[label unknown [product code unknown], country unknown, format unknown, year unknown]
track listing
Giant [Early Version], Controvertial Subject, Song Without An Ending, Hit Me Where It Really Hurts, Uncertain Smile, Red Cinders In The Sand, Icing Up, Time [Again] For Golden Sunset, Delerious, Another Boy Drowning, Perfect, The Nature Of Virtue, [unknown track], This Is The Day, I've Been Waiting For Tomorrow [All Of My Life]
notes
This is easily the earliest The The bootleg I know of, well known for rare tracks like "Hit Me Where It Really Hurts" and early versions of "Giant". The sound quality on this show, however, is attrocious - really quite awful. I believe the show was recorded on March 10th of 1983 at London's famous Marquee Club. The rumor I've heard is that Matt was banned from the club after this show after people in the audience began fighting. There is some dispute as to whether the show is actually from 1982, but it's largely thought it's from 1983. The last two tracks on the bootleg are not from the Marquee show - rumor has it they're from live television appearances of some kind. I believe this bootleg was originally distributed on cassette, but I'm not positive.
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[Injected Music [IMS52], Italy, Yellow Vinyl 7", c.1987]
track listing
Cold Spell Ahead, Hot Ice
notes
Often confused as an official single, this is actually a bootleg. This Italian yellow vinyl 7" was a rip off of the Cold Spell Ahead single. I don't own a copy of this so I'm not sure how good the sound is on it. The cover art is also different from the original single. The same company that put out this bootleg put out the blue vinyl 7" bootleg of Controversial Subject as well [see below].
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[Injected Music [IMS53], Italy, Blue Vinyl 7", c.1987]
track listing
Controversial Subject, Black and White, Dumb As Death's Head
notes
Often confused as an official single, this is actually a bootleg. This Italian blue vinyl 7" was a rip off of the Controversial Subject single, but added the rare flexi track "Dumb As Death's Head" as well. I don't own a copy of this so I'm not sure how good the sound is on it, but the cover art is quite different. The single comes in a single white protective sleeve, with a separate cover art sleeve wrapped around it. The same company that put out this bootleg put out the yellow vinyl 7" bootleg of "Cold Spell Ahead" as well [see above]. The labels read that this plays at 45 RPM, but both sides actually play at 33 RPM.
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[label unknown [product code unknown], country unknown, format unknown, c.1989]
track listing
Sweet Bird of Truth, Armageddon Days Are Here [Again], Slow Train To Dawn, The Sinking Feeling, The Beat[en] Generation, Heartland, Angels of Deception, The Violence of Truth, Infected, This Is The Day, Out Of The Blue [Into The Fire], Beyond Love, The Mercy Beat, Good Morning Beautiful, Uncertain Smile, Flesh and Bones, Giant
notes
The first Brixton Academy show was for the Mind Bomb tour and was recorded live on October 2nd of 1989. This bootleg is not to be confused with the second Brixton bootleg, which is from the Dusk tour a few years later.
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None available.
[no label [no product code], no country, MP3, c.1990 or later]
track listing
The Beat[en] Generation [Live], Heartland [Live], Infected [Live], Beyond Love [Live]
notes
This is a misleading one. Four tracks recorded live in Australia used to float around on Napster and other file sharing services. All they are are edited live tracks from the "Alive" promotional album. They just fade in and out at the ends where the interview portions used to be on "Alive". This was probably never issued as a physical bootleg.
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None, as it doesn't really exist outside of MP3 format.
[label unknown [product code unknown], country unknown, format unknown, year unknown]
track listing
Sweet Bird Of Truth, Armageddon Days Are Here [Again], The Violence Of Truth, Heartland, Angel Of Deception, Infected, Uncertain Smile, Jealous Of Youth, Out Of The Blue [Into The Fire], Beyond Love, The Mercy Beat, Good Morning Beautiful, Flesh And Bones, I've Been Waiting For Tomorrow [All Of My Life], Giant
notes
This bootleg is just a high quality audio transfer off the Japanese laserdisc, Live In Japan, which is a nice high quality show recorded live at Club Citta in Kawasaki, Japan on March 13th of 1990. The laserdisc includes some interview footage before the concert but I'm not sure if it shows up on this audio equivalency.
