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Plays Live

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Plays Live is the first live and fifth album overall by English rock musician Peter Gabriel. It was originally issued as a double album and long-play cassette in 1983, with sixteen songs. It was re-released in 1985, as a single CD called Plays Live (Highlights) with only twelve songs, some of which are edited so the album fits on a single disc. It was rereleased in its entirety as a double CD set in 1987. In 2002, a remaster of the Highlights version was issued. In 2019, the complete double-LP version was released on streaming platforms for the first time.

Plays Live
Live album by
Peter Gabriel
Released6 June 1983[1]
RecordedNovember–December 1982, United States
1983, Bath, England
GenreArt rock
Length89:53 (original version)
66:50 (highlights version)
LabelGeffen (US & Canada), Charisma
ProducerPeter Gabriel, Peter Walsh
Peter Gabriel chronology
Peter Gabriel
(1982) 		Plays Live
(1983) 		Birdy
(1985)
Singles from Plays Live
  1. "I Don't Remember"
    Released: June 1983 (UK)
  2. "I Go Swimming" / "Solsbury Hill"
    Released: July 1983[2]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[3]
Rolling Stone[4]

In 2021 the original 2CD version was released in remastered form. The sound recordings copyright (p) date featured on the back of the package suggests this had actually been remastered at the same time as the rest of Gabriel's back catalogue in 2002.

Armando Gallo took the cover photograph. "I was always listening to the music when I photographed a concert," he said. "Somehow my index finger pressed the clicker in time with the lights and the percussion - the heart of the music. I always felt grateful that I could shoot Peter’s entire shows. Once I asked Peter if he didn’t mind me being in the pit photographing his every move. 'No, I love to see a friendly face,' he answered. Making me feel good about it."[5]

Recordings

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The songs for "Plays Live" were recorded at the following venues:

Liner notes by "the producers" admit, "Although this album was compiled from four concerts in the mid-West of the United States, some additional recording took place not a thousand miles away from the home of the artist. The generic term for this process is 'cheating'. Care has been taken to keep the essence of the gigs intact, including 'human imperfection'."

Singles and promotion

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"I Don't Remember" was issued as a single, with an accompanying music video, in the UK only.

In the US and Canada, "Solsbury Hill" was released as a single from Plays Live with "I Go Swimming" on the B-side. This previously unreleased song received airplay and made the US Mainstream Rock charts in 1983. It was initially recorded for Gabriel's third album[6] and was performed on his 1980 tour.

In several European countries, "I Go Swimming" was the A-side.

A live version of "Kiss of Life" from the 1982 tour appeared as the B-side of "Solsbury Hill" in The Netherlands. It was never included in any version of Plays Live although it was included in Gabriel's 2019 compilation Flotsam and Jetsam.

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Peter Gabriel.

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."The Rhythm of the Heat"6:26
2."I Have the Touch"5:18
3."Not One of Us"5:29
4."Family Snapshot"4:44
Side two
No.TitleLength
5."D.I.Y."4:20
6."The Family and the Fishing Net"7:22
7."Intruder"5:03
8."I Go Swimming"4:44
Side three
No.TitleLength
9."San Jacinto"8:27
10."Solsbury Hill"4:42
11."No Self Control"5:03
12."I Don't Remember"4:19
Side four
No.TitleLength
13."Shock the Monkey"7:10
14."Humdrum"4:23
15."On the Air"5:22
16."Biko"7:01
Total length:89:53
Plays Live (Highlights)
No.TitleLength
1."I Have the Touch"4:47
2."Family Snapshot"4:44
3."D.I.Y."4:05
4."The Family and the Fishing Net"7:38
5."I Go Swimming"4:54
6."San Jacinto"8:19
7."Solsbury Hill"4:41
8."No Self Control"5:04
9."I Don't Remember"4:12
10."Shock the Monkey"7:10
11."Humdrum"4:21
12."Biko"6:52
Total length:66:50

Personnel

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Charts

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Chart (1983) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[7] 55
Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[8] 18
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[9] 21
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[10] 40
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[11] 25
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[12] 31
UK Albums (OCC)[13] 8
US Billboard 200[14] 44
Chart (2021) Peak
position
Scottish Albums (OCC)[15] 23

References

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  1. ^ "Plays Live".
  2. ^ "Peter Gabriel singles".
  3. ^ Eder, Bruce (2011). "Plays Live – Peter Gabriel | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved 25 July 2011.
  4. ^ Fricke, David (1 September 1983). "Plays Live". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
  5. ^ petergabriel.com subscribers' email, 12 October 2020
  6. ^ Capital Radio interview with Nicky Horne, broadcast 16 March 1980; transcribed in Gabriel fanzine White Shadow (#1, pp10) by editor Fred Tomsett
  7. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 120. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  8. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 6303a". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  9. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Peter Gabriel – Plays Live" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  10. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Peter Gabriel – Plays Live" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  11. ^ "Charts.nz – Peter Gabriel – Plays Live". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  12. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Peter Gabriel – Plays Live". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  13. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  14. ^ "Peter Gabriel Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  15. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
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