At Budokan

It’s a kind of interesting journey this album takes you on. At the start you’re rolling your eyes at some hackneyed sounding moderate/hard rock, but as the album moves along it seems there are some better songs that are not taking themselves too seriously and have a certain charm to them. That being said, I went to see Ty Segall play last night, who was many many times better than this. Scrapes a 3 then.

Sounds like absolute shit. Like there are better sounding bootlegs. But it also rules lol. I think it’s crazy that the version of I Want You to Want Me is the one you hear on the radio. I think Frampton is the only other artist I can think of where the only single I hear a lot is live.

Just not a good album.

Enjoyable. Would have been an amazing concert to attend. They sound more British than American to me.

Pretty fun! Yet another piece of conclusive evidence that the Japanese are the most receptive music audiences in the world.

Apparently yeah, this is a well regarded live album. It's got a certain aura that probably held up a lot better back then. Don't really hear this band get talked about at all, ever.

I'm going to reiterate that I think having live albums mingling on this list is a bad call. Especially in this case where what I would think are Cheap Trick's 2 most successful singles, that I think are on different albums, just happen to get played. There could be a whole different list for live albums. Cheap Trick is okay. I don't know if I'm going to be on my deathbed and be glad I spent the extra time listening to the rest of this album.

Trendsetters, perhaps 💭

great live performance

I mean it's a pretty good live album, don't really get why this is worthy of being on here though

»Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh...!!« *guitar solo*

I would rate this higher, as I quite like the music, but it's just sloppy. The recording quality is poor and there just isn't the energy I would expect from a live performance.

Guess I don't really know what Power Pop is, because this thing sounded like pure hard rock to me. Well, I certainly don't think it is stereotypical hard rock, so I guess that's where the power pop term comes from, but again, personally, I find it incredibly hard to tell the difference from other releases under the hard rock umbrella. When it comes to the actual music, I don't really have much to say. I don't like the voice, nor the riffs, nor the solos nor the energy. It all sound boring, bland and mediocre to me. Maybe there are some decent chord progressions, but overall, I don't like them neither. The only positive I can really think about are that it isn't painfully boring and that at least is just 40 minutes and doesn't surpass the hour like other live albums in this list...

Another blast from the past. The songs are tight and the rhythm is right.

Fine. Whatever. Cheap Trick is fine. I don't understand what was significant about this album.

Fun, lively, catchy power poppers. Interestingly or not at all, the lead singer kept reminding me of another popular vocalist, and by the 4th song I realized who that was: Billy Joel lol!

Well, I pretty much got what I expected. A high energy concert, with lots of mega fans in the crowd. Most of the tracks were quite fun, though there were a couple of weaker points in the experience. There was also a fairly consistent undercurrent of weird cutting through several of the tracks - Surrender and Lookout being the two weirdest. Rating: 4. It's meant to make you want to dance, jump, and shout - a task it does pretty well. But I don't think it'll leave much of a lasting impact. A fun time, but one I'll likely have mostly forgotten by next week.

While the recording of Cheap Trick’s At Budokan sounds terribly muddled—maybe that’s just the way things sounded in 1979, or maybe the sound techs screwed something up—the album itself has fantastic energy. It’s the kind of live album where you can practically feel the electricity coming off the stage, even if you occasionally have to strain to hear what the hell is going on. It also contains the only good version of “I Want You to Want Me.” Played at a faster tempo, the song becomes an infectious little earworm rather than the boring slog-fest it is on the studio album. I’m not terribly familiar with Cheap Trick’s work. I know a handful of their songs, and I know they aren’t exactly revered here in the U.S. I’ve also heard they can be a bunch of buttholes, so there’s that. Still, I enjoyed the performance they put on for the sold-out Japanese crowds at Budokan in 1979. There’s an undeniable energy to the whole thing, and the audience seems completely fucking thrilled to be there. This is a solid 3.5 for me, although it’s sitting there with a smirk on its face, clearly thinking it’s going to talk me into a 4 by the time the dust settles. Only time will tell.

Prog rock this ain't. What it is though, is 70's rock at it's most enjoyable. Not all songs need to be thought-provoking or push boundaries. What's presented here is just energetic, straight-forward rock that is fun and enjoyable to listen to. These guys obviously thrive in a live situation. Had the recording technology of the time been better, we'd have had a clean and well mixed concert, but I think that would have stripped away part of what makes this album so infectious and fun to listen to.

Fundamentally a very silly record. Very rocking, but not as good as I would have hoped. I Want You To Want Me remains an absolute banger.

3.7

This is a very well produced and performed live album. I vaguely remember that this was huge in the 70s. It's not my favourite, but it still holds up today. Liked Songs Added: Surrender

Meh. Just meh. Not bad. But not very good either.

OK I know it's gonna sound braggy but I never get to brag about anything in my life so here it goes: I'm also from Rockford, Illinois and it's SO FUCKING COOL to be from the same place as these guys!!! Like you'll just be driving and you'll pass a road named after one of the members

A quick set and good live album.

Hello There. Surrender to this album.

Très sympa une petite vibe punk et pour une fois le live rend pas mal

Not for me. 1/5

Didn't like the live aspect and first couple of tracks so stopped listening

Сара 2,5 Марко 3,5

Yes, you have to listen to a Cheap Trick album before you die. Just good fun rock 'n' roll. I like that this album has all the hits. I do not like the quality of the recording. I generally like live recordings - gives things a certain feel - but the quality here was annoyingly poor. It would have been a 4 otherwise.

Cheap Trick is fun. I like power pop. Was really predisposed to like this, but I didn't really. I really don't care for the live recording at all. Would rather just listen to a proper album.

Forgot how many bangers Cheap Trick has. Man this rocks. So much fucking fun. My one little nit is I wish the vocals were a little bit more forward in the mix, but I also get it’s a live album from the 70s, that tech literally might not have been around. Otherwise, what an album. I listened to it 3,4 times yesterday. So easy going down. “Surrender” is one of those perfect songs.

I enjoyed this quite a bit. While I don't usually love live albums, it didn't bother me here. I think they sound great and it's perfect mixture pop and rock. You can feel how much they influenced 90s/2000s pop rock bands with their sound here. Surrender and I Want You To Want Me are classics. Not arguing they changed the world here but it's a really fun and enjoyable listen. Top Songs: Need Your Love, Big Eyes, Surrender, I Want You To Want Me

1/2

Highlights: I Want You To Want Me, Lookout. In a nutshell: big in Japan, gonna-be-big all over the world. Cheap Trick had a following in Japan and they took up the offer to record a live album there. What the band didn't prepare for was how popular they were going to get elsewhere with one song: "I Want You To Want Me" It's a fun listen. Nothing groundbreaking. Just a live power pop/rock album with a passionate crowd. I'll leave you with some trivia. According to the album's mixing supervisor Jack Douglas (as told on the podcast Magnificent Others with Billy Corgan), it's technically not "At Budokan". Douglas was contacted by Rick- the lead guitarist from Cheap Trick- when plans were underway for a 30th anniversary DVD release..."Rick calls me up. He goes, ‘We have the film from Budokan. We're going to do a 5.1 [mix]. I want you guys to mix a 5.1 version of it. And I said, ‘You have the film from Budokan?’ He goes, ‘Yeah, just use like kind of the same mix maybe as…’ I said, ‘But that mix is Osaka, remember?" Rick forgot that the Budokan recording was unlistenable (bad mic placement, tape quality, who knows how it happened) and the Osaka concert audio, recorded the night before, was used instead. (Source: Why Cheap Trick's 'At Budokan' Was Not Recorded at Budokan by Corey Irwin for ultimateclassicrock.com, Dec 2nd 2025) Overall: 5/10

i kind of hated this

Just a great rock and roll record. I often think I should delve deeper into their catalog but never bother to. And I believe that is ok. I don’t need more cheap trick. I like cheap trick but the hits are good enough. Kinda like the cars.

It's decent for a live album... but it's a live album. A live album has to be REALLY good in order for me to put up with all the cheering. I think this one would better belong as a studio recording.

Pleasantly surprised by this one. I think the live sound and atmosphere definitely helped make this one more enjoyable given my fairly mundane experience with their studio songs.

I kinda found it abit boring , where I kinda lost abit of interest in it . I did like surrender

Yep, that's what rock music sounds like

What an irritating mix. Seriously, having a wide, loud, detailed mix of the screaming female audience was a braindead choice. The music wasn't even that good.

This was a good live album. Good energy. Good crowd volume.

Don't know if I've ever listened to a Cheap Trick song before. This was pretty good for a live album, it had a really upbeat energy to it. It's also interesting as a break out release, something pretty rare for a world tour live album.

Still overpriced by my ears. Why does this effluent get on the list?

