When I saw this album in my local record bar in 1970, the irony was lost on me.
I'd just returned to Australia after 15 months back in England and the words 'Live at Leeds' drew me in. I looked at the cover and thought "that looks like shit, the record can't be much good" so I didn't buy it right then. Oddly though, it kept popping up and gradually I learned more about it. This was a year after the release of their monumental rock opera 'Tommy' and by now The Who had gained the reputation of being one of the best live acts in the history of ever. Problem was, they hadn't made a live album. The only way the 'fans' could hear them live was by hunting down bootlegs.
That's where the genius of design came in. What I thought was an album "that looks like shit" was in fact a masterstroke by the packaging gurus to make this look like another bootleg. Brilliant. Completely fooled me. Even the labels on the record are hand-written with a note saying not to try to correct the crackling noises! This being the 70's though, the single LP came in a gatefold sleeve which contained a goody-bag of inserts. There were copies of all sorts of things (12 items in total) to keep most fans happy. A band photo, lyric sheets with handwritten notes, the contract for their appearance at Woodstock, the list goes on.
Fortunately, my copy of the album still contains all these extras - things that often get scattered to the four winds.
Depending which version of 'Live at Leeds' you go for dictates how much of the show you get to hear. The full set list for the show has 33 songs. This original vinyl pressing has just 6, but one of those is a 14.27 version of 'My Generation' that includes bits of a couple of 'Tommy' songs. 'Substitute' gets an airing, as does 'Magic Bus' but the other 3 tracks aren't Pete Townshend compositions. Instead they went for covers .. 'Young Man Blues', 'Summertime Blues' and 'Shakin' All Over'.
If you waited until 2001 for the Deluxe CD you got all 33 tracks. Disc one had 13 songs including 'Happy Jack', one of my all-time favourites - they should have included that on the original vinyl !! Disc two was a live performance of the complete 'Tommy'.
'Live at Leeds' has received many accolades as one of the best ever live recordings. IMHO in it's original format it's good, but it's not great. I mentioned the live bootlegs and many people thought that there were better bootleg shows than this commercial release, but by definition boots were harder to get, and this was readily available. Bruce Eder & Stephen Thomas Erlewine said about it "this show may not have been the absolute best, it's so damn close to it that it would be impossible for anybody but aficionados to argue. Here, the Who sound vicious -- as heavy as Led Zeppelin but twice as volatile" - "There is certainly no better record of how this band was a volcano of violence on-stage, teetering on the edge of chaos but never blowing apart."
I've gone with The Who through various phases. I have their original 'Tommy' but prefer the 1972 LSO version with guest singers (Reviewed Vinyl Vault 7 June 2020). I have 'Quadrophenia' and detest it in it's entirety. When I reviewed 'Who's Next' (Vinyl Vault 7 Sept 2020) I wrote the following .. "I'm a bit of a hit and miss Who fan. I loved all their early singles .. 'Substitute', 'Happy Jack', Pictures of Lily', 'Magic Bus', 'I Can See For Miles' .. but when it comes to albums I'm a bit ambivalent."
That still stands.
Even so, 'Live at Leeds' remains a must-have album because it's a major piece of music history. It's a slice of life from 50 years ago and sitting in the dark with headphones on you can be transported back to a wilder, looser place and time.
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