It is never a good sign when a live album begins with a snippet of
David Rose
's
"The Stripper,"
and that's surely the case with
Rod Stewart
's 1982 album,
Absolutely Live
. This captures
Rod
at a particularly awkward stage, as his recordings were gradually becoming the commercial-minded dreck that many critics had claimed they were for years. Despite the negative press of his late-'70s albums, they often had their moments, but
Stewart
lost his way in the early '80s, becoming glossier. That's evident on this live album, where he sounds like he's going through the motions, even as he digs out such chestnuts as
"Rock My Plimsoul."
This isn't unlistenable, but it's stilted and slick, losing much of the joie de verve that marked
at his best. It's the first bland, worthless record
released, the first that felt like sheer product. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine