🔘 Slade Alive! – Album: Mar 1972

Slade
Mar 23, 1972
6 min read

Released: March 24, 1972

Catalogue Number: 2383 101

A blistering, high‑volume live onslaught that captured Slade at their most ferocious and turned them into chart‑crushing giants.

Released on March 24, 1972, Slade Alive! became the band’s breakthrough album, transforming them from a relentless touring act into one of Britain’s biggest rock forces. Recorded live at Command Theatre Studio and mixed at Olympic Studios, the album distilled Slade’s raw, sweat‑drenched stage power into a tight, explosive set.

Produced by Chas Chandler, the album blended three Slade originals with high‑energy covers of Ten Years After, The Lovin’ Spoonful, Bobby Marchan, and Steppenwolf. It reached No. 2 on the UK Albums Chart and remained there for 58 weeks, becoming Slade’s first charting LP and their first to enter the US Billboard 200, where it peaked at No. 158.

Early pressings misprinted “Get Down and Get With It” as “Get Down With It” on the inner sleeve — now a prized collector detail.

Today, Slade Alive! is widely regarded as one of the greatest live albums ever recorded, influencing generations of rock bands — including Kiss, who titled their 1975 live album Alive! as a direct homage.

🔘 Track List

LP – Polydor 2383 101 (UK, 1972)

Side One

• Hear Me Calling — Alvin Lee

• In Like a Shot from My Gun — Holder/Lea/Hill/Powell

• Darling Be Home Soon — John Sebastian

• Know Who You Are — Holder/Lea/Hill/Powell

Side Two

• Keep On Rocking — Holder/Lea/Hill/Powell

• Get Down With It — Bobby Marchan

• Born to Be Wild — Mars Bonfire

Cassette – Polydor 3170 053 (UK, 1972)

Side A

• Hear Me Calling – 5:45

• In Like a Shot from My Gun – 3:33

• Darling Be Home Soon – 5:43

• Know Who You Are – 3:37

Side B

• Keep On Rocking – 6:29

• Get Down and Get With It – 5:33

• Born to Be Wild – 8:19

8‑Track – Polydor 3820 048 (UK, 1972)

Program A

• Hear Me Calling

• Keep On Rocking (Part 1)

Program B

• Keep On Rocking (Part 2)

• In Like a Shot from My Gun

• Darling Be Home Soon (Part 1)

Program C

• Darling Be Home Soon (Part 2)

• Know Who You Are

• Get Down With It (Part 1)

Program D

• Get Down With It (Part 2)

• Born to Be Wild

Produced by: Chas Chandler

Engineers: Command Theatre Studio / Olympic Studios staff (not individually credited)

🔘 Variants

1. UK – Polydor – 2383 101 (1972)

Format: LP, Album, Stereo, Gatefold

Country: UK

Year: 1972

Notes:

• First pressing

• Gatefold sleeve

• Early copies misprint “Get Down With It” on inner sleeve

2. UK – Polydor – 3170 053 (1972)

Format: Cassette, Album, Stereo

Country: UK

Year: 1972

Notes:

• Full album program

• Corrected track title on cassette shell

3. UK – Polydor – 3820 048 (1972)

Format: 8‑Track Cartridge, Album

Country: UK

Year: 1972

Notes:

• Multi‑part program splits

• Standard Polydor 8‑track shell

🔘 Chart Performance

United Kingdom — Official Albums Chart

Peak Position: 2

First Chart Date: April 8, 1972

Weeks on Chart: 58

Top 40: 58

Top 75: 58

Label: Polydor

Catalogue Number: 2383 101

Chart Run (full sequence)

11 → 6 → 7 → 10 → 12 → 8 → 14 → 15 → 18 → 23 → 16 → 13 → 10 → 2 → 5 → 5 → 7 → 8 → 9 → 8 → 8 → 7 → 7 → 4 → 4 → 6 → 9 → 7 → 8 → 8 → 11 → 11 → 11 → 19 → 18 → 22 → 26 → 22 → 22 → 35 → 12 → 18 → 24 → 20 → 40 → 33 → 43 → 40 → 39 → 30 → 27 → 37 → 20 → 24 → 39 → 33 → 48

United States — Billboard 200

Peak Position: 158

🔘 Context & Notes

Personnel

• Noddy Holder — vocals, guitar

• Dave Hill — lead guitar

• Jim Lea — bass, violin, keyboards

• Don Powell — drums

Recording Notes

• Recorded live at Command Theatre Studio

• Mixed at Olympic Studios

• Minimal overdubs

• High‑volume, unpolished sound preserved intentionally

Press Reception

• Praised for its raw power and authenticity

• Seen as a defining British live rock album

• Cemented Slade’s reputation as a premier live act

Legacy

• Considered one of the greatest live albums ever made

• Direct influence on Kiss’s Alive!