Not a fan of cheap trick or most live albums

5/5

I think Houmous & Chutney Live, Alive and Living is my favourite live album. 3.6 7/10 I want you to want me

2.70

Good level of energy carries this album, but I don't know how much that's from being a live album and how much is just Cheap Trick's musical cadence. As with many live albums, the recording leaves a little something to be desired and I don't really feel like there's anything to be added because there's no play between the crowd and the band, but Cheap Trick keeps jogging along at their power pop pace. I don't know how to describe this stuff: it's competent, it's energetic (I quality I always rate highly), and it doesn't take any wrong steps, but it's also not very interesting. Feels like background music for a party in the woods in the 70s.

han ich schomol öpis vo cheap trick glost?? hmm s isch rock so sehr afoch rock. mhm mhm. aso de erst song amel. es tönt nöd esooo guet. erst gad wieder teil vo allman brothers live at the fillmore glost und seb isch irgendwie 8 johr vorher und tönt um welte besser. so big eyes zum bispil isch no cool eigentli aber ich peil gad nonig wieso das so big söll sii? need your love au chli en naja vomne song. no lustig dass es live album ihren grösste erfolg isch. weiss nöd ob das bi irgendere andere band au de fall isch. he ich gseh nöd so ganz was ich söll mega geil finde a dem. normalerwiis 70er rock (oder power pop i dem fall?) findi huere geil aber das gitmer etz seeeehr wenig. aint that a shame baut seeehr geil uuf. ich wird langsam wärmer. sie hend scho bitz melodie. i want you to want me findi etz ehner geil. ich cha die sieche so nöd fasse irgendwie. er redt so komisch mit delüt? vlt meega dütlich wells in japan sind? oookaaay ich bin am aafang vlt chli unempfänglich gsii. sie sind no cool und huere tight und d songs sind nice und hend huere power (AHAAA DRUM POWERPOP). Glaub es vieri? vlt au nur 3. weisnöd.

High energy rock, power pop album. Pretty straightforward, sounds like cock rock to me. Not the best production but it was a fun listen. There are a couple killer tracks that I saved to my playlist but probably not rushing out to buy this one anytime soon.

Sound like a good time, the women obviously loved them but unfortunately I’m not the target demographic.

yeah it's just not for me

387/1089 okay so we have a live album from a show in japan, cool i’ve been enjoying it alright so far, not necessarily as something i’ll go back to but a good time… then the absolute banger that is Surrender comes on, love that This was a good album, didn’t overstay its welcome and was good vibes mostly faves: surrender, need your love 58/100

han s gfühl die chöntet no spassig sii aber mit gekreische im Hindergrund chani mi schwirig uf musig konzentriere. Darum mal es 2 - eifach fürs Live Album.

Sicher guet zum ablah aber vot besser es studium album anstatt ed live konzert uf de ohre z lose. Epische guitare flexes ume

Classic live album, became the definitive versions of most of these songs. Great performances and the energy of the band and the crowd is palpable.

01) Hello There - 6,5 02) Come On, Come On - 7,0 03) Lookout - 6,0 04) Big Eyes - 6,0 05) Need Your Love - 6,5 06) Ain't That a Shame - 6,5 07) I Want You to Want Me - 10,0 08) Surrender - 8,0 09) Goodnight Now - 6,0 10) Clock Strikes Ten - 6,0 TOTAL: 6,85 (69/100)

This was OK, it's funny that they used audio from another show in Osaka and he still says "all right Tokyo!" at the start. I wonder if the audience was confused, but they seemed to scream in approval anyway I don't know if I'd consider this a remarkable live album. The audience screams occasionally at certain moments but it's not like there's a huge amount of crowd work, and the songs seem fairly standard to me (albeit I don't know the studio versions of most of them, other than I Want You To Want Me and Surrender). It sounds like an energetic and fun show but file this under the live albums that I don't think I needed to hear really

Love this band, great band!

Pretty poor predictable rock, they don’t seem particularly tight as a band either.

Fine. Want you to want me into Surrender is the highlight

So tired of this genre. Just not into it anymore. I don't really get why this is a live album either. It's not particularly special. Just squeaks in as a 3

3.5

This is ok. Seems like an energetic performance to an appreciative crowd. They have a couple of decent songs.

אלבום מצויייןןן אהבתי ממש

I’m not a huge fan of this record. Cheap Trick have always been fun, but this sounds flat and the vocals too far behind the guitar. I also didn’t feel the live performance added anything, the excitement and energy were not something I felt. I didn’t hate it but it wouldn’t be a first choice.

Fun live album

The Cheap Trick set was fun, but not all that engaging.

I love Cheap Trick but Live albums (with a few notable exceptions) have no place on this list

(3/5) My favorite musician, Tom Waits, has a song, "Big in Japan". He laments that while he is very popular in Japan he doesn't see the same level of popularity in the US and elsewhere. Cheap Trick's "At Budokan" feels like this. Maybe they were popular there, but there's no accounting for tastes. I don't think they're bad, but they are clearly bigger in Japan (if the screams are any indication).. I find the music kinda generic. I can't find many more words to describe it, and as live albums go it's... Fine? I'm ambivalent (shrug).

The name of the band says it all. Never been a big fan, though I'll admit that they put on a solid live show when I saw them open for Journey. That didn't quite translate to this live album for some reason, and it's surprising that their entry on this list is this one. Maybe pulling a live album in was their way of sneaking in a greatest hits album to a list that's not supposed to include greatest hits, but none of these tracks are the best version of their respective song. I'll still round it up from a 2.5/5 for its highlights, but doubt I'll revisit it (or them) anytime soon without prompting.

