This superbly recorded double disc (the original engineer was Eddie Kramer, best-known for his work with Hendrix) captured over a weekend worth of dates in February 1970 at the venerable New York City venue catches the Brit boogie quartet at the peak of their powers. These shows were sandwiched between their triumphant Woodstock set and the release of Cricklewood Green, generally considered the band's best work. They find the group primed through years of roadwork, as well as obviously excited to be playing in front of an appreciative N.Y.C. crowd. Kicking off with one of Bill Graham's patented individual-member intros, the group winds their way through the ominous riff of "Love Like a Man." Mixing extended and rocking versions of blues standards -- like Sonny Boy Williamson classics "Help Me" and "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl," as well as Willie Dixon's "Spoonful" -- with two Chuck Berry covers and some nuggets from their own catalog, Ten Years After burns through this show with enormous energy and infectious enthusiasm. Alvin Lee and his flying fingers stay firmly in the spotlight, but the remastered sound is so immaculate you can finally appreciate the contributions of the other, generally overlooked TYA members: Chick Churchill on keyboards and especially Leo Lyons' fluid bass work, along with Ric Lee's jazzy drums. The songs shift into overdrive on the jams -- the longest of which pushes "I Can't Keep From Crying Sometimes" to 20 minutes -- and amazingly stay interesting for the majority of that time thanks to Lee's sense of flashy dynamics, as he quotes liberally from Hendrix and Cream licks. Detailed liner notes from drummer Lee describe the scene, not only in terms of Ten Years After, but also of the musical camaraderie of the time. Some of this is almost embarrassingly dated -- the drum solo-laden "The Hobbit" is particularly guilty, as are the often-interminable guitar gymnastics -- and the Chuck Berry numbers might have been live crowd-pleasers but don't add much to the originals. Still, this is the best Ten Years After concert album (of the three in the catalog), and proves just how vibrant these boogie boys could be when inspired by the crowd and each other on a perfect night. ~ Hal Horowitz
Recorded live at The Fillmore East, New York, New York between 1968 and 1970. Includes liner notes by Ric Lee.
Personnel: Alvin Lee (vocals, guitar); Chick Churchill (organ); Ric Lee (drums).
Audio Mixer: Peter Mew.
Audio Remasterer: Peter Mew.
Liner Note Author: Ric Lee.
Ten Years After: Alvin Lee (vocals, guitar); Chick Churchill (organ); Leo Lyons (bass); Ric Lee (drums).
BRILLIANT!!!! T.Y.A.:BEST ROCK BAND OF ALL TIME Guitar shredding reaches its Apotheosis here. The treatment of "Help Me" makes Woodstock's "I'm Going Home" sound (blasphemy) pedestrian! This is a Great, a Very Great, performance. All of you Cream ,Led Zep and other Big Name bands - discover R&R great secret. IT IS NEVER TOO LATE!!!! Submitted by Diomedes (Mytilene, Lesvos, Hellas) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo 2 of 2 found this helpful.
TEN YEARS AFTER DESERVES HALL OF FAME STATUS SUPERB EXAMPLE OF OVERLOOKED TALENT & EXTRAORDINARY TALENT. STELLAR PERFORMANCE BY ALL TEN YEARS AFTER PERSONNEL. RECOMMEND THIS CD TO YOUNG & ASPIRING MUSICIANS WHO WANT TO LEARN WHAT PURE & UNDISTOTRED ROCK SOUNDS LIKE. ELECTRIC "BLUES BASED" ROCK DOESEN'T GET ANY BETTER THAN TEN YEARS AFTER "LIVE" LIKE CACTUS, THEY REMAIN ONE OF ROCK'S HIDDEN GOLDEN TREASURES. DRUMMER RICK LEE & BASSIST LEO LYONS PROVIDE AN INCREDIBLE RHYTHYM SECTION TO ALVIN LEE'S PHENOMINAL GUITAR RIFFING, WHILE ORGANIST CHICK CHURCHILL ADDS HIS OWN SPECIAL BRAND OF COLOR TO EACH TRACK. A POWERFUL & DYNAMIC MUSICAL SYNERGY MANIFESTS IN TO THE LISTENERS EXPERIENCE. A SUPERLATIVE RECORDING ADDS TO GREATNESS OF TEN YEARS AFTER LIVE AT THE PHILMORE. HENRY J. RUIZ JR. Ph.D. Submitted by opeth7 (Deltona, Florida) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Ten Years After .... 31 Years Later !!!!!! Ten Years After .... one of the best band of the sixties and seventies in his best place: on stage .... February, 1970, Fillmore East .. a Big Band in a palace of rock .... We can hear in this recording TYA in his peak .. Lee, Lee, Lyons, Churchill playing classics like Love Like a Man, Good Morning Little Schoolgirl, I Can´t Keep From Crying ... two blues classics like Help me and Spoonful ... the anthem: Going Home ... and four songs not included in live officials recordings of TYA: Working on the road, Roll Over Beethoven, 50,000 Miles Beneath my Brain and I Woke Up This Morning. This is a historic band and historic recording. Between Woodstock and Isle of Wight, the Fillmore East!!!! With sleeve notes by Ric Lee. If you want really blues rock, you need this CD. Don´t wait more Submitted by wjoalh15 (Mérida, Venezuela) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
Wonderful concert Wonderful concert from a super blues group Submitted by a reviewer (Germantown MD USA) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
unbelieveable a lost gem dug up 32 years later one of the best live recordings i've ever heard. alvin lees guitar playing is unbelievable if youv'e never heard him play you have to hear it to believe it.if you know of alvin's magic your in for a real treat!!! i;am going to buy another copy to send to a pittsburgh public radio station who has a blues show on saturdays to turn every one on to this amazing recording. for 17.35 cents buy 2 and turn a friend on to the best guitar player ever. also check out the many other recordings by alvin lee and ten years after! rock on!!! Submitted by a reviewer (new kensington pa) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
BRILLIANT!!!! T.Y.A.:BEST ROCK BAND OF ALL TIME
TEN YEARS AFTER DESERVES HALL OF FAME STATUS
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