Foghat - Live II [2CD Set] (2006/2007)

The more things change, the more they remain the same. In some cases, like the revolving door of today s manufactured artists that s a bad thing. In the case of Foghat s Live II, the follow up to Foghat s phenomenally successful 1977 release, Foghat Live it s not only a good thing. It s a great thing. Formed from the remnants of the British group Savoy Brown, Foghat took America by storm in the seventies dominating the airwaves with classics such as Food For The City, Slow Ride, I Just Want To Make Love To You, Night Shift, Drivin Wheel and a handful of other top ten hits. Foghat Live became one of the most successful live albums ever released when it realistically captured the energy and drive of a Foghat show. Now some twenty nine years later Foghat Live II arrives just as the gas prices have dropped and is poised to be your next great driving record. From the opening riff of Night Shift the clarity and precision of the musicians as well as the recording is evident and the listener can imagine themselves in the front row with their fist a-pumping. This record cannot be played loud enough. Just as with his predecessor the late Lonesome Dave Peverett, Charlie Huhn is just a powerhouse vocalist blessed with a strong bluesy voice and ringmaster s stage presence. Bryan Bassett s remarkable slide guitar work showcases not only his own fantastic abilities but at the same time pays tribute to Rod Price s original blistering guitar work. Roger Earl s mammoth drumming and Craig MacGregor s legendary bass work make up a rhythm section that was the heart of these songs years ago and still remain just as ear shattering and body shaking today. Without being clichéd, when you look up thundering in the dictionary the pictures you ll see, are of Roger and Craig. Being careful not to duplicate the past live offerings but still being respectful towards the fan s requests Foghat rips through some of their classic songs like Night Shift, Take Me To The River, Stone Blue, Drivin Wheel, and I Just Want To Make Love To You. The good Lord must have answered a prayer that I sent years ago because also included here are two of my favorite Foghat songs. Chateau Lafitte 59 Boogie and a hidden gem from their classic Fool For The City album, the powerfully swirling and raucous, Terraplane Blues. What makes this record work over other live recordings is the immaculate, yet thoroughly nasty attention paid to the production. Foghat Live II stands on it s own as a terrific recording of a travelin rock and roll band and is guaranteed to make your accelerator pedal drop lower than the prices at the pump. --Upstage Magazine - Matt Parrish

Thirty years after their two-million selling Foghat Live lit up the rock radio airwaves, you can't really say Foghat has returned, because they never really went away. Foghat is still keepin' on touring and recording into their 37th year and after the passing of founding members Dave Peverett and Rod Price. Old Foghat alumni and friends Charlie Huhn and Bryan Bassett now fill in for Peverett and Price, with former member Craig MacGregor once again returning to play bass. Led by drummer Roger Earl, the 2007 version of Foghat still has that classic blues-rock slide guitar sound. Their latest release is both a throwback to their 1970s heyday and a glimpse into the future of one of the most enduring bands in rock history. Recorded live in El Cajon, California, Foghat Live II is their 17th album in 37 years. The two-disc's 20 tracks include bonus rehearsal versions of Slow Ride and new studio recordings like Trouble, Trouble. With the simple announcement, Ladies and gentleman... would you please welcome... Foghat! the band kicks into a riff-heavy Night Shift from 1976 and segues into fan favorites Take Me To The River and Stone Blue. Earl's choice of former Ted Nugent vocalist Charlie Huhn is a fitting choice for the new F --MusicTap - Matt Rowe