160. At Budokan - Cheap Trick (1979) 8.1.26 LIVE: Variety: 3 Adequacy: 3 Listenability: 3 Uniqueness: 1 Emotionality: 3 = 2.6 rounded up to a 3 ALBUM CUTS: Variety: 4 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 3 Emotionality: 3 = 4.0 "Hello there, ladies and gents, are you ready to rock?/ Are you ready or not?" Just after an album where we ended up with an exception to my general belief that double albums are inherently messy and bloated, we get to test my similar assertion that most live albums are pretty lame listening experiences. This usually comes down to 1) sloppier playing by bands who put out impeccable, well-crafted albums making anything live sound bad by comparison ( performers from around the middle or before of the last Century fare much better in this respect as they were just generally more seasoned live performers) 2) The annoying crowd noises 3) The "you had to be there factor" - I don't really care too much about hearing OTHER people have a good time. It's not that infectious via the audio format. Most of the time. There can be exceptions. Most live sets I like are usually accompanied by video, which makes this more tolerable. 4) Due to talent, time constraints, and the whims of the band, the songs are often changed so much from the version you love on the album, it becomes a bit disappointing 5) The Production quality is shit 99% of the time. Now that we've got a level set, let's dive in. I've got opinions on this one having heard it more than a few times ( I do like Cheap Trick quite a bit as a band), but we're saving those for after. I will be taking this opportunity to compare and contrast to the original album cuts where available, listening to the original first when I remember to. Let's go! THE TRACKS Side one "Hello There" - Putting aside accusations of "sweetening", the production on this is immediately apparently ... good. It's not amazing, as the Zander's vocals are a bit muddy, and Carlos's drums are a bit tinny. The Nielsen's guitar is appropriately crunchy though, and most importantly Petersson's bass sound big and fat. The excitement in the air is palpable, and the boys keep it fairly faithful to the original until Carlos gets a fun little drum solo moment at the end. If they don't open every concert with this song, then what are they doing? In Color Version: Just as big and bold as the live version, if a lot cleaner and clearer. Some would say "but the live version adds another level!" and sure, I can see that, but I much prefer the album cut as a song. It's a perfect example of the heavier side of the power pop equation, and loses nothing in that it was assembled and put together in a studio space. "Come On, Come On" - An admirable facsimile of the album version, but loses some of the dreaminess of the production, but it works still, even through the mud. The worst part is that the backing vocals are so low in the mix. The best part is the super hot crowd. In Color Version: The guys took the Big Star/ Badfinger formula ( that owed a HUGE debt to the Beatles) and made it sound big and epic on this track. This is peak power pop my friends, melodic hooks aplenty, and just the right amount of distortion on the guitar tone and the dreamy echoey vocals. This is sickly sweet bubblegum pop in hard rock/ drag. "Lookout" - I was expecting a bit of familiarity bias here as the ONLY version of this I had heard before was this one. Man, I'm really torn here. This is almost as good as the studio cut, and maybe even a bit more poppy with some of the aggro turned down. But not quite. Cheap Trick version ( bonus track): The first time I've heard this version. A boogie rocker that prefigures Billy Joel's delivery on "I May be Right" and welds it to a driving, and almost art-punky guitar sound that would not sound out of place on any given, more melody friendly post-punk album. "Big Eyes" - This bigger and fuller than the album but, but Zander's voice is a little anemic here, and we lose some of the subtle phrasing that can be heard in the original. If I were there, front row for this I might have a different opinion, but is just fine. In Color Version: HUGE drum sound right off the bat here, along with the slightly menacing guitar riff, and Zander if full rock voice mode, this sound predicts the 80s glam sound more than a little bit. "Need Your Love" - The live version is adequate, but feels like a by the numbers version of the studio version in nearly every respect. They band could have just taken a break hear and let the original play while they all freshened up. Dream Police Version: By this point the band had been a Billboard mainstay for a few years, and this album has the feel of a more seasoned band who can take their time, and who aren't as worried about impressing you with speed and aggression. This track establishes a midtempo groove and stays in that pocket for the duration, with occasional stops into some very Aerosmithy territory along the way. Even more proof of their influence on the decade's hair metal bands. It's very easy to imagine a cover of this by the likes of Poison for example. Love the little repetitive guitar riff that seems to be nodding at "Get it On" by T. Rex. Side two "Ain't That a Shame" - One of the few tracks they never recorded in the studio ( at least that I could find) and a great choice for a surprise reinterpretation of a classic. And man, do they re-interpret the shit out of it. Van Halen's self-titled had been out for a few months when this was recorded, and I wonder if their cover of "You really Got Me" by the Kinks had anything to do with this. Though I think the 50's nostalgia was already in full effect by this point in the decade. Fun stuff, but it gets very noodly and indulgent near the end. And of course it's light years Fat's Domino's original. "I Want You to Want Me" - I would call this familiarity bias again if it just wasn't so utterly and completely clear that the live version of this kicks the original's ass in every way. It's lively and infectious, and maybe the only live track on the whole album that gets the live feel across the best with the little bit of audience participation, and even the lyrics seem tailored made to a live experience. Awesome shit, and no wonder this is the cut that they play on the radio to this day. In Color Version: The album cut of this is very fine stuff, but it's SO much more sedate, and almost uptight in comparison. It's got a very Beatlesy, jaunty piano driven ( we get a saloon solo at one point) melody, with some great bass underneath. The finger snaps are a great touch. It just CANNOT compare to the live cut, and is the one version on here ( spoilers) that I think this will be true of, despite being great in its own right. "Surrender" - The live version mix is so bad. You can barely hear all the little touches, like the dancing synth line at the beginning. And Zander sounds TIRED AS FUCK during this. On top of that the guitar work is all simplified and Carlos even sounds like he's taking half a smoke break while he continues playing with one arm. As much as I love the song itself - this does it no justice, and saps the magic from . Heaven Tonight Version: This song is in the running in my opinion for one of my favorite songs of all time. It's hard to pick one as it changes on mood, time of the day, current interests, etc... But this one is always up there. It's got everything - pounding rhythms, crunchy guitars, S-Tier melodies, hooks galore, instrumentation that stands the test of time, great vocals and harmonizing, and it's fucking weird and charming lyrics still work for me. I love it so much that there was a song that hit $62 in the Billboard Top 100 in the year of our lord 1978, that talked about an STD that caused your dick to fall off. Hilarious, and one of the biggest earworms I've ever had the pleasure to have heard. "Goodnight Now" - Another one I'm fairly certain they never cut in the studio, but it hardly matters as it's really just a reprise of "Hello There" with just minor differences. Clever, but not clever enough. "Clock Strikes Ten" - The clock effect works a little bit better here in the live version, and where the band makes me think of the Sweet in the original, the heavier, more energetic version here reminds me more of Motley Crue, a tiny bit sloppier and lewd sounding in Zander's delivery. I guess I was wrong, and there was at least one other live track that I prefer. In Color Version: We start with some guitar notes emulating a clock and then immediately jump into a fuzzed out little rocker that feels a lot like something you might hear on an album by the Sweet, who were maybe a bit more glam, but nicely analogous to Cheap Trick's sound. HIGHLIGHTS - "Hello There" - "Come On, Come On" - "Lookout" - "Big Eyes" - "I Want You to Want Me" - "Clock Strikes Ten" MIDLIGHTS - "Need Your Love" - "Ain't That a Shame" LOWLIGHTS - "Surrender" - "Goodnight Now" FINAL THOUGHTS It's telling that during this little experiment, I ended up listening to all four of the studio albums this thing drew from right after. As decent as this thing is, and it's very solid, it just doesn't hold a candle ( in almost every case) to the album cuts which are just better sounding in almost every way. It's not just the production quality though, the energy on the live album, while fine * better than most actually) is not that much different from what the studio cuts are giving back to me, and the crowd noise while more adorable than annoying, just adds run time that doesn't need to be there. I come to power pop for the melodies, the crunchy and sometimes jangly guitars, and the harder take on the sort of hook-laden disposable late 60s pop sound. It's probably my favorite sub-genre of music if I had to pick ( post-punk and new wave are not genres, despite what you have been told maybe "conceptual medium" would be a better term?) and Cheap Trick are a band that consistently, at least for their first four albums were the apex predators of the form, eating up the chart space and driving all the smaller acts out of the forest, and forcing them to scramble and fight over the scraps. The Cars I think were maybe their biggest competitors, but were so stylistically unique that they confounded the label, and despite coming from the same starting point ended up some place way weirder. It's a shame that this is the one example of Cheap Trick on the list, when I think any of their first 3 would have been better choices, especially In Color or Heaven Tonight. If you liked this one at all, do yourself a favor and check out those first three at the very least, though Dream Police is also very good and the two after that are each half of a very good time. Venture past '83 or so though, and I can't be held responsible for any audio abominations you might happen upon. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Let's take the best of both worlds and see if we can make a superior cut: Side One - "Hello There" (studio cut) - "Come On, Come On" (studio cut) - "Lookout" (studio cut) - "Big Eyes" (studio cut) - "Need Your Love" (studio cut) Side two - "Ain't That a Shame" No known studio cut, so we're keeping this one - "I Want You to Want Me" (live cut) - "Surrender" (studio cut) - "Goodnight Now" - No known studio cut, so we're keeping this one - "Clock Strikes Ten" (live cut) FURTHER LISTENING - Live at Leeds by the Who - Frampton Comes Alive! by Peter Frampton - Alive! by Kiss - The Song Remains the Same by Led Zeppelin - All the World’s a Stage by Rush

I found out this was recorded in Osaka and not Tokyo as advertised. Can’t get behind such deception. I’m knocking some marks off for that. All in all it was a fine album of live rock music. I enjoyed it for that for as long as I was listening to it, but not much farther than that. I get it blew up as a live recording which can still be novel even today. I’ve always kinda digged live tracks, so if this encouraged more of those then bully to Cheap Trick. 3/5

It would be fun to perform this music live and control the crowd, that is to say it is boring but masks itself with driven guitar. Drums and bass are no-shows. All this to say, there are still fun songs and a decent cover, but that does not makes it a good album.

nice enough

A great, and kinda underrated live album. Cheap Trick has a lot of charm and sound fantastic throughout this record.

This was one of the best live albums I’ve listened to. The connectedness of each of the songs helped the flow of it super well, the instrumentation and groove of the songs worked very well and I appreciated how well each of the songs evolved as they continued

This is pretty good up until Ain’t It A Shame and then the rest of the album is awesome. It’s somewhere between a 6/10 and a 7/10 for me.

A pretty solid album, it's pretty awesome that to hear the pre-studio version of Surrender.

didn’t realize we were doing live albums too. i’m rarely ever a fan of that. this wasn’t the exception. i guess they picked this one because of the song selections? it does have their hits. but it still doesn’t make sense to me. are we also doing greatest hits albums as best of albums? i think that’s just wrong. i was under the impression this was a collection of the greatest albums. if we’re counting collections of greatest hits and live albums that just seems lazy and like cheating? a great album is one that was planned out as an album. if it’s just a collection of songs that were hits or something then what’s the difference of just listening to a playlist with their singles? idk. seems dumb. so much music out there and we’re giving the honor of being considered a greatest album of all time to collections of songs and not real albums. bizarre.

Good live album, would prefer listening to the regular songs though, I like the Tokyo atmosphere and the songs are solid

I listened to this twice and get the love for Cheap Trick but not this album. I've seen Cheap Trick live and they were fun. Maybe it was because I kept comparing that show to this album in my head. It's hard to capture that energy from a recording in the 70's to a haze filled drunk memory.

Really enjoyed this one - need to go back and listen to those first few albums again, I remember enjoying them the first time around...

So Cheap Trick is a guilty pleasure of mine! I saw them at the Pima County Fair back in the 2000’s and they were awesome! Also, this is a good live album too! Did the Beastie Boys sample “This is a new song of our new album”. If not it sounds very similar!!!!

It always seemed (given the amount of copies available at the record/thrift stores) that this album and Frampton Comes Alive were the biggest live albums to come from the seventies. I like the story that the reputation of this album grew their fan base in the US. Ultimately I thought it was just fine. I liked a few songs, the second half was stronger to me. Glad to have finally heard it but probably won’t listen again. 2.5 stars

Not bad recording quality for an older live album. The hits are fun, but the rest of the album felt a little flat as far live music goes.

