Badfinger - Suitcase - Live!

[thearchives]

Simply awesome



[tilly383]

I was 8 years old and inducted to the scene every weekend with my old transistor radio and well i wish i could live through this this again but just a bit older,these guys, zeppelin, the stones, and janis j, ohh where are you dr who hit the controls on the tardis i wanna go home.:)

[naniajoe]

PETE HAM influenced the great GEORGE HARRISON to play slide guitar....listen to PETE HAM here as well as on many other tracks that BADFINGER did....and even before when he was in THE IVYS....Pete has a great tone and attitude and you will see how GEORGE HARRISON was taken by him....George loved Pete and was greatly disapointed when he found that Badfinger had signed with a record company....George was thinking of having BADFINGER on his DARK HORSE label... Hollywood Joe

[richbates69]

You guys better learn your guitar. The only other guitarists with serious slide skills like this were George Harrison, one of his best friends and D Allman. Makes you wonder how many jam sessionsthat him and George actually did have along the line? I just hear a lot of George's guitar from The Apple Jam " record 3" of All Things Must Pass.... give it a listen

[velkykanec]

@richbates69

Mick Taylor, Ry Cooder and Lowell George belong in any list of slide 'greats'.

[Hearsticles]

@Derickthe9thBeachBoy Duane Allman was totally pulling off licks like that in the same time period as well, just a note.

[ZeppelinJoe13]

Did this remind anyone else of zeppelin? Reminded me of dazed and confused and communication breakdown a bit.

[samanthaeblack11]

I was "there" when this came out and we NEVER thought this sounded like the beatles. We thought it sounded like them and what a great song this is!

[DouglasJBender]

Holy cow!!!!!

[tomcaroscio]

@Derickthe9thBeachBoy

This whole song is awesome and would obliterrate all the competition!!

[tjsmith51]

And why aren't they in the rock n roll hall of fame? Someone has to explain that to me. Pete Ham is an amazing guitarist and writer. Badfinger is such a unique band. They can pull of all types of rock.

[slightlyperturbedmax]

Nick Lowe might be the Jesus of Cool, but Tom Evans is at least the Moses

[retroperitoneal]

insane!....i miss these guys....saw them on long beach island at joe pops with just joey and drummer ...all four needed ,,never more never more

[cndjx]

What a Jam!

[Tickbryan]

George gave Pete that SG

[badfinger848]

With how great Pete Ham was at guitar before he died, just imagine how much better he'd be if he was still alive today.

And, for those of you who haven't heard Joey Molland play since the 70's (or the 80's, for that matter), his playing has gotten quite a bit better!

Now if only some live stuff of Badfinger's would be released on DVD.

[MissSweatyknickers]

Great! Shame the camera isn't on Pete's fretboard showing that killer guitar. What a band!

[roadlizard666]

Awesome! Never knew how great these guys were until now!!

[wevans770]

What I don't understand about this is that this is clearly live but other songs and videos from this set say that they were live vocals over recorded tracks. Anybody have an explanation?

[tomcaroscio]

@wevans770

Thanks God someone realized in1970 or 71 that this performance needed to be documented. I don't know why thery did it but I'm glad they did. This is not expendable music!

[andmoreagain9]

Saw them in 1971, Southern Ct University - they rocked the house

[tjsmith51]

@andmoreagain9 I go to southern now and didn't know that. Boy I would love to see these guys live too bad I am WAY to young. They should be in the R n R Hall of fame.

[buddyhoot]

You GOTTA love it! There's just no 4 piece bands like this anymore! High and tight and trading off jams and vocals like this! I can't really see anyone doing it like this anymore, theres no group interaction like this.. Everybody wants to be the star instead of the band being an entity unto themselves!

[HummingBirdJazz]

Tragic story...Pete Ham & Tom Evan hung themselves.

[TheCymbalineSound]

Stan Polley is a souless bastard, well said pete

[BROOKS39]

Bloody fantastic this!!

[Renhjarta]

It´s really great ! and both guitarists playing very much like Eric Clapton (Cream-era)

[mikekadas]

Suitcase [Original Version] [bonus track] - Badfinger [England] - 1971 - "Musically, it's a great early-'70s boogie rock number, featuring some sterling licks from both Molland and lead guitarist Pete Ham. One of their BEST." - Straight Up [Bonus Tracks] (Capitol)-1993. NOTE: This live version is longer then what's on this CD, BUT what a revelation!

