Indigo Girls: 1200 Curfews - Disc 1 of 2 CD Track Listing

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Indigo Girls 1200 Curfews - Disc 1 of 2 (1995)
1200 Curfews - Disc 1 of 2\n1995 Epic Records, Inc.\n\nOriginally Released October 10, 1995 \n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: 1200 Curfews is a double live album recorded on the Swamp Ophelia tour from 1994 to 1995, covering the duo's best loved songs as well as some inspired covers of classics from Bob Dylan, Neil Young, and Joni Mitchell. And while this is obviously directed at the Indigo Girls' insatiable cult following, even casual fans will find the album engaging since the live performances are often more spirited and direct than the studio versions. -- Chris Woodstra\n\nAmazon.com essential recording\nWhile many of these live tracks were culled from the Swamp Ophelia tour, the entire collection on this two-disc set covers a lot of territory in the Indigo Girls oeuvre. From the charming "Back Together Again" (recorded in Amy's basement in 1982) to the reverent cover of Joni Mitchell 's "River" (recorded live in Atlanta), these songs capture the energy and spirit of one of the most successful folk-rock duos in the history of contemporary music. Live renditions of favorites like "Closer to Fine," "Power of Two," "Strange Fire," "Land of Canaan," and "Galileo" bristle with passion, and the mandolin, cello, and percussion parts sparkle in concert. While they're right on with their rave-up of Bob Dylan's "Tangled Up in Blue," the one misstep is the lackluster performance on the 10-minute "Down by the River" by Neil Young. --Lorry Fleming \n\nAmazon.com Product Description\nAmy and Emily take a page from the Jackson Browne'sRunning on Empty notebook in compiling a fascinating melange of live tracks pulled from 12 different stages, dressing rooms, radio broadcasts, and a Hopi Indian reservation. For fans this is a gift, pure and simple, and even skeptics will be sucker-punched by the emotional power of the songs and performances. --Jeff Bateman \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nGreat compilation for both fans and newcomers, September 2, 2002 \nBy burghtenor (Washington, DC)\nEmily Saliers and Amy Ray, the Southern guitar duo better known as "The Indigo Girls," have been an international sensation for over a decade. 1200 CURFEWS captures a number of their best songs in a format that enhances the emotional impact.\nThe original concept for 1200 CURFEWS was to record the songs from the Indigo Girls' last CD, SWAMP OPHELIA, live in concert, but the concept expanded to include live recordings of other pieces by Saliers and Ray as well as their covers of songs by other artists. Bob Dylan's "Tangled Up in Blue" and James D. Wheatherly's "Midnight Train to Georgia" are my favorite covers on this set. There are also some unusual recording locations: a radio studio, a dressing room, and, most surprisingly, Amy's basement in 1982.\n\nWhile a few of the songs do not fare as well recorded live as they did recorded in a studio (including their most famous pieces, "Closer to Fine," "Ghost," and "Galileo"), I found myself completely drawn into other pieces I didn't appreciate before. This is due to a number of factors: Saliers and Ray feed off the energy of their fans (as can be heard in "Joking"), they have found deeper meaning to their pieces upon repeated performances (such as in "Power of Two" and "Language or the Kiss"), their easy-going personas shine in their interactions with the audience (exemplified in "Jonas and Ezekiel" and the introduction to "Mystery"), and/or different instrumentation has added new dimensions (most especially the plaintive saxophone in "Love's Recovery"). \n\nI'm not a huge fan of contemporary "pop" music, but this 2-CD set is a favorite album of mine. The Indigo Girls always bring an unusual variety to their albums through the combination of Ray's raw emotional outbursts and Salier's introspective observations, but these recordings capture their individual personalities and their combined philosophies (exemplified in the gender change of the Dylan song) in a way that is rare. This is a great (albeit [pricey]) way to introduce newcomers to the Indigo Girls. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nBeautiful, June 11, 2002 \nBy jlmcg (PA)\nI have been a fan of the Indigo Girls for 10 years. If you have never had the privilege to see them in concert, this album is the next best thing. My favorite songs off this album are "Ghost", "Power of Two", "Virginia Woolf", and "World Falls." A piece that struck a chord with me though was Emily Sailers' remake of Joni Mitchell's "River." The beautiful, complicated guitar arrangement and Sailers' haunting, almost angelic voice could bring a stone statue to tears. If you are first starting your Indigo Girls collection I highly recommend this album. