Gonzolitis Terminitus
Being summoned upon to think about Ted Nugent is like being asked to give your opinion of eczema—or rabies.
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TED NUGENT Double Live Gonzo (Epic)
Being summoned upon to think about Ted Nugent is like being asked to give your opinion of eczema—or rabies. But to do a review? The scratching was exquisite ...foaming at the mouth, boffo!
Look: it just figures that a live LP is going to represent the essential Dr. Doggie Wog, better than anything that can be pooped in some corner of the studio. And this is the stuff: the essential distilled excrescence de Theo. The cathartic vinyl moment for his fans, even though, thank god, it's not a likely candidate for a hellish repeat of the Frampton Comes Alive phenomenon (what a combination; cocker spaniel meets drooling doberman with electric prod permanently implanted in asshole). Double Live Gonzo would make perfect ammo for a block-busting in any decent neighborhood outside Detroit (is that redundant?). Produced with the proverbial hammer all the way down, too.
Some of the between-song patter that emanates from the snarlin' jaws of canine number one is wort. the price of this double disc onw its own. An excerpt: "Now *here ain't nobody out there that <:n wants to be a little bit mellow, now is there? ANYBODYWANTSTOBE—mellow, YOU CAN TURNAROUNDANDGETTHEFUCK-
OUTTAHERE, AWRIGHTIDOYOUHEARME?!! This is a little love song. I'd like to dedicate it to all that sweet Nashville pussy. It's a thang called "Wang, Dang, SWEETPOONTANG!!"..."
Except for an extended version of "Hibernation" on the second side, where Ted's paws reach for lyricism in a long volume-knobviolin-effect feedback solo that's as funny as doo on your shoes, the versions of his standards here are a lot less boring than any of the studio alternatives, which just aren't ugly enough to do the mongrel beast justice. This thang comes on like a bloody stump out of a cannon. Audio mung—yumyum. Kevin Doyle
