Live and Dangerous

For those who were too young or not existent enough to have seen Thin Lizzy in concert before frontman Phil Lynott’s 1986 death, this 1978 live release is the best time portal to the band’s otherworldly powers. The songs were culled from 1976 and 1977 concerts in London and Toronto, respectively. Live and Dangerous also happens to be the last album Brian Robertson played on. From the epic version of “Jailbreak” that opens the set, it’s apparent that Thin Lizzy was a well-oiled juggernaut of '70s rock ‘n’ roll with a palpable chemistry connecting all four members. The awe-inspiring medley of Bob Seger’s “Rosalie” and the band’s own “Cowgirl’s Song” best exemplify Thin Lizzy’s original slant on hard rock—it was around this time that music writers often characterized the harmonic guitar leads between Robertson and Scott Gorham as heavy metal. But the band’s ability to take on softer jams like “Dancing in the Moonlight” and “Still in Love with You” without succumbing to power-ballad maudlinism put it in its own genre.