https://issuu.com/markcunningham2/docs/tony_viscontiTony Visconti says the vocals and bass parts were completely redone, the guitars augmented by extra tracks to fatten the sound. Only the drums stayed as is - Downey didn't even want to correct little glitches (and he deserves all credit for that, his drumming on those live recordings is spirited, dynamic and swinging).
Now why would Visconti - who liked Lizzy as a band, its members and is proud of his production work with them - invent something like that? (It's not like
he was on heroin and coke which would have impaired his memory.)
Scott Gorham, Brian Robertson
and of course The Netherlands' greatest Thin Lizzy fan dispute all this. However, none of them were there when Phil rerecorded his parts with Visconti in the studio, they only heard the result after he was done with his bass and vocal tracks. Given the notoriously competitive atmosphere prevailing with Lizzy's members, Phil perhaps simply didn't care to tell the other two how much he had rerecorded? He can sadly not be asked anymore.
BUT - and it is a
BIG BUT - that wasn't my point at all when I offered Rob the olive branch in my first posting in this thread.
I actually like the undoctored extra recordings of that box set better and I think they are of a quality that would not have necessitated all the studio embellishments in the aftermath! Yes, the bass is more indistinct there and not as metronomic (but played with more gusto and panache), the singing a bit more out of breath or uneven in volume in places because of varying microphone distances plus Phil is in better voice on some nights than on others (all very human and he is in very good voice on average throughout), the guitars aren't as voluminous (on Live & Dangerous extra tracks with power chords were added by both guitarists to beef up the sound), some of the synchronized harmony playing more exact (but Robertson and Gorham had great rapport playing with one another no matter what).
Rob's attempt to put this all down to "a better mix" does remind me a bit of Hollywood actresses and models explaining their youthful looks with "
lots of mineral water, sufficient sleep, healthy foods & fresh air". Mind you, Thin Lizzy were all about a healthy lifestyle of course.