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nA wonderful album that is as good as hearing them in concert, January 3, 2001 \nBy Lawrance M. Bernabo (The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota)\n"1200 Curfews" is one of the best live albums available, a retrospective examination of the Indigo Girls in the style of the definitive collection produced by Bruce Springsteen. Originally the idea was to record two shows on their "Swamp Ophelia" tour, but instead the duo decided to go with recordings from earlier concerts as well as radio broadcasts and summer shed tours, along with impromptu backstage and home performances. The songs are recorded on everything from 48 track digital machines to cheap 2 track recorders. Consequently, with "1200 Curfews" the most memorable songs are not the ones you are going to find on the Indigo Girls' other albums. \nOn first listening the songs that stand out are probably the cover songs performed by the Indigo Girls. The one that stands out heads and shoulders above the rest is their cover of Dylan's "Tangled Up in Blue," yet another reminder that the man's ear for harmony was always vastly superior to his voice, as Peter, Paul and Mary and many others have already proven. Gerard McHugh's "Thin Line" is the song you will not recognize but instantly love, taped in a dressing room before a concert. Personally, I like their cover of Neil Young's "Down by the River," especially the guitar solo, although I recognize this is an acquired taste. "Midnight Train to Georgia," never did anything for me, but it is a nice turn of pace and one of the key things about this album is that they do include a lot of different things. There are studio and live versions of Buffy Sainte-Marie's "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee," which has an awesome bass line and is certainly one of the more political efforts by the duo. Emily Saliers does a solo performance of Joni Mitchell's "River," which always reminds me of the "I'll Be Home for Christmas" episode of "thirtysomething" (if you have seen that one, you will remember it too). \n\nThis is not to say that there are not some fine moments on some of their better-known songs. "Least Complicated" ends with the crowd in Philadelphia continuing the "na na na na na na na" long after the song has ended. A gentle performance of "Power of Two" done for a radio show. I like the live versions of "Pushing the Needle Too Far" and "Chickenman," which convinces me that Amy Ray's singing just goes to another level in live performance. But my favorite is clearly "Strange Fire," because instead of a simple guitar duet the entire band joins in and I love the cello and violin (Jane Scarpantoni and Scarlet Rivera respectively). A very powerful version of one of their oldest songs. \n\nThe liner notes include handwritten comments on the songs by Emily and Amy that add a nice personal touch. If you have ever seen the Indigo Girls in concert you already know that they are one of the better shows you can ever hope to see. They are as committed to their music as they are to their causes and so it is no surprise that their live able is so special. For my money, this is the Indigo Girls album to have. It is certainly the one I listen to the most. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nSUBLIME COVERS AND POWERFUL PERFORMANCES, July 25, 2000 \nBy Michael D. Zungolo (Philadelphia, PA USA)\nYou've got to hand it to a band that can take songs by Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young and Buffy Sainte Marie, and make them their own. The Indigo Girls are one of the finest live acts on the summer circuit, and their performances on these familiar classics (they do a helluva job on Jim Weatherly's "Midnight Train to Georgia" as well) prove their originality. The fact that the best of Amy's and Emily's own songs hold their own beside them are further testament to the immense talent of these two old and very special friends. May they play for a hundred years. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nThe quintessential Indigo, June 16, 2000 \nBy Jeffrey Anbinder "Beeeej" (New York, NY)\nBefore this album, my recommendation to someone for their first Indigo Girls album would've been the 1989 self-titled "Indigo Girls" - it ran the gamut from rage to sweetness, and had some of their best work, despite four other strong studio albums.\n\nNow, there's no question - "1200 Curfews" gives you a strong, powerful sense of who Amy & Emily really are, from the crudely recorded early 80s demo "Back Together Again" all the way up to the studio cover of Buffie St. Marie's heart-rending "Bury My Heart at Wounded knee."\n\n\nLive albums don't impress me easily. Other than Billy Joel's "Songs in the Attic," I hadn't found any that really brought new life to the songs. I mean, c'mon - I like Rush, but add a crowd-noise track to their studio recordings, and you've pretty much got their live sound. But "1200 Curfews" lets Amy & Emily shine - they tell stories, they're funny, they don't stick to the same-old same-old. Perhaps the best example is "Pushing the Needle Too Far," which is a wonderful, powerful realization of a song I'd thought to be only okay.\n\n\nBut this also isn't only for IG newbies - even if you already own everything else they've done, including "Back on the Bus Y'all," this is valuable to own. The Neil Young cover alone is worth the purchase price - but you also get two versions of the St. Marie song, and "Midnight Train to Georgia" as well.