I was 28 when I first heard of this band. A friend of mine was on holiday in England in 1992 and had sent me a letter in which he raved about a band called "Dream Theater" who he thought I'd like.

Having grown up on Genesis and Rush (with a healthy helping of Kansas and Jethro Tull) during the late 70's and early 80's, Marillion (ably supported in my collection by Simple Minds, Big Country, Waterboys and U2) in the Mid 80's and (at the time) my latest "can't get enough of" band... King's X, I knew that my friend knew my taste well and immediately started to ring around the local CD shops to see if anyone had the CD "Images and Words". Fortunately one store had heard of the CD and had a couple of copies.

Later that week I picked it up and from the first notes of "Pull Me under" I was hooked.

14 years later and here we are with a 20th Annivesary tour live set (which just fits on 2 CD's for the car by putting "Six Degrees", "Ocatavarium" and "Metrpolois" onto a second disc). (As I do most of my listening in the car to and from work).

For me this set is just brilliant. When I first saw the set list I thought there were a number of tracks missing from what I thought would "represent" Dream Theater over 20 years. However the set is superb in that it represents the bands history and their latest album with only a couple of tracks that appear on other live albums and the "previously" unreleased tracks are sheer brilliance.

1. Root of all evil (From Octavarium, 2005) - Stunning version.

2. Walk beside you (From Octavarium, 2005) - a lot more energy than the studio version.

3. Another Won (previously unreleased from 1985 - stunning - like a "Rush" meets "Iron Maiden" and uniquely Dream Theater. Far exceeded my expectations.

4. Afterlife (From When Night and Day unite, 1989) - great track (I've never heard the studio album). Far exceeded my expectations.

5. Under a glass moon (From Images and Words, 1992) - Really stunning, was never a big fan of this song, am now!

6. Innocence Faded (From Awake, 1994). Superb version, again enjoyed much more than the studio version.

7. Raise the Knife (previously unreleased from 1996 - really love this song, the band are in great form on this, sound like they are really enjoying doing it. Far exceeded my expectations.

8. Spirit Carries on (From Scenes from a memory, 1999)- the first of 3 songs that have been released live before (this one as part of Live from New York 2000). This is a 9 minute version that is superbly played.

The Orchestra kicks in from here on in....

9. Six Degrees of inner turbulence (the full 42 minute, 8 part version, from Six Degrees..., 2002).

(Parts III, IV, V and VI were on "Live at Budokhan (2004).

I. (Overture - Nice intro with Orchestra). II.(About to Crash - Stunning with band and Orchestra). III. (War inside my head - again, great with band and orchestra). IV. (Test that stumped them all - for me the definitive version, Mike's drumming here is just brilliant). V. (Goodnight Kiss - again great interplay band and Orchestra). VI. (Solitary Shell - the very "Solisbury Hill" (Peter Gabriel) like track, superb, hard to get out of my head. VII. (About to Crash (Reprise) - Excellent instrumental, perfect for band and orchestra, comes across really well. VIII. (Losing Time / Grand Finale). Rock on lads! This is just great, it's got all the excitement of the ending of 2112 (Rush) combined with an Orchestra. The band and Orchestra are having an absolute blast here. If I had to define the ultimate Rock / Orchestra "finale" this is it. I can see the progression and hard work that Dream Theater have put in over the years and for me it peaks here and again near the end of Octavarium and the whole of Metroplolis (read on...).

10. Vacant (from Train of thought, 2004). The "quiet" tune from the ultra heavy TOT album. This is beautifully played and sung, feels , to me, like part one of the "intermission" type tracks!

11. The Answer lies within (from Octavarium, 2005). Part two of the "intermission". Beautiful.

12. Sacrificed Sons (from Ocatavarium, 2005). Back into it again, great version of this track with Orchestra and band working superbly together. Again, I feel, superior to Studio version.

