This Big Country performance, the first of two originally recorded for broadcast on the King Biscuit Flower Hour, finds the band in top form, during a tour promoting their incredibly successful debut album, The Crossing.

Hailing from Scotland, the group had burst onto both the European and U.S. charts at the same time with different songs; "Fields Of Fire" was a Top 10 hit in the U.K., while "In A Big Country" (where the band lifted its name)…entire summary

Stuart Adamson - vocals, guitar, piano
Mark Brzezicki - drums
Tony Butler - bass
Bruce Watson - guitar

This Big Country performance, the first of two originally recorded for broadcast on the King Biscuit Flower Hour, finds the band in top form, during a tour promoting their incredibly successful debut album, The Crossing.

Hailing from Scotland, the group had burst onto both the European and U.S. charts at the same time with different songs; "Fields Of Fire" was a Top 10 hit in the U.K., while "In A Big Country" (where the band lifted its name) was a massive stateside success.

Those two songs, in addition to the best of others from The Crossing are featured on this show, recorded at the intimate Ritz club/theater in Manhattan. Composed of former Skids member Stuart Adamson on vocals, guitar and piano, Mark Brzezicki on drums, Tony Butler on bass and Bruce Watson on guitar, the band became known for its fat, multi-layered dual guitar sound, which often sounded as though Adamson and Watson were playing a set of Bagpipes - a sound they achieved with the use of a foot pedal named the MXR Pitch Transposer 129 Guitar Effect.

The band released several albums after The Crossing, and toured through the late 1990s, but never saw the same success or critical acclaim. Tragically, the band fell apart when Adamson, battling depression, committed suicide. Brzezicki and Butler would go on to be the rhythm section in Pete Townshend's solo band.

Among the surprises here is a tender read of the Smokey Robinson and The Miracles classic "Tracks Of My Tears."

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