http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008BENFWC
“…Never Seen A Grape…” Live – The Final Tour by JIM CROCE
Made by a member in the audience of a Louisiana University
'sometime' in 1973 (it’s disputed whether or not its January or September 1973)
– this CD was originally put out by Essential in 1999. It now receives a
welcome reissue in 2012 on Edsel EDSS 1036 as a UK remaster (54:16 minutes - Barcode 740155103637).
On stage with guitar and vocals and accompanied by Maury
Muehleisen on lead acoustic guitar and backing vocals – the sound quality
varies from superb to weak (as you can imagine). It isn’t as bad as a bootleg -
but it isn’t mixing desk quality either – with the acoustic guitar playing
being weedy and thinny in places. But it is very clean and sonically acceptable
– and in truth – the slight eavesdropping feel to the recording only to the
obviously rambunctious atmosphere.
His dialogue to the audience before "Roller Derby
Queen" is fabulous – literate – witty – confident – he goes on about
getting drunk while dating a girl (dialogue above). The same happens with
"Next Time, This Time" and pretty much every other tune in between.
It builds a tangible repartee with the audience who laugh along and are clearly
digging it. By the time he gets to his huge hit "You Don’t Mess Around
With Jim" the crowd are clapping with gusto.
Two songs are new – his hilarious cover of The Coasters
"Shopping For Clothes" and an English ballad called "Ball Of
Kirriemuir" about 'four and twenty virgins…out on a Saturday night…' who
are no longer very chaste come the boozy evening’s end.
JIM CROCE boarded a light aircraft on 20 September 1973 to
get to a gig in Sherman in Texas – the
plane crashed on take off killing all six inside. He was only 30.
This lovely and timely reissue confirms what a truly tragic
loss that was.