Love the opening ("Hello There") and closing songs ("Goodnight Now")....this version of "I Want You To Want Me" is still an all-time banger and it's laughable how much better it is than the album version. "Surrender" also still holds up. Solid listen.

I'm quite glad they chose to include this one live album as a sort of best-of guide to Cheap Trick rather than putting us through multiple albums as has been the case with countless other middling rock acts. It's fine, good when it's good, slightly odd decision to include the 'Ain't That A Shame' cover but Surrender and Big Eyes were worth the price of admission, just about.

im gonna be honest, i decided to use my free will on this one and not listen to it, because by looking at the reviews i didn't lose anything

I know Cheap Trick only from Billy Corgan saying they were one of his fave bands back in the 90s... and, as it turned out, the song I Want You to Want Me. It didn't resonate with me at all, coming across as a precursor to 80s AOR and arena rock that was just never really my thing.

Meah

Cheap Trick was my favorite band when I was a kid. Everyone else liked KISS (who I always thought never musically lived up to their image) but, I thought Cheap Trick was more authentic and fun. It’s kind of crazy that both bands made it big off of live albums. It’s a different energy that’s hard to capture in a studio. Cheap Trick was also the first concert I saw without my parents. I know a lot of people don’t get this band and I’m not trying to change anyone’s mind, but if you don’t like Cheap Trick, even a little bit, you’re no fun to be around. Sorry. I don’t make the rules. 4.3

Great. A band I’ve never heard of before, which is why I started (but have become jaded after repeat listens of Bowie and Elvis Costello) this in the first place. A red flag is that this is a live album, which aren’t great unless you really like crowd noise. Sadly, the music isn’t great and because it’s a live album the actual music is only about 80% of the album running.

​Cheap Trick at Budokan isn't just a great live album; it's a essential time capsule of a band operating at absolute peak confidence. It bridges the gap between the melodic sweetness of the Beatles and the heavy, raucous swagger of 1970s hard rock.

Thought I was just listening to one long song. It’s just all a bit screamy and very forgettable

There are a lot of live albums on this list. I’m really familiar with many of these songs. The songs aren’t really songs of substance but are really great pop tunes. They knew their audience. The cheering girls in the crowd going crazy. The music was decent and I thought it was definitely a solid live album. Did I need to hear this live album before I died probably not but I don’t think it’s bad. I don’t think it’s great either but I did sing along to the songs that I knew and that was about four or five.

Fantastic! I love the energy, I love the songs. They're playing really tight and with a lot of stoke. Surrender is such a banger, its wild this was the live debut. I was drawn in by the punk influence that kind of sits behind the music. They're really playing with an edge and working that muscle, but then its kind of wrapped up in pop rock shell that absolutely slaps. Is this proto-pop-punk? IDK, but it rocks.

I honestly didn't think this would be up my street, but this live record is an absolute vibe, and much better than the studio recordings, which is the first time I think I've ever felt that way. Favourite tracks: Hello There, Big Eyes, Need Your Love, I Want You to Want Me, Surrender, Goodnight.

liked it more than I expected, couldn't really point out half the songs as Cheap Trick tracks if you played them for me tomorrow, but good fun and just a solid performance. Favorite Track: Surrender

YES! YES! One of my favorite live LPs !!!

Crazy they said, and I quote "Casey I want you to want me" in the song

It's a 4.5/5 butttt I absolutely loved it!!! Special mention to the band behind one of my favorite songs from Top Gun.

THIS NEXT ONE IS OUR FIRST SONG ON OUR NEW ALBUM…AND ITS CALLED SURRENDER Cinema 🙌

Gets vetter everytime I listen. There are better versions of most of these songs, but this is still Cheap Tricks master work.

A legendary live albuk release. My mom has always loved Cheap Trick. Must have been a "had to be there" band for me because I really only care about the big hits. They're talented and can really make a nice pop tune, all this album is missing for me is the 2 big singles off "Dream Police", which wasn't for another year after this. They sound good, and the crowd absolutely loves them. High 3 for me though, as it's just alright other than the singles

More big show / look at us hold our guitars in the air than writing and performing songs for their own sake. But that’s not just cheap trick, it’s the whole pop glam rock piece, of which this was a fair enough example.

The worst co-worker I've ever had was the President of the Cheap Trick fan club. I am horribly but unavoidably biased against Cheap Trick as much as I am against Loverboy. Dipshit's a city councillor in Vanouver now, to boot.

Another live album. Captures the band. Likely won’t listen to it again.

This recording sounds like a bootleg. Some great songs on here but the sound quality is ass.

I liked this a lot, however…I found the crowd noise to be incredibly annoying. It sounds like faked dubbed-in screeching of about a dozen junior high girls. It really detracted from the album, at least for me. If I ignore this flaw, and I will, it gets four stars.

Fun live rock experience

Was alright. Prefer the studio versions of these songs, but this collects them into one place like a greatest hits album. Not the greatest recording.

Overall: 4/10 This will dissapoint my dad and all the other dad's out there, but I find Cheap Trick incredibly boring. This album just proved to me that they're even more boring when they're live! Just a bunch of boring riffs and stupid lyrics. Fav Song: Surrender

Went into this feeling very sceptical with it being a live album, but loved it. Last 4 songs are all absolute bangers.

Gives The Who's Live at Leeds a run for its money for best live album ever. Absolute perfection.

One of the great "live" albums.

First of all as I have said before, I am not a big fan of Live albums being on this list. I have accepted the ones that have some kind of historical significance. I don't feel Cheap Trick at Budokan is a historically significant album, its just their biggest selling album. The funny thing while listening, is as I have heard this version of "I Want You To Want Me" a million times. I started thinking, have I ever heard the studio version? So I listened to that track afterwards and its like night and day! I can see why we all remember the Live version and the studio version is forgotten.

Fuuuuck offffff Absolutely soulless "rock" The imagine dragons of the 70s

Classic 70s live album, it brought the band to a much wider audience. I remember that we were fascinated with Rick Nielsen's five neck guitar! It's been decades since I heard this so I'm enjoying it's fun hard rock vibes this morning

energy. rock and roll. fun.

Ну норм. Есть интересные песни (Surrender, Goodnight), но чего-то невообразимо крутого я не нашел. Впрочем, слушать было приятно.

At Budokan - Cheap Trick ⭐️⭐️⭐️ I recognize that this album has the most famous version of I Want You to Want Me. And also the intro to Surrender that was famously sampled by the Beastie Boys. But as a collection, I don’t see what exactly pushes this good but not great live collection into legendary status. It does sound authentic and not over produced or polished, but otherwise it’s just fine and not much more.

I'd never heard of the band before. Not my cup of tea. I can see the points of similarity with later indie rock, but this is still a bit hard-rock for my tastes. The production quality is not great, and there were no stand out songs for me.

Good songs are good

Energia jest, chwytliwe numery są, czegoś jednak brakuje. Już nie wspominając o tym, że płyty live nie powinny się tu znajdować. 5.5/10

Yeah, good

That high pitch audience cheering only adds to the greatness of this album.

Surrender is special because it's one of the opening tracks to Guitar Hero 2, one of the games that had me start actually enjoying music. And I Want You to Want Me is an awesome song. But the rest of this album is pretty mid and I think it's largely held back by being live. The production sound is lower, energy is ok, but I think I would have enjoyed it a bit more of it were crisper. Nothing particularly striking in the music besides the two hits for me.

Ah, the seventies. Package all the hits into a live album and sell it off for $$$. I quite like Cheap Trick. Here they are touring my favourite song (Surrender! Absolute banger!). In fact, I think the version of I Want You to Want Me is actually more popular than the original. However, I always find live albums a bit drab. You get all the atmosphere that you often push out when seeing a band play live. They're tight and the sound quality isn't awful. But I'm not enough of a Cheap Trick fan to savour every note. I'd rather just have an album, isn't that the point of this experience? 4 Stars, I sang a long hard to Surrender!

This is like Friday night at the roller rink. You and your friends are there, looking fly and skating some sharp trails through the crowds. You feel cool, almost to the point that you are intimidating the others at the rink. There is a children’s birthday party there though, and they are distractingly loud throughout the night.

Some nice hits played live.

ome decent catchy power pop. Confused why including live version over the studio version as personally find the sound quality quite muffled and the vocals a bit lost - plus the crowd interaction does not really add much. Would possibly score a 4 if was studio album as the tunes are good - was going to give it a 3 but then heard the last two tracks. Goodnight would be bad enough on its own but to include all the encore B/S (I really don't like the faux predictability of encores) looses it another point.