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None available.
[label unknown [product code unknown], country unknown, format unknown, year unknown]
track listing
Not all tracks are known, but some include "Armageddon Days Are Here [Again]" and "Another Boy Drowning".
notes
This show is from June 24th of 1990, during the late end of the Mind Bomb tour. I've been told this bootleg is only six tracks long, but I find that hard to believe. Although I don't know all the tracks, I have seen some floating around on MP3 file sharing services and what I've seen is listed above. I do know more tracks exist than what is listed here.
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None available.
[label unknown [product code unknown], country unknown, format unknown, year unknown]
track listing
Not all tracks are known, but some include "The Violence Of Truth", "Out Of The Blue [Into The Fire]", "I've Been Waiting For Tomorrow [All Of My Life]", "Beyond Love", "Armageddon Days Are Here [Again]", and "Another Boy Drowning".
notes
The Royal Albert Hall shows are pretty well known. There are a series of dates that were used to form the film "The The vs. The World" as well as several live B sides to singles from the Dusk period, as well as the Shades Of Blue EP. This bootleg is apparently of a single date at Royal Albert Hall. Although I don't know all the tracks, I have seen some floating around on MP3 file sharing services and what I've seen is listed above. I do know more tracks exist than what is listed here. The best way to get tracks from these shows in England, however, is through singles, where the quality is FAR better than what appears here on this bootleg.
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None available.
[Mogul Nightmare [product code unknown], country unknown, CD, 1990]
track listing
Another Boy Drowning, Jealous Of Youth, Beyond Love, The Mercy Beat, Good Morning Beautiful, I've Been Waiting For Tomorrow [All Of My Life], Giant
notes
This bootleg appears to be a direct copy of tracks from the movie "The The vs. The World" video. It's probably worth skipping if you find it, just because you can find it through more legal means and probably in higher quality, even though this bootleg is apparently a high quality recording. Although this bootleg has the same name as another bootleg from Italy, it's a completely different live show.
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None available.
[bootleg label unknown [product code unknown], country unknown, CD, year unknown]
track listing
Another Boy Drowning, Jealous Of Youth, Beyond Love, The Mercy Beat, Good Morning Beautiful, I've Been Waiting For Tomorrow [All Of My Life], Giant
notes
This bootleg appears to be another direct copy of tracks from the move "The The vs. The World", but was listed on eBay as a show from the 1990 in Europe. I can't see a listing saying anything of the sort on the outer sleeve, so that could be wrong. It's probably worth skipping if you find it, just because you can find it through more legal means and probably in higher quality, even though this bootleg is apparently a high quality recording and has a snazzy cover.
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[label unknown [product code unknown], country unknown, format unknown, c.1993]
track listing
Lung Shadows, Infected, Helpline Operator, Sodium Light Baby, ?, Love Is Stronger Than Death, Dogs Of Lust, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?, Sweet Bird Of Truth, Armageddon Days Are Here [Again]
notes
The Great Woods show is from the Dusk tour, although I can't nail it down any further than that. The quality on the show is poor. Although I don't know all the tracks, I have seen some floating around on MP3 file sharing services and what I've seen is listed above. Because bootlegs floating around on Napster listed tracks numerically, I know the order of the tracks, but that's about it. What tracks I'm missing are replaced above with question marks.
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None available.
[label unknown [product code unknown], country unknown, format unknown, c.1993]
track listing
Infected, Helpline Operator, Love Is Stronger Than Death, Dogs Of Lust, August And September,
Heartland, Soul Mining, Sweet Bird Of Truth, The Violence Of Truth, Armageddon Days Are Here
[Again], Lonely Planet, True Happiness This Way Lies
notes
This Brixton Academy show is from the Dusk tour, although I can't nail it down any further than that. This bootleg is not to be confused with the earlier 1989 Brixton bootleg for the Mind Bomb tour.
