From the Beginning 1968-1970
 

Two live recordings featuring Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac have been found and are being released officially on CD and vinyl as Before The Beginning 1968-1970.

The recently discovered recordings date from 1968 and 1970 and were discovered unlabelled in the US, so not much is known about them other than they have been authenticated by experts and approved for release by Fleetwood Mac.

These live performances almost bookend Peter Green’s tenure with the band as the 1968 recording represents the band in their early stages while the 1970 recording will, in contrast, be one of their final shows before Peter left the band. The earlier set contains early incarnations of ‘Madison Blues’ and ‘I Need Your Love So Bad’ from the blues era and the likes of ‘Long Tall Sally’ and ‘Willie And The Hand Jive’. The 1970 performance includes ‘Oh Well’, ‘Green Manalishi’ and the UK number one ‘Albatros’.

Before The Beginning 1968-1970 is being issued as a three-CD set containing all the live recordings and four previously unreleased demos. The images suggest that this comes packaged in what looks like a seven-inch book format.

In terms of vinyl, this content is being split into two volumes. ‘Volume One’ is a 3LP set that features the 1968 live recording and will be issued in June with the triple CD package. A second volume with the 1970 live recording (and the demos) will be released at a later date.

Before The Beginning 1968-1970: Rare Live and Demo Sessions will be released on 7 June 2019, via Sony CMG.


http://www.superdeluxeedition.com/ne...demo-sessions/

. . . aaaaahh, yes - keep it coming! i only hope that the sound quality doesn't leave too much to be desired. and too bad there are no recording details provided - so professional and amateur mac detectives should get to work . . .

i just listened to a short soundbite of "albatross" on amazon, and if this one's indicative for the remainder of the 3 cds, then we're in for an enjoyable release!
:]

Looks good to me. I wonder if the “demos” are from the BBC recordings.

. . . and there's more in the pipeline:

https://www.clear-spot.nl/item/47638...ions_1968.html

somewhere i read that this release would comprise only previously unreleased material - hmmm . . . well, as long as i can't have a listen to it, i'll be cautious.

Aside from the fact that it's one of Peter's superb, haunting compositions, I wonder why the decision to title the set that way?

Probably because most people perceive the start of the band as the 1975 eponymous record, this is before what people see as the beginning. They don't actually know the brilliance that came beforehand or, mostly, they just don't care because it's not what was fed to them through the radio waves.

source secret probably revealed
 

. . . obviously the 1968 and 1970 concerts are carousel ballroom and n.o. warehouse respectively. all this and further interesting discussion can be read here: https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threa...ssions.826586/

release date confusion
 

does anybody know more about the actual release date of this set? according to some sources it's june 7th, whereas amazon states that it won't be out before october 18th.
:confused:

Some people have been speculating this set is the ‘68 Carousel Ballroom and one of the 1970 shows at the Warehouse in New Orleans. Plus, four BBC tracks. Although, there are a lot of mislabeled tracks in that original press release. So maybe they’re getting everything organized with some quality control for an October release.

Homework throws me off. Some are speculating that song and two others are from that French TV show.

While we are waiting for this to be released -
anyone heard the recent CD https://www.discogs.com/Fleetwood-Ma...lease/14053578 ?
Sound quality?

. . . and we'll have to wait some more: release date has just been postponed until november 15. i'm afraid all these delays are not too good a sign . . .
:(

review in mojo magazine
 

mark blake gives 3 stars (out of 5) in his review on this cd set in the october edition of "mojo" - albeit without any real enlightenment in terms of music and recording quality.

he remarks the lack of official info concerning where the recordings were made, comments "the 1970 live show drags" and finally closes with the words "approach with caution." . . . hhmmmm. all he writes is rather vague, so one gets the impression that he actually might not have heard the set at all yet.
:shrug:

i just listened to another snatch from the album, the opening track "madison blues (version 1)" - which seems to actually confirm two assumptions:

i couldn't compare it back to back with my carousel copy, but i could swear it's from THAT frisco dates.

furthermore i have my doubts that we can expect substantially enhanced sound quality in comparison to the already available sources. there's evidence that this official release displays the same strange (all too sudden) changes in the stereo panning of the carousel recordings we're already familiar with. and whoever's responsible for it probably wasn't tinkering too much with the frequency range.

at least i personally have lowered my expectations significantly - or to quote mojo's mark blake once again: "approach with caution"!
:(

. . . so things are pretty clear now at last - 68 carousel with butterfield, 70 warehouse, 68 "surprise partie" (french tv) and bbc sessions (the latter running at wrong - too slow - speed, just like the old bootlegs). and there don't seem to be any sound improvements AT ALL.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Before-Begi...s%2C207&sr=8-2

VERY disappointing!

i've just read the liner notes of the set - and it left me even more bewildered than before. the fact that a) christopher hjort is the author and b) still time and place of the recordings are up to guesswork is way beyond me.

i assume that there must be certain (legal?) reasons for keeping the recording details hidden. long before their release the tracks could be assigned to their origins pretty easily by anyone who has serious interest in the early mac. so the only reason christopher (who's surely in the know about it) didn't mention these details is probably this: he somehow isn't allowed to. he futhermore avoids name-checking paul butterfield as special guest on the carousel tracks - reference is only made to "the horn-like harmonica player" or simply "the harmonica".

has anyone of you any ideas or assumptions on this whole matter? i'm really curious to know why a brand like sony music would see the need to be that secretive about their product.

p.s. the only really enjoyable aspect of this release - for my money - are the photographs in the booklet, many of which i haven't seen before.

. . . and now that i've discovered that - apart from the regular jewelcase and vinyl versions - there's also a box set in 7" booklet format available, i started thinking of actually getting out and buying exactly that . . . simply for having another good looking item in my collection. blimey - they got me again!
:rolleyes:

p.s. bklynblue aka rich orlando suspects the sound of the carousel tracks being somewhat superior to the previously available boots. so at least there's another reason for me to purchase this one.
;)

This is strange, especially considering it’s a Sony release with Hjort’s input.

I have two Warehouse shows from ‘70. I’ll have to look and see which one is included here. One starts with a masterful version of “Before The Beginning”. I’m guessing that’s this one?

yes, it is - at any rate. and it looks like hjort was obviously forced to hide his full knowledge on the recordings' proveniences in the sleevenotes. here's the message i got in reply from rich o.:

"Your guesses as to the lack of information is most likely spot-on – the material on the set was originally broadcast on 'local' (San Francisco / New Orleans) radio stations in the U.S. and of course over the BBC in England and these are the original sources of the material (and the bootlegs that have been in circulation for so long)
You may have noticed that the 'Fillmore / Carousel' show and the Warehouse tracks are being sold under a few different labels. I believe what has happened is that the European copyrights have expired this year – many other live broadcasts by other 'classic rock' groups are also beginning to appear.
The worst offence to me is the listing of the BBC recordings as 'Demos' – but remember, Snapper / Receiver did the same thing with the 'Vaudeville Years' / 'Show-Biz Blues' sets.
I would love to know what the 'GK Edit' is on ‘If It Ain’t Me’ refers to!
I would say that they don’t mention Paul Butterfield as they never cleared the release of the material with his estate.
I admit I’m confused by Sony Music having anything to do with this release. The notes on the back of the jewel case say that Sony licensed the collection – they didn’t initiate it.
I haven’t listened to the full collection or listened with the care required to make a final assessment, but from what I heard, I do think the sound is better on the 'Fillmore / Carousel' show – it sounds louder and sharper than the bootleg that I have of the shows.
I do hope to have a full breakdown / review of the set up on my site within the next few weeks (just need to find the time)."