Still not a fan of live albums. The 'energy' in this one is just a load of screaming teenage girls. That's just a band ego boaster, not energy. The radio seems to only play this live version of I Want You to Want Me - I don't get that. It's a catchy little 70s pop number - so is Surrender - when listening to the better sounding, studio recorded versions.

Primer disco en vivo que me toca. La verdad que me gustó mucho. No conocía a la banda.

maybe my ears are broken but I struggle to hear this clearly. probably pretty good though

Cheap Trick rule. Where exactly is Budokan? I’d prefer it remain a mystery. Bonus points because I then put on ‘He’s A Whore’

I'm not gonna say 5 BUT it's good fun. People that don't like live albums on principle are narcs.

I do not believe I had to listen to this album before I die,

Okay

That was ok but why on earth is the album here on the list?

why

Good crowd and energy. 3.8/5

Hay algunas muy buenas

Didnt found that interesting i feel like its one of the million rock bands out there but i respect them.

Classic.

This is a great live rock album and I thoroughly enjoyed it. 'Need Your Love' in particular had a great groove

I liked it, I liked need your love and surrender a lot

Was really quite unremarkable for me until I suddenly started recognizing everything

I liked the last half of this album a lot more than the first - it was fine not my fav

Yeah this was a great live album, mixed well and just a fun listen overall

Hey I like Cheap Trick and I'm sure these were fun shows to be at, but I'm not sure the energy translates well on this record. For every banger they have two mid-songs and I didn't enjoy this album half as much as I thought I would going in to it. I want you to want me and Surrender are great but... did I actually enjoy the studio versions more? Hmm. It's scraping a 2.5

Never been a big fan of live albums. This one is no exception. The audio is messy with lots of screams. It probably would've been fun to be there in person, but a recording after the fact is less so. A couple songs are enjoyable, Surrender especially. I also have a personal hatred for I Want You to Want Me. It plays on the radio all the time, and it's just not that good of a recording or song. I don't understand how it's stuck around this long. All in all, it's disappointing.

It’s pop rock but that’s ok. It’s ok to have fun with rock and roll.

#967. Every time I hear Cheap Trick, I think of the scene from Devil's Rejects where Brian Posehn is wearing a Cheap Trick shirt talking about being a rodeo clown. 3/5: you know I could've been on that pit crew down in North Carolina

Some decent catchy power pop. Confused why including live version over the studio version as personally find the sound quality quite muffled and the vocals a bit lost - plus the crowd interaction does not really add much. Would possibly score a 4 if was studio album as the tunes are good - was going to give it a 3 but then heard the last two tracks. Goodnight would be bad enough on its own but to include all the encore B/S (I really don't like the faux predictability of encores) looses it another point.

At Budokan I don’t really know Cheap Trick, I’ve never listened to one of their albums and the only track I could name would be I Want You To Want Me, so this all feels a bit lost on me, especially as the sound is quite poor and muffled. Reading about them I think I might actually like some of their stuff, and from listening I get the gist of them perhaps being Todd Rundgren/Journey adjacent. But the live setting, the sub par sound quality and the overall vibe just isn’t that engaging without really knowing the studio recordings. I’ll go 2, there’s not much reason to listen to it again, I’d rather try one of their proper albums 🇯🇵🇯🇵 Playlist submission: I Want You To Want Me

Not sure what I expected, but this is decent meat n potatoes rock. Touching on glam guitars in places; very much a Britpop style of 'wall of sound' distortion and chord work. Most of the drum beats start off like the disposable glam hits of Mud or The Sweet. This is not to get carried away as it's hardly mind-blowing stuff. 'Big Eyes' has that glam, camp theatricality which is quite enjoyable - but singing "big eyes" to a load of Japanese is quite offensive and wouldn't be acceptable these days. 'Need Your Love' sounds like a more edgy Bay City Rollers, borne out by the fact that the crowd seem to be a load of screaming adolescent girls. Its protraction to nearly nine minutes is completely unwarranted (in a song with some otherwise nicely concise hooks). The needless 'Ain't That a Shame' cover is made 10 times worse by the incongruous dive bomb. But 'I Want You to Want Me' is the low point whereby different verbs are substituted throughout in what they seemingly think is clever wordplay ("I need you to need me, I'd love you to love me, I beg you to beg me, I'd fist you to fist me" etc). Despite the disposability there's a real knack for a catchy tune and it's infectiously upbeat. It's like the American Status Quo perhaps. It's so infectious that even the Osakan crowd continue screaming when they say "Goodnight Tokyo!".

A really good live show that I have never heard before today. Nice to hear the audience going crazy over every song. Several big hits performed flawlessly in addition to many other less popular songs. A little bit of crowd interaction but nothing distracting. It's a really good live album.

not the best live album out there, not the best at the Budokan either. However was a very good listen. Would go and see them again

I'd rather be there than listen to this. Sounds like a fun gig. Not the best band, best songs or sound quality, but I'd have a blast if I was there.

It’s ok for what it is, but is it one of the best 1001 albums ever made? No. Is there anything special or unique that would make it be an album you need to hear before you die? Nope.

cheap trick la mejor banda del mundo la verdad es que no me disgusto pero mas alla de la canciones que conocemos no es algo fuera de ste mundo sobre todo por que es un album en vivo

Just dont love live albums.

I firmly believe that live albums are for the folks who went. 3/5

⭐⭐⭐ Inte dåligt. Det är energi och jag ogillar inte musiken. Vet inte om jag tycker att det faktum att det är ett live-album tillför så mycket till materialet, men det är energi och engagerande. Låtmatrialet är medel, finns lite instrumentala partier jag gillar. Skulle kunna lyssna på det igen men kommer förmodligen glömma bort det så det blir en 3a. Bäst är Surrender, Need your love, I want you to want me

Washing machine fixing album.

This is a fun album, there's a lot of energy from both the crowd and the band. As far as live albums go, this one is solid. The production is a little rough though, and I'm disappointed that this is Cheap Trick's only showing on this list.

Not feeling the hype here. These songs are ok, but the recording is disappointing. I steer clear of live albums from this era (sans the Dead) for that reason. The screaming girls? Is that overdubbed? When a live record is regarded as a bands best release, im always a bit apprehensive amd this is why

it's nothing i haven't heard before but that doesn't mean it's bad. i like it! because it's my taste! #pureofheart fave track: big eyes

*Sounds good live but don't love too many of their songs

It seems odd to have a live/best-of album by a (then) obscure American band performing in front of thousands of screaming Japanese fans to be the lone Cheap Trick selection for this project, but since this was also their most popular and best-selling album of their entire career, I guess it also makes sense. I didn't recognize all that much from the album except their big hits "I want you to want me" and "Surrender" (and maybe their nice cover of Fats Domino's "Ain't that a shame"), and I was pretty underwhelmed by both their setlist and the production quality, but it certainly sounded like they and their fans enjoyed the show. Funny too to read that the album is actually from a show in Osaka rather than at Tokyo's much larger Bodukan theater; I can't imagine how bad the Bodukan tapes must have sounded like to make them choose what seems like a pretty bad recording. But either way, it's nice to see that their relentless touring schedule and work ethic paid off, first in Japan and then in the US, and largely continues to this day.

drum-forward arena rock--Surrender is the stand out track.

I think this list has more non-Japanese bands playing live in Japan then it does Japanese bands in general. Anyways, this is slush except for the one song everyone knows, which is degraded by being next to all the similar sounding bad tracks. It's so deeply empty and soulless, the entire thing is sung in this resigned tone that results in even the band sounding bored. The only positive I'll say is that the audience at the Budokan are almost a character into themselves. You can tell they're so deeply into it, the cheers at the end of the songs are immense. This list just fundamentally irritates me that at the height of City Pop THIS is one of the only things here that was recorded in Japan.

Ugh, another live album, they rarely live up to the hype! 2* Super mid, why is this on here? Maybe the guy talking about the Japan obsession was right on point. Did this get big only because of "i want you to want me" and "surrender"?

A highly average album by a highly average band. No idea why it is on this list, there's literally nothing special about it? It's not bad, it's definitely not good either, just bland? It's okay, not every painting must be Mona Lisa, but they also better not end up on this list. So there; if you like music played in strict 4/4 rhythm (I didn't listen super closely but I couldn't hear the drums playing even halves at any point in the album, lol) I guess it's fine. For me it's a 1,5 only saved by the fact that I still expect "true" 1's later on.

It's good, but I'm not a fan of live albums in general.

I bet this concert was cool as fuck.

a lot of energy but live albums without knowing much from a band never hit that much

Usually a live album gets hyped up because of the raw energy that a live performance puts off. This was dull and muffled. Sounded like sitting outside of the venue and listening to the noise that escaped out the door when it opened. All that to say, it's still a fun listen.

High energy, great performances on all instruments, catchy songs.

