Bonnie Raitt

Live performance is arguably the essence of rock & roll. So why is it that so many live albums
sound so lifeless? Perhaps live albums have become unwitting reminders of how silly rock
can be, forever preserving all the you-had-to-be-there moments for those who weren't,
freezing in time the extended version of the "hit," the drum solos, the off-key
audience-participation segments and the endless variations on "How ya doin,' Po... More >

Her supposed comeback in fact a breakthrough, she never approached gold back in the day, and hence was never big enough for a live album until now. This is lucky timing, because Grammy-era bland-out rarely dulls her concerts, where her roots-respectin' rockers come out raunchy, her tender ballads casually intimate. So even if you love Nick of Time, this two-CD mix of old songs and new illustrates why Raitt became an icon while Ronstadt turned into a gargoyle. She creates a world in which Bruce Hornsby and Bryan Adams project as much soul as Ruth Brown and Charles Brown. She's so free of ironic impurities she sings "Burning Down the House" as if it means one thing. And her parting words aren't "Take care of yourselves"--they're "Take care of each other." (Grade: A-)