[gosh20045]

I would also like to know where Stan Pollys grave is, so I can piss on it.

[Jethrofinger]

@gosh20045

Same with Allen Klien.

[tripleJ1955]

@gosh20045 "I would also like to know where Stan Pollys grave is, so I can piss on it."

Get in line man, it could be awhile before your turn comes up

[dual506]

Thanks for uploading this. It made my day :-)

[rh741]

that's what made old bands cool. THEY COULD JAM!

[outlawcountryman]

this was a real treat first time i've ever heard this.

[stinkfist73]

Damn, could Pete play a great slide guitar, he's not quite Duane Allman, but great none the less. R.I.P. you are greatly missed.

[stageleftblues]

I was born in 61. This is really cool to watch jammers before my era. Unique players puttin it down. They are an inspiration to me.

[Applecorpsrules]

God. Where are my ears ? It's just huge.

[mikestrat56]

Damn they were good.

[bolanbabe]

LOVIN' IT!!!!

[curtmath]

I was reading something the other day which said Badfinger didn't know how to rock! Guess whoever wrote that stupid article had never listened to them!

[Matlike1]

This is what bands of today cannot do 'improvise'.

[nikolord3]

hmmn... wt hell....

[22erickS]

omg

[pongqi]

miss you peter!

[golfogac]

Good brit boogie band. I remember diggin on Badfinger, Cream, etc, until the day when my older brother brought home an LP by an american jam band with dual-lead guitars; Live at Filmore East The Allman Brothers. We weren't alone, musicians on both sides of the pond were gobsmacked by ABB and sighed 'what do we do now?'.

[vwtch]

I've been listening to Badfinger since they became a band and have the highest regard for them but I hadn't heard this jam until today. Wow is all I can say.

[DAVWAVE]

@vwtch vwtdch, same here. I have been on board since day one. Why did they hide this from the general public? We may never know.

[swharr]

sounds more like grand funk than hendrix or clapton. But these guys are originals. and the "hendrix chord" was around a few years before hendrix

[stinkfist73]

Damn!!! Does Pete rock out in this song or what??? Why does everyone keep comparing these guys to someone? Ever think they might have been wanted to be known for their own style. Rock on in heaven Pete, Tom, and Mike!!!

[TheRockmanSan]

Pete, grande performance nesse solo de guitarra.

[JakeLechuga]

i like the shit outta this, gyotdamnit!!

[pindowskivich]

I'd give anything to see this stuff being played today.

[mccrabapple]

clapton Shmlapton

[kotek1]

Clapton doesn't really have his own style, does he?

[flasherpickle]

this is my first experience with this electrical sex.... Don't know how they managed to escape the radar for so long

[Spuweee]

This song is dope..........rocks hard!!!!!

[decemberschild1217]

I agree, Pete (and Tom for that matter) were brilliant talented underated artists....Clapton is good but has to be the most overated guitarist in Rock History

[badfinger848]

decemberschild1217: The thing about Clapton that bothers me is that I like when he plays the blues a lot, but I don't really like his rock stuff that much. Also, I hate how he did a lot of pop-type stuff.  Anyway, I'd certainly agree that Ham and Evans were underrated...such great musicians!

[Zeroefornono]

+ like Clapton, Ham had made some really sick riffs during

[robharding1957]

great guitar,,,,,,from a musical genius,,,who along with tom mike joey became the closest thing to the beatles,,,,,,,and almost as good,,on a personal note l would say on a par atleast,

[DavidLoike]

The way the drummer plays is like awkward, whats he doing different

[princerd10]

The drummer is playing left-handed and his set-up is left-handed.

[NezMaccaHam]

Damn! I've watched this video WAY too many times, yet the improvisational switch-off between Pete and Joey never fails to ASTOUND me! They are my musical heros, these guys. Love them so much.

[badfinger848]

NezMaccaHam: I've watched this one a lot and, each time I do, I just can't help but be amazed by the talent that these four great musicians had!

