Spirit Rockpalast: West Coast Legends, Vol. 3 DVD Review by Gary Hill
I’ve reviewed the CD of this album in the current issue, so for more information on specific songs, please consult that review. I do have to mention the sound mix. There’s a noisy synthesizer that Randy California plays quite frequently here. All he seems to do with it is hit the same chord and it’s way too far up in the mix. That makes it a distracting annoyance. I wish they had found a way to pull it down before releasing this.
Now, that said, this is a killer performance of an exceptionally strong band. By the time of this recording Spirit was essentially a power trio and their extended jams are among the highlights of the set. Dickey Betts’ appearance late in the show is a nice bonus, too. The audio is pretty good, except for that synthesizer. The video is also good given the 1978 date of the recording. I’d highly recommend this for Spirit fans because it’s an essential performance. You really need to be warned about that damned synthesizer in advance, though.
This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2010 Volume 4 at lulu.com/strangesound.
