''Slade Alive!'' is the first
live album
An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track or cassette), or digital. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th centur ...
by the British
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...
band
Slade
Slade are a rock band formed in Wolverhampton, England in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The '' British Hit Singl ...
. The album was released on 24 March 1972 and reached No. 2 on the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...
, remaining in the chart for 58 weeks. It was Slade's first album to enter the UK charts and also the first to enter the
''Billboard'' 200 in the United States, where it reached No. 158. The album was produced by
Chas Chandler.
''Slade Alive!'' contains three original songs, plus
cover versions of songs by
Ten Years After
Ten Years After are a British blues rock group, most popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Between 1968 and 1973, the band had eight consecutive Top 40 albums on the UK Albums Chart. In addition, they had twelve albums enter the US ''Bi ...
,
The Lovin' Spoonful
The Lovin' Spoonful is a Canadian-American folk-rock band formed in Greenwich Village, New York City, in 1964. The band were among the most popular groups in the United States for a short period in the mid-1960s and their music and image influ ...
,
Bobby Marchan, and
Steppenwolf. It was recorded live at Command Theatre Studio and mixed at Olympic Studios.
Today, the album has been considered one of the greatest live albums of all time.
Kiss
A kiss is the touching or pressing of one's lips against another person, animal or object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely; depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sex ...
, who were heavily influenced by Slade, would title their 1975 live album ''
Alive!'' as a homage to ''Slade Alive!''.
Background
Having made their UK breakthrough with the hits "
Get Down and Get With It", "
Coz I Luv You" and "
Look Wot You Dun", Slade decided that the best way to break into the album charts would be to capture their live sound on record. In October 1971, the band played three consecutive nights at London's Command Theatre Studio in front of an audience. The three nights cost £600 to record.
:
Initially Chandler rejected Command Studio's mix of the album, which was completed in conjunction with the band. He remixed the tapes himself, but the band rejected that version and went back to their own original mix. Prior to the album's release, "Hear Me Calling" was released as a promotional single in February 1972, with "Get Down With It" as the B-Side. The release was limited to 500 copies.
Issued in March 1972, ''Slade Alive!'' reached number two in the UK. In Australia, it reached No. 1 and was the biggest-selling album since
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 ...
' ''
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' (often referred to simply as ''Sgt. Pepper'') is the eighth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Released on 26May 1967, ''Sgt. Pepper'' is regarded by musicologists as an early concept ...
'' (1967).
Release
In its original LP vinyl format, the album was issued in a gatefold sleeve which revealed a huge cartoon drawing on the inside. This drawing was the winning entry in a competition run in ''
The Sun
The Sun is the star at the centre of the Solar System. It is a massive, nearly perfect sphere of hot Plasma (physics), plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core, radiating the energy from its surface mainly as ...
'' newspaper to design the album cover. In Israel and Italy, the front cover used the inner gatefold artwork instead, whilst certain editions releases in the Netherlands and France also used this design.
In 1978, the album was given a German release as a double-pack LP with a gatefold sleeve, paired with the ''
Slade Alive, Vol. 2''. It received its first CD release in 1991, which was digitally remastered by Lea. In 2006, it was included as part of the Salvo two-disc live compilation ''
Slade Alive! – The Live Anthology''. Salvo re-issued it on vinyl in 2009 and on CD in 2011. In 2017, BMG released a deluxe edition to celebrate its 45th anniversary. It was issued on vinyl with a 6-page insert and art card, and on CD with a 28-page booklet. In December 2021, BMG reissued the album on splatter vinyl.
Promotion
As a major part of promotion for the album, the band did a UK tour in May.
On the UK
Granada Television
ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV (TV network), ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire on weekdays only, as ABC Weekend TV, ...
, the band performed a 'Set of Six' show on 13 June 1972. This filmed set featured a similar set to ''Slade Alive!'', the tracks in order being "Hear Me Calling", "Look Wot You Dun", "Darling Be Home Soon", "Coz I Luv You", "Get Down and Get With It" and "Born To Be Wild".
Song information
"Hear Me Calling", a cover of the 1969 song by
Ten Years After
Ten Years After are a British blues rock group, most popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Between 1968 and 1973, the band had eight consecutive Top 40 albums on the UK Albums Chart. In addition, they had twelve albums enter the US ''Bi ...
, was originally planned as Slade's follow-up single to their 1971 breakthrough hit "Get Down and Get With It". However, the band couldn't better the song in the studio and the idea was dropped. In 2011, the vinyl acetate containing the studio version appeared as a bonus track on the 2011 Salvo remaster of ''
Sladest''. In a 1981 interview, drummer
Don Powell said of "In Like a Shot from My Gun": "It was originally meant to be put down in the studio. But after we recorded it for ''Slade Alive!'', we didn't think that we could do it any more justice by doing it in the studio - as it's basically a live number."
"
Darling Be Home Soon
"Darling Be Home Soon" is a song written by John Sebastian of the Lovin' Spoonful for the soundtrack of the 1966 Francis Ford Coppola film ''You're a Big Boy Now''. It appeared on the Lovin' Spoonful's 1967 soundtrack album ''You're a Big Boy Now'' ...
