Pat Travers Live At Rockpalast Cologne 1976

Pat Travers – Live At Rockpalast – Cologne 1976

His intoxicating, rough and dynamic Rockpalast performance on November 4, 1976 marked the big European breakthrough for young Canadian multi-instrumentalist Pat Travers who had just landed a major deal with Polydor in London. At that time, his band consisted of Peter “Mars” Cowling on bass and Nicko McBrain who is meanwhile drumming for Iron Maiden. Several albums later, in the 80’s, when hard rock and blues orientated rock lost its impact due to punk and new wave, Travers moved back to the US where the scene was still hooked on the genre. Still, Travers has the best reputation as a great live act with all his full speed energy and he connected well with his fans.

Pat Travers
Pat Travers // Photography by Manfred Becker

On November 4, 1976, a young guitarist and singer performed with his band at Rockpalast, is not only delivering a sensational show but also giving definite proof of a musical potential yet to be fulfilled. Almost four decades later, these recordings were finally unearthed and are officially available. Travers played together with bass player Peter Mars Cowling and drummer Nicko McBrain, the same Nicko McBrain that pounds the skins for Iron Maiden. I first saw Nicko play with his band Street Walker, Travers recalls. They were about to split up, and I caught one of their last shows. Nicko’s fiery, funky and energetic drumming style really impressed me. The trio’s trip to Cologne itself was one to remember as well: We used a small plane, a Beechcraft King Air. When descending the air pressure increased too quickly, so we all had sore ears and sinuses for a while right up until the show. Also the setup for the gig at Rockpalast seemed a bit underwhelming at first: The vocal monitor speakers on stage were very small and not sufficient at all, Travers recalls smiling, overlooking the fact that the aforementioned sore ears possibly were also responsible for this impression. And although there was a live audience, they were very far away from us and not really visible due to the bright stage lighting. So what we could hear was not as loud as we were used to, and interacting with the audience proved to be a challenge. Looking back on the recordings today, there’s no trace of these problems, none at all. The grooves hammered out by Cowling and McBrain are simply stunning and add that special something to Travers’ blues-based (in the broadest sense), yet hard rocking and modern sounds. The man himself blasts out each and every riff and solo with energy and passion as well as singing his heart out. In other words: Just these three guys are making a hell of a lot of music.

> Bestel DVD+CD Digipack

Pat Travers - Live At Rockpalast - Stop And Smile (Live Video)

Pat Travers - Live At Rockpalast - Boom Boom (Live Video)

Pat Travers – Live At Rockpalast – Cologne 1976

Format: CD + DVD
Label: MIG Music
Release: 24 February 2017
Package : DVD+CD Digipack
Running Time CD : 53:28
Running Time DVD : approx 62 min
Video Format : NTSC/DVD 9
Audio Format : PCM Stereo
Picture Format : 4:3
Regionalcode: 0

Tracklist:

DVD

As My Life Flies 02:35
Stop And Smile 03:47
Hooked On Music 06:19
Feelin’ Right 03:54
Need Love 05:39
You Don’t Love Me 03:48
Statesboro Blues 06:17
Medley 1 & 2 07:43
Boom Boom 02:48
Rock And Roll Susie 03:51
Makes No Difference 06:47

CD

As My Life Flies 02:35
Stop And Smile 03:47
Hooked On Music 06:19
Feelin’ Right 03:54
Need Love 05:39
You Don’t Love Me 03:48
Statesboro Blues 06:17
Medley 1 & 2 07:43
Boom Boom 02:48
Rock And Roll Susie 03:51
Makes No Difference 06:47


Ook op Blues Magazine ...