Live In Berlin

1998

CD: Red Light Records RL 001

Peter Lincoln: guitars, charango, lead vocals
Henry Marsh: Nickelodeon, accordion, vocals
Grant Serpell: drums, percussion, vocals
Phil Pickett: bass Nickelodeon, vocals

A Glass Of Champagne
La Cumbia
Give Me Shakespeare
One Drink Too Many
Blame It On The Soft Spot
The Old Nickelodeon Sound
Mack The Knife
The Secretary
Stay The Night
Traffic Jam
Panama
Vera From Veracruz
La Bamba Medley
Girls Girls Girls
Pop Muzik - Ghostbusters Medley
Champagne Reprise

Songs written by Georg Kajanus except for:
Mack The Knife: Brecht, Weil
Stay The Night: Henry Marsh, Grant Serpell
La Bamba Medley - "La Bamba": R. Valens, "Volare": Modugno/Migliacci/Parish, "Banana Boat Song": Darling/Carey/Arkin
Pop Muzik - Ghostbusters Medley - "Pop Muzik": R.Scott, "Ghostbusters": R.Parker

Produced by SAILOR.
Engineered and mixed by Simon Gogerly.
Mixed at Strawberry Hills Studios, Gloucestershire, England.
Cover design by Mick Toole.
Cover photo by: Christel Müller.


SAILOR - An Introduction by Stuart Eliot
- taken from the liner notes of the SAILOR album "Live In Berlin", Red Light Records RL 001, 1998 -

I'll never forget the evening a few weeks ago in Berlin when I experienced for myself the rare musical magical magic of a live SAILOR concert. Through the strains of an old Edith Piaf song, wild street organs and a foggy harbour-town backdrop, the band launched into some of the most powerful and theatical rock entertainment I have ever seen. From their heyday in the 1970's Glam-Rock era - their contemporaries including my band Cockney Rebel, Roxy Music and Sparks - SAILOR shone out as one of the most innovative and exciting live bands of that time. Since then and after disbanding for much of the 1980's they have been re-building their great reputation throughout Europe as a live attraction second to none. Re-discovering SAILOR that night was a complete joy. Their many hits including GIRLS GIRLS GIRLS and A GLASS OF CHAMPAGNE sounding as fresh and sparkling as ever, but more than that.
With a new maturity SAILOR now seem to take on board the whole era of 20th Century contemporary music - from the cobblestone streets of pre-war cabaret a la Brecht and Weill, right through to the Glitz and Glam Rock 70's and back, via the most infectious Latin dance music I have heard for years, with vocal harmonies that would put most other bands, past and present, to shame. Before the group appeared on stage, the anticipation of their many fans, young and old, was palpable, resembling in many ways the devotion of Rocky Horror Show camp followers. Dressing up like their heroes, singing and 'acting out' the whole SAILOR performance, they made it an unforgettable party night out. Encore after encore at the end of the evening left the fans spilling out onto the street singing and dancing - the party still going on no doubt until dawn.
SAILOR have made many great records and classic pop hits in the last twenty years - some of which, like me, you may still have up in your attic! But I am convinced, along with their ever-growing new 90's audience, that unless you experience SAILOR 'Live' in concert, you will certainly be missing out on the true magic of one of the most exciting and entertaining nights out you will ever have. FORGET MTV, INTERNET AND VIRTUAL REALITY! SAILOR ARE REAL... AND ARE BACK WITH A VENGEANCE!
Whatever you do, go out and see them tonight.

STUART ELLIOT, drummer
(Pilot, Cockney Rebel, Kate Bush, Alan Parsons Project).


Promotion material for the "Live In Berlin" album:





A review by David MacLeod from 1998:
- taken from the
Harbour - The Sailor Appreciation Page website because the "Fan Speak" section of the website had broken down -

"Thanks to the information supplied on the Harbour - The Sailor Appreciation Page - page, I sent my credit card details to the Strawberry Hills Management address for a copy of "Live In Berlin" - and a T-shirt!
After several weeks, my package arrived. The CD came attached to a glossy, full-colour, 4-page brochure, encouraging us to "Turn your special event into the success of the century! SAILOR, one of the most innovative and entertaining bands of the 70's, are now available to turn your special event into a sensational evening's entertainment your guests will never forget. The party of a lifetime!"
So, what of the music? A couple of blasts on a foghorn herald the oh-so-familiar opening chords of A GLASS OF CHAMPAGNE. The first shock - if you've never heard him before - is that Peter Lincoln sounds EXACTLY like Georg Kajanus! No wonder he got the job. The song itself sounds as fresh as ever and serves as the perfect set-opener.
LA CUMBIA is suitably Latin, with a slightly extended central section. Otherwise, another faithful rendition. Track three is introduced by Peter
(no, it's Henry), "And now, for a little culture." A few bars of Grieg's Piano Concerto in A lead into one of my favourite SAILOR songs of all, GIVE ME SHAKESPEARE. The band obviously love the song and add some wonderful Beach Boys harmonies in the second verse and a superb guitar solo from Peter after verse three before the curious shout of "Shake! Spit!" (it's "Shakes-Peare").
Next, ONE DRINK TOO MANY leads neatly into BLAME IT ON THE SOFT SPOT. Both are faithful renditions -- why fix what ain't broke? -- but Grant's inventive drumming really drives both songs along. A change of pace has Peter
(Grant is the one who announces the song) telling the audience that they're being recorded and their help is required for THE OLD NICKELODEON SOUND.
Now, the first negative; a version of MACK THE KNIFE, sung by Phil. Nothing wrong with it, per se; I'd just rather hear more of SAILOR's own material (BLUE DESERT? STREET LAMP?) If I'm being honest, I tend to miss it out, not least because track eight is the brilliant first single from the 1991 reunion album, THE SECRETARY. Next, is the 1978 single, penned by Henry and Grant, STAY THE NIGHT. Silly, frothy but incredibly catchy!
An unplugged SAILOR next, to revive the very first single, TRAFFIC JAM. Always a great song for vocal harmonies, this version doesn't disappoint, with a very simple arrangement featuring just a guitar and some percussion to accompany the voices.
More multi-layered vocals next for PANAMA, then an all-out crowd pleaser in VERA FROM VERACRUZ. The song started life as an instrumental before Georg added lyrics for its first recorded appearance on STREET LAMP. Here, the band mix both versions, with vocals at the beginning and halfway through but the rest is an exciting instrumental workout, with the 'let's see how fast we can play it' ending.
The longest track is the 5:03 LA BAMBA MEDLEY, featuring LA BAMBA, VOLARE and the BANANA BOAT SONG. Fun, yes, and a chance for Peter to throw out another great guitar solo, but the same criticism applies to this as for MACK THE KNIFE, I'd rather hear their own material. After all, Georg Kajanus could write Latin-influenced songs like a South American native (LATINO LOVER, MAMBO LOCO, etc.).
Naturally, no SAILOR concert is going to be without GIRLS, GIRLS, GIRLS. A straight version leads into another medley; this time M's 1981 hit, POP MUZIK, coupled with the Ray Parker, Jr. smash, GHOSTBUSTERS. Again, fun, but...
The band finished as they began, by reprising their greatest hit, A GLASS OF CHAMPAGNE.
Weighing in at a fraction under 58 minutes, LIVE IN BERLIN proves that, even without Georg Kajanus, the band can still cut it as a live band. A worthy addition to your SAILOR collection.
Oh, and the T-shirt fits beautifully!"


Previous Album

Albums

Next Album


© copyright by