I'm sure it's part nostalgia, but this is one of the best live albums ever! It sounds like you're sitting in the arena with the thousands of always screaming fans listening to the band in top form. The cover of Ain't That a Shame is excellent, a wonderful nod to a legend.

Soft rock played well in the Budokan stadium. Tuneful enough, but not enough to get the blood racing. Tell that to the hordes of Japanese chicks having multiple orgasmas and/or being ritually disembowelled (judging by the hysteria of the screams).

I think it’s really telling that the only good songs are the ones I’ve heard of on this.

Cheap Trick sound exactly as their name suggests. A cheap rock ’n’ roll trick or, to put it a bit more sexistly: hard rock for little screaming Japanese girls. Because if you strip away the screeching during the concert recording, the flowing manes, the unbuttoned shirts and the bare chests on display, all that’s left is very ordinary boogie rock, somewhere between Status Quo and the Bay City Rollers. Cheesy pop music for teenagers, with electric guitars and simple lyrics about love and heartbreak.

An aggressively middling collection of songs elevated by live energy, like giving flavour to white bread with condiments but forgetting the ingredients to make it a sandwich.

They are really good and letting know what they want, which of course is our love, and for us to want them. Despite it being a live album, I can't help but give it to them!

Well here we got a little live record of classic rock. Its exactly that and not anything more. Im not a huge cheap trick guy to be fair. So I really didnt get thay much out of this. Japan really loves that 70s rock stuff, thats for sure. Ive had a couple of these types of live record now. Im not sure why but they show up. They are real loud between tracks. Its nice to hear. But the music itself is pretty no frills. Nothing too far outside what they put in the official recording. At least it doesnt feel like it. All the songs are 3 to 5 minutes long and it feels right tome wise. Wrll im getting too deep into the minutiae at this point and I wouldn't say thats all that helpful or insightful but I liked it well enough but I dodnt love it in any way either. Listen if your a big cheap trick person but I dont think its necessary if you are not

Like most albums at 5am, it benefits greatly from a cup of coffee and a 2nd listen. It has good energy. Rick Nielson has always been an above average guitar player. These cats were pretty big throughout the 80's with a bunch of hits. This album is much better than some of the reviews would have you believe.

Absolute gem of an album. The guitar in this is pretty nuts. Will listen to this again for sho

My first ever live album in this journey I’m listening to so this better be lit. I’ve always been a fan of live performances of songs ever since I went to the Kesha tits out tour concert last year. Hello there was a great way to introduce the concert cause it was like a greeting to Japan in a way introducing themselves and getting the audience hyped for the performance. Really feels like I’m a concert of there’s fr with the crowd cheers. Big Eyes def a fav song from this. The vocals especially are great here.

When they play it live, they play it LOUD.

There wasn't enough good about this. The one song I know is because of a cover I like of it.

Had to turn off midway through the second song. Misophonia kicked in hard - such a bad recording of mediocre power pop. Started listening to Robyn's new one instead. Lovely stuff.

In stead of this garbage, I listened to Milton Naciemento and Lo Borges' album Clube Da Esquina. That is a true 5 star experience. This garbage I can't even get through one song. How cringe is this? It's not aged very well.

Cheap Music Best Song: I Want You to Want Me Rating: 5.5/10 Stars: 3 (barely)

Not a Cheap Trick fan and so hearing them live doesn’t do anything for me.

A decent live album but is suspect you’d have to be a fan of the band to truly love it

Cheaply recorded and mastered. Really was supposed to be a Japanese cheap trick of an album. The story is cool, it’s a great rock and roll saga, but the songs themselves fell flat for me today. Non of the high school exuberance I used to be able to work up. Skip to I Want You To Want me and Surrender for the whole story.

Ännu mer live-musik. Åh fan om det inte är rätt bra. Å då menar jag både musiken å att det är live. Känner ju igen "i want you to want me" men i princip ett okänt band. Tycker just den låten inter bäst heller. Det är skön, melodisk rock som har feeling (extra pga live...)

Reagerade direkt på den dåliga inspelningen, vilken tyvärr ligger som en våt filt över hela skivan. Bortsett från den så var jag måttligt imponerad till en början, men det tar sig verkligen under den andra halvan. Det är hyfsat generisk rock men melodiöst och lätt att gilla. Kan dock inte låta bli att väga in det usla, instängda ljudet som drar ned hela upplevelsen och tyvärr också betyget. Annars rätt kul!

Not a very good live album.

Power pop at its finest. Spurred on by all the adoring screaming girls, the guys jammed their hits with more energy and a faster beat than the studio versions. The result: good songs transformed into great songs.

Good album nothing really to say other than I couldn’t really understand what they were saying in the songs

good for them japanese that they like this typa shit

Sunday, 17 May, 2026 Rick Nielsen and Bun E. Carlos push this record into upper echelons. Screaming Japanese girls brings it down a bit. Some legendary recordings.

I am not big on most live albums of this era. The sound is too airy for my liking. I do believe this album took Cheap Trick to their next level in their career and increased their fan base. The live performance of I Want You To Want Me was a game changer.

Know that 1 song, that's it I think. First impression is, it sounds shit. Sound kind of glam rock. Another album with a song about little girls. Couple of long songs really drag it down. 2.5 rounded down Heard before? Some Owned: No 74/295 (24%) Will I get: No

Don't really know Cheap Trick well at all, except for one song which thankfully is on here. I liked the first three tracks, but I found the chorus of Big Eyes annoying, it was then rescued by a strong middle section before it petered out a bit towards the end. If I was to rank all the albums in this list from best to worst, which I'm not going to because frankly who has the time for that, it feels pretty safe to say this would be pretty close to the platonic ideal of what should be slap bang in the middle.

Great live album, at least half.

huh its ok and its nice to hear all the teenage japanese girls screaming 4.5/5

Decent live album

Cheap Trick is a weird, weird band. The sort of power ballad-y pop-rock group they became in the 80s ("The Flame" - UGH) isn't visible here at all, and that's a great thing. These dudes can straight up rock, and it's really a testament to weird ass, dress-like-a-dork-on-purpose Rick Nielsen's songwriting. The live setting also serves them well, as the greater vocal fry, the raw screams on some of the songs ("Hello" & "Goodbye" "Clock Strikes Ten") ups the intensity. Really good album from a band that I'm not usually over the moon about.

2.75, mostly forgettable

I imagine it would have been good fun to be at this concert, but I'm not sure the album is one I needed to hear before I die. The songs were enjoyable but not so much that I think I would come back to it. The songs I really enjoyed I liked more because I was already familiar with them. It has made me want to rewatch 10 Things I Hate About You, I really like the cover of I Want You to Want Me at the end of that film. I think it was fun that they opened and closed (before what I guess is the encore) with Hello There and Goodnight, which I think would be cool if you were there, but I don't think they were particularly good songs outside of that context. Overall, a decent listen but not something I'll come back to. Fav song: I Want You to Want Me Least fav: Lookout

Yeah pretty good rock in general, performed well. Basically just a greatest hits of this band I guess. Specific rating - 4.1 Fav song - surrender Least fav - hello there

Two great things have come out of this album: the iconic scene at the end of 10 things I hate about you where a cover of I Want You To Want Me is played on the roof, and the scene in New Girl where she sings Surrender to try to get her parents to stop arguing. I could happily have not listened to any of the other songs on the album (maybe with the exception of Clock Strikes Ten). Also the producer says it wasn't even recorded at Budakon, I think pretending it is is a bit of a... cheap trick... Favourite song: I Want You To Want Me Least: Goodnight

The live version makes the songs sound a lot quieter unfortunately. I guess this can be on this list since it acts as a “best of cheap trick” and that’s the best thing about it.

I really wish this wasn’t a live album, I would have enjoyed it all the more if it wasn’t. As it is, the quality isn’t very good and it chafes after a while.

Why. Are. There. So. Many. Live. Albums. On. This. List.

Live power pop

Live-Album *shrug*

Me gustó pero muy largo, dame un disco de estudio de cheap trixk

first live album vocals are mid quality is kinda trash songs are basic some songs are good strangely back loaded alright but nothing special

Something about Cheap Trick that just rules, it just sounds like they enjoy playing music which I appriciate very much. Honestly this album was slow at the start as i feel most live records are until the crowd and band has seemed to warm up, but by the mid point they are firing off. They just had a such a distinct sound, good stuff.

Because it is Cheap Trick- 5 (love them) Because it is live- 2 Quality and sound- 3.5 (rounding up)

Really interesting to hear their most popular song "Surrender" be announced as a track that just came off the new album that week along with not being their closing song. Overall, nothing crazy stood out to me on this live record. Other live records on here really showed the power behind a bands sound that couldn't be captured in a studio. I think this one is very similar to their studio sound which essentially makes this a greatest hits album. Meh.

I hate this kind of “live” albums

Fun live album. I added “Surrender” to my playlist.

