‘Live at the Fillmore East 1970’ is an archival release by late ‘60s UK blues hard rock quartet, Ten Years After. The live recordings were made at Bill Graham’s legendary Fillmore East in New York on 27th& 28th February, 1970, but officially released by Chrysalis Records only in 2001 as a 2CD set.

After its release, the live album had received critical acclaim from the fans as it captured the band, which was fresh from its legendary performance at Woodstock Festival 1969, at its peak and quickly achieved the status of one of the greatest live albums in the history of rock music. Recently, the TYA fans has created a campaign through www.pledgemusic.comto release this piece of history on vinyl. Chrysalis Records, the original label of many classic TYA LPs, has obliged the fans by releasing this seminal live album on limited-edition 3LP setwith tri-panel gatefold cover and liner notes from drummer Ric Lee.

Musically, this live set is a punch-on-your-face kind of album. The ceremony began with an excellent rendition of TYA classic Love like a Man with frontman and lead guitarist Alvin Lee shining brightly throughout. This is followed by Good Morning Little Schoolgirl, a patented TYA revamp of the blues standard by Sonny Boy Williamson. Side 1of Record 1 closes with a typical TYA boogie rocker, Working on the Road, which has an infectious groove by bassist Leo Lyons & drummer Ric Lee, followed by a typical Alvin Lee guitar solo. Side 2 starts with The Hobbit featuring an extended drum solo by Ric Lee, followed by another TYA classic 50,000 Miles Beneath My Brain.

Side 3 of Record 2 features an extended 19-minute jam on medley of Skoobly-Oobley-Doobob/I Can't Keep from Crying Sometimes/Extension on one Chord, while Side 4 contains reworking of another blues standard, Help Me of Willie Dixon. Side 5 of Record 3 opens with the Woodstock-hit I’m Going Home featuring Alvin Lee executing his licks & solos like a madman, followed by two consecutive Chuck Berry classics Sweet Little Sixteen and Roll over Beethoven to close Side 5 and open Side 6 of Record 3 respectively. This is followed by I Woke up this Morning and another Willie Dixon classic, Spoonful, both of which feature guitar pyrotechnics of Alvin Lee, aptly supported by Chic Churchill on organ, Leo Lyons on bass and Ric Lee on drums.

‘Live at the Fillmore East 1970’ is the best live album of Ten Years After, and, an important documentation of their heyday. TYArips through its set with enormous dynamics and enthusiasm, clearly showing the band at its top form on a perfect night.

Highly recommended for all fans and record collectors of early ‘70s British blues hard rock.

Particulars    Details
Artist    Ten Years After
Album    Live at the Fillmore East 1970
Category    Live
Original Year of Release (First Pressing)    2001 (Chrysalis Records – CD only)
Indian Pressing    None
LatestVinyl Pressing/Reissue    2018 (Chrysalis Records)
Genre    Blues Hard Rock

Rating: 9/10

Reviewed by Aveek Chatterjee

Aveek Chatterjee is a Calcutta-based corporate professional and a passionate fan of classic rock, prog and blues of ‘60s-‘70s. He’s an amateur drummer and stills finds time to jamwith his son playing the guitar. He’s an avid collector of classic rock LPs, CDs and DVDs. However, his Audio-Technica turntable set-up and the collection of 1000+vinyl LPs featuring many rare & hard-to-find albums of classic rock are his prized possessions.