''Frampton Comes Alive!'' is a
double
Double, The Double or Dubble may refer to:
Mathematics and computing
* Multiplication by 2
* Double precision, a floating-point representation of numbers that is typically 64 bits in length
* A double number of the form x+yj, where j^2=+1
* A ...
live album by the English musician and songwriter
Peter Frampton, released in 1976 by
A&M Records
A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and functions as a branch of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Interscope-Geffen-A&M. Established in 1962 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, the label initially operated independent ...
. Following four studio albums with little success and sales, ''Frampton Comes Alive!'' was a breakthrough for Frampton and is one of the best-selling live albums ever. "
Show Me the Way", "
Baby, I Love Your Way", and "
Do You Feel Like We Do" were released as
singles; all three reached the top 15 on the US
''Billboard'' Hot 100, and frequently receive
airplay on
classic rock
Classic rock is a radio format that developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, it comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the early-1990s, primarily focusing on comm ...
radio stations.
Released on 15 January 1976, ''Frampton Comes Alive!'' debuted on the charts at No. 191. It reached No. 1 on the
''Billboard'' 200 the week ending 10 April 1976, spending 10 non-consecutive weeks in the top spot through October. It was the best-selling album of 1976 and has sold over 8,000,000 copies in the United States.
''Frampton Comes Alive!'' was voted "Album of the Year" in a 1976 ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason.
The magazine was first known fo ...
'' readers' poll. It stayed on the chart for 97 weeks and was still No. 14 on ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
''s 1977 year-end album chart. It was ranked No. 41 on ''Rolling Stone''
's "50 Greatest Live Albums of All Time" list. Readers of ''Rolling Stone'' ranked it No. 3 in a 2012 poll of all-time favourite live albums.
In 2020, ''Frampton Comes Alive!'' was inducted into the
Grammy Hall of Fame.
Background and recording
The album ''Frampton Comes Alive!'' was recorded between June and November 1975, primarily at the
Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco as well as
Marin Veterans' Memorial Auditorium in
San Rafael, California
San Rafael ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "Raphael (archangel), St. Raphael", ) is a city in and the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), North Bay region of th ...
,
Long Island Arena in
Commack, New York
Commack ( ) is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the towns of Huntington and Smithtown in Suffolk County, on Long Island, in New York. The CDP's population was 36,124 at the 2010 census.
History
The name "Commack" comes from t ...
, and a concert on the
SUNY Plattsburgh campus in
Plattsburgh, New York
Plattsburgh is a city in and the county seat of Clinton County, New York, United States, situated on the north-western shore of Lake Champlain. The population was 19,841 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. The population of the sur ...
. The Winterland songs were recorded on a
24-track master recorder. Other concerts were captured on a 16-track recorder. Recordings from four shows were used for the original album. Master tapes were recorded at 15 inches per second using professional
Dolby "A" noise reduction.
The live album had been intended to be a single LP disc, but at the suggestion of
A&M Records
A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and functions as a branch of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Interscope-Geffen-A&M. Established in 1962 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, the label initially operated independent ...
, additional shows were recorded, and the album expanded to two LPs for release. On the special features for the ''Live in Detroit'' concert DVD, Peter Frampton commented that some difficulty was encountered in the mixing after the microphone cable to the bass drum microphone was inadvertently pulled, accidentally causing the microphone to face at a 90-degree angle from the drumhead. During the concerts, Frampton principally used a distinctive modified black 1954
Gibson Les Paul Custom electric guitar (with three Humbucker pick-ups as opposed to the usual P90 and AlNiCo Staple pickups). On the radio program ''
In the Studio with Redbeard'', Frampton said, "The album is mostly live except for the first verse of 'Something's Happening', the electric rhythm guitar on '
Show Me the Way' (the
talk-box came out but the engineer forgot to move the mic) and the intro piano on 'I Wanna Go to the Sun' were fixed in the studio but the rest was all live (all the guitar solos, acoustic guitars, electric keyboards, drums, bass guitar and rest of vocals)".
Release
The double album was released in the U.S. at a reduced list price of $7.98, only $1.00 more than the standard $6.98 of most single-disc albums in 1976. It was pressed in "automatic sequence", with sides one and four on one record and sides two and three on the other. This arrangement facilitated sequential listening on automatic
record changer
A record changer or autochanger is a device that plays several phonograph records in sequence without user intervention. Record changers first appeared in the late 1920s, and were common until the 1980s.
History
The record changer with a steppe ...
s.