If only Pete Ham's guitar work was seen for what it was--especially while he was still alive. I think people would then have easily forgotten about those who are often thought of as "guitar gods," like the highly overrated Slash (no offense meant to him, but he's just so overrated).

[mredsquiz]

Wow, first time I've seen this video....blown away!!! This song showcases their talent & makes me even more sad at such a waste!

[markschlesinger]

And they put Madonna, ABBA and the like in the Hall of Shame...

[egcroan]

I think Pete Hamm was better than Eric Clapton. The fact he is playing Slide & Wah Wah at the same time is something everyone misses since he makes is sound so much like a Talk Box Guitar sound popularized by the likes of Joe Walsh on Rocky Mountain Way and of course Frampton Co9mes Alive.

[robharding1957]

egcroan,count me in on that, pete ham was atleast equal to clapton, but as an inall round musician,,pete ham is way out

[tomcaroscio]

@egocroan, I agree. I'm a big Clapton fan but Clapton can't play piano and sing and write like Pete Ham. I was not aware that Pete was that great a guitarist until I saw this clip on youtube. He is quite simply awesome

[rh741]

It still astounds me that this band weren't so big in the end. If only they had a different manager, then things would be great for badfinger. GREAT SONG with a great solo. Love how pete hamm uses the slider and i think the wah wah for the verse and so on.

[mikekadas]

Musically, it's a great early-'70s boogie rock number, featuring some sterling licks from both Molland and lead guitarist Pete Ham.

[russtyler]

From 3:32 to 3:42 Pete Ham looks & sounds like a guitar god.

Which, of course....he was.

[PeachWNK]

@russtyler What's sad is I rarely see him on any "lists" of "best guitar players," etc. Sadly overlooked.

[robharding1957]

peachwnk, its so unfair,pete was a great guitarist as well as a real nice genuine guy who did not deserve the treatment he was to get from the scumbag management, r i p pete, miss you man, tom and mike too

[russtyler]

@PeachWNK True, very sad. Pete wasn't given the recognition he deserved. Then or now.

[barbarianlord]

Fantastic!!! Fantastic!!! Fantastic!!! Fantastic!!!

Fantastic!!! Fantastic!!!  Fantastic!!! Fantastic!!!

Fantastic!!! Fantastic!!! Fantastic!!! Fantastic!!!

Badfinger forever!!!

[tomcaroscio]

Wow! A STELLAR PERFORMANCE BY A GREAT GREAT BAND. Thanks for posting this raferdurham.

[badfinger848]

Just imagine if Pete Ham hadn't died...he may have very well eventually gotten as popular as Eric Clapton!

And, also, it would've been awesome if Pete Ham and George Harrison had the chance to do an album together (along the lines of how Chet Atkins and Mark Knopfler did the album NECK AND NECK). Ham is definitely one of my favorite guitarists...if he had the chance to get even better than he was when he died, he'd probably be my favorite today!

[furtherdefinitions]

Pete Ham is amazing on this, like Clapton and Hendrix rolled into one package. RIP Pete, you were among the best, and I hope one day history will acknowledge it.

[robharding1957]

shithot ,simple as,

[beyondalohas]

@furtherdefinitions :: how did Pete pass away? Ty

[furtherdefinitions]

What I find really amazing about Pete's playing is that he's got that Clapton thing one better, and at around 3:26 sounds like Hendrix, and then goes beyond that. Yet, he doesn't look like he's breaking a sweat. What a great all-around talent he was. I can't think of anyone today who has all the attributes he had. What a fucking shame. This band deserves to be in the R&R Hall of Fame.

[LVEMEDO]

awesome post awesome share laura ty both of you rip little tommy & pete

[lancers46]

This alone is worthy of Rock hall of fame presence.

[Donziflyer]

Don't give me any of that "Beatles copycat" crap! These guys were a unique ROCK BAND that could rip it! They could also bring it down with rock ballads that would make you cry from their soulful sounds! If I could have met Stan The Rat Bastard Polley face to face I would have delighted in kickin his mother f#ckin ass!

[badfinger848]

Donziflyer: I can almost guarantee that every Badfinger fan would've loved if you kicked Polley's ass! That scumbag robbed this world of one of the finest musicians of all time.

[christianphi]

@Donziflyer amen to that

[southpawslide]

@Donziflyer ..with you on that all the way!!!!...right on Donziflyer! Most underated...!

