****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
Here's what a "respected" rock critic said on a "respected" music reference site about the Outlaws's "Bring 'Em (It?) Back Alive" Album (I'll paraphrase to avoid copyright problems):"Of all...successful Southern Rock bands, The Outlaws...least distinctive sound....fine guitar work and nice jams on this live album....otherwise The Outlaws do not have much to offer....material is run of the mill....vocals are unexceptional. Includes There Goes Another Love Song and the Freebird wannabe Green Grass and High Tides....an okay live album by an okay band"Isn't that a crock of BS! While somewhat guilty of not crafting more easilly-accessible songs (i.e., more suited to top-40 or AOR/Classic Rock radio) more like Skynyrd, Marshall Tucker, Charlie Daniels, Molly Hatchet, and even the Awesome, er, Allman Bros., etc., (all GREAT bands, BTW), their blend of Southern Rock, Boogie, Blues, Country, Pop and even a little Jazz was/is most certainly unique and immediately identifiable as the Florida Guitar Army! While dedicating "Green Grass..." to the recently departed (at the time) members of Lynyrd Skynyrd, it most cettainly is NOT a "Freebird" wannabe. Most R&R bands of the immediately preceding and following eras had their own "Freebird", i.e., their tour-de-force and/or most easily identifiable song(s)...so what? That's Rock 'n Roll!All I can tell you is, I would have worn-out my vinyl copy of this many times over had I not been anal about my records and immediately dubbed them to cassette upon the first playing! I actually had to, much to my chagrin, try several times to record this album to tape because it was too long to fit on a std. 90min cassette, including speeding up the pitch of the turntable to save time, LOL!! I understand that the original single-disc CD version of this recording had the same problem: there were omissions due to editing. No such problem on this version! Here it is presented in all it's "unedited" glory: a great tribute to a great live band....one that met or exceeded their studio versions live....like all great bands of the "classic" rock era!As a bonus, I probably paid less for this CD than I did for my original vinyl copy (which I still have) and I don't have to worry abouut tape stretch, natural degaussing, stylus and groove wear or that bloody dusty Discwasher ever again, LOL!BTW, I've seen all the bands I've listed above live on multiple occasions over the years and I'd stack The Outlaws "classic" line-up represented on this disc (yes I know, Henry Paul was the original third guitarist/vocalist, not Freddie Salem, amongst other personnel changes over the years) against any of those other great, great bands! They certainly deserve their rightful place in the Pantheon of Southern Rock Gods, and this record proves it IMHO.RIP, Hughie, Billy (and Frank). You will be missed!Highly Recommended!
