Fishbone Live

AMG Review of Fishbone Live

Greg Prato
All Music Guide

The phrase "best experienced live" has followed Fishbone around since what seems like their inception -- as they've long been one of rock's most energetic and over-the-top live bands. Which makes the fact that they never released an official live recording until 2009, ‘Fishbone Live,' quite baffling (which was nearly 30 years since originally forming). The multi-membered group -- which from the original line-up, only includes singer/saxophonist Angelo Moore and bassist John Norwood Fisher at this point -- wisely sticks to the classics, and forgoes most of the inconsistent material of their post-1993 releases. So what you get is basically a Fishbone "best of," set on a concert stage in Bordeaux, France. Name a Fishbone classic, and more times than not, it's included here, such as "Bonin' in the Boneyard," "Sunless Saturday," "Give It Up," "Ma & Pa," "Party at Ground Zero," and "Everyday Sunshine," as well as a tribute to the Fishbone-influenced Sublime, with a cover of "Date Rape." Until a live recording from the ‘80s surfaces from the vault (back when the original/definitive Fishbone line-up was slaying audiences on a nightly basis), ‘Fishbone Live' will certainly do. [Note - Also included in ‘Fishbone Live' is an 18-track companion DVD, which includes several tracks not on the CD]