Jefferson Airplane - Jefferson Airplane: The Woodstock Experience
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Free Music Notes for Jefferson Airplane: The Woodstock Experience
Free Music Review: The Airplane rocked Woodstock!
Hit: 4 Stars
Don't bother with "Volunteers" - you already own it. Just listen to the complete set from Woodstock, which starts on the latter part of Disc 1. This was the first time I'd ever heard the Airplane's entire Woodstock performance, and I was very impressed, especially since the band had been up all night (and taking various drugs, I'm sure) before getting to play in the morning.
The packaging was nice, although I have to complain that the replica sleeve around Disc 1 (for "Volunteers") omitted the interior of the original album, which had the PB&J photo.
Free Music Review: good for 40 year old music
Hit: 4 Stars
Woodstock was right at my "heavy years."
This package comes with the Volunteers Album, which is the better of the 2 discs.
The recordings from Woodstock are historical, but recording quality isn't like the studio produced Volunteers.
If Woodstock has meaning for you, you'll enjoy this - along with the other groups that are coming out.
Free Music Review: A rough set, mostly for "completists"
Hit: 2 Stars
Some Propellerheads more fanatic than I consider this a "must-have" -- see other reviews here. If you're a completist who can't get enough live Airplane, you'll probably want it. Otherwise, think twice.
First of all: Disc 1's first 10 tracks are identical to the Volunteers album's 10 original tracks (as remastered in 2004). The rest of Disc 1, and all of Disc 2, contain the Airplane's complete set at the Woodstock festival, 8/16/1969.
Having spent decades cherishing the Airplane's three tracks on the first two Woodstock compilations, I was surprised that they'd actually played and recorded a whole 90-minute set. And surprised to learn (from the liner notes) how central the Airplane was to Woodstock: They were the first act booked, and were scheduled as the Saturday-night headliners.
But nothing at Woodstock went as planned. They were delayed, ended up staying up all night, and then played this set on Sunday AM. And that's the key to why these tapes have remained archived for 40 years: It was a mostly rough set. (Remember, they were playing on no sleep.)
The performances are quirky, with Grace impulsively rushing and filigreeing the lyrics to some iconic Airplane songs that you just want to hear on the beat. Jorma's and Paul's guitars are badly out of tune for the first three songs. (Until right before "Won't You Try" and "Eskimo Blue Day" -- the first two songs included on the original Woodstock albums because, duh, that was where they'd stopped to retune.)
The audio quality isn't bad for a 1969 field recording, but it's also not great. Inferior to, and more compressed than, other Airplane live recordings from this period.
The one new jewel here is Disc 2's 21-minute jam on "Wooden Ships." That morphs into "Come Ride the Music," among other things, and features some nice interplay between Jorma and Jack. A rare, nice touch on that track (and some others here) is the forward mix of Paul's rhythm guitar -- you can actually hear that he's playing a Rickenbacker 12-string, not just some generic axe.
Unfortunately, all the other newly released songs here seem to have been better captured on other Airplane live recordings from 1968-70.
So here's my advice: Save the $16-20 you'd otherwise spend on this. Spend half your savings on that 2004 remaster of Volunteers. It includes five newly released tracks, from a 1969 Fillmore East show, which genuinely present the live Airplane at its very best. (Go for quality over quantity.)
Spend the other half on the 2004 remaster of Bless Its Pointed Little Head, which remains the tightest single set of live Airplane ever released. (That one adds three new live versions of songs from the Baxter's album.)
Got money left over? Check out the Airplane's other recently released live recordings from c.1969 (At the Family Dog Ballroom, Live at the Fillmore East). And get the 2003-04 remasters of After Bathing at Baxter's, Surrealistic Pillow, etc. -- all of which add new tracks. Go for a balanced diet. Your ears will be happier.
Free Music Review: Misleading packaging
Hit: 2 Stars
Great to have the live stuff, but how can they say that Volunteers is in "LP Replica Packaging" and they don't give you the PB&J gatefold cover?Free Music Review: Where's Waldo?
Hit: 1 Stars
How can this possibly be a Woodstock experience w/o High Flyin Bird? In my opinion it is one of the bands best performances, ever. I would never buy this because, in my opinion, the best song is MIA.