Live Baby Live

Live Baby Live
Live album by INXS
Released	11 November 1991
Recorded	1990–1991
Genre	Rock
Length	63:40
Label	Atlantic (US) Mercury Records WEA Records
Producer	Mark Opitz, INXS
INXS live chronology
Live Baby Live (1991) INXS: Live in Aspen – February 1997 (1997)
Singles from Live Baby Live
"Shining Star" Released: 2 November 1991

Live Baby Live is Australian rock band INXS's first live album. It was released on 11 November 1991 and features tracks recorded during their Summer XS Tour in Paris, New York, Chicago, London, Dublin, Glasgow, Rio de Janeiro, Montreal, Spain, Switzerland, Melbourne, Sydney, Philadelphia, and Las Vegas. The album peaked in the top 10 on both the Australian and United Kingdom albums charts. It has sold over one million copies in the United States, earning a platinum certification by the RIAA. A single, "Shining Star", was released from and ahead of the album on 2 November. It became the group's ninth Top 40 single on the UK Singles Chart, but failed to appear on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US, despite reaching the top 20 of the rock charts.

The title's two uses of 'live', indistinguishable by spelling alone, are pronounced differently – according to The Greatest Hits album's accompanying booklet – the first is pronounced to rhyme with 'give', whereas the second is pronounced as in 'five'.

Background

In September 1990, Australian rock band, INXS released their seventh studio album, X, which was produced by Chris Thomas (Sex Pistols, Pink Floyd, The Pretenders, Elton John) and it peaked at No. 3 in Australia,^[1] No. 2 in the United Kingdom,^[2] No. 5 in the United States,^[3] No. 5 in Switzerland and No. 10 in Sweden.^[4][5] It followed in the same vein as Kick (1987), and added harmonica to some songs. X scored hits with "Suicide Blonde" and "Disappear" (both Top 10 in the US),^[6] "Suicide Blonde" peaked at No. 2 in Australia, No. 11 in the UK^[2] and in Switzerland.^[7] Other singles from X were "Bitter Tears" and "By My Side" but they had less chart success.^[8]

Lead singer Michael Hutchence's romance with Australian pop singer Kylie Minogue brought the group a new audience of fans.^[8][9] INXS performed at Wembley Stadium on 13 July 1991, during their Summer XS Tour stop in London to a sold out audience of 74,000 fans.^[8] This performance was recorded and filmed to become their live album Live Baby Live (a video version was also released under the same title), which was released on 11 November 1991 and peaked in the Top 30 of both the Australian and UK albums charts,^[1][2] but had less success on the Billboard 200.^[3] The album was co-produced by Mark Opitz and INXS.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[10]
Rolling Stone	[11]

Allmusic gave the album one star out of five. AllMusic's reviewer, Stephen Thomas Erlewine, was unimpressed with Live Baby Live, "[it] is a lifeless live album ... All of the performances sound like the studio versions, stripped of their excitement and savvy productions".^[10] The album reached No. 3 on the ARIA Albums Chart and No. 8 on the UK Albums Chart but was less popular in the United States, peaking at No. 72 on the Billboard 200.^[1][2][3] Nevertheless, the album was certified platinum by RIAA for sales of over one million copies.^[12]

The album's only single, "Shining Star", appeared ahead of the album on 2 November. It is the one new song recorded for the album and peaked at No. 2 on the ARIA Singles Chart,^[1] at No. 27 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the group's ninth Top 40 single there.^[2] In the US, it peaked at No. 4 on the Modern Rock Tracks and No. 14 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks charts, but failed to appear on the Billboard Hot 100.^[6]

Track listing

1. "New Sensation" – 4:42
2. "Guns in the Sky" – 3:14
3. "Mystify" – 3:11
4. "By My Side" – 3:15
5. "Shining Star" – 3:52
6. "Need You Tonight" – 2:58
7. "Mediate" – 4:29
8. "One x One" – 2:58
9. "Burn for You" – 4:43
10. "The One Thing" – 3:21
11. "This Time" – 3:06
12. "The Stairs" – 5:07
13. "Suicide Blonde" – 4:36
14. "Hear That Sound" – 3:38
15. "Never Tear Us Apart" – 4:13
16. "What You Need" – 6:16

Singles

• "Shining Star" (November 1991).

Video release

Live Baby Live is a live video of INXS's performance at Wembley Stadium directed by David Mallet.^[13] It was released simultaneously as the live CD of the same name. The concert was the second-last of a string of concerts in London for INXS's Summer XS Tour. The video was re-released as a DVD in 2003 and was digitally remixed and mastered in 5.1 surround sound. The band played to a sold out crowd of over 72,000 fans.^[13] The performance was held on 13 July 1991, on the six-year anniversary of the original Live Aid at the same venue. The video footage was shot with sixteen 35 mm cameras that included one in a helicopter that circled the venue. Amazon.com's editorial reviewer, Tom Keogh, felt "fans can rejoice over the release of this buoyant concert film ... the late Michael Hutchence, is at his feral-romantic best, stalking and swiveling his way through an energized set of welterweight pop".^[13] Australian country musician, Steve Forde, declared "I missed out on seeing Michael do his thing in person, but that Live Baby Live DVD is bad ass! We put that DVD on the big screen in the front lounge of the tour bus. It's like going to a 101 class to be a frontman rock star. Wembley Stadium chock full, singing every word. Awesome. My favourite track from that set is definitely 'Devil Inside'. Is he still relevant? Absolutely".^[14]

