A comprehensive retrospective in a live setting.
If there’s one supergroup in the hard rock scene that has consistently delivered at a high level for several years, it’s THE DEAD DAISIES. The band, featuring singer John Corabi, guitarist Doug Aldritch, and former BLACK SABBATH drummer Tommy Clufetos, not only produces one powerful album after another in the studio, but also captivates audiences worldwide with a thrilling live show. It’s no wonder, then, that the five-piece decided to record their final performance from their last tour at the Stonedead Festival in the UK for posterity. As an added bonus, there are five live bonus tracks recorded at shows in Europe and the USA, hence the title “Live Plus Five.”
The album opens, of course, with the fourteen tracks from the Stonedead Festival recording, which I personally always consider a major plus, as such a cohesive recording brings the concert atmosphere even more vividly into your living room. The production also does a superb job in this regard, because even though the audience reactions could have been a bit more prominent in the mix, “Live Plus Five” otherwise sounds wonderfully organic, raw, and unpolished, which perfectly suits the classic hard rock that the band delivers with infectious enthusiasm, passion, and their usual technical brilliance.
The song selection, however, is somewhat surprising, because although the five-piece band can now look back on a considerable number of albums, the focus of the show is on various cover songs. Sure, their own cover album, “Lookin’ For Trouble,” featuring renditions of various blues classics, was released shortly before the recording of the show, but only “Going Down” from that album makes it onto the setlist. Otherwise, they power through convincing versions of ‘Midnight Moses’ (THE SENSATIONAL ALEX HARVEY BAND), ‘Taka A Long Line’ (THE ANGELES), and a wonderfully rocking rendition of the CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL classic ‘Fortunate Son’. Their cover of THE BEATLES’ track ‘Helter Skelter’ even gets to close the set and does a great job in that role. Personally, I would have liked to hear more of their own material, especially since their catalog boasts so many great tracks like ‘Long Way To Go’, ‘Rise Up’, ‘Mexico’, ‘Light ‘Em Up’, and ‘Resurrected’. Despite this minor criticism, the show is a lot of fun overall and should convince even the most skeptical listener that you shouldn’t miss a tour stop by these rockers in your area.
The band’s rendition of THE BEATLES’ track ‘Helter Skelter’ even gets to close the set and works well in that role. That leaves the five bonus tracks mentioned at the beginning, including ‘I’m Ready’ and ‘Black Betty’ from the aforementioned cover album “Lookin’ For Trouble.” The wonderful ‘Unspoken’ from “Holy Ground,” ‘Last Time I Saw The Sun’ from “Make Some Noise,” and the cover of the George Thorogood & The Destroyers song ‘Get A Haircut’ ultimately round out the playing time, which, despite the numerous cover songs, offers a comprehensive overview of the discography.
All in all, “Live Plus Five” comes with a clear recommendation, and I would recommend it not only to The Dead Daisies fans but to all lovers of classic hard rock. It’s rare to hear this genre performed with such conviction and intensity these days.