Slade Alive! was a live album released by the British rock band Slade. The album was released on 24 March 1972, and reached number two on the UK Albums Chart, as well as being Slade's first album to dent the Billboard 200 in the United States. The album contained original songs, plus cover versions of songs by Ten Years After, The Lovin' Spoonful, Bobby Marchan, and Steppenwolf. The album was recorded live at Command Theatre Studio and mixed at Olympic Studios.
In its original LP vinyl format, the album was issued in a gatefold sleeve which revealed a huge cartoon drawing on the inside. This drawing was the winning entry in a competition run in the The Sun UK newspaper to design the album cover.
In 2006 Salvo Records re-issued the tracks as part of the collection Slade Alive - the Live Anthology.
Of the three nights recorded, most of the album consisted of the second night as the band had just come from performing on Top of the Pops with "Coz I Luv You" which had just peaked at #1 in the UK.
The album was rated #2 of the top ten albums of 1972 by NME magazine's chart point survey.
The album was voted #3 of the top three Slade albums in the Slade Fan Club Poll of 1979. In the same poll, the album was voted #1 of the top three Slade album covers.
In the September–December 1986 Slade fan club magazine, the poll results were announced for the 1986 opinion poll based on Slade’s material. For the best album of the 70s, Slade Alive! placed at #1.
In Australia, Slade Alive! was the biggest selling album since The Beatles' 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. In Israel and Italy, the front cover used the inner gatefold artwork instead, whilst certain editions releases in the Netherlands and France also used this design.
On the UK Granada Television, the band performed a 'Set of Six' show on 13 June 1972. This filmed set featured a similar set to the Slade Alive! album, the tracks in order being, Hear Me Calling, Look Wot You Dun, Darling Be Home Soon, Coz I Luv You, Get Down and Get With It and Born To Be Wild.
On 6 February 2006, Classic Rock Legends released an independent critical guide to the album, under the title "Slade Alive! - The Ultimate Critical Review" as part of the series "The World's Greatest Albums".
Read more about Slade Alive!: Background, Promotion, Track Listing, Critical Reception, Chart Performance