Cold Chisel have just released a killer live recording, The Live Tapes Vol 5 - Live at the Bondi Lifesaver (see here), recently unearthed their archives. Recorded on two multitrack tapes on a Friday night in February 1980 – after a blinding 43 shows over 56 days – the live album captures the legendary band at a pivotal moment, just 3 days before recording their breakthrough album East, giving the lucky Sydney audience a very special preview of those now classic Aussie hits.
The tapes have sat untouched in the Chisel archives for over 40 years! When they were unearthed earlier this year it started a long process of restoration to bring us The Live Tapes Vol 5 - Live at the Bondi Lifesaver. Chisel’s longtime producer, Kevin Shirley has mixed the blistering live recoding, which frontman Jimmy Barnes thinks, "might be our live best recording ever."
Chisel fans will be particularly keen to hear the seven songs from East in their pre-studio form; some were still coming together and a couple were even ad-libbed. Some, like “Standing On The Outside” and “Tomorrow” reveal substantially different arrangements to what the band subsequently crafted with producer, Mark Opitz. "It's great to hear this earlier arrangement of Tomorrow. We re-worked it with Mark Opitz - and he brought a great pop discipline to the album recording sessions. But I do like this version," songwriter and piano player, Don Walker said.
Cold Chisel | “My Turn To Cry” [Live at the Bondi Lifesaver]
Another then-new song is Jimmy Barnes' “My Turn To Cry,” delivered on the night with raw, unhinged emotion. “In 1980, we were fighting fit and hungry, playing every show like it was our last – and often it almost was,” Barnes reflected recently. “We were still playing pubs, with the audience spilling onto the stage and the band spilling into the audience. I was living just around the corner from the Lifesaver - and probably half the audience ended-up back at mine."
In addition to the East tracks, you’ll find Chisel tunes that were fast becoming classics, including “Khe Sanh,” “One Long Day,” “Merry-Go-Round” and “Shipping Steel.” You'll also find some rarely heard gems like “Rosaline” and “The Dummy,” plus five cover songs including Johnny Kidd's Shakin’ All Over and storming take on The Yardbirds' “The Nazz Are Blue.”
The Live Tapes Vol 5 - Live at the Bondi Lifesaver is out now on vinyl, CD, as a digital download, and across all streaming services. Check it out here!
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