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None available.
Save Me #2
[Kiss The Stone [KTS], Italy, CD, c.1993]
track listing
Infected, Helpline Operator, Love Is Stronger Than Death, Dogs Of Lust, August And September, Heartland, Soul Mining, Sweet Bird Of Truth, The Violence Of Truth, Armageddon Days Are Here [Again], Lonely Planet, True Happiness This Way Lies
notes
You apparently used to be able to buy this CD from Italy until it was discovered it was a bootleg and all pressings were stopped. No idea on the quality of the sound, but it's the same show as the Brixton Academy show from 1993 [listed above] so either this is a direct copy off that show [or vise versa] or it's a completely separate recording from the same show. "Soul Mining" is listed incorrectly on the sleeve as "Something Always Goes Wrong". Although this bootleg has the same name as another bootleg [see above], it's a completely different live show.
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Later With Jools Holland
[unknown station, country unknown, Television Broadcast, c.1993]
track listing
Dogs Of Lust, Love Is Stronger Than Death, Uncertain Smile
notes
It's complete news to me over here in Canada, but I guess Jools Holland had a television show at one point. I found three tracks floating around on the Napster file sharing service before it went down. The tracks are recorded live in front of a studio audience with Jools introducing the band just before Dogs Of Lust and Uncertain Smile. Jools Holland is the man behind the now legendary piano solo during Uncertain Smile, as well as ex-piano man for Squeeze, not to mention one of the best damn piano players ever to grace the surface of the planet. He even plays with Matt and the band once again during Uncertain Smile, which is a real treat.
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None available.
Live At Reading Festival
[BBC Radio, England, Radio Broadcast, 1993]
track listing
Heartland, Soul Mining, The Sinking Feeling, Uncertain Smile, Violence Of Truth
notes
In 1993, BBC radio broadcast a series of tracks from The The's appearance at the 1993 Reading Music Festival in England. Above are the tracks that were broadcast in the order they appeared. This is not necessarily the full track listing for the show and I have no idea whether this broadcast appeared for sale anywhere as a bootleg, but some people have it on cassette.
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None available.
Dutch 2 Meter Sessions 07-02-95
[label unknown [product code unknown], country unknown, format unknown, c.1995]
track listing
I Saw The Light, Weary Blues From Waitin', Six More Miles, Dogs Of Lust
notes
I'm not sure what this is exactly. I ran into these four tracks back when the Napster file sharing service was still alive. It sounds like unedited studio tape from the Hanky Panky recording sessions, complete with the band calling out for beer, making mistakes, experimenting with different arrangements, etc. Beyond that, I'd love to know if anybody can tell me anything more about these recordings or even if there are more tracks from this bootleg that exist.
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None available.
Live At The Jon Stewart Show
[MTV, US, Television Broadcast, 1995]
track listing
I Saw The Light
notes
This was Jon Stewart's show on MTV back in 1995 before he left to head Comedy Central's The Daily Show years later. The The appeared to perform "I Saw The Light" briefly. I found this track floating around in MP3 format on the Napster file sharing service before it was closed down. This is not necessarily the full track listing from this appearance and I have no idea whether this broadcast appeared for sale anywhere as a bootleg, but it existed on MP3 at the very least. I've heard that there are more songs from this appearance, but I have yet to see this verified for certain.
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None available.
Live At 120 Minutes
[MTV, US, Television Broadcast, 1995]
track listing
Weary Blues From Waiting
notes
120 Minutes was considered one of MTV's better shows during the mid-90s, on which Matt makes this brief appearance to play "Weary Blues From Waiting". I found this track floating around in MP3 format on the Napster file sharing service before it was closed down. This is not necessarily the full track listing from this appearance and I have no idea whether this broadcast appeared for sale anywhere as a bootleg, but it existed on MP3 at the very least. I've heard that there are more songs from this appearance, but I have yet to see this verified for certain.