", a cover of the 1967 song by
The Lovin' Spoonful
The Lovin' Spoonful is a Canadian-American folk-rock band formed in Greenwich Village, New York City, in 1964. The band were among the most popular groups in the United States for a short period in the mid-1960s and their music and image influ ...
, notably features Holder burping into the microphone. In 2000, he admitted on ''
The Frank Skinner Show'' that the burp was accidental as the band had a lot to drink before performing. Holder also stated that from then on, he had to continue to do the burp whenever the song was performed otherwise the audience would be disappointed. "
Know Who You Are" is an original song which originally appeared on the band's 1970 album ''
Play It Loud''. "Get Down With It" is a cover of the 1965
Bobby Marchan song. Aside from being Slade's breakthrough hit, it was regularly featured as part of the band's live set for the band's entire live career. "Born to be Wild", a cover of the 1968 song by
Steppenwolf, was originally recorded in the studio by Slade for their 1969 debut ''Beginnings''.
Critical reception
Upon release, ''
Record Mirror
''Record Mirror'' was a British weekly music newspaper published between 1954 and 1991, aimed at pop fans and record collectors. Launched two years after ''New Musical Express'', it never attained the circulation of its rival. The first UK Album ...
'' felt the "rocking album" was a "good quality live recording". They added: "The excitement of the group and crowd has been captured well". ''
New Musical Express
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a " rock inkie", the ''NME'' would become a maga ...
'' said: "''Slade Alive!'' is just what it implies. If you've ever been to one of their noisy gigs, you'll know exactly what I mean."
[Slade Fan Club Newsletter June - July 1972] The album would later be rated No. 2 in the magazine's Top 10 albums of 1972.
[NME magazine 30 December 1972] ''
Melody Maker
''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. In January 2001, it was merged into "long-standing rival" (and IPC Media sister publicatio ...
'' commented: "Because it was recorded in a studio proper, before an audience, they've achieved the kind of balance and sound not often heard on a live recording."
Gregor Vaule of ''
Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph
''The Gazette'' is a daily newspaper based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States. It has operated since 1873.
History
The publication began as ''Out West'', beginning March 23, 1872, but failed in its endeavor. The company relaunched ...
'' felt the album "crammed" much of the band's "famous in-person excitement", adding: "The LP thunders in on Alvin Lee's "Hear Me Calling" and from that point on there is never a dull moment."
[Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph newspaper - Record Rap - Gregor Vaule (music director KYSN) - 2 September 1972] Mike Diana of ''
Daily Press Newport News'' described the album as a "real toe tapper", adding: "The boys play a frenetic kind of rock 'n' roll that features screaming lyrics, monosimple rhythms and buzzing guitars."
[Daily Press Newport News - John McLaughlin Amazing - Mike Diana - 17 September 1972] Robert Hilburn
Robert Hilburn (born September 25, 1939) is an American pop music critic, author, and radio host. As music critic and editor at the ''Los Angeles Times'' from 1970 to 2005, his reviews, essays, and profiles have appeared in publications worldwide ...
of the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'' commented on the band's "forceful, celebrative nature" and concluded: "As with any band worth its rock 'n' roll shoes, ''Slade Alive'' sounds better the louder you play it."
[Los Angeles Times - Slade album brings fun back to rock - Robert Hilburn - 26 November 1972] Rich Aregood of the ''
Philadelphia Daily News
''Philadelphia Daily News'' is a tabloid newspaper that serves Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper is owned by The Philadelphia Inquirer, LLC, which also owns ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', a daily newspaper in Philadelphia.
The ''Dail ...
'' described the album as "eminently enjoyable", noting: "...Slade is something else again. A loud, rude, and exciting flatout rock-and-roll band that could even get Pat Nixon tapping her toe."
[Philadelphia Daily News - Help Yourself, Slade - Worthwhile Music - Rich Aregood - 23 September 1972]
In 1991, ''
Q'' described the album as "distinctly heavy" with a "laddish rock style". They concluded: "It's just fun and beers all the way." In 2010, ''
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 ...
'' considered the album "superior: reputation cementing".
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
commented: "Slade showed why they were one of England's best live acts with this fevered concert recording. Set alight by plenty of stomping beats, lumbering bass, fat guitars, and Noddy Holder's hoarse vocal scream, ''Slade Alive!'' finds the lads from Wolverhampton goading on their rabid fans at every juncture."
Track listing
Personnel
Slade
*
Noddy Holder
Neville John "Noddy" Holder (born 15 June 1946) is an English musician, songwriter and actor. He was the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the English rock band Slade, one of the UK's most successful acts of the 1970s.
Known for his disti ...
– lead vocals, rhythm guitar
*
Dave Hill – lead guitar, backing vocals
*
Jim Lea – bass, backing vocals
*
Don Powell – drums
Additional personnel
*
Chas Chandler – producer
*
Barry Ainsworth – recording engineer
*
Alan O'Duffy – mixing engineer
*Derek Robinson – artwork
*Chris Walter – photography (front)
*M. Webb – artwork (sleeve inner)
Charts
References
{{Authority control
1972 live albums
Slade live albums
Polydor Records live albums
Albums produced by Chas Chandler