[59simonh]

This band had it all! They were(the org. 4) the cat's meow!!! Great stuff,great fun,thanks for posting. Love to see/hear "Blind Owl"..anybobdy got it?

[easyeddie771]

Mike earned his money on this one! He was a very underrated drummer! What a badass jam!!!

[ToySoldier2007]

Now that was a romp by Pete and Joey sold it at the end !

[grousserr]

Wow...good old fasion jamming! The ending was ahead of it's time. They were GOOD!

[ToySoldier2007]

From 7:00 where they break it down is where they stomp the crap outta this hot number. WOW !

[ronnierythm]

Yes. I saw this song performed in Joplin, Missouri on this date in 1971. Funky. April 26, '71 but it seems like yesterday to me.

[robharding1957]

lucky man,that is some session,like a fine wine just gets better with age, badfinger, just bad to the bone and so gifted they had the lot,

[solitudeseeker]

Remembering Pete today on the 34th anniversary of his death - April 24, 1975.

[gpof1952]

who needs american idol, this is REAL music!!

[Striker70SS]

Alot of people "borrowed" licks, riffs and songs from them because they were just that damn good.

[Striker70SS]

Alot of people "borrowed" licks, riffs, songs from Badfinger. They were just that damn good.

[stipecountry]

Around the 4-minute mark, I heard some licks that it seems Slash stole for Guns N' Roses' "Sweet Child O' Mine." Of course, there are other parts where it seems Slash stole some licks from, but the majority are around the 4-minute mark.

Anyone else notice that?

It's just a shame how overrated Guns N' Roses is when Badfinger was so much better!

[NastyNole1]

Nah, my ear can't draw any striking similarity to the two to warrant a charge that Slash stole the licks, but I do agree that Slash and Runs 'N' Hoses are overrated. Dave Meniketti would smoke Slash..

[stipecountry]

iagobroxado: There is a documentary called "Badfinger" but I doubt they'll ever be a Badfinger version of "Ray." It would be nice though!

[hufferz]

Wow, that "Pete" can play a mean guitar!

[furtherdefinitions]

They could do it all. Write beautiful ballads, all out rockers, everything. That they never got the proper recognition and getting screwed by a scumbag manager and the record companies, and then tragically losing the heart of the band. They deserved so much better.

[robertobeatle]

that´s fucking great

is a shame that pete and tom die

that band was wonderfull

[robharding1957]

this is up there with the very best of british talent, and these guys should be recognised for the great contribution they made to music,not to mention the impact they made on my life, rip guys,

[robharding1957]

love this to death,miss you three guys,but we know your only in the next room

[robharding1957]

great posting thanks abunch, you three kings r i p ,

[robharding1957]

almost claptonlike,peter ham and the band great song great band,dont think they were capable of making a bad song,just love this stuff

[Ghoul13th]

Thanks for posting! Two thumbs up & 5 Star*s..Peace

[robharding1957]

not sure if my message was recieved, but just in case, pete and the boys are just timeless, and we aint gonna forget you at all, badfinger,foreverrrrrrrrrrrrrr­rrrrrrrrrrr

[robharding1957]

thanks a million, some posting, first time ive heard this and im 51, badfinger,are the buisness,pete ham was so versatile, r i p fellas, and thanks for all that music,still fresh today,

[triangletrilogy]

Unreal.  Wish I'd been at this performance!

[ozarkdem]

Oh, boys. My God they were good.

[robharding1957]

your so right my friend,

[strawberrypicker123]

wow man. the jam was incredible.

joeys solos petes solos and toms bass riffs.

this has to be one of my favorite videos.

such an amazing band...sucks how not that many people now about them anymore

[triangletrilogy]

Thanks raferdurham---you rock! This is unbelievably delicious guitar---god, Pete is something else. Love this! I could never be bored with this! Joey's vocals are pretty good here, though I think he's a dick, generally. Badfinger rules!

[ToySoldier2007]

Another rock song that I found by Badfinger. Makes me wanna rock. The dual lead guitars near the end is my favorate on this performance. It's hard for me to understand why these guys were never number one.

