the notorious peroxide-haired guitarist in attendance, both pale in comparison to the definitive UFO live effort, 1979's Strangers in the Night. Granted, both Paul Chapman and Laurence Archer hand in their best replications of Schenker's six-string skills on such tracks as "Pack It Up and Go" and "Lights Out" (respectively), but it definitely lacks the spark made when a certain German musician led the UFO attack with his Flying V. And oft-woefully out-of-key backing vocals don't help matters either (as heard on "Hot N' Ready" and "Cherry"). By 1992, many had left UFO for dead, but longtime members Phil Mogg and Pete Way were ready to give it another go with a slimmed-down four-piece version of the band, and a new studio set, High Stakes and Dangerous Men, which is also included here. Despite grunge bands instantly making most '80s-era metal an out-of-touch beast, UFO sticks to their guns on such tracks as "Borderline" and "Burnin' Fire." Certainly not the worst UFO studio effort ever, but then again, certainly not the best. ~ Greg Prato

Two CD set. One Of Those Nights incorporates three UFO releases from the early 90's: High Stakes & Dangerous Men (1992) saw Pete Way (bass) and Phil Mogg (vocals) playing together again for the first time in eight years. Completing the line-up were ex. Stampede guitarist Laurence Archer and ex. Wild Horses drummer Clive Edwards. Live In Texas reissued on CD in '94 is one of the few documented recordings when Welsh guitar wizard, Paul `Tonka' Chapman was with the band. Previously released as an `official bootleg' it formed part of the fabled and then hard to find Parker's Birthday release. Closing the collection is selected tracks from Lights Out In Tokyo: Live ('93) and displays UFO's power as a live unit echoing their double live masterwork, Strangers In The Night.. Castle. 2006.

Includes 1 bonus track.