Perhaps a little insight ...
Posted by Malcolm Bruce
“The following footage of LIFETIME has apparently just surfaced from the Beat Club archives. I’m wondering if there is more, although my understanding is that these in studio sessions were limited to 30 minutes. This was my Dad’s favourite band that he was involved with, for so many reasons I understand that notion, the sheer musical potential between them was self evident. Unfortunately it seems nobody really ‘got’ the concept, especially the industry. This I believe was the 2nd iteration, the first being a trio with just Tony, John and Larry, which without wishing to detract from them, was essentially a more conventional albeit avant-garde group. With the inclusion of my Dad it became something completely unprecedented. It was a time when real musicians who could actually play desired to be like rock stars as opposed to being pigeonholed by an industry devoid of insight into the potentialities of music making. And I’m not sure spiritually we have advanced since then, in fact I think we have regressed.
Also, from the comments section: apparently some footage was shown in episode 61 of Beat Club, of McLaughlin rolling his eyes and the band stopping mid play, with presenter Uschi Nerke telling the viewers, ”Lifetime have behaved so badly and arrogantly in the studio that the work didn’t lead to any presentable results and had to be cancelled.”
Read into that what we will, but I do hope there is more from this studio recording. The only other recording I have encountered from this lineup playing live is an audience recording from one of their U.K. shows (of which there were only a handful, some I believe booked by the late great Stuart Lyon) and it’s essentially unlistenable.”