*** Welcome to piglix ***

The Live Adventures of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper

The Live Adventures of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper
Bloomfieldkoooper2.jpg
Live album by Mike Bloomfield & Al Kooper
Released 1969
Recorded September 26-28, 1968
Genre Rock, blues
Length 85:19
Label Columbia KGP-6 (original 1969 issue)
CBS 66216 (UK & initial CD release)
Sony Mid-price (1997)
Producer Al Kooper
Mike Bloomfield & Al Kooper chronology
Super Session
(1968)
The Live Adventures of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper
(1969)
The Lost Concert
(1969)

The Live Adventures of Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper is a double album recorded at the Fillmore West venue; the album is a successor to the studio album Super Session, which included both Bloomfield and Kooper in addition to Stephen Stills, and had achieved commercial and critical success earlier in 1968.

The performances, recordings and production cannot be described as flawless; in his sleeve notes, Kooper describes the difficulties of finding rehearsal space, Bloomfield's insomnia, and the failure of a vocal microphone during "Dear Mr Fantasy"; the track "I Wonder Who" is faded during a Bloomfield solo for no apparent reason.

Nevertheless, the album remains an important, if raw, document of a live blues-rock performance of the period and, apart from its intrinsic qualities, is notable not only for one of the earliest live recordings by Carlos Santana but also for Bloomfield's debut as a vocalist. Whilst he is not historically noted in this role, in "Don't Throw Your Love on Me So Strong", according to Kooper, "he displays consummate homage to the traditional guitar-voice trade-offs; a lesson in phrasing and understanding."

Live Adventures has since been re-released on CD but without any additional material beyond its initial release; the concerts took place over three nights, and according to Kooper, for two sets a night; this should have yielded several hours of recordings, of which the album provides just short of ninety minutes.

Bloomfield died in 1981 but this album is one of the major reasons for his reputation as a blues guitarist; Kooper now teaches songwriting and production, and still plays live concerts.

The gatefold sleeve features

According to Kooper, Rockwell's original artwork ended up on the wall of CBS Art Director, John Berg, who later sold it despite Kooper having expressed an interest in having the painting.

Steve Miller and Dave Brown had also volunteered their services. Kooper says (in his book "Backstage Passes & Backstabbing Bastards") that Santana, Bishop and Miller performed on three or four songs each. He says Miller "played great", but doesn't appear on the album because Capitol Records wouldn't give permission.


...
Wikipedia

...