Motley Crue / San Antonio 1983: Soundboard / 1CD

Motley Crue / San Antonio 1983: Soundboard / 1CD / ZODIAC

Civic Center, San Antonio, TX, USA 1st December 1983

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Congratulations! First visit to Japan of restarted MOTLEY CRUE!!
On this memorable week, the legendary soundboard album, which once sold out immediately, is making a big comeback. A special reprint release with renewed artwork has been decided!
What is engraved on the legendary record is “December 1, 1983 San Antonio Performance”. It is a transcendental stereo sound board recording. At that time, MOTLEY CRUE appeared at the historic “US Festival” and made the existence of “American heavy metal (LA metal)” known to the whole world. First, let’s unravel the outline of their activities during the “SHOUT AT THE DEVIL” era and confirm the position of this work.

●1983
・March 26th – April 3rd: North America #1 (6 performances)
・May 29th: US Festival performance
・September 3rd-17th: North America #2 (3 performances)
[“SHOUT AT THE DEVIL” released on September 26th] ・October 31st – December 16th: North America #3 (28 performances) ←★Here★
●1984
・January 10th – March 24th: North America #4 (52 performances)
・April 12th – June 15th: North America #5 (38 performances)
・August 18th – September 7th: Europe #1 (7 performances)
・October 15th – November 19th: Europe #2 (23 performances)

This is MOTLEY CRUE from 1983/1984. There were several shows before and after the “US Festival,” but the full-fledged tour began after the release of “SHOUT AT THE DEVIL.” The San Antonio performance of this work was the 16th concert of “North America #3” at the beginning.
This work recorded at such a show is a super vivid and superb stereo sound board. Even if you say “sound board” in one word, there are a wide variety of characteristics and quality, but the uniqueness of this work is what is called “direct connection to the mix table” and it is ranked as “super A grade”. Obviously, the mix for the on-site PA doesn’t care if howling occurs, and the loud cheers are strangely distant. At the beginning of the performance, the balance is so rough that the vocals, which had too much energy, became a little off.
But that’s good. Although it is a rough mix in the general sense, this freshness is irresistible for sound board enthusiasts. Of course, the howling and balance are adjusted in the 1 minute range of the first song “Shout At The Devil”, and after that, the awesomeness of the fastball sound board with a strong pan stereo feeling is fully exposed. All kinds of sounds played by the four of them crawl into your brain, turning your skull into a stage. A sense of complete unity with the band, which is completely different from the concert experience in the audience seats. It is a piece that allows the audience to enjoy a synchronized feeling of a different dimension that cannot be experienced on the FM sound board or official version.
The super-class direct sound depicts a strange high-tension gig unique to the “SHOUT AT THE DEVIL” era. As mentioned above, speaking of 1983, “US Festival” is a symbol, but this work is incomparably bigger in volume. Let’s organize the sets while comparing them here.

●Brilliant passion (4 songs)
・Take Me To The Top／Merry-Go-Round／Piece Of Your Action／Live Wire
●Shout at the Devil (9 songs + α)
・In The Beginning (★) / Shout At The Devil / Bastard / Ten Seconds To Love (★) / Knock ‘Em Dead, Kid / Too Young To Fall In Love (★) / God Bless The Children Of The Beast (★) ／Red Hot（★）／Looks That Kill／Helter Skelter
*Note: Songs marked with “★” were not heard at “US Festival”.

…and it looks like this. It is a full show that is almost a “live performance version of SHOUT AT THE DEVIL”, with “Brilliant Passion” numbers placed at key points. In fact, all the songs except “Danger” are played, and “God Bless The Children Of The Beast” and “Red Hot”, which cannot be heard even in the official live work “LIVE: ENTERTAINMENT OR DEATH”, also pop out. In addition, there will be a large amount of repertoire up to this tour, such as “Take Me To The Top”, “Merry-Go-Round” and “Bastard”.
Anyway, a transcendent soundboard that hits your brain directly. This is a historic live album that vacuum-packs the intense full show of the early days with that quality. It is the same as the official masterpiece “SHOUT AT THE DEVIL”… No, it is the ultimate LA metal album that stands out in a far transcendent dimension. Why was metal able to become mainstream in the 1980s, and why was LA metal and MOTLEY CRUE at the center of it? This is a super masterpiece of the entire music genre “heavy metal” that speaks more eloquently than a thousand words. A legendary live album that was an instant hit when it first appeared. Here is a magnificent revival with a permanent preservation press 2CD!

★Excellent stereo soundboard recording of “December 1, 1983 San Antonio Performance”. It’s an A-grade direct connection system, and although it’s a rough mix that generates howling, it has an incredible sense of synchronization that would be impossible even with an official work. The show was as awesome as an expanded version of the US festival, and they played all the songs from “SHOUT AT THE DEVIL” except “Danger”. It is a cultural heritage where you can experience full shows unique to the early days, such as “God Bless The Children Of The Beast”, “Red Hot”, “Take Me To The Top”, “Merry-Go-Round”, “Bastard”, etc.

