Pop Art Live collects the full set by Eric Carmen (vocals/guitar/piano), Wally Bryson (guitar), Dave Smalley (bass) and Jim Bonfanti (drums) as they played 28 sweet tracks, picking up effortlessly from their dissolution in 1975 and Carmen's subsequent successes as a solo singer-songwriter. The group brings the energy on renditions of "Go All the Way," "I Wanna Be with You," "Let's Pretend" and "Overnight Sensation (Hit Record)," plus covers of The Beatles ("Baby's In Black," "No Reply," "Ticket to Ride"), The Who ("I Can't Explain") and even The Choir, an earlier band that featured Bryson, Smalley and Bonfanti shortly before the Raspberries formed. This well-received show opened the door for a reunion tour throughout 2005, captured in the CD/DVD set Live On Sunset Strip by Rykodisc in 2007.
Liner notes for the package include reflections by Cameron Crowe, music journalist James Rosen, Raspberries biographer Ken Sharp and fan Bernie Hoyga (who also provides photos and memorabilia for the package). Pop Art Live is available August 18, with a 3LP version planned by Omnivore later in the year.
Pop Art Live (Omnivore, 2017)
Amazon U.S. / Amazon Canada (TBD) / Amazon U.K. (TBD)
Disc 1
- I Wanna Be with You
- Play On
- I Can't Explain
- Nobody Knows
- Let's Pretend
- Don't Wanna Say Goodbye
- Party's Over
- Overnight Sensation (Hit Record)
- Might As Well
- It Seemed So Easy
- Baby's In Black
- If You Change Your Mind
- Tonight
- I Can Remember
Disc 2
- Starting Over
- Last Dance
- I Saw the Light
- No Reply
- When You Were with Me
- It's Cold Outside
- Should I Wait
- Come Around and See Me
- Makin' It Easy
- Ticket to Ride
- Hard to Get Over a Heartbreak
- Ecstasy
- I'm a Rocker
- Go All the Way
All tracks recorded live at The House of Blues, Cleveland, OH - 11/26/2004
Bill says
This is great news. My friends in Cleveland tell me that they were on fire that night.
side3 says
*Eric Carmen on guitar, David Smalley on bass. Can't wait to hear this.
Jim H says
Was really lucky to have seen the reunion show at the HoB in LA in 2005, but i gotta say, this is one the oddest cd covers i've seen......