1998
The Golden Era
Last Updated: 02/2008

Notes:
It is with the utmost of certainty thus far in the working-history of Tool's intriguing, random, explosive & dynamic setlists + performances, the year 1998 comes to the top of the list of many a collector.  Think about it, during this year Tool was not recording any material due to issues with their record company label (among other issues they collecting much royalty on past album sales) & the band wanted to continue to perform their art by touring.  From the 4-date "mini-tour" in March '98 (Note: a certain taper, Duncan, flew from England to attend all 4) to a headline spot on Ozzfest to a few one-off dates before headlining a stint of shows; 1998 was a good year for the band.  MJK donned several alter-egos on-stage such as the Reverend Maynard-Slayer-Of-Able-Keenan (the most entertaining/humorous quotes are from this persona), the Cher-like woman-in-a-dress & the barely-clothed human, convulsing in agony (pr glory?).   And for collector's & fans as there are some excellent recordings available from this year.  Variation seemed to be the key  via the addition of cover songs such as Stranglehold (original artist: Ted Nugent), You Lied (original artist: Peach) & the "mini-tour" only cover of Demon Cleaner (original artist: Kyuss).  When you take into account amazing alternate renditions of classics such as Stinkfist (w/sample - extended), Third Eye (w/Dr. Timothy Leary intro) & the introduction of a softer/intimate Pushit, it is of little doubt that this year of Tool's existence is of ample interest to any fan of this band.   Some collector's have told me that if they could only listen to one year of Tool recordings it would be from 1998.  I can understand this line off thinking.  At least for me, having listened to literally countless hours of Tool performances for many years, there is something exceptional about the energy of the gigs & recordings of this year.
Notes on live recordings/sources:
All recordings on this site are sourced from CD, cassette or DVD/VHS. The recordings found on this site are not sourced from FLAC, SHN, APE, etc.  or sourced from downloadable video files. Unless otherwise noted, all recordings have as much legitimate source & lineage history as possible. CU.org does have information pertaining to download sizes of sources. You can not download any complete recording on this site; only 1 minute (or less)  MP3 samples are provided to give the collector a reference for the source. This entire website is for referential & archival use only & in no way is to be used for commercial gain of any kind. 

Definitive Recordings:
03.28.98 - Phoenix, AZ, USA @ Phoenix Civic Plaza  (DVD / 2CD) (Source B)
03.29.98 - San Diego, CA, USA @ The Rimac Theatre (DAT / 2CD) (Source B)
07.14.98 - Akron, OH, USA @ The Rubber Bowl (Ozzfest) (CD)
07.15.98 - Kalamazoo, MI, USA @ Wings Stadium (Non-Ozzfest) (SBD) (2CD)
08.01.98 - Raleigh, NC, USA @ Walnut Creek Amphitheatre (Ozzfest) (CD)
08.18.98 - Las Vegas, NV, USA @ Thomas & Mack Center (DVD  / 2CD) (Source A)
08.29.98 - Santa Barbara, CA, USA @ County Bowl (DVD /  2CD) (Source B)
08.30.98 - San Jose, CA, USA @ State Events Center  (DVD) (Source B)