Live at the 12 Bar [Reissue]

Available on vinyl for the first time, and heralding the reissue of Jansch’s entire catalogue, Live At The 12 Bar is a cut above many of the similar live captures of Jansch’s work.

This is a sterling document well worth revisiting. [No. 123, p.59]

What becomes clearest from listening to Live At The 12 Bar is the way Jansch's playing manifests a very particular physicality, working to its own internal logic, voice, and six strings running in refined tandem. [Sep 2015, p.92]

It’s the wholeness of his style that is so arresting.

Whilst a few more Bert Jansch classics like “Needle Of Death” and his own rendition of Davy Graham’s “Angie” might have defined Live At The 12 Bar as a more complete go-to on-stage snapshot, its intimacy and strength still marks it out as an essential fan-friendly re-addition to his labyrinthine catalogue, which is due for further exploration via Earth Recordings in the near-future.

He was on his way back, and in impressive form, despite the modest, mumbled introductions and a few fluffed notes.

Live at the 12 Bar, unlike much of Jansch’s catalogue, isn’t perfect. You hear mistakes, clumsy knocks at the microphone stand, and even his breath as he plays. But mostly, you hear this master traversing a musical map of his life, hard times and all.