Tape #1
Late 1982
Reviewed by VegaNova
Show Segments
"Goin' Crazy / My Love"
"Elvis Medley" (Blue Suede Shows, All Shook Up, Teddy Bear, Hound Dog, Burning Love, It's Now Or Never, Return
to Sender, Puppet on a String, Fools Rush In)
"Louisiana"
"Tomorrow" (Tomorrow, Maybe)
"Child of the Rock"
"Goofy Gas"
"Abbey Road Medley" (You Never Give Me Your Money, Sun King, Mean Mr. Mustard, Polythene Pam, She Came
in Through the Bathroom Window, Golden Slumbers, Carry That Weight, The End, Her Majesty)
"Why Can't Everyday Be Like Christmas"
"Disco Christmas"
"In December" (Original Demo Version)
This was quite a different type of showtape for ShowBiz Pizza Place - the shows could be randomly cued by people in the audience from a "Show Selector" panel set up near the stage. The tape consists of the entire Tribute To Abbey Road showtape along with some of Dook's songs and a few Chirstmas songs.
Show Selector Panel - The Show Selector concept may be familiar to many fans, as it is has been used in more recent years with many of the Rock-afire shows that were in operation. However the concept was tested in the early days of ShowBiz. Two test loctions for the Show Selector are believed to be two of the Florida ShowBiz Pizza stores.
In December - The version of this song included on this tape is quite different from the version released on vinyl (#6) which was also in all of the Christmas Showtapes. The "In December" included on this tape is much rougher, with Billy Bob hitting a few off notes - at one point his voice actually cracks as he's trying to sing. This version has an intro with Looney Bird, and there's a background instrument present (sounds like a twinkling star... if that's a sound). At the end Billy Bob wishes everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy Hanukkah - which is reversed in the normal version.
-3 out of 5 Tokens-
It was very interesting to see that the Show Selector system existed so early on, but I've never cared for the concept. This tape does include some very good shows, as most of the songs on the Tribute To Abbey Road showtape are incredible. The hidden treasure of this tape is without a doubt the demo version of "In December" - a rare find and an interesting listen for sure. That being said, this demo version is actually kinda crappy compared to the later polished version. Billy Bob and Looney Bird come across as annoying instead of sweet, which in my opinion was the real delight in that song. Personally I would rather see a coherent Abbey Road showtape than this collection of randomly picked songs.
"Goin' Crazy / My Love"
"Elvis Medley" (Blue Suede Shows, All Shook Up, Teddy Bear, Hound Dog, Burning Love, It's Now Or Never, Return
to Sender, Puppet on a String, Fools Rush In)
"Louisiana"
"Tomorrow" (Tomorrow, Maybe)
"Child of the Rock"
"Goofy Gas"
"Abbey Road Medley" (You Never Give Me Your Money, Sun King, Mean Mr. Mustard, Polythene Pam, She Came
in Through the Bathroom Window, Golden Slumbers, Carry That Weight, The End, Her Majesty)
"Why Can't Everyday Be Like Christmas"
"Disco Christmas"
"In December" (Original Demo Version)
This was quite a different type of showtape for ShowBiz Pizza Place - the shows could be randomly cued by people in the audience from a "Show Selector" panel set up near the stage. The tape consists of the entire Tribute To Abbey Road showtape along with some of Dook's songs and a few Chirstmas songs.
Show Selector Panel - The Show Selector concept may be familiar to many fans, as it is has been used in more recent years with many of the Rock-afire shows that were in operation. However the concept was tested in the early days of ShowBiz. Two test loctions for the Show Selector are believed to be two of the Florida ShowBiz Pizza stores.
In December - The version of this song included on this tape is quite different from the version released on vinyl (#6) which was also in all of the Christmas Showtapes. The "In December" included on this tape is much rougher, with Billy Bob hitting a few off notes - at one point his voice actually cracks as he's trying to sing. This version has an intro with Looney Bird, and there's a background instrument present (sounds like a twinkling star... if that's a sound). At the end Billy Bob wishes everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy Hanukkah - which is reversed in the normal version.
-3 out of 5 Tokens-
It was very interesting to see that the Show Selector system existed so early on, but I've never cared for the concept. This tape does include some very good shows, as most of the songs on the Tribute To Abbey Road showtape are incredible. The hidden treasure of this tape is without a doubt the demo version of "In December" - a rare find and an interesting listen for sure. That being said, this demo version is actually kinda crappy compared to the later polished version. Billy Bob and Looney Bird come across as annoying instead of sweet, which in my opinion was the real delight in that song. Personally I would rather see a coherent Abbey Road showtape than this collection of randomly picked songs.