U.K. / PIECES OF MIKE MILLARD TAP COLLECTION CIVIC AUDITORIUM 1978 & LONG BEACH ARENA 1979 (1CDR)

BRUSHED MIKE MILLARD TAPE / LIVE AT CIVIC AUDITORIUM 1978
Recorded Live at Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica, CA, July 28, 1978
EXCELLENT Audience Recording // Mike Millard Master Tape // 45 min
Allan Holdsworth - guitar
Eddie Jobson - keyboards, electric violin
John Wetton - bass, vocals
Bill Bruford - drums
1. fade in - ALASKA
2. TIME TO KILL
3. THE ONLY THING SHE NEEDS
4. FOREVER UNTIL SUNDAY
5.THIRTY YEARS
6. BY THE LIGHT OF DAY Part 2
7. PRESTO VIVACE / IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT Part 1
8. CAESAR'S PALACE BLUES

LEGENDARY MIKE MILLARD TAPE / LIVE AT LONG BEACH ARENA 1979
Recorded Live at Long Beach Arena, Long Beach, CA, November 14, 1979
EXCELLENT Audience Recording // Mike Millard First-Generation Tape // 30 min
Eddie Jobson - keyboards, violin
John Wetton - bass, electric vocals
Terry Bozzio - drums
9. fade in - IN THE DEAD OF NIGHT
10. NOSTALGIA
11. RENDEZVOUS 6:02
12. NIGHT AFTER NIGHT
13. THE ONLY THING SHE NEEDS
14. WAITING FOR YOU

In recent years, the "Mike Millard Tapes" have been increasingly digitized from direct masters or low-generation tapes. These tapes were recorded by Mike Millard, a taper familiar to fans for his exceptional audience recording skills. The same label has released several recordings using these newly digitized Mike Millard tapes as masters, but if you look closely, you may have noticed that there are two types: "Brushed Mike Millard Tapes" and "Legendary Mike Millard Tapes." Not all Mike Millard tapes have perfect sound quality; some have considerable room for improvement, and those that have been significantly edited and improved are the "Brushed" series. The "Legendary" series, on the other hand, originally had near-perfect sound quality with little room for improvement, and only minor editing such as light cuts between tracks was done.

This time, the UK release is a bit of a curveball. It couples recordings that were originally made partway through the project and only fragmented. This release features a 1978 Santa Monica live performance with the band's original members—John Wetton, Eddie Jobson, Allan Holdsworth, and Bill Bruford—from the "Brushed" series, and a 1979 Long Beach live performance after Holdsworth left and Terry Bozzio took over on drums, from the "Legendary" series. The 1978 performance had poor tonal balance, so it was recorded as a "Brushed" release with significantly improved sound quality, while the 1979 performance was recorded with only hiss noise reduced for a softer sound. Although it's not a complete show, it's a great value title that includes performances from both the Allan Holdsworth + Bill Bruford era and the Terry Bozzio era, and the sound quality is also good, making it a recommended title for beginners.