Cheap Trick, Rockford IL’s very own. I understand that they were playing to a Japanese audience and probably trying to help them out by speaking slowly between songs, but the lead singer sometimes sounds like he’s got a brain injury. Ain’t That a Shame should probably be left to Fats Domino.

Energetic (obviously) but did not particularly engage me outside of a few moments. As far as live albums, it’s not the best, but certainly far from the worst. Had fun with the cover of “Ain’t That a Shame.” Could never stand “I Want You To Want Me”.

Love this album and Cheap Trick....so good at blending pop and punk sounds! This album was one of my favorites during high school...

Love music albums are not my favorite but I like cheap trick

6.5/10

Ani git ani słabe. Taki e 3

Kickass collection of weirdo rock 'n' roll tracks recorded live in front of Japanese audience who knew a good thing when they heard it. The supercharged and positively electrifying versions of the songs here run rings around their studio counterparts, especially "I Want You To Want Me", which packs a punch that the *In Color* recording does not. Only gripe about this set is that the 9-minute "Need Your Love" is a little excessive, and swapping it out for a pair of tracks like "Southern Girls" and "California Man" would have been a better choice.

Catchy stuff, seems like a good energy, I'm just not wowed by Cheap Trick. Never have been.

This is a hell of concert! So much energy and drive. I Want You to Want Me Surrender

Honestly, not good. The crowd was boring, the music was boring, the voices were boring and thats the kind of music i expected from cheap trick

Hello There har Highway Star-energi. Men fy faen som jeg kjeder meg og tredje låta er ikke ferdig engang. Halvveis gjennom Need Your Love blir det endelig litt liv igjen. Groover. Men dette kommer ikke til å vare. Med I Want You To Love Me håper jeg vi har nådd rock bottom. Dette er irriterende dårlig!

Dette er bare good vibes. "I Want You To Want Me"-liveversjonen er jo mye bedre enn studioversjonen og "Surrender" sparker. Cheap Trick høres ut som sjablongen for 70-tallsrock og det er ganske kult. Har "Age of Pamparius" en liten musikalsk referanse til "Clock Strikes Ten"?

Many of the best albums of the "80"s actually came out in 1979. This is peak Cheap Trick, at the height of their power. Great songs, tempered and honed by time on the road and sharpened to a fine edge. They had some big hits after this but it was one or two here and there. Pretty much every song on this album was well above average and Surrender is an amazing piece of work to usher in the 80's. Possibly one of the best rock live albums.

Cheap Trick’s At Budokan is a power-pop amalgamation with a firework shoved up its ass - all sugar, sparks, and guitars deployed with one clear objective: DROP PANTIES. And if the high pitch screams of the crowd are any indication: MISSION ACCOMPLISHED. Blending in styles from across the hard rock spectrum, there's a lot to enjoy here, with an element of fun that's very inviting. Taking yourself too seriously has always been a turn-off for me, and while there's accomplished musicianship and cheeky cleverness afoot, this performance is just a good time, no egos. Huge hooks, bratty swagger and a dash of glammy theatricality. I don’t know if it’s profound - but god damn this one feels ALIVE!

not sure why this is on the list. it was fine, but i'm not shreiking like a tween or anything. *shrug*

I love Cheap Trick. They’re one of those bands that rock hard, but write really good pop songs. They’re kind of like KISS with the songwriting of the Beatles. Now, I’m not saying Chep Trick were the Beatles, but they were…kind of. I saw one reviewer say Cheap Trick was the inspiration for any future bands who tried to play a Beatles-like melody with power chords. The band, and this album in particular, would go on to influence the Foo Fighters, Weezer, Smashing Pumpkins, The Raconteurs, and others. I discovered Cheap Trick after my older brother moved from his mom’s to his dad’s house for his senior year in high school. His dad’s house also happened to be my house, and I was a rambunctious 8, 9, 10-year-old boy around that time. He might’ve said I was a pain in the arse. He was a senior in high school, and had a cool rock album collection, and one of those was Cheap Trick’s Dream Police. I loved that song so much and still do. Any taste in good rock and roll, I probably owe to my older brother. But, like most older brothers, he didn’t want anybody in his room or touching his stuff. So, I had to listen to his music on the sly. As I grew up, I moved further away from Cheap Trick and more toward other bands, but I kept hearing how great At Budokan was. Most live albums stink, either because they don’t sound that great or because they don’t sound so live. KISS’s live classic Alive! was later found to have been heavily touched up in the studio rather than their actual live performance. At Budokan hasn’t been accused of being heavily touched up, but it was later found out that the show on the album was in Osaka, not in Tokyo at Budokan. By the time I got to the age I wanted to check out At Budokan, I was already planted staunchly in the live albums suck field. I listened to At Budokan a couple of times, but delved more into Cheap Trick’s studio recordings. It’s going to be fun to listen with less prejudiced ears to this album, an album that a lot of people still consider one of the best live albums ever. Track 1 is Hello There, and it’s one of the best songs ever to kick off a concert. “Hello there ladies and gentlemen Hello there ladies and gents Are you ready to rock” Pretty easy to understand, huh? Cheap Trick just decided to write a song to open every one of their shows. It’s simple and to the point, and also a rocker. Easy to sing along to, like a pop song, but nice crunchy riffs, like a rock song. The crowd of what sounds like 10,000 teenage girls is squealing nonstop. Cheap Trick became huge in Japan before they really broke big in the U.S. It was said to be like Beatlemania in Japan when Cheap Trick came over. At Budokan wasn’t really going to be released in the U.S., as the At Budokan was a series for Sony Records in Japan. But there were so many imports sold overseas from Japan to the U.S., that Columbia Records decided to just release the album in the States. Much like KISS after their live album came out, Cheap Trick exploded and became a big act in their home country. , Track 2 is Come On, Come On, and it’s just a great, happy-sounding song. Cheap Trick’s singer and rhythm guitarist Robin Zander is one of the best rock singers ever. The amazing thing is he still sounds great and he’s 73 years old. Track 3 is Lookout and it’s another good rock song. The lyrics to me almost sound like the boy is stalking the girl in this song. I wouldn’t put it past Rick Neilson to write a song like this. Lead guitarist Nielsen is the main songwriter for the band, and pretty much the only songwriter for the band. Though bassist Tom Peterson is credited with co-writing a few songs with Nielson. Neilson is a weirdo. Which is cool. A lot of Cheap Trick songs have a comedic bent, but some are full of dark humor. I must mention their drummer, Bun E. Carlos. He’s so good and very unassuming. He looks like a put-upon accountant in his white button-up shirt and tie. Usually, you see him with a cigarette dangling out of his mouth. Carlos puts on a clinic on this album. He has plenty of solos and great fills, but he also shines just in keeping time. Track 4 is Big Eyes, a big Cheap Trick favorite. Nielsen gets to play big crunchy riffs and solos in this song. The song is about a guy falling for a woman with her “big eyes,” but he knows she’s no good for him. Yet, those “big eyes” keep him falling for them and keep him calling for her. Track 5 is Need Your Love and it’s a bit slower, but the guitars are almost Black Sabbath-like. Zander sings so softly and sweetly as he sings about how a girl broke his heart, made him fall apart, but he still needs her love. Oooh, the riffs during the verses are evil. They have a great breakdown in the middle where Nielsen obliterates his guitar. It’s almost a T.Rex groove. Track 6 is a cover song of Fats Domino called Ain’t That a Shame. It was the second single released from the album. It’s just classic rock and roll. Supposedly, this was Domino’s favorite version of the song’s many covers. Domino gave the band the gold record he received for the song. The song features Carlos’s incredible drum playing and does what a cover song should. The band made the song their own. You know it’s a cover, but they changed it just enough that it sounds like a Cheap Trick song. Track 7 is the big hit off the album, I Want You To Want Me. The song was originally released on the band’s second album, In Color, but it was missing something. It was a good song, but it wasn’t a hit song. The At Budokan version is almost a totally different song in that it feels electric. Maybe it’s as simple as it’s more rocking than the album version. The band also sped up the tempo, and that may be the main factor. I remember hearing this song on the radio as a kid and immediately loving it. The chorus is easy, and the verses are kind of hard to understand unless you have the lyrics. Just like a great rock song, in my opinion. The song was number 1 in Japan and top 10 in the U.S. It broke the band in the U.S., and Cheap Trick went on to greater fame in their home country. Track 8 was from their new album at that time, Heaven Tonight, and the song is called Surrender. This is another big song for the band as it’s been used in movies and ads. The song describes how the baby boomer generation was interacting with their Greatest Generation parents in the 1970s. The mother warns her son about messing around with girls because he might get a disease that makes his, you know, fall off. Then one night, the son finds his parents making out on the couch and listening to his KISS records. It’s a really fun song with another great chorus to sing. Track 9 is Goodnight, and since we opened the show with a song called Hello There, the band was smart enough to know they needed a show-closing song, and that’s how we got Goodnight. “Good night now ladies and gentlemen Good night now ladies and gents That's the end of the show, now it's time to go” However, that’s not the end of the show as Cheap Trick return for an encore and play Clocks Strikes Ten. The song is a good old-fashioned rock and roll song with a riff that sounds like the chimes of Big Ben. The song is about letting loose and partying on a Saturday night. The clock strikes 10, 2 and 4. “Clock stikes four I want some more Everybody’s layin’ on the floor Not goin’ home gonna stay out late Gotta hear that rockin’ music it feels allright” It’s a great way to end a historic record. This live show was recorded on their tour after their third album, In Color, or right as their fourth album, Heaven Tonight, debuted. It really does sound live. It doesn’t sound like it was recorded in the studio, and live crowd noises were added later. This is a fun album, and I highly recommend it to everyone. I don’t think you’ll dislike it. Is it a must-listen? I think so, if for no other reason than I want to create more Cheap Trick fans.

wasn't expecting a live album to be on this list. great live album. Favorite Songs: Hello There, Lookout, Big Eyes, Need Your Love, I Want You to Want Me, Surrender, Clock Strikes Ten

Honestly, one of the best live albums ever recorded. Hands down a fantastic, lively set.