The album produced 3 hit singles: "
Baby, I Love Your Way", "
Do You Feel Like We Do", and "Show Me the Way". The talk box guitar effect became closely associated with Frampton due to its use in the latter two singles. The single version of "Do You Feel Like We Do" was edited to 7:19 from the original 14:15 album version, making it one of the longest singles to reach the top 40, surpassing
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
' "
Hey Jude
"Hey Jude" is a song by the English rock music, rock band the Beatles that was released as a non-album single in August 1968. It was written by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. The single was the Beatles' fir ...
" at 7:11. The B-side of "Do You Feel Like We Do", the acoustic instrumental "Penny for Your Thoughts", was the shortest track on ''Frampton Comes Alive'', at 1:23.
In January 2001, a 25th Anniversary Deluxe Edition of the album was released. It featured 4 additional tracks not present in the original version, one recorded in a radio studio and not part of the main concert program. The track sequence was revised to more accurately reflect the original concert set list. Frampton produced the remixed and extended album and performed live with the original band at
Tower Records
Tower Records is an international retail franchising, franchise and online music store that was formerly based in Sacramento, California, United States. From 1960 until 2006, Tower operated retail stores in the United States, which closed when ...
in Los Angeles to promote the release.
Track listing
All songs written by
Peter Frampton except as noted. Durations are sourced from original LP release.
25th anniversary deluxe edition
;Disc one
# "Introduction/Something's Happening" – 5:56
(Originally titled "Baby (Somethin's Happening)" on Frampton's 1974 album ''Somethin's Happening'')
# "Doobie Wah" (Frampton, Rick Wills, John Headley-Down) – 5:43
# "Lines on My Face" – 6:59
# "Show Me the Way" – 4:32
# "It's a Plain Shame" – 4:03
# "Wind of Change" – 2:57
# "Just the Time of Year" – 4:21 *
# "Penny for Your Thoughts" – 1:34
# "All I Want to Be (Is By Your Side)" – 3:08
# "Baby, I Love Your Way" – 4:41
# "I Want to Go to the Sun" – 7:15
;Disc two
# "Nowhere's Too Far (For My Baby)" – 4:49 *
# "(I'll Give You) Money" – 5:46
# "Do You Feel Like We Do"
( SUNY-Plattsburgh, Plattsburgh, NY, 22 November 1975) (Frampton, Mick Gallagher, John Siomos, Wills) – 13:46
# "Shine On" – 3:29
# "White Sugar" – 4:43 *
# "Jumpin' Jack Flash" (Mick Jagger, Keith Richards) – 7:40
# "Day's Dawning/Closing" – 3:34 *
(* Available only on the 25th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)
35th anniversary deluxe edition
Same track listing as the 25th anniversary edition plus an extra track "Do You Feel Like We Do" featuring
Warren Haynes.
Personnel
*
Peter Frampton – lead vocals, lead guitar,
talk box on "Do You Feel Like We Do" and "Show Me The Way"
*
Bob Mayo
Robert J. Mayo (August 25, 1951 – February 23, 2004) was an American session keyboardist and guitarist, perhaps best known for his work with Peter Frampton.
Biography
Mayo was born in New York City, and grew up in Westchester County. He b ...
– rhythm guitar, piano,
Fender Rhodes electric piano,
Hammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created ...
, vocals
*
Stanley Sheldon – bass, vocals
*
John Siomos
John T. Siomos (July 30, 1947 – January 16, 2004) was an American drummer who performed with Todd Rundgren, Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels, Rick Derringer, Carly Simon, Moogy Klingman, Mark "Moogy" Klingman, Buzzy Linhart and Peter Frampt ...
– drums, percussion
Production
*Audio engineer:
Chris Kimsey Engineer Live Recording and Original Mixer 1976
*Audio engineer: Ray Thompson
*Photography:
Mike Zagaris
*Mastering: Mike Reese at The Mastering Lab
*Remastering:
Doug Sax at The Mastering Lab, Los Angeles
*Remastering: Roger Wake at Bourbery-Wake
*Remastering (25th Anniversary Edition):
Bob Ludwig
Robert Carl Ludwig (born December 11, 1944), is a retired American mastering engineer. He mastered recordings on all the major recording formats for all the major record labels, and on projects by more than 1,300 artists, including Led Zeppeli ...
at Gateway Mastering Studios, Portland, ME, October 2000
*Remix (25th Anniversary Edition):
Chuck Ainlay at Backstage Studios Nashville, TN, August/September 2000
Chart positions
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications and sales
References
{{Authority control
Peter Frampton albums
1976 live albums
A&M Records live albums
PolyGram live albums
Albums produced by Peter Frampton
Juno Award for International Album of the Year albums