• Continues to be cited as a benchmark for live rock recordings

🔘 Related Material

• Previous: Play It Loud (1970)

• Next: Slayed? (1972)

• Related Artists: Sweet, Status Quo, Mott the Hoople

🔘 Discography

• Play It Loud (1970)

• Slade Alive! (1972)

• Slayed? (1972)

🔘 Mini‑Timeline

1972: Slade Alive! becomes Slade’s breakthrough, spending 58 weeks on the UK chart.

🔘 Glam Flashback

A wall of amps, a roar of crowd noise, and Noddy Holder’s unmistakable howl — Slade Alive! captured the moment British glam rock found its teeth.

🔘 Closing Notes

A landmark live album whose influence still echoes through rock history, Slade Alive! remains the definitive document of Slade’s raw power.

🔘 Sources & Copyright

• Discogs (catalogue, variants, tracklists)

• 45cat (date verification, catalogue confirmation)

• Wikipedia (recording context, personnel, chart history)

• Official Charts Company (UK chart run, peak position)

All artwork and text remain the property of their respective copyright holders.

🔘 Tags

#Slade #SladeAlive #1972 #Polydor #GlamRock #LiveAlbum #NoddyHolder

A rare in‑house promotional sampler sent only to UK disc‑jockeys ahead of the album’s release.

Issued on March 24 1972, this Polydor‑pressed 7" promo was created as a private sampler for radio DJs to preview Slade Alive! before the album’s commercial release on March 24 1972. Cut at 33⅓ RPM, the disc featured two live tracks — “Hear Me Calling” and “Get Down With It” — lifted directly from the album’s raw, high‑energy recordings.

The release was accompanied by an official Polydor letter dated March 21, 1972 stressing that the disc was not available to the public, and DJs were instructed to emphasise this to listeners. The letter also leaned into Slade’s reputation for volume and chaos, encouraging DJs to tell young fans to “play it loud” if they wanted to “destroy their parents/neighbours.”

The promo was issued without a picture sleeve, supplied instead in a plain company bag. Today it stands as one of the more unusual and collectible Slade promotional items from the early ’70s.

🔘 Track List

33⅓ RPM – 7" Promo Sampler

A‑Side

Hear Me Calling

Writer: Alvin Lee

Producer: Chas Chandler

B‑Side

Get Down With It

Writer: Bobby Marchan

Producer: Chas Chandler

(Timings not supplied on promo.)

🔘 Variants

UK – Polydor – 1972

Format: 7" Vinyl, 33⅓ RPM

Catalogue Number: Not commercially issued (promo only)

Notes:

“A Sample” promo label

Plain company sleeve

Accompanied by Polydor DJ letter dated March 21 1972

Not sold in shops

No other variants known.

🔘 Chart Performance

This promo single did not chart, as it was never commercially released.

Its parent album Slade Alive! reached:

UK Albums Chart: #2

Weeks on chart: 58

🔘 Context & Notes

Slade Alive! was recorded at the Command Theatre Studio, London, in late 1971.

The album captured Slade’s reputation as a ferocious live act, helping cement their rise during the glam era.

The promo sampler was part of Polydor’s push to build anticipation for the album’s release.

The accompanying letter (dated March 21 1972) emphasised exclusivity and encouraged DJs to highlight that the disc was not a public single.

The humorous tone of the letter aligned with Slade’s rowdy, good‑humoured public image.

The sampler is now considered a scarce early‑’70s Polydor promotional artefact.

🔘 Visual Archive

Description:

A plain‑sleeved 7" vinyl record with “A Sample” promotional markings. The label features standard Polydor styling with track titles, credits, and 33⅓ RPM speed indication. No picture sleeve was issued.

Slade — Slade Alive Promo A Sample 7" (1972), Polydor Records.

A copy appears in the book "The Noize - The Slade Discography" by Ian Edmondson and Chris Selby.

🔘 Related Material

• Slade Alive! (1972) – parent album

• “Get Down With It” (1971) – earlier studio single

• Slayed? (1972) – follow‑up studio album

🔘 Discography

Slade Alive! (1972)

Slayed? (1972)

Slade Alive Vol. 2 (1978)

🔘 Mini‑Timeline

Late 1971: Slade Alive! recorded

21 March 1972: Promo sampler issued to DJs

24 March 1972: Album released

1972–73: Album becomes a long‑running UK chart success

🔘 Glam Flashback

This promo captures Slade at the moment they were transforming from a hard‑grafting live act into one of the UK’s defining glam‑era forces. Raw, loud, and unfiltered, the sampler distilled the energy that would soon make Slade Alive! a landmark live album.

🔘 Closing Notes

The Slade Alive promo sampler stands as a rare snapshot of Slade’s rise, issued at the exact moment the band crossed into mainstream dominance. Its scarcity, paired with the playful Polydor letter, makes it a prized artefact of early‑’70s glam rock promotion.

🔘 Sources & Copyright

Sources: Polydor promotional letter (21 March 1972), Slade discography records, verified release data.

All original text excerpts remain the property of their respective copyright holders.

🔘 Tags

#Slade #SladeAlive #1972 #GlamRock #Polydor #PromoVinyl #GlamSlamEscape