Live At The Oakland Coliseum


Well thanks to Canadian customs, it took forever to get here (well actually took 2 weeks, just felt like forever is all)... The first release from Dagger Records, the label formed to feature audience and studio recordings of Hendrix from non-professional or ROIO sources. Recorded April 27, 1969 at the Oakland Coliseum, the original audience recordings were taken by Eddie Kramer into Electric Lady Studios and cleaned up, and mastered by George Marino. The end result? A recording that is equal or better than any ROIO I've heard. Dagger Records was formed to offer the Hendrix fan access to music they normally wouldn't hear, audience recording, studio outtakes etc. And if this release is any indication, there is nothing but good things ahead for future releases. As mentioned in the liner notes, this really isn't for anyone who hasn't heard Are You Experienced, Axis: Bold As Love, or Electric Ladyland. But for all the Hendrix fans out there, this is a treat you will most definitely enjoy.

As for performance, the set list is close to what appears on the L.A. Forum and San Diego concerts, which have come out already. The band was performing quite well at this point, and this concert featured lots of extended jamming on songs. In fact, Jack Casady of the Jefferson Airplane joins in on bass for an almost 20 minute jam of Voodoo Child. Great stuff!! Sound quality for an audience recording is extremely good, and the preparation and mastering by Eddie Kramer and George Marino only makes it better. Bootleggers take notice, you might as well turn all your tapes over to these guys, cuz ya can't compete with this quality. And as a added bonus, these releases on Dagger are budget priced, this double CD costing only 20 bucks. As any double CD ROIO I've ever seen sold for well over 50 bucks, this is a major bargain. I think this may be the label to watch in the future... the "official" Experience Hendrix releases will be always be great, I have no doubt of that. I think the Dagger releases may end up being the most interesting.

Catalog #: Dagger DBRD2-11743