The Avengers began allegedly as an excuse to display then stylish punk fashion. When all was said and done, they were arguably the best pure punk band in all of San Francisco, let alone all of California. Like fellow Dangerhouse artists X without any of the artistic pretentions, Penelope Houston and her savage backing band elevated a simplistic form of rock and roll to a considerably higher potential. Houston was America’s indomitable rock and roll woman of the late 1970s before Chrissie Hynde came along and dethroned her. Regardless of the fact that the band never stuck around long enough to collect conventional mainstream achievements, they left a great posthumously collected album in their demise. It’s a minor tragedy that producer Steve Jones never actually wound up fully mixing it’s tracks.
This audience recording was made shortly before the Avengers folded in 1979. The recording quality is respectable, stemming from an above average audience source. The performance is ferocious, with Houston’s voice being the strongest point throughout. It’s interesting to hear the handful of songs that were excluded from the full length performed live. Some of these tracks have made it onto the two different collections that have come out since 1999. "Second to None" is introduced as "Baby", thus giving it yet another song title considering the Jones' Professionals called it "1-2-3" on a single B-side.
Overall, this show is a nice glimpse of what the Avengers could deliver live on stage.
Track list:
1. The American In Me
2. Open Your Eyes
3. Uh Oh
4. No Matyr
5. Lonely Girl (Jones)
6. Thin White Line
7. Promised Land
8. End Of The Word
9. White Nigger
10. Second To None
11. I Believe In Me
12. C'mon Everybody (Eddie Cochran)
13. Car Crash
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