[redskies12]

i met micky gibbons in a night club in swansea, and had a chat about drumming many years ago,i was young and drunk,new to the drums but he put up with me.a very nice man.

[Seej1982]

@redskies12 I met Mike at Beatlefest 10 years ago. Chatted about drums too. He told me "You can have a crap drum set and still be a good drummer." That inspired me to keep my POS kit, albeit in storage. He was a great guy and a damn good drummer. I highly recommend his "More Annoying Songs" cd.

[tommylord]

The way they do the ending here sounds just like KISS at the end of 'Black Diamond' on the Alive! album.

Wouldn't be surprised if Gene Simmons & Paul Stanley were influenced by Bad Finger.

[ammar255]

what a jam ,

bad camera angles and directing..

great band with great musicans...but very bad...luck..

[easyeddie771]

This IS BADFINGER IN THEIR ELEMENT, should have been another top 10 smash for the Badfinger boys!

[NezMaccaHam]

this is one of the coolest videos i've ever seen- i like the other one on "Midnight Special" too. Both are the coolest videos. I can't get over how amazing Pete is with the guitar. He is friggin awesome. They all are.

Wish i could see them in concert.

RIP Pete, Tommy, Mike

[stipecountry]

NezMaccHam:  You can see "Badfinger featuring Joey Molland" live nowadays. I mean, it's not the same, but Molland's playing has improved a lot since back in the 70's.

[zuck21]

thank you for posting this for a badfinger fanatic this is awsome..peter ham was a brilliant guy and thank G-d joey is still on the road playing this music to this day..long live bad finger next stop cleveland!

[Beatlegirl611]

Awesome video! 5 stars!

Badfinger was amazing.

Anyone know what year this was?

Thanks

[ronnierythm]

1972, a great performance by a GREAT band. I saw them in 1971, in JOPLIN MO, and they were just as awe inspiring.

[Beatlegirl611]

Thanks for the reply!

Wow, you are so lucky you got to see these guys in concert!

[SolidSilverBrasil08]

FANTASTIC

[grdnzrnic]

great to hear them cut loose

[jeffkahl]

awesome stuff! I always thought this was an outtake from a Beatles album but The 'Finger were killer writers in their own right!

[solitudeseeker]

Oh my God! I've never seen Badfinger like this before. I knew they were good, but man, they really are on fire here. Great musicianship. Incredible jam!

[tommylord]

Another rare treasure. Proves they weren't just a puppet band.

I could listen to this all day.

Thank you for putting this up, rafer.

[asw1959]

Priceless

[scatteredmatt]

One of my favorite bands of all time. Caught them many times with various lineups but this just blows me away. Thanks for posting this version.

[derbesy3]

the camera should've focused more on pete and joey.

[ToySoldier2007]

Now that was some kick-ass Badfinger ... the way they always claimed to do it. Watch the "Midnight Special" version of this tune...and then flip a coin for fav vid !

[colin5180]

this one by a mile...

[cttxlv]

I had no idea Pete played slide. This vid is the shit!!!! Talk about a great live jam...this rivals Humble Pie Live at the Fillmore. Thanks Rafer!

[ozarkdem]

Pete was a real triple threat, songwriter, vocalist and kick ass guitarist. He must have been a bit of a threat to Clapton and the other rock gods in his day, not that he would have even accepted such accolades. He was humble as well as gifted.

[slightlyperturbedmax]

Tom Evans: coolest man to ever play a bass guitar?

[peter91mc]

Maybe not THE coolest, but he is pretty awesome.

He looks like Jeff Lynne without sunglasses in this video, haha!

[ArchieMeadies]

I always loved Badfinger since I first became aware of them in the early seventies. It turns out that they were even better than I thought!

Joey Molland's songs never impressed me as much as Pete Ham's on the albums, but it's clear to see that they hold their own in live performance.

Another great posting :)

[28if]

Don't check out the "live" 1972? album, Joey re- recorded all of his sings, put them first and left all the Ham songs as originals for the rest of the album

[jfj503]

looks like Pete and Joey are both mixing it up pretty well,hard to tell who's playing rhythm and lead at times..some elements of the boogie has a Cream tinge to it...

[gocav76]

Wow!!!!!!!

[markmusicman]

I agree with you, Pete does an excellent job on the slide parts for this jam.