The '1998-era' Options

[SecretInsomnia]

Looking to Live's history, each era before and after and album and also their touring history, I still find 1998 the most interesting. I don't know what that is exactly, but first of all they were creative, experimantal, rocking and also very productively (there are many songs from this era). Listen to Don't Wait, Deeper and Vine Street in one row. Wait, was that all from one era, so different but quality songs? And they didn't even use it...? Also I think it was the last time they wrote songs together (?), although the tracklisting of what became TDTH wasn't what they all agreed on.

Maybe this is, closely after TC, the style of Live that I liked the most, although it's a shame that many of the songs aren't available in good quality or ended up quite differently then the versions created in 1998.

The setlists, although I don't think they toured much, are quite rare and cool too. For example: Sun, Don't Wait, New City, They Stood Up for Love, Still Aroused, Wash the Blood Away, Change, Lakini's Juice in one row and that's it! (March 8, 1998). See more at: http://www.setlist.fm/setlists/live-13d6b90d.html?page=74 . And don't forget the recorded songs from the demo(?) Pelgrimage to the Southern Stars (quite a different album from TDTH) and all the rare songs that we don't even know exactly know about.

Too bad the only video I find on youtube is Meltdown (first video I ever saw together with Chris Thorn!):



I think I have a few other songs from this show as well somewhere on my computer. But that's really it. There is still talk of a recording of New City around this time tough)

Last remarkable thing is the change in Ed as a frontman:
I was watching this two video's yesterday and thought: how did this happen?
Lakini's Juice, SNL, 1997: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M53lerFTcXA
Lakini's Juice, Woodstock 1999: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-W1-KXm-dM
I like both Eds, but they're quite different. In two years from the crazy, weird, sometimes dark and totally giving his all Secret Samadhi-Ed, to the more friendly, dancing, smiling Ed, making more connection to the audience. Still very good tough, but somewhere in 1998 something changed, didn't it? Or did the bright tone of TDTH changed his performance?

What do you think of the era between SS and TDTH? And does anyone have more footage of them playing?

This post has been edited by SecretInsomnia: Jan 11 2017, 8:01 am

[Merica]

I think I have a few other songs from this show as well somewhere on my computer. But that's really it. There is still talk of a recording of New City around this time tough

The talk of a recording existing is correct, as others have confirmed before. Some may remember a while ago on WD/FB I was pushing pretty hard to get some kind of definitive answer on whether or not we could get the footage released. Jimmy Lang said to me:

"New City" - I do have the video recording of it from the Chameleon show. You'll have to ask one of the guys in the band if it's okay for me to post it. For something like that permission from the guys is the best, everything I shoot is their property.

- Jimmy Lang on Facebook, circa March 2016

... so I messaged the Live FB account, CT's account, both multiple times. And all the messages were read, but no response was ever offered. I know my continuous pushing annoyed some people, but I reasoned that all I wanted was some kind of word on it either way. If someone had popped up to say "hi, sorry but we're not keen on that and have no plans to release it" or whatever, that would have been fine. I was looking for closure one way or another. But alas, no response.

So in summary: the recording is there, and if we got clearance and managed to wrangle Jimmy back then it could be released. Anyone else is free to pick this up and run with it.

As for the era itself, yeah, top drawer. The TDTH rockers created around this time are amongst their best work. Don't Wait in particular is amazing. The 1998 era is possibly the band at their absolute creative peak and I'd welcome any more material that people have locked away.

Particular New fucking City.

This post has been edited by Merica: Jan 11 2017, 8:08 am

[Voodoo Lady]

I often wonder what flipped the switch for Ed, too. Did he start smoking something, stop smoking something? Did getting married change him? Did he find Jesus? Had he been faking it; not being his true self? I know it might sound like I'm joking, but I'm not. The Lakini's Juice SNL crazy-eyed Ed is my favorite. I fell in love with that balladeer (fan-girling!) Although TDTH has some excellence on it, there are songs on there that I have always skipped. It was a turning point for Ed and the band. Like the OP, I question why. But maybe, just maybe, really knowing wouldn't be a good thing. Ponder that.

