ALMOST AMERICA'S BEST BAND

Tracks 1-11 recorded September 2, 1989 at Kingswood Music Theater, Toronto Ontario.
Tracks 12-18 recorded on July 23, 1987 at the Beacon Theater, New York City.
Tracks 19-22 recorded on November 14, 1987 at the Riviera Theater, Chicago Illinois.

The first half of this disc features an unusual show recorded in 1989, while opening for Tom Petty. What makes it unusual is the presence of Benmont Tench of the Heartbreakers guesting on piano for tracks 5 through 11. The addition of piano gives everything a different feel, especially on "Another Girl Another Planet" which is performed more slowly than the usual version. The show also features a very early live performance of "Sadly Beautiful", as well as a Westerberg original presumably called "Susan".
The rest of the disc is filled out by a selection of cover songs taken from two 1987 shows. The highlight of this batch is a rendition of Prince's "Never Take the Place of Your Man" which the Goo Goo Dolls copied almost note-for-note on their third album.

1. Color Me Impressed    2. Take Me Nowhere    3. Susan    4. Sadly Beautiful    5. She's a Goer    6. Another Girl, Another Planet    7. Here Comes a Regular    8. Waitress in the Sky    9. Go    10. Nightclub Jitters    11. I'll Be You    12. Sweet Home Chicago    13. Born in the USA    14. Honky Tonk Women    15. California Sun    16. September Gurls    17. I Can Help    18. Hello Dolly    19. Cross Tie Walker    20. Never Take the Place of Your Man    21. Look of Love    22. unknown title   

SOUND QUALITY: All three shows are mono audience recordings, and they rate a 6 out of 10.