Notes

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Suzanne Vega
The Speakeasy
New York, NY
April 17, 1985

Recording: FM > C (Unknown Generation) > C (Maxell XLII)
Transfer: Harman Kardon DC5300 > Edirol UA-5 > PEAK (AIFF 44.1/16) > Xact > FLAC Level 8
Transferred by Brian Miksis (brian.miksis@verizon.net) on April 27, 2007

01 Intro
02 Tom's Diner
03 Small Blue Thing
04 Some Journey
05 Cracking
06 The Queen And The Soldier
07 Song Intro
08 Knight Moves
09 Freeze Tag
10 Song Intro
11 Marlene On The Wall
12 Undertow
13 Straight Lines
14 Song Intro
15 Neighborhood Girls
16 Gypsy (Encore)

I received this cassette in trade sometime in 1988. I cannot confirm the date since I didn't record it, and have not seen it listed in any SV archive, yet here it is. The certainly were many other dates at this club at this time, so I have no reason to doubt it. Also, she talks about having her debut album cover on stage for the first time and this date would have been during the week of it's release.

This tape was the cornerstone of my entire collection in the early days, and as such saw alot of play time. I think the fidelity has held up though, with good tone and minimal tape noise. There are two or three pops that sound like FM artifact to me, but don't affect the recording in my opinion. There is a tape flip after Freeze Tag, but nothing appears to be lost except for applause and a bit of the introduction to Marlene.

What makes this performance special and unique is that she is playing alone which she did until the release of the album. I have seen very few tapes circulate of this time, and I find it an intimate glimpse of a great young songwriter just beginning. I hope you enjoy my favorite SV performance of all time.