Classic Hits Live (1993)


  
1. Double Vision 2. Cold as Ice 3. The Damage is Done 4. Women 5. Dirty White Boy 6. Fool For You Anyway 7. Head Games 8. Not Fade Away 9. Waiting For a Girl Like You 10.Jukebox Hero 11.Urgent 12.Love Maker 13.I Want To Know What Love Is 14.Feels Like the First Time

 

Truth be told, Foreigner never really was that exciting of a band to watch live. They were more known for their catchy riffs supplemented by Lou Gramm's soulful belting than they were any kind of musical expertise or diversity. They never really seemed to enjoy the stage that much either. They would all basically stay in their assigned spot on the stage, with very little movement and/or audience interaction. Chatter between the band and the audience was kept to a minimum.

Of course, a live album is, and should be, about the music, not the "visuals". So such nuances can be mostly ignored. In that sense, this album mostly delivers where it should. The band belts through a wide array of their classics - most in front of arenas screaming with fans, and the band sounds just as good as they should when replicating their hits.

The problem with this album is that it's too herky-jerky. It's one thing to compile a live album from several shows from a tour, but this record actually includes tunes from several different tours. In most cases, you don't notice that much of a difference, but it seems a bit odd. Lou Gramm was suffering from a bout of laryngitis during the 1982-83 tour, and you can definitely hear the scratchiness on Jukebox Hero.

What really kills this album, though, is that throughout the running order, the "concert" portion cuts away to small, intimate gatherings of the band playing radio shows, studio parties, and other small gatherings. Yes, it is live, but it's just too much of a jarring change.

Another sin - no Hot Blooded. That's a head scratcher. The only thing that I can think of as to why it was excluded was because a live version appeared on the first "greatest hits" album Records. I think they've since rescinded that version and inserted the original. Anyway, that's too big of an exclusion.

This album is good, but it could have been better.

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