"Deep In The Archives" - Another trawl through the TWR bootleg archive. Your archivist Alan Hewitt presents some of the most recent exhumations from the archive.

Having examined some of the more interesting recordings from The Lamb… tour, it's only fair that TWR also looks at some recordings from other parts of the band's story. Fortunately, our very own "digitisation" project has been under way for a while now and a few interesting aural nuggets have been polished up by our very own technical expert; "Mr Pebble" who has managed to bring several neglected recordings back from the dead… well almost!

Most of the recordings to be mentioned here are from the Duke and Abacab tours the latter in particular appears to be sadly under represented by decent recordings and so it is great to be able to outline a few more which might prove of interest to fans.

"The Fires Are Burning In Another Land" Sporthalle Cologne 17th October 1981

By far the best audience recording I have heard from the Abacab tour! Taken from the original taper's master tapes, this is an extremely enjoyable recording which captures the band in full flow in the middle of their enormously successful European tour. Audience participation is also evident from a crowd which, unlike their Dutch counterparts a few weeks earlier, are obviously enjoying the band's new material as much as the classics with which they also peppered that year's set!

Track Listing: Behind The Lines/Duchess/The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway/Dodo/ Lurker/Abacab/Carpet Crawlers/Me And Sarah Jane/Misunderstanding/No Reply At All/Firth Of Fifth/Man On The Corner/Who-Dunnit?/In The Cage-Medley-Afterglow/Turn It On Again/Dance On A Volcano/Los Endos/I Know What I Like. Source: Audience Recording (Original Master). Quality: Very Good. 2 CD Set.

"Live In Seattle" Tacoma Dome Seattle 10th January 1984

Moving forward in time for our next recording, which takes in one of the band's gigs on the massive US/Canadian tour which they undertook in 1983/84 promoting the "Genesis" album. Once again, the sound quality of this audience recording reveals the sheer size of the arena in which the band were playing. It is extremely echo-y and the audience are in good voice too. Once again, this tour is another which is under represented by recordings in terms of what is generally available to fans and so this might prove an interesting listen for fans of that tour.

Track Listing; Dodo/Lurker/Abacab/That's All/Mama/11th Earl Of Mar-Squonk-Firth Of Fifth/Illegal Alien/Man On The Corner/Who-Dunnit?/Home By The Sea/Second Home By The Sea/Keep it Dark/It's Gonna Get Better/Follow You Follow Me/In The Cage-Medley-Afterglow/Los Endos/Misunderstanding/Turn It On Again-Medley. Source: Audience Recording. Quality: Good. 2 CD Set.

Our digitisation project has also restored several items from the Steve Hackett area of the archive beginning with another recording from the 1981 Cured tour.

1981 was to be a pivotal year for Steve as he finally took centre stage as the singer in his own band as well as being the guitarist; a decision which took many of his fans by surprise. This recording from the show at L'Ancienne Belgique in Brussels on 1st September 1981 captures one of the early shows on that tour. Sadly, I think the taper had spent a little too long in the bar beforehand and the recording is missing the opening track: The Air Conditioned Nightmare as well as having several other tracks missing and a running order which is substantially different to that of the standard set for this tour. However, the quality of the recording is enjoyable and it does manage to capture the excitement of these shows.

Steve Hackett: L'Ancienne Belgique Brussels 1st September 1981. Track Listing: Jacuzzi/Funny Feeling/Picture Postcard/The Steppes/Kim/Overnight Sleeper/The Red Flower Of Taichi Blooms Everywhere/Every Day/Slogans/Hope I Don't Wake/A Tower Struck Down/Spectral Mornings/Acoustic Set- Horizons. Source: Audience Recording. Quality: Good. 1 CD.

Steve's next tour was to be a UK only affair. Highly Strung even gave him a belated "hit" single in the unlikely shape of Cell 151. I have very fond memories of the first of the two gigs I am about to review, along with the gig a few days later in Liverpool, these remain two of the best performances Steve has ever given to my mind and the recordings that are mentioned here show just how enjoyable these shows were.

First of all is the gig from the Apollo Theatre Manchester on 23rd April 1983, a capacity house saw Steve and his band pull out all the stops with a show full of energy and humour both on and off stage. Once again, Steve included a healthy selection of material from his new album augmented by classics from the back catalogue to bring the fans a thoroughly enjoyable show and one which is captured here in decent sound quality.

Steve Hackett: "Rocking The Apollo To Pieces" Manchester Apollo Theatre 22nd April 1983. Track Listing: The Steppes/Camino Royale/Funny Feeling/Can't Let Go/ Weightless/Always Somewhere Else/Hackett To Pieces/Slogans/Give It Away/Spectral Mornings/Acoustic Set/Kim/Overnight Sleeper/Cell 151/Please Don't Touch/Every Day/Walking Through Walls/The Show/Clocks/Hackett's Boogie. Source: Audience Recording. 2 CD Set. Quality: Good.

Not many shows on the Highly Strung tour appear to have been recorded in their entirety and so it is fortunate that in addition to the above gig, we have the final show of the tour from the University Of East Anglia in Norwich on 9th May 1983 to augment the collection. From the acoustics, this must have been quite a small hall but that only adds to the vibe of the recording and the audience are certainly boisterous! Fundamentally, this is the same show as its predecessor but another nice addition nonetheless.

