The White Stripes “Live at the Magic Stick” 2000/2017. Third Man Records. Vault Package #34, Third Man Records, limited edition box set. Yesterday I pulled the first record of the set, The White Stripes Live at the Magic Bag  from 1999. Live at the Magic Stick came at the tail-end of their summer tour, on August 18th 2000 in Detroit for their second album De Stijl.

The sound quality seems a bit rougher than Live at the Magic Bag but the rawness of the performance enhances most of songs The White Stripes performed that night at the Magic Stick. Highlights include cuts from De Stijl like the classic “You’re Pretty Good Looking (For a Girl),” a dirty blues cover of Son House’s “Death Letter,” “I’m Bound to Pack it Up” with sweetly melodic guitar and somewhat stilted drumming (Jack seems to laugh a bit during this song so I’m wondering if Meg fucked up) and “Hello Operator.”  They revisit the awesomely stomping “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground,” the punkish “Broken Bricks” and “Jimmy the Explorer;” perform a brutally painful rendition of Dolly Parton’s “Jolene” (ooofff – it is amazing!); and cover – for the first and only time – Captain Beefheart’s “Ashtray Heart.” Jack White banters far less than he did the previous year, just thanking Grand Rapids’ Whirlwind Heat and the Greenhornes (from Ohio) for opening and later asking the audience for aspirin.

Runout Groove Side A: A EASY, AN EASEL Runout Groove Side B: SO STUPID EARLY DS SHOUT SAVE