Video track listing

1. "Guns in the Sky"
2. "New Sensation"
3. "I Send a Message"
4. "The Stairs"
5. "Know the Difference"
6. "Disappear"
7. "By My Side"
8. "Hear That Sound"
9. "Original Sin"
10. "The Loved One"
11. "Wildlife"
12. "Mystify"
13. "Bitter Tears"
14. "Suicide Blonde"
15. "What You Need"
16. "Kick"
17. "Need You Tonight"
18. "Mediate"
19. "Never Tear Us Apart"
20. "Who Pays the Price"
21. "Devil Inside"

Charts

Chart (1991–1992)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[15]	3
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[16]	25
Canadian Albums (RPM)[17]	36
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[18]	26
French Albums (SNEP)[19]	31
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[20]	18
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[21]	31
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[22]	39
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[23]	15
UK Albums (OCC)[24]	8
US Billboard 200[25]	72

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/Sales
Australia (ARIA)[26] DVD	Gold	17,500^^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[27]	Gold	25,000^^
United States (RIAA)[12]	Platinum	1,000,000^^
^^shipments figures based on certification alone

Live at Wembley Stadium 1991

Live at Wembley Stadium 1991
Live album by INXS
Released	7 February 2014
Recorded	13 July 1991
Genre	Rock
Label	Petrol Electric
INXS live chronology
Live Germany 1984 (2009) Live at Wembley Stadium 1991 (2014)

On 13 July 1991, INXS were filmed in concert at Wembley Stadium in London, performing to a sold-out mass of 72,000 fans. This concert was filmed in 35 mm and directed by David Malle with no less than 17 cameras.^[28]

The album was released in February 2014 to coincide with the screening of INXS: Never Tear Us Apart, an Australian miniseries about INXS that commenced airing on 9 February 2014 and concluded the following week on 16 February on the Seven Network.^[29]

Track listing

The album was released as a digital download on 7 February 2014.^[30]

1. "Guns in the Sky" – 3:27
2. "New Sensation" – 3:54
3. "I Send a Message" – 3:41
4. "The Stairs" – 4:59
5. "Know the Difference" – 3:47
6. "Disappear" – 4:12
7. "By My Side" – 3:10
8. "Hear That Sound" – 3:44
9. "Original Sin" – 6:17
10. "The Loved One" – 4:06
11. "Wildlife" – 3:32
12. "Mystify" – 3:18
13. "Bitter Tears" – 4:12
14. "Suicide Blonde" – 4:32
15. "What You Need" – 6:30
16. "Kick" – 3:30
17. "Need You Tonight" – 2:57
18. "Mediate" – 5:32
19. "Never Tear Us Apart" – 3:47
20. "Who Pays the Price" – 3:39
21. "Devil Inside" – 7:13
22. "Shining Star" – 3:40

Charts

Live at Wembley Stadium 1991 was a commercial success, reaching #4 on the Australian iTunes albums chart before peaking at #17 on ARIA Albums Chart.^[31]

Chart (2014)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[15]	17

References

1. Hung, Steffen. "INXS discography". Australian Charts Portal. Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 September 2012.
2. "INXS – Artists". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 7 September 2012. Note: Click on 'Albums' or 'Singles' tab as required.
3. "INXS > Charts & Awards > Billboard albums". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 7 September 2012.
4. "Artist Chart History – INXS – Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 7 September 2012.
5. Hung, Steffen. "INXS X (album)". Australian Charts Portal. Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 September 2012.
6. "INXS > Charts & Awards > Billboard singles". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 7 September 2012.
7. Hung, Steffen. "INXS Suicide Blonde". Australian Charts Portal. Hung Medien. Retrieved 7 September 2012.
8. McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'INXS'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86448-768-2. Retrieved 7 September 2012.
9. Zuel, Bernard (22 November 2007). "Hutchence's triple transformation". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 7 September 2012.
10. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Live Baby Live – INXS". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 7 September 2012.
11. Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. p. 406. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
12. "RIAA Certifications". Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Retrieved 7 September 2012.
13. Keogh, Tom. "INXS – Live Baby Live: Garry Beers, Andrew Farris, Jon Farris, Tim Farris, Michael Hutchence, David Mallet, Tessa Watts". Amazon.com. Retrieved 7 September 2012.
14. Forde, Steve (November 2007). "Michael Hutchence: Australia's Greatest Rock Star?". MusicFix. ninemsn (Nine Entertainment Co. & Microsoft. Retrieved 7 September 2012.
15. "Australiancharts.com – INXS – Live Baby Live". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
16. "Austriancharts.at – INXS – Live Baby Live" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
17. "100 Albums". RPM. 55 (1). 7 December 1991. ISSN 0033-7064. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
18. "Dutchcharts.nl – INXS – Live Baby Live" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
19. "Tous les "Chart Runs" des Albums classés depuis 1985 dans le Top Albums Officiel". InfoDisc. Locate INXS under the drop-down menu and click OK. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
20. "Officialcharts.de – INXS – Live Baby Live". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
21. "Charts.org.nz – INXS – Live Baby Live". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
22. "Swedishcharts.com – INXS – Live Baby Live". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
23. "Swisscharts.com – INXS – Live Baby Live". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
24. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
25. "Live Baby Live – INXS: Awards". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
26. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2003 DVDs". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
27. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (INXS; 'Live Baby Live')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
28. "INXS Live At Wembley Statium". Sanity. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
29. Byrnes, Holly (2 February 2014). "INXS Never Tear Us Apart on Channel 7 on February 9". Herald Sun. News Ltd. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
30. "INXS Live At Wembley Statium". itunes. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
31. "INXS Chart Success". The Music. Retrieved 17 February 2014.