Steve Hackett: University Of East Anglia Norwich 9th May 1983. Track Listing: As above. 2 CD Set. Source: Audience. Quality: Good.

Our final Hackett recording is a genuine rarity; a complete recording of one of Steve's shows on the US "Tour Noir" of 1992 where he road-tested material from the as-yet unreleased Guitar Noir album which was still several months away from release. There are only a handful of recordings available from this tour and none of them match this one for overall quality. The gig in question is from The Strand in Redondo Beach California on 8th September 1992 and features a great sounding recording of what must have been a very enjoyable night all round. Both the band and their audience are having a good time and that's what it is all about after all. A very nice addition to any Hackett collection.

Steve Hackett: The Strand Redondo Beach CA 8th September 1992. Track Listing: Myopia medley/Camino Royale/A Vampyre With A Healthy Appetite/Flight Of The Condor (Sierra Quemada)/Take These Pearls/Always Somewhere Else/In The Heart Of The City/Walking Away From Rainbows/There Are Many Sides To The Night/In That Quiet Earth/dark As The Grave/Etruscan Serenade/Drum-Bass Duet/Depth Charge/Every Day/Acoustic Set/Horizons/The Stumble. Source: Audience Recording 2 CD Set. Quality: Very Good.

"I Don't Care!" Palais Des Sports Lyon 1st October 1981.

Back to the Abacab tour for two more recordings which document the early part of the tour. The first; Lyon, was the fifth gig on the tour. Intriguingly enough, the original recording had its running order tampered with and on this version, Firth Of Fifth has been restored to its rightful place in the set list. Phil's banter with the audience in his best broken "Franglais" makes for an interesting and amusing listen too - especially one fan shouting out "I love you, Phil!" before the start of In The Cage - shame is, it’s a BLOKE!!!

Track Listing: Behind The Lines/Duchess/The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway/Dodo/ Lurker/Abacab/Carpet Crawlers/Me And Sarah Jane/Misunderstanding/No Reply At All/ Firth Of Fifth/Man On The Corner/Who-Dunnit?/In The Cage-Medley-Afterglow/Turn It On Again/Dance On A Volcano/Los Endos/I Know What I Like. Source: Audience Recording. Quality: Good. 2 CD Set.

"Guten Abend, Wurzburg" Karl Diehm Halle Wurzburg 10th October 1981.

Taken from a show in the middle of the European tour, by now the band were firing on all cylinders and performing near faultless shows. Germany has always been a massive marketplace for Genesis and the band repaid that loyalty with a string of sold-out shows and marvellous performances they must have been too, if this recording and the previously mentioned Cologne show are anything to go by. Another enjoyable recording from this memorable tour.

Track Listing: Same as Cologne and Lyon. Quality: Good. Source: Audience. 2 CD Set.

"Duke Stops To See The Lights" ABC Theatre Blackpool 6th April 1980.

The Duke tour is already represented by a multitude of recordings including some of the most famous Genesis bootlegs ever. Nonetheless, preserving other recordings from less well known gigs is an interesting exercise if only for posterity's sake! This is certainly the case with this recording from the early part of the Duke tour. Recording quality leaves a LOT to be desired, however the recording does manage to capture something of the excitement of those shows along with another example of the early tour set list.

Track Listing: Deep In The Motherlode/Dancing With The Moonlit Knight/Carpet Crawlers/Squonk/Behind The Lines-Duchess-Guide Vocal-Turn It On Again-Duke's Travels-Duke's End/Say Its Alright Joe/The Lady Lies/Ripples/In The Cage-Medley-Afterglow/Follow You Follow Me/Dance On A Volcano/Los Endos/I Know What I Like.

Source: Audience Recording. Quality: Poor. 2 CD Set.

"Duke Goes To Scotland" Apollo Theatre Glasgow 28th April 1980.

Ah, the old Apollo! Sadly this fine old hall is no longer with us - it's another bloody car park! Thankfully, this recording of the band's second night at the venue has been preserved. Sadly, once again this recording is of more historical importance than anything else. It was obviously recorded from the back of the balcony if the acoustic is anything to go by which is a pity because it is obvious that this was another one of those enjoyable gigs which are so often the case in these old halls. Of historical interest only really.

Track Listing: As for Blackpool plus The Knife as a second encore. Source: Audience Recording. Quality: Poor. 2 CD Set.

There hasn't been much movement lately on the DVD front apart from a handful of Steve Hackett recordings from the 2002 and 2004 tours which I shall outline here and a copy of the deleted Musical Box "From Genesis To Re-Creation" DVD which shall be reviewed here.

First up is a recording from one of the handful of Rock gigs which Steve performed in the USA back in 2002. If you have the Live Archive NEARfest recording, then you will know what the set list is. Camerawork on this one is mainly good although there are the obligatory heads on occasions. The film does manage to capture the atmosphere of the gig and it is worth having in any Hackett collection for the presence of Spectral Mornings COMPLETE with introduction for the first time since 1980 (I think!) and In Memoriam, a track I love and which Steve never played on the subsequent 2003 To Watch The Storms tour here in the UK, although it was an encore at several shows in Europe.

