Free - Live! (1971)

Free Live! was the fifth album by English rock band Free, and their first (and to date only official) live album. It was rush-released by Island Records to commemorate the band, who had broken up in April 1971. Possibly due to the publicity caused by their breakup (which had also earned them a successful parting single "My Brother Jake" that same month) the album was a hit, reaching #4 in the UK album charts.


Track listing:
1. "All Right Now" (Fraser, Rodgers) - 6:24
2. "I'm a Mover" (Fraser, Rodgers) - 3:46
3. "Be My Friend" (Fraser, Rodgers) - 5:56
4. "Fire and Water" (Fraser, Rodgers) - 3:56
5. "Ride on a Pony" (Fraser, Rodgers) - 4:30
6. "Mr. Big" (Fraser, Kirke, Kossoff, Rodgers) - 6:13
7. "The Hunter" (Cropper, Dunn, Jackson, Jones, Wells) - 5:29
8. "Get Where I Belong" (Fraser, Rodgers) - 4:19


With the exception of one song, all performances are versions of album tracks. It begins with "All Right Now", which lasts for over six minutes, and is followed by "I'm a Mover". Rodgers's voice noticeably falters for a second during this song, showing how the album has not been altered in any way to remove such glitches as many modern live albums are. These are followed by loud, guitar-driven versions of "Be My Friend", "Fire and Water", "Ride on a Pony" and "Mr. Big". The live part then closes with one of the band's most popular tracks, "The Hunter" which receives a greater reaction from the crowd than any other song, including "All Right Now". Only the initial arrival of the band on stage at the very beginning causes a louder cheer.

The album then closes with the last of four studio tracks recorded by the band before they split (the other three songs surfaced in some form on Highway and information on them is contained in that album's article). It is a slow, mellow, acoustic song much like a large part of Highway was, and sounds completely unlike any of the live songs on this album.