Thirty years after their two-million selling Foghat Live lit up the rock radio airwaves, you can't really say Foghat has returned, because they never really went away. Foghat is still keepin' on touring and recording into their 37th year and after the passing of founding members Dave Peverett and Rod Price. Old Foghat alumni and friends Charlie Huhn and Bryan Bassett now fill in for Peverett and Price, with former member Craig MacGregor once again returning to play bass. Led by drummer Roger Earl, the 2007 version of Foghat still has that classic blues-rock slide guitar sound. Their latest release is both a throwback to their 1970s heyday and a glimpse into the future of one of the most enduring bands in rock history. Recorded live in El Cajon, California, Foghat Live II is their 17th album in 37 years. The two-disc's 20 tracks include bonus rehearsal versions of Slow Ride and new studio recordings like Trouble, Trouble. With the simple announcement, Ladies and gentleman... would you please welcome... Foghat! the band kicks into a riff-heavy Night Shift from 1976 and segues into fan favorites Take Me To The River and Stone Blue. Earl's choice of former Ted Nugent vocalist Charlie Huhn is a fitting choice for the new Foghat Huhn croons and preens like it is still the 70s, and works a crowd like Nugent himself. At only 1:05 in length, the slide guitar solo Slippin' & Slidin' shows Bassett can still work a guitar neck with the best of the classic rock guitar greats. Perhaps the highlight of the first disc is the blues standard Terraplane Blues, written by legendary blues man Robert Johnson. Bassett's soulful slide work blends perfectly with Huhn's white-boy-bluesy wail with Earl and MacGregor carrying the rock backbeat rhythm. Bang, Bang is Earl's Sir Noisy Sod alter ego's chance to pound out a two-minute drum solo just the right length compared to Led Zeppelin's John Bonham drum solos, some of which could ramble on mercilessly for a half-hour or more. Bang, Bang flows right into the 1975 FM radio classic Fool For The City to close out the disc. The line, I ain't no country boy, just a homesick man sounds as timely in 2007 as it did all those years ago as Earl and the band still make their living as a touring band. California Blues stands tall as a slow, arena rock blues teaser as it tumbles into one of Foghat's signature songs, I Just Want to Make Love to You. The Willie Dixon-penned track lumbers in with that sexy, slinking bass line and is met by the back-and-forth guitar-talk it's famous for. Slow Ride plows in as a reminder of what made and still makes Foghat one of the great blues-rock bands of all time. New songs including I'm A Rock n' Roller and Self-Medicated hold their own alongside the best of Foghat then and now. Road Fever, from their 1973 self-titled album, is a fine salute to fallen Foghat members, and a tantalizing look ahead for the band: Well I'm back on the road and I ain't gonna stop/Gonna roll 'til I'm old, gonna rock 'til I drop... --vintagerock.com ~ Carl Cunningham

Foghat Live was released at the height of the band s soaring popularity back in 1977. With 6 songs spread out over two sides, Foghat Live was the jammin essential live soundtrack of that era of arena rock. Released after the immense success of their Fool for the City (1975) album and their underrated Night Shift (1976), Foghat Live packed the fans in even tighter at their concerts. Over the subsequent years, Foghat became a victim of the changing tides of music, a change that they tried to keep up with but inevitably failed at. It s tough being a rock star at the turn of any decade. Today s Foghat continues the show not as one trying to find a home with today s music but as one who is comfortable in their skin. The first thought in any fan s mind is, simply, how does one carry on without the signature sounds of Lonesome Dave Peverett, who succumbed to cancer in 2000 and Rod Price, the unique guitar sound of the band, who died in 2005. In addition, original bassist, Tony Stevens is no longer in the mix. Ironically, Craig MacGregor, who was bassist at the time of Night Shift and the original Foghat Live, is not only slotted in his familiar photo spot as the I in Live, but he is also in this reunited version of the band. This leaves original member, drummer Roger Earl as the sole mainstay of the band. Longtime guitarist, Bryan Bassett and relative newcomer, Charlie Huhn, whose vocals and guitar take up the tough to resume void left by Peverett, make up the rest of Foghat. Live II has two discs with 20 songs between them. Most of the songs are familiar to Foghat fans and include Night Shift, Take Me To The River, Drivin Wheel, Fool for the City, I Just Want To Make Love To You, Chateau Lafitte 59 Boogie, Slow Ride, and Terraplane Blues, amongst others. There are also the non-live bonus track inclusions of rehearsals that include Road Fever, Chevrolet, and I Feel Fine, along with 4 others, most recorded in 2007. I must admit to having had extreme reservations as to whether this version of Foghat could produce enough energy to power a show even with a somewhat intact and familiar rhythm section. And I must say that I m quite impressed by the results found on Live II. Live II was recorded from a July 05 show in El Cajon, CA at the Sycuan Theatre. It contains two discs of songs; quite a spread of music given the original sported only 6. If it has a flaw, it is in the fact that Huhn works a little too hard to channel Peverett s introductions and vocals nuances in an attempt to replicate the feel of a Foghat show, as if Peverett were still shouting out those intros himself. It s not entirely necessary and perhaps a little eerie when you hear Peverett s intro to Slow Ride coming from Huhn exactly as you have heard Lonesome Dave intro it before. However, as so, it does create an air of genuineness, effective if that what was sought by the band. The album prints on the back a commendable and heartfelt memorial to the Rock and Roll spirit of both Peverett and Price, refusing to let the soul of Foghat slip away. Foghat II succeeds better than I expected, and I m a Foghat purist. I tip my hat to the current band as the Foghat name is carried on well with this release. While the album lacks some of the songs that I would have included given a 2CD set, it will remind you that Foghat is a great band. Dedicated to the unending memories of Lonesome Dave Peverett and Rod The Bottle Price. --MusicTap - Matt Rowe