REQUESTED DOCUMENT LIVE 1980 - 1983

Well you could also add another half star at least, because a "Golden Era" it was for this German ensemble: in fact the present double cd-live contains three concerts, performed during the best phase of their long and remarkable career (apart from the recent last period, which is not interesting to me) and almost the whole best production is included here...for example you can listen to their most famous suite-entitled "Adonis"- even though their album "Piktors Verwandlungen" (dated 1981) is not represented;nevertheless the recent songs earn a lot in the remastered version, despite of being much inferior than their early works, talking about the composition.Anyway at the end this kind of melodic prog genre in a melancholic vein is worth to be checked out,regarding of the present well produced live album, and also as an historical document!! A good collection...not for their fans only!!

Come on! Five stars! You'd never believe that a relatively sedate symphonic-melodic prog outfit like this could rip it up live. Oh, but they can. All the versions of their signature track completely blow the roof off, and Uwe Karpa gets to show off his chops. He is a very imaginative player, not simply a Blackmore wannabe, as maybe the early albums suggest. Again, it's a pleasure to hear everything, or almost everything, in German. Presumably it is all of the soundboard, as many of the venues AD played back then weren't exactly arenas... don't start your AD collection here, but it's still a great album. Even the monumentally boring Adonis works!

Let's face it. For many progressive rock bands live albums are the exclusive province of fans. Groups that tend to perfectionism and production values in the studio tend to come off as sloppy on concert disks, which can be ok but does not serve as a satisfactory introduction to their sound. The marriage of studio level competency and live immediacy is a rare ceremony indeed, hence you are invited to celebrate this relatively recent archive recording of Anyone's Daughter.

Carved into two equal parts, one an English prime rib and the other a German sauerbrauten, "Requested Document Live" is an eclectic mix of concert recordings from the early 80s version of this Stuttgart based band that toured constantly during their 5 year existence and sold some 120,000 disks in the process. Not a big name, but not your typical 80s prog band either! The high points of the studio catalogue are summarized gloriously here, in versions that often match or exceed those achieved with multiple "takes".

Disk 1 showcases the earlier material such as the entire "Adonis" suite, the glorious harmonics of "Superman", "Between the Rooms", "Moria" and "Anyone's Daughter". There is no star or show stealer in this group. They all play together and take their turn to shine, and they are a remarkably tight ensemble even when subject to the unpredictable environment of the concert hall.

Disk 2 includes the later German language songs, with crunching versions of "Sonnenzeichen-Feuerzeichen" and "Nichts für mich", but also delicate acoustic songs like "Sonne" and "Für ein kleines Mädchen". It's all good, or better. "Tanz und Tod I-III" show how versatile the band could be as an ensemble and in more solo format. The overriding quality is the symphonic sound, with subtle jazzy undercurrents. The influences of Genesis, King Crimson, Camel and Eloy are all apparent but enhanced and incorporated into a greater whole.

Of course, if I could do without anything on the entire double CD it would be the extended drum solo. Some of the versions on the "Live" album are a bit better but if you can afford a double CD this one contains a lot more material and hence better represents the band. Or just get them both. Pre-Marillion 1980s prog bands don't come along every day, or any better.

This double CD contains live recordings of Anyone's Daughter from 1980 to 1983. They were surely the most well-known German progressive band of the time and this CD shows well why they managed so much success. In Harald Bareth they had a fine singer/bassist in the style of Greg Lake while Matthias Ulmer (keys), Uwe Karpa (guitar) and first Kono Konopik and then Peter Schmidt (drums) were no slouches either.

While they sometimes came across as ELP, they were in the main not nearly as dynamic and forceful, much softer in approach although they too can produce some very complex pieces. The four tracks that form the title cut of their debut album, 'Adonis', is here at over 25 minutes, while their self-titled number also manages over eleven. But they prove that they are no mean slouches with shorted numbers either as "Moria" is a great song yet is under five minutes long.

They played over 500 gigs, and sold over 120,000 albums, something that many of the UK's prog bands would love to emulate. They are often ignored, but if you enjoy prog that is complex yet easy to listen to then this is a good place to start.

Originally appeared in Feedback #64, Oct 01