The Setlist series of live CDs draw together familiar live material with some rarer, more obscure tunes. Featuring remastered tracks, new liner notes, photos and additional bonus material, the Setlist series, hot on the trail of the Playlist series, might prove a good bet for even the most diehard fan who thinks he or she has every live track their favorite band ever played.
Setlist: The Very Best of Cheap Trick Live is an 11-song CD that draws on tracks from the infamous Budokan shows (the tracks are from The Complete Budokan set and remastered), plus live tracks from the expanded edition of Dream Police, All Shook Up and Sex, America, Cheap Trick, the band’s box set from 1996.
The Budokan stuff is what you have heard aplenty, but as previously mentioned, these remastered tracks from The Complete Budokan are pristine. Highlights include FM radio stalwarts “Surrender” and “I Want You To Want Me,” but there’s also older chestnuts like “Mrs. Henry,” “Ballad Of TV Violence” and “Can’t Hold On.”
Robin Zander is one of the best vocalists in rock, and on this CD we hear him at his best. Even a latter-day tune like “The Flame” makes a good showing. Fans will probably have most of these tunes, but for anyone
who wants a single CD of live Cheap Trick music from a bunch of different periods, Setlist: The Very Best of Cheap Trick Live is a must.
~ Ralph Greco, Jr.
