Originally born out of the Alice Cooper band, Winger have habitually been derided as lame by thrashers over the years, perhaps suffering unfairly by the popularity of the Beavis & Butt-head cartoons back in the days when MTV still played music.

Nevertheless, Winger produced some fantastic radio friendly rock and deservedly saw commercial success with their 3 albums, Winger, In The Heart Of The Young and the harder-edged Pull.

This trio of albums are all well represented on this 19 song, double live CD, as are their various top 20 US chart hits.

Recorded across their US reunion tour earlier this year, the inclusion of tracks from their latest IV album adds to the relevance, of this, their first 'live' album. Proving Kip can still carry a great tune and that Reb Beach hasn’t lost his considerable talent, this is a great reminder to fans just how revered Winger were at the time.

A generally higher pitched audience sound, shows their fans are still mainly female, though don’t let that distract you from a pleasing trip down memory lane. Loudest applause obviously greets memorable hit songs like Easy Come, Easy Go, Headed For A Heartbreak and Seventeen.

My only bugbear being that the second disc contains 11 minutes of drum and guitar solos, obviously reflecting the shows but really, is that still relevant?

****

Review by Dave Hunter