The passing of members can often be controversial in terms of continuing on in the band’s namesake, none more so than Thin Lizzy minus Phil Lynott. While the band notably reformed initially in 1996 with John Sykes taking over on vocals, in a testament to the band they decided not to release any new material on the tours that followed, instead performing a back catalogue from prior to their break.
Our last offering from the band would be 2000’s ‘One Night Only’, a live album comprising of tracks from the aforementioned tour following the ’96 reform. With the band set to tour again under the lure of Thin Lizzy in the dawn of 2012, the age old question of whether they should has reared its head once more. The band, however, have countered this with a great new collectable release in coordination with the BBC, aptly titled ‘At the BBC’, approved by both the present and original line-up.
While this offering is available in a long list of formats, the two disc package is more than enough to suffice. For fans of Thin Lizzy, be warned that this will be a musical documentation of the rise of the band, comprising of an array of recordings that came to fruition through Thin Lizzy’s fine relationship with the BBC.
The band were (and some would argue are) a celebrated live act and there’s no finer proof than a string of live recordings and sessions to really highlight their presence. Giving fans the opportunity to hear even the likes of the classic ‘Whiskey In The Jar’ in a new light, this double release is simply brilliant.
A few favourites would be the live version of ‘Renegade’, the closing number of disc two ‘Vagabond of the Western World’ and the version of ‘Little Girl In Bloom’ available. This, of course, will vary person to person based on the style of recordings you like; more importance being placed on the Thin Lizzy tracks you already hold as favourites.
Whether or not your argument falls on the side of touring under the Thin Lizzy name next year or preserving the legacy of the band, this release is a real gem to embrace the beginnings of a truly monumental band. My favourite quirk to this is that the BBC allegedly deleted some of the recordings from their archive and fans brought their personal recordings for this release.
It’s just nice to sit back, put on some classic Thin Lizzy and find there to be a fresh, yet familiar quality to it all. Few compilations offer a 33 track trip to the core years of a band’s growth, but this does so very nicely.
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Our last offering from the band would be 2000’s ‘One Night Only’, a live album comprising of tracks from the aforementioned tour following the ’96 reform. With the band set to tour again under the lure of Thin Lizzy in the dawn of 2012, the age old question of whether they should has reared its head once more. The band, however, have countered this with a great new collectable release in coordination with the BBC, aptly titled ‘At the BBC’, approved by both the present and original line-up.
