Peter Frampton Comes Alive in 1976

It was January 6th, 1976, a double live album, that Peter Frampton changed music history.

The album became a massive, unexpected phenomenon, transforming him into a superstar with its hit singles ("Baby, I Love Your Way," "Do You Feel Like We Do," "Show Me the Way"), the iconic talk-box guitar effect, and its massive sales, becoming the best-selling album of 1976, spending 10 weeks at #1, and remaining on the charts for over a year. It defined the era, establishing itself as one of the best-selling live albums in history and making Frampton a household name. 

Seems every record collector had at least one copy in their collection. It was like a rite of passage to have the album.

Frampton was a prodigy who counted David Bowie among his childhood friends. By age 18, he'd already tasted success with the Herd and had formed Humble Pie with Steve Marriott. Together, they would record four studio albums before jumping on the '70s live LP bandwagon with Performance Rockin' the Fillmore at the end of 1971. It would be Humble Pie's most successful album.

At the tender age of 21, Frampton had two successful bands in his rear-view mirror and a limitless road ahead of him. His first solo album, 1972's Wind of Change, eschewed the muscular boogie of Humble Pie for a more acoustic, singer-songwriter vibe akin to James Taylor. Songs like the album's title cut introduced the new, mellow Frampton, while "It's a Plain Shame" and a cover of the Stones' "Jumpin' Jump Flash" seemed tailored for his established fan base. In other words, the album was neither fish nor fowl, and sales were disappointing.

The following year's Frampton's Camel also had its mellow moments, most notably "Lines on My Face," but album closer "Do You Feel Like We Do" demonstrated a glimmer of things to come. Compared to the version that we all know and love, this take is a toothless, caged lion. There's ferocity lurking beneath the studio production, but it just can't break through. The album did better than Wind of Change, but still didn't manage

The album Frampton Comes Alive! recorded between June and November 1975, at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco, Marin Veterans' Memorial Auditorium, Long Island Arena in Commack, New York, and the SUNY Plattsburgh campus in Plattsburgh, New York.