Enter The Vault
Lately, I’ve been spending a lot of time with my dated music tastes at Wolfgang’s Vault. I’ve been hooked since late 2006, when I found out about the Web site in an article in Rolling Stone. Launched in 2006, its concert vault features more that 1043 concert recordings available for download at $9.98 or for free in streaming audio.
Many of the concerts are from the personal archive of the late Bill Graham, concert promoter and owner of the famed Fillmore and Winterland concert halls in New York and San Francisco. The majority of the concerts were recorded between the mid 60s and early 80s, so you won’t find any rare live material from any of today’s acts. But its wealth of material from rock ‘n’ roll’s past provides many exciting moments.
Check out either of the Led Zeppelin shows from the Fillmore West in 1969. The 4/27 show features a take on “How Many More Times” that is so spine shattering, you’ll forget that the song clocks in at a mind-numbingly excessive 22 minutes. Other highlights include a raucous Boz Scaggs performance (with guest spots from Elvin Bishop and Taj Mahal) on the first of a five-night celebration/mourning of the closing of the Fillmore West, and a Bruce Springsteen show from 1973 at the legendary Max’s Kansas City nightclub in New York.
But, the recordings on the site aren’t merely limited to the giants (some might say dinosaurs) of 1970s rock. Listeners can find shows from The Cure, The Clash, Elvis Costello and more. Even Culture Club and A Flock Of Seagulls have recordings in the vault. If you want my recommendations, check out all of The Who’s shows for blistering performances of their rock operas Tommy and Quadrophenia.