Steve Hackett: Theatre Of Living Arts Philadelphia PA USA 1.7.02. Track Listing: The Floating Seventh/Mechanical Bride/Medley/Serpentine Song/Watcher Of The Skies/ Hairless Heart/Firth Of Fifth/Riding The Colossus/Pollution B/The Steppes/Gnossienne #1/Walking Away From Rainbows/In Memoriam/The Wall Of Knives/Vampyre With A Healthy Appetite/Spectral Mornings/Lucridus/Darktown/Camino Royale/Every Day/Horizons/Los Endos. Source: Audience. Quality: Good. 1 DVD.

"The Rooftops Of Rome" is the apt title for our next release. Unlike several previous video/DVD recordings from Italy, this one has not been injudiciously chopped, a procedure which I have never understood the logic behind personally. Instead, what you have is an extremely enjoyable two DVD set which captures the excitement of the gig from the audience perspective and also shows that the band themselves were having a good time on tour as well. Picture and sound quality on this one are also a cut above average and that is to the credit of the ubiquitous "Max Tradax" whose production this is and a damn fine one it is, too!

Steve Hackett: "The Rooftops Of Rome" Stazione Birra Rome 28.3.04. Track Listing: Complete 04 set. Source: Audience. Quality: Excellent. 2CD Set.

Bringing up the rear of the Hackett releases, is another recording from Rome, this time from one of the open air gigs that Steve performed in the summer of 2004. As usual, the equation of member of Genesis + open air gig = RAIN certainly seemed to be true here. An incomplete film which nonetheless, does manage to capture the essence of an open air gig and is another interesting item for collectors.

Steve Hackett: Foro Italico Stadio del Tennis Rome 26.7.04. Track Listing: Edited 04 set list: Mechanical Bride/Circus Of Becoming/Frozen Statues/Slogans/Serpentine Song/Ace Of Wands/Hammer In The Sand/Blood On The Rooftops/Brand New/Every Day/ Spectral Mornings/Los Endos. Source: Audience. Quality: Good. 1 CD.

From Genesis To Re-Creation is the title of the DVD which was originally released commercially by The Musical Box back in 2004. Sadly, this release was quickly withdrawn from sale for reasons which are still not altogether clear. Fortunately, a few copies were sold at gigs and it is one of these which has found its way into the TWR archives. Chronicling not only The Musical Box's development from their earliest shows but also the story of the band itself from 1972 to 1975 this is a fascinating look at that period of the band's story. With an excellent commentary and live footage of The Musical Box from many of their own gigs including several I attended myself, this is an extremely enjoyable look behind the scenes in the creation and re-creation of those gigs both by the original band and their imitators. Sadly, there are several glaring errors in the historical section which, for a band which prides itself on accuracy are irritating and surprising to say the least - the release date for Foxtrot for example… September 1972? I think NOT… October 21st 1972 is the correct date folks! Nonetheless, a worthy effort and one which will bring back happy memories for any fans who were at the original gigs or indeed at any of the shows by TMB themselves. Especially when you consider TMB have become so anal these days that ordinary fans are not even allowed to take photos at their gigs - strange when you consider that without the help of "unofficial" photographers etc at the original gigs by Genesis, they would not have been able to document so much of the actual shows that they themselves are re-creating. TMB are only a TRIBUTE band after all, and NOT the real thing - something that they themselves seem to have forgotten on recent tours , if the behaviour of their "security" staff at several gigs I attended is anything to go by, that is!

Track Listing: Introduction/Foxtrot Documentary/Get 'Em Out By Friday (story)/Get 'Em Out By Friday/Return Of The Giant Hogweed (story)/Return Of The Giant Hogweed/Selling England By The Pound Documentary/Watcher Of The Skies/Firth Of Fifth (story)Firth of Fifth/The Musical Box (story)/The Musical Box/The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway Documentary/The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway/Back In NYC/It (finale)/Credits. Source: Pro-Shot 1 DVD. Quality: Excellent.

Ironically, given the best efforts of their "security" people, several bootleg DVDs of Musical Box gigs have surfaced recently, including this one which manages to combine elements of both the Selling England By The Pound and The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway shows in a manner which works as a far more effective "sampler" than the above mentioned official release. As usual, this material has emerged from gigs in Italy and as usual, they have chopped songs up indiscriminately which is extremely irritating especially when the footage itself is of such good quality - when will they ever learn?!

Track Listing: Milan Teatro Della Luna 22nd April 2004: Watcher Of The Skies/Damcing With The Moonlit Knight/The Cinema Show (instrumental) /I Know What I Like/Firth Of Fifth/The Musical Box (Closing Section)/Supper's Ready/The Knife.

Track Listing: Turin Mazda Palace 17th January 2005: In The Cage/Back In NYC/The Carpet Crawlers/Anyway/The Lamia/The Colony Of Slippermen/In The Rapids/It/ Watcher Of The Skies. Source: Audience Recording. 1 DVD. Quality: Very Good.