祝！　再始動MOTLEY CRUEの初来日!!
そんな記念すべき今週、かつて即完売した伝説のサウンドボード・アルバムが大復活。リニューアル・アートワークで特別復刻リリースが決定です！
その伝説盤に刻まれているのは「1983年12月１日サンアントニオ公演」。その超絶級ステレオ・サウンドボード録音です。当時のMOTLEY CRUEは歴史に名高い“USフェス”に出演し、全世界に「米国産ヘヴィメタル（ＬＡメタル）」の存在を知らしめた時代でした。まずは、そんな『SHOUT AT THE DEVIL』時代の活動概要を紐解き、本作のポジションを確かめてみましょう。

●1983年
・３月26日ー４月３日：北米#1（６公演）
・５月29日：USフェスティバル出演
・９月３日ー17日：北米#2（３公演）
《９月26日『SHOUT AT THE DEVIL』発売》
・10月31日ー12月16日：北米#3（28公演）←★ココ★
●1984年
・１月10日ー３月24日：北米#4（52公演）
・４月12日ー６月15日：北米#5（38公演）
・８月18日ー９月７日：欧州#1（７公演）
・10月15日ー11月19日：欧州#2（23公演）

これが1983年／1984年のMOTLEY CRUE。“USフェス”前後にも幾つかショウはありましたが、本格的なツアーは『SHOUT AT THE DEVIL』の発売後。本作のサンアントニオ公演は、その序盤「北米#3」の16公演目にあたるコンサートでした。
そんなショウで記録された本作は、超・生々しい極上ステレオ・サウンドボード。ひと口に「サウンドボード」と言っても個性もクオリティも千差万別だったりしますが、本作の個性はいわゆる「ミックス卓直結系」でランクは「超Ａ級」。明らかに現場ＰＡ用のミックスはハウリングが発生しようとお構いなしですし、大歓声も妙に遠め。開演時には勢い余ったヴォーカルがオフ気味になってしまうほどラフなバランスだったりします。
しかし、それが良い。一般感覚では乱暴なまでのミックスではありますが、サウンドボード・マニアにとってはこの生々しさがたまらない。もちろん、ハウリングもバランスも１曲目「Shout At The Devil」の１分台で整えられ、その後はパンのステレオ感も強烈なド直球サウンドボードの凄味が全開。４人が奏でるありとあらゆる音が脳内に土足でズカズカと上がり込み、頭蓋をステージにしてしまう。客席でのコンサート体験感とはまったく違う、バンドとの完全一致感。オーディエンスは元より、FMサウンドボードでも公式盤でも味わえない異次元のシンクロ感を味わえる１枚なのです。
その超ド級ダイレクト・サウンドで描かれるのが『SHOUT AT THE DEVIL』時代ならではの異様なハイテンション・ギグ。前述のように1983年と言えば“USフェス”が象徴ですが、本作は比較にならない程ボリュームアップ。ここで比較しながらセットを整理してみましょう。

●華麗なる激情（４曲）
・Take Me To The Top／Merry-Go-Round／Piece Of Your Action／Live Wire
●シャウト・アット・ザ・デヴィル（９曲＋α）
・In The Beginning（★）／Shout At The Devil／Bastard／Ten Seconds To Love（★）／Knock ‘Em Dead, Kid／Too Young To Fall In Love（★）／God Bless The Children Of The Beast（★）／Red Hot（★）／Looks That Kill／Helter Skelter
※注：「★」印は“USフェスティバル”では聴けなかった曲。

……と、このようになっています。要所に『華麗なる激情』ナンバーも配しつつ、ほぼほぼ「生演奏版SHOUT AT THE DEVIL」となるフルショウ。実に「Danger」以外全曲が演奏されており、公式ライヴ作『LIVE: ENTERTAINMENT OR DEATH』でも聴けない「God Bless The Children Of The Beast」「Red Hot」も飛び出す。他にも「Take Me To The Top」や「Merry-Go-Round」「Bastard」など、このツアーまでのレパートリーも大量にブチかまされるのです。
とにかく、脳みそを直撃する超絶サウンドボード。そのクオリティで初期の苛烈極まるフルショウを真空パックした歴史的なライヴアルバムです。それこそオフィシャル名盤『SHOUT AT THE DEVIL』と同等……いえ、遙かに超越した次元でそそり立つＬＡメタルの究極盤です。なぜ80年代にメタルがメイン・ストリームとなり得たのか、なぜその中心にＬＡメタルが、そしてMOTLEY CRUEがいたのか。それを千の言葉よりも雄弁に物語る音楽ジャンル“ヘヴィメタル”全体の超名盤です。初登場時には瞬殺だった伝説のライヴアルバム。ここに永久保存プレス２CDで堂々の復活です！

★「1983年12月１日サンアントニオ公演」の超絶級ステレオ・サウンドボード録音。超Ａ級の卓直結系で、ハウリングも発生するラフなミックスながら公式作品でもあり得ない超絶シンクロ感が絶大。ショウ内容もUSフェスを拡大したような凄まじさで、『SHOUT AT THE DEVIL』から「Danger」以外の全曲を演奏。「God Bless The Children Of The Beast」や「Red Hot」「Take Me To The Top」「Merry-Go-Round」「Bastard」等々、初期ならではのフルショウを極上体験できる文化遺産です。

(62:58)
1. Intro
2. In The Beginning
3. Shout At The Devil
4. Bastard
5. Take Me To The Top
6. Ten Seconds To Love
7. Merry-Go-Round
8. Knock em Dead, Kid
9. Piece Of Your Action
10. Too Young To Fall In Love
11. God Bless The Children Of The Beast
12. Red Hot
13. Guitar Solo
14. Looks That Kill
15. Live Wire
16. Helter Skelter

Vince Neil – Vocals
Mick Mars – Guitar
Nikki Sixx – Bass
Tommy Lee – Drums

STEREO SOUNDBOARD RECORDING

ZODIAC 628