An ideal representation of what I think of when I think "classic rock music". Love listening to something made by those that have mastered a specific craft. If it was an album that resonated with me personally more it would be a 5, but this is a very high 4 if I could give decimals.

I mean it's pretty good songs done well, just not a band I care about listening to live Will I listen to again: 5%

I want you to want me hefur smá sjarma. Restin er döll áttunditugur. Þetta er tæpur tvistur, næstum ás. Segjum 1,5.

Listened to before? No Context: Considered to be a classic power-pop album and a perfect example of raw rock n roll energy; Cheap Trick's best selling record. This is so so so so so rock n roll. There's no other way to describe it. Just absolutely rock n roll. This is one of those live albums that I actually enjoy. It has great energy to it and the recording is solid. It also captures the—once more—rock n roll energy of Cheap Trick better than their studio stuff. I'd be thrilled to be at this concert. It sounds like a hell of a good time. That said, it's hard to give a live album a perfect rating. There's little cohesion to it, as most live albums are just the best sellers mixed with some new material, and hearing the crowd is annoying at times. That said, this album comes sort of close, I guess. Just absolutely rock n roll—not much else to say.

I don’t know what it is with me and live albums: I just like studio recordings so much better…

This is a great live album. I’ve never been huge into Cheap Trick, I know the hits, but I’ve never delved deep. And I really still haven’t, but I really enjoyed this and it makes me want to explore further. Great energy, great guitar work, and I liked the songs and writing.

Deserves the hype. Top 5 all-time live rock concert recording (but just a notch down “seminal”, at 4.5 stars, because C.T.’s first three studio albums proper are still the ones to beat).

One of the earliest albums I got on CD. Wore it out!

Not bad for a live album.

There’s so much pedestrian below average guitar rock in here before you get to the two hits. Let’s face it, this band got very lucky with I Want You to Want Me. They fully drserve to be in a “SONGS you should hear before you die”list. But this album was a bit of a slog otherwise. 2.5 stars

I like

I'm sure live albums are an important part of music history. This one is probably not one of them. I'm sure there are 1980s dad rock bands worthy of reevaluation. However hard I Want You to Want Me went in 10 Things I Hate About You, I don't think this is one of them either. Honestly a little insulting for this to be on the list at all, especially to the hundreds of artists who have put out much better music, even if confining ourselves to the Western Anglophone rock tradition which this list biases, and shows the myopia of this list (as with most of this kind).

Pretty good just my taste of music so that's why I like it

I'm aware of this album, but have never listened to it start-to-finish. I suspect there will be two tracks I'll really like, and the rest and gonna be meh. Yup, as expected, there are only two songs on here I recognize and like. The rest is thoroughly meh.

white folks 1979 japan trip

insane e, nakara me da povqrvam v live albumite

didn’t realize I knew so much of this album! stunning music

A decent live album. The live version of I Want You to Want Me is so different than the studio version and I think most everyone agrees that the live version is the one to listen to (at least that's the version I heard on the radio growing up).

Maybe I’m only thinking this way because of modern concert pricing but if I saw a band and they only played 45 minutes I’d be upset.

Tbh, favorite live album

Very fun live album, from someone who never heard of Cheap Trick’s music before.

I’m biased because I grew up with this album. I still love it and I rarely enjoy live albums. Starts off great, and “I Want You to Want Me” is pure rock perfection for me. Bun E.’s drumming is great. “Need Your Love” (even if it’s long) and “Surrender” are also fun. I like that it starts with hello song and a goodnight song.

Firstly, didn't even know this was on the list, but I am not complaining. Second of all, this is the biggest trip down memory lane this list has given me so far. This record was such a big deal to me at 13. "I Want You To Want Me" being one of the most overplayed songs on classic rock radio hasn't killed any of its power, and at 13 it was a sort of bible for me. That being said, because I was constantly finding new things and never keeping track of the music I listened to, this record has fallen by the wayside until I'm finally hearing it again 10-11 years later. The definition of fun.

3/5. Good time, this definitely would have been a fun show live. But also on the large spectrum of live albums, this one doesn’t particularly rank for me, which I will admit is definitely in part because I’m not the biggest Cheap Trick fan. However, they still definitely bring a strong energy live which makes this an enjoyable enough listen.

quite cool even though it's a live album.

Never quite understood the 70s obsession with live albums. Why live albums sold when the studio versions of songs didn't. Maybe if I had been part of it I would understand. Always thought of live as a once in a while listen at best, something to collect of your favs, not the go toas a record, This is fun and all the things the positive reviews say, it's also muddy loose and the things in the negative reviews. As live albums go I like it. But then I like classic period Cheap Trick, they are fine disciples of the Beatles, and definitely a bands band of a lot of US music, nivarna, green day, etc. Still Rather have the studio versions, but if this is what I have, it's still a great power pop record 4.5 Stars, rounded up.

Halpoja temppuja. Vaikka on halpoja niin oikein kivoja temppuja tarjoavat. Hyvää meininkiä, oli kiva kuunnella. Yleisössä paljon tyttöjä ääntelystä päätellen.

En oo suurin live-levyjen kuluttaja, tällä levyllä oli kova meininki ja hyvän kuulosta soitantaa. Tuttuja biisejä löyty jonnin verran, oikein menevä levy.

This just sounded like a stock concert from a TV show or movie. The front man asks you to like him, I didn't.

В целом хорошо, инструментал сногшибательно

The atmosphere is noisy, and the music is mediocre

Pretty interesting mix. Feels like they couldn’t decide what genre they wanted. 3.5

I want you to want me is a classic but the rest is forgettable

Ok so it's good music but I still think it's an okay at best live album. I love cheap trick, I especially love surrender but idk. There is cool parts of this album being live, each song has some extra flair, but it just feels like it loses some of the mixing for me probably because of how and when it was recorded. 3.5, probably deserving of a 4 but eh

I loike it I loike it. They’re not all winners but the highlights are great. A few like Big Eyes that I had never heard with jammin’ riffs. Much prefer this version of Surrender over the studio version imo.

These were fun, with a few standout tracks. Mixing was a bit wonky over car stereo.

So much fun to get a live album. The energy of that audience is CRAZY.

I have to say that I Want You to Want Me and Surrender do a lot of heavy lifting for this one.

Good rock album

There’s been a lot of pleasant surprises for me on this list, this was the opposite. This is so generic and boring. The rhythm section had no groove. The drummer was particularly stiff and lacked any feel. Songwriting, outside of the two hits, was really quite poor. I had fairly high expectations for this one, so I’m writing based on expectations. 2/5. There’s just so many better live albums from the 70s.

Not a fan of live albums.

These guys pitched and thought “ah this is what it was like when the Beatles played here” then proceeded to bring the house down with some outstanding rock n roll! Despite the low quality recording apparatus of the time they come across well, credit to Cheap Trick keepin’ it simple yet effective.

Mediocre. Too much crowd noise

1/2

Rock and Roll!!!

There are quite a few albums on this list that I question why they are even here to begin with, and a live album is such a warning to me. This is yet another crappy live recording that is taking up the place of an album that’s worth being on this list. This recording in particular is bland, sounds prettt bad, and the band’s performance is messy. What a waste of time.

Started better than I was expecting, then outstayed it's welcome, then the singles were good - and head and shoulders above everything else.

Fun as far as live albums go

I don't usually like live albums, but this one works quite well. Nevertheless, if I feel like listening to Cheap Trick, I choose "Heaven Tonight".

i liked a few of the songs but other than that its whatever. idk why theres so many live albums on this list

This has strong Frampton Comes Alive energy. How many girls named Jennifer were conceived to “I Want You to Want Me?”