\n\n\nWorth every penny. \n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nIndigo Girls At Their Finest Hour, May 2, 2000 \nBy Miss P "Reviews for the People" (Dirty Jerz)\nThere is no question that the Indigo Girls put on an incredible live show. If you take all the best songs from every live performance they have done and make a 2-disc compilation, you would have 1200 Curfews. This album followed the release of Swamp Ophelia and includes tours from that time period, so fans of Swamp Ophelia are in for quite a treat. The beauty of this album is that just when you think you know the songs inside and out, you listen to them live and it's as if you're hearing them for the first time. There are quite a few Swamp songs included, 2 notables being "Least Complicated" and "Mystery." But the two discs cover the entire spectrum of IG songs, from a dive bar, rock out version of "I Don't Wanna Know" to a tender "Ghost," to a crowd-pleasing "Galileo." They also include an unreleased song by Gerard McHugh, called "Thin Line," which is probably one of my favorite songs on the cds.\nThere are also some amazing covers on this album. When Emily sings the 'Montague Street' verse of Dylan's "Tangled Up in Blue," it takes your breath away. She also shows her dynamic range on Joni Mitchell's "River." (I actually prefer her version to Joni's.) But the gem of this album has got to be "Midnight Train to Georgia." It still blows me away and I've heard it a million times.\n\nAlthough I don't think it was necessary to include "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" not once, but twice, I can overlook it and still give the album 5 stars. It's that good. I think it's safe to say that almost every Indigo Girls fan already owns this double-cd, but if you're just starting to listen to their music and want a great mix of songs from all the albums, this is the one to buy.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nA nice representation, November 12, 1998 \nBy John J. Wood (jwood_jw@yahoo.com) (Plainville, MA)\n1200 Curfews is a nice representation of the Indigos, but the chosen covers are hit and miss. While Emily Saliers gives a heart-filled reading of Joni Mitchell's great "River", she and Amy Ray misfire on their bloated take of Dylan's "Tangled Up In Blue." "Midnight Train To Georgia" also feels unnatural as well, and I also agree that one "Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee" is enough.\nThe original material sparkles, particularly the stripped-down version of "Ghost", the FM radio broadcast of "Power Of Two" and the anthemic "Strange Fire." Nonetheless, this could have been stripped down to a 78-minute, 5-star CD. \n\n\nHalf.com Details \nContributing artists: Gerard McHugh, Michelle Malone \n\nAlbum Notes\nIndigo Girls: Emily Saliers (vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, dobro); Amy Ray (vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, mandolin, melodica).\n\nAdditional personnel: Gail Ann Dorsey (vocals); Jerry Marotta (vocals, saxophone, drums); Jimmy Descant (electric guitar, background vocals); Michelle Malone (mandolin, background vocals); Scarlet Rivera, Sheila Doyle (violin); Jane Scarpantoni (cello, pennywhistle); Sara Lee (pennywhistle, bass, background vocals); Sandy Garfinkel (harmonica); Michael Lorant (tambourine, background vocals); Gerard McHugh, Dede Vogt, Russell Carter (background vocals).\n\nProducers: Indigo Girls, Russell Carter, Jerry Marotta, Richard Winn, David Kehrer.\nEngineers include: Don McCollister, Fred Derby, Tchad Blake.\n\nRecorded between 1982 and 1995. Includes liner notes by Indigo Girls, Steve Morse and Russell Carter.\n\nThe idea started off simple enough--record a couple of the Indigo Girls' better shows, and release a live album. Well, 1200 CURFEWS later, this celebrated acoustic duo has released a double album, chock full of exceptional live performances from a wide variety of settings. And they're not all from the stage either. "Thin Line," a modest little gem of a song, was recorded in the dressing room of the Santa Monica Civic Center. The majority of tunes on this formidable set were, however, recorded on stage, and the Girls deliver on all fronts. We get raw emotion, shimmering acoustic hooks and plenty of straight-up, honest music.\nThe Indigo Girls rarely use any percussion, and are happy to present their songs with bare-bones arrangements. The aforementioned "Thin Line" is a perfect example. As Amy Ray starts off with her powerful, deep voice and deliberate phrasing, Emily Saliers joins in with her trademark harmonies. She expertly rides a few notes above, or sometimes right alongside, her partner. The effect is mesmerizing. The band also gives Buffy Saint Marie's "Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee" a go, and they achieve a haunting rendition of a timeless protest song.\n\nAnother highlight is "Jonas And Ezekial," a bluesy, tightly-wound exploration of heaven and hell. "Every devil I meet is an angel in disguise," sings Ray. As they often do, these two fine musicians build to a harrowing climax, where they are wailing in a mesh of layered harmony and perfect vocal counterpoint. This is a great live act that has recorded an immaculately-mixed two-disc set. Loyal fans as well as newcomers should be more than satisfied.\n\nIndustry Reviews\n4 Stars - Excellent - ...1200 CURFEWS pulsates with a slow-building yet nevertheless lively power...\nQ Magazine (01/01/1996)\n\n...Gliding quite easily from softly strummed whispers to arena-rock bellowing, the Indigos are most inspired when there's an audience to fuel the fire. - Rating: A-\nEntertainment Weekly (10/13/1995)
This rock cd contains 14 tracks and runs 71min 37sec.
Freedb: d710c70e
Buy: from Amazon.com

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