[Deku]

This is the era when I joined the party, I got TDTH for Christmas when I was 12 or 13. The themes of spirituality and mysticism blew my young mind. I still love the record as a whole, and although some tracks are middling I feel the record is more than the sum of its parts. Run to the Water is still my favourite Live song. I don't have much to add to the original post really, only that not all of us here were with Live from the beginning. I was 4 when MJ came out. But with all the talk now of what constitutes the best version of Live, the best era etc I'll happily fly the flag for this one.
Hope this thread builds up some steam as I'm always interested to read the thoughts of folk who were already fans of the band when TDTH came out as they had a lot to compare it with already.

Have to say though, I watched the Woodstock performance in full for the first time recently (yeah) and I hated the keyboard elements

[san_sao]

This was easily my favorite Live period. I am still hopeful that New City and Wash the Blood Away will get a proper release of some sort, perhaps along with Deeper, Still Aroused, and Don't Wait.

This album completely changed my life, it was a full-on initiation

[Pingfah]

I saw them on the SS tour, and it was one of the best gigs I have ever seen. Really amazing. They weren't that big in the UK, so the venues were mid sized halls rather than arenas, so you were right there with the band.

I read a review of the night before the gig I saw, it said Ed hurled himself straight into the crowd on the second song, LJ I believe. However, the band having the most ungoogleable name in history makes it very hard to track the review down, if indeed it even exists online.

[mfitz804]

Regarding the SNL performance, he was doing all of the pelvic thrusting and hip swiveling that most fans hate and point to as "bad Ed". Yet almost nobody says that happened during the SS era, they think it was something he added later.

It's not.

And Pat's pants deserve their own thread, maybe their own website. Epic.

This post has been edited by mfitz804: Jan 11 2017, 11:50 am

[Voodoo Lady]

Regarding the SNL performance, he was doing all of the pelvic thrusting and hip swiveling that most fans hate and point to as "bad Ed". Yet almost nobody says that happened during the SS era, they think it was something he added later.

It's not.

And Pat's pants deserve their own thread, maybe their own website. Epic.

Very true. Ed has been eccentric from day one and has always done the hip swiveling, bad dancing, odd faces, etc. What I missed after SS was his angst. That was the switch that flipped.

Speaking of SNL clothes, what's that symbol mean on the back of Ed's shirt?

[+Ed+]

Tdth was my first Live album.

I still consider tdth the best album of all times.

Ever.

[Bremang]

Merica, convince Jimmy to play the video on his comp, record it on his phone, and send it to you via snap chat or one of those apps where media disappears. You can see a few seconds of a the song and report back here.

[throwing_cheetahs]

Deeper, Still Aroused, and Don't Wait.

These songs are average at best.

[alexou]

These songs are average at best.

I agree. Maybe we put more emphasis on them because they are b-sides. I like them, but I totally understand why deeper and Still aroused are not on the album. Vine Street could have made it. Don't wait is good, but I find it misses an edge to be considered a real rocker. Still a good song. Susquehanna and mall rat on the other end, should have been included somewhere. At least we got decent versions of all these songs.

[Gagball]

Speaking of SNL clothes, what's that symbol mean on the back of Ed's shirt?

That symbol was for his mentor/guru/whatever at the time named "Adi Da" or something like that. He was pretty excited about him at the time, apparently.

Edit: He actually gives a shout-out to Adi Da (sp?) in one of the live versions of They Stood Up for Love floating around. I'm pretty sure that's the song...his name was listed right alongside Jesus and The Buddha, if I remember correctly.

This post has been edited by Gagball: Jan 11 2017, 5:09 pm

[Possum Kingdom]

Mr Rogers was never my fucking neighbor!

Not sure why the studio version of Change never surfaced like the other b-sides from TDTH?

[san_sao]

These songs are average at best.

That's how I feel about The Distance and FTQRR.

I think Deeper and Don't Wait are among the best songs from that period. I like Still Aroused about as much as Vine Street, which is to say I think they're alright. I'd love to see all of them collected in one place as a formal project of some sort.