With the West, Bruce & Laing trio quickly circling the drain Felix Pappalardi got the itch to reform Mountain again, although initially Corky Laing was to not be involved. He somehow wrangled a tour of Japan, pulled in session players Bob Mann and Allen Schwartzberg, then enticed West, who came back into the fold, however reluctantly. The live double album that was to be Twin Peaks came from an August 1973 show in Osaka, Japan, and honestly, is not a necessary document for anyone but the serious Mountain fan to listen to. That it did not get released until six months after the actual show is a good indicator of the above point. That said, most of the material isn't bad, with a couple of exceptions. Mostly, the band sticks to tried and true classic material, and plays it by-the-book on the first side. In fact, judging by the first three tracks, one would think Mountain was right back on track. Then comes Track 4, or "Guitar Solo", which is an excess wank-fest that goes nowhere and shows how bad West had gotten in the short time period between Mountain's breakup and this show. The solo is just a bunch of boring noise, really. But then again….That's nothing, compared to the 32 MINUTE VERSION of "Nantucket Sleighride" presented here - the majority of it spent of God-awful solos and passages which make the previous track seem like a pleasant walk in the park. There was no need for this - didn't we already drop two atomic bombs on Japan already? The material after "Sleighride" seems extra-loose almost as a natural response to what the listener just endured, especially "Mississippi Queen", which roars out of your speakers like a truck-driver on speed, with West pouring on the fuzz and effects pedals something fierce. Overall, just based on musicianship alone, Twin Peaks is a passable listen, but I warn you, it will test your patience quite often.
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