Protoplasts 1983

A Hot Summer Night was filmed and recorded live on 6th August 1983, at the Pacific Amphitheatre in Costa Mesa, CA, with an audience of 18,000 fans, during the second-leg of Donna Summer’s 1983 Hard For The Money tour, which supported the recently released She Works Hard For The Money album. Restored from the analogue video tapes, this is the concert’s debut album release and therefore the makes it a perfect sequel to 1978’s Live And More. The set-list includes MacArthur Park, Love Is In Control…, Bad Girls Medley, On The Radio and Last Dance, as well as performances with special guests Musical Youth, her sisters Dara and Mary Ellen on an extended showpiece version of Woman, as well as closing the show with her eldest daughter Mimi, performing State Of Independence.

The initial Polydor Abba CDs released in 1982 were only available in territories where PolyGram had the Abba licence but this was to change in 1983 as Polar entered the CD market. In reality, Polar’s entry into the CD market masked a simple case of outsourcing as PolyGram were simply asked to press up copies of their Abba titles with Polar catalogue numbers and packaging. While PolyGram would continue to supply their local markets with red coated Polydor CDs, Abba’s other European licencees would be sent the ‘Polar’ CDs.

Life Live? More like Life-less. After Thin Lizzy wrapped up their successful "farewell" tour, their second live album was issued. It was originally supposed to be issued during the tour, but extensive overdubbing and nitpicking pushed the album's release toward year's end, after the publicity from the tour had died down.

Jack Bruce (Cream) was guest at Rockpalast in 1980 for the first time – on the occasion of the 7th Rockpalast Night, broadcasted to millions of people all over Europe Live via Eurovision. The line-up was called Jack Bruce & Friends: nobody less than Billy Cobham (Miles Davis, Stanley Clarke) on drums, Clem Clempson (Humble Pie, Colosseum) on guitar and David Sancious (Bruce Springsteen, Santana, Eric Clapton, Sting) on keyboards and guitar. It’s fascinating to watch and listen to these four equitable and brilliant musicians in their blind perfect interplay on stage.

Styled as a conspicuous companion piece to Tug of War, Pipes of Peace mirrors its 1982 cousin in many ways: its title track holds up a mirror to its forefather – and, if that weren't enough, Paul McCartney serves up the knowing "Tug of Peace," an almost-electro collage that twists the songs into McCartney II territory – it serves up two showcases for duets with a former Motown star along with a cameo from fusion superstar Stanley Clarke and, most importantly, it is also produced by former Fab Four ringleader George Martin…