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None available.
[no label [no product code], Germany, CD, 2000]
track listing
Controversial Subject, Black and White, Cold Spell Ahead, Hot Ice, Three Orange Kisses From Kazan, The Nature Of Virtue [Version 1], Mental Healing Process, Absolute Liberation, Dumb As Death's Head, Waiting For The Upturn, Leap Into The Wind, The Sinking Feeling [Original Version], Fruit Of The Heart, Soup Of Mixed Emotions, The Nature Of Virtue [Version 2], Perfect [7" Version]
notes
This is a German bootleg collecting a lot of the rarer The The tracks. The cover is taken from the Infected songbook - overall quite nice design for a bootleg. Sound quality is excellent but I doubt too many of these were made.
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[label unknown [product code unknown], country unknown, format unknown, 2000]
track listing
Armageddon Days Are Here [Again], Dogs Of Lust, Voidy Numbness, December Sunlight, The Beat[en] Generation, Global Eyes, Soul Catcher, This Is The Day, Shrunken Man, Swine Fever, Weather Belle, Infected, Salt Water, Boiling Point, Uncertain Smile
notes
This is a great show, early in the World Tour Of Tiny Spaces during The The's stop in Melkweg, Amsterdam on January 25th of 2000. It was fairly easy to find on Napster before it was shut down and the quality on this show is excellent.
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None available.
[label unknown [product code unknown], country unknown, format unknown, 2000]
track listing
Boiling Point, Dogs Of Lust, Voidy Numbness, Global Eyes, Soul Catcher, Heartland, This Is The Day, December Sunlight, Shrunken Man, Swine Fever, Infected, True Happiness This Way Lies, Love Is Stronger Than Death, Armageddon Days Are Here
notes
This is a show from the World Tour Of Tiny Spaces during The The's stop at the Roskilde music festival on June 30th of 2000. It was fairly easy to find on Napster before it was shut down and the quality on this show is excellent. The original source is a radio broadcast. At the end of the final track, you can hear a radio announcer talking about the show.
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None available.
[label unknown [product code unknown], country unknown, format unknown, year unknown]
track listing
Show Information, Boiling Point, Dogs Of Lust, ?, Helpline Operator, ?, ?, ?, December Sunlight, ?, Icing Up, ?, ?, Love Is Stronger Than Death, Band Intro And Chat, Armageddon Days Are Here [Again]
notes
This one's an odd bird. I found it on Napster just before it was shut down. The copy I have starts with a man explaining that the bootleg was given to him on two CDs - I'm assuming this bootleg was MP3 only, but I'm not really sure. The show is from the World Tour Of Tiny Spaces, during The The's stop in Winnipeg on September 25th of 2000. The quality on the show isn't tremendous - a bit quiet. One of the big suprises is the inclusion of an old classic, "Icing Up". Although I don't know all the tracks, I have seen a good deal of them floating around on MP3 file sharing services and what I've seen is listed above. Because bootlegs floating around on Napster listed tracks numerically, I know the order of the tracks, but that's about it. What tracks I'm missing are replaced above with question marks.
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None available.
[label unknown [product code unknown], country unknown, format unknown, 2001]
track listing
Boiling Point, Voidy Numbness, Dogs Of Lust, Helpline Operator, Global Eyes, Soul Catcher, This Is The Day, December Sunlight, Swine Fever, Phantom Walls, Love Is Stronger Than Death, Bluer Than Midnight, Armageddon Days Are Here [Again]
notes
This is easily my favorite show. I found it on Napster just before it was shut down. The show is from the World Tour Of Tiny Spaces, right at the end of the tour, during The The's stop in Cologne on December 16th of 2000. The quality on the show is first rate, taken off a radio broadcast I believe. It includes what is easily the greatest live version of "Bluer Than Midnight" ever recorded, in my opinion. A great end to a wonderful tour. I'm pretty sure all the tracks listed above make up the whole bootleg but if I'm wrong, I'd love to know.
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None available.