Jon Tiven, Fusion, October 1972
No part of this review is meant as a slur against the names of Bill Graham, Fillmore Records, or Columbia Records. I realize that the release was necessitated by public demand for memorial packages of this sort, and it must have appeared to be a nice thing to do at the time. Unfortunately, the record fails to express anything except for the fact that West Coast bands have deteriorated to the point of uselessness since the opening of the Fillmores not so many years ago.
Packaging-wise, the three-LP set is a well-done one, with all the trimmings: a "Message From Bill" disc, a bonafide ticket, a poster, and a full-color booklet. Gosh.
Fillmore starts with a Lamb ditty, a mediocre singsong type of tune that I’ll never listen to again. The Elvin Bishop Group provides two funky blues numbers which are the only worthwhile tracks on Side One. They are followed by the dullest 1972 S.F. creation this side of the equator, Malo, a group which you already know through their 'Suavecito' hit. Side Two features The Sons of Champlin who seem to be playing the same song whenever I hear them, and It’s A Beautiful Day with their only listenable track, 'White Bird', extended past the point of enjoyability. Next we are presented with that dynamo of groovie vibes, Quicksilver, with Dino Valenti assaulting the listener with "Ooh baby, ooh I got mojo oh Yeah!!!" The third side has Tower of Power, a competent band which derives most of its inspiration from The Meters, but 'Back On the Streets Again' is OK stuff. Boz Scaggs brings back memories with 'Baby’s Calling Me Home', but like most of the cuts on this record it’s too long. Cold Blood are as tight & stupid as ever with an old blues standard.
Side Four is a beaut, though. Stoneground were, for a very short time, a pretty good band (although never up to par with The Beau Brummels) but here they sink! So do The New Riders, who do one of their many marijuana songs, not to mention The Grateful Dead (who have fallen victim to cocaine lobotomization in recent years, and have failed to perform with any reasonable degree of competence or inspiration). Hot Tuna does one of their many blues jams, all of which sound like 'Wade in the Water'. Santana are the most exciting group on the record, and their version of Joe Zawinul’s 'In a Silent Way' is pretty good. The final side is a Fillmore jam, full of soundalike blues; this kind of stuff may be fun to watch but has never kut the ketchup on record.
The Final East Coast Concerts had some better stuff that would’ve come off superbly on record (Alice Cooper, J. Geils, The Allmans, The Beach Boys, Humble Pie, Mountain), and in fact some of the groups have put out their own Fillmore releases. Even the Final Nights of the Fillmore West had a bit of talent (Flamin’ Groovies, Grin, Humble Pie, Mott the Hoople, Moby Grape, Creedence), and it surprises me that Graham chose not to use these fine acts. In any case, I would strongly advise you not to buy this album unless you want to hang it on your wall or use it in some other non-listening way. Me, I’m waiting for the Rainbow Theatre record.
© Jon Tiven 1972