13. Octavarium (from Octavarium 2005). I find the keyboard / guitar solo intro (7 minutes) to this one a little too long (reminds me of Pink Floyd's "Shine On". (Would have preferred 2-3 minutes max). Also does remind me quite a bit in parts (particularly the vocal style) to IQ's 24 minute classic "Harvest" (from Dark Matter, 2004). (Which in itself is very reminiscent of Genesis "Suppers Ready"). Anyway, just minor thoughts in the context of this 27 minute epic. From the 7th minute on this absolutely exceeds all expectations. I think it has much more power than the studio version. It was made for the ultimate pairing of Rock and Orchestra with the 23 minute mark hitting an emotional high for me.

14. Metropolis (from Images and Words, 1992). (A version appeared on Live from New York, 2000). Have to confess, never a huge fan of this one. ("Pull Me Under", Take the time" and "Learning to Live" were my faves from I&W). Have to say though, this sums up the whole set. At first glance I thought, mmmm thought there'd be more of the stuff I like, and in the end, wow, I'm glad they put on a whole lot of stuff I wouldn't have chosen myself!. This track absolutely rocks, definitely now a big favorite. Totally exceeded all expectations. Check it out especially from around the 5 minute mark - Rock / Classical / Band and Orchestra - I've not heard better !

Dream Theater have exceeded all my expectations with this release. I'd go so far as to say that I'd add "Another Won", "Afterlife" and "Raise the knife" to my favorite DT tracks.

In regards to "six Degrees" and "Octavarium specifically, the blending of Rock and classical in this live context with an Orchestra is breathtaking. These two tracks are, to me, "Classical Rock Masterpieces" (in terms of variety / complexity / originality / highest caliber musicianship).

This music as with much of Dream Theater's output over the years is right up there with .... (to think of a few) ...

- Caravan, "For Richard" (live Version from "New Symphonia" 1974) (original 1970).

- Emerson Lake and Palmer, "Tarkus" (title track from "Tarkus" 1971)

- Yes , "Close to the Edge" - (title track from "Close to the Edge" 1972).

- Jethro Tull, "Thick as a Brick" (Live version from "Bursting Out" 1978) (Original 1972).

- Genesis, "Suppers Ready" (Live version from "Seconds Out" 1977) (Original 1972).

- Gentle Giant "Octopus" (Live version from "Playing the fool" 1976) (Original 1972).

- Mike Oldfield, "Tubular Bells", (Live Version on "Exposed" 1979) (Original 1973).

- Lynyrd Skynrd "Free Bird" (Live version from "One more from the Road" 1976). (Original 1973).

- Rush, "Cygnus X-1" from "Hemispheres" (1978).

- Tangerine Dream, "Tangram Part 1" (Title track from "Tangram" 1980).

- Frankie goes to Hollywood, "Welcome to the pleasuredome"

(title track from "Welcome to the pleasuredome" 1984).

- Marillion, "Misplaced Childhood" from (1985).

- Queensryche "Operation Mindcrime" (Live version from 1991). (Original 1988).

- Dream Theater "Learning to Live" from "Images and Words" (1992)

- Dream Theater, "Scenes from a Memory" from (1999).

- Spock Beard, "At the end of the day" from "V" (2000).

- Flower Kings "The Truth will set you free" from "Behold the Future" (2002).

- Green Day "Jesus of Suburbia" from "American Idiot (2004).

Further thought would no doubt reveal more than these classic 18 "top of mind" favorites. Music, that to me, pushes the musical boundaries in terms of complexity yet still rocks with an abundance of melody and harmony, a difficult thing to accomplish without 100% dedication to create something new, endless practice and commitment. In this live context with an Orchestra, the setting is brilliant.

In recent years newer bands such as Flower Kings, Spock's Beard, Muse, Gomez, Mercury Rev, Elbow, Coldplay, Evermore, and The Flaming Lips (from "Soft Bulletin" (1999) onwards) have held my interest, together with any new releases from Dream Theater, Marillion and Rush. This Dream Theater release is a classic.

In summary Dream Theater are are band of extremely talented musicians who can play really complex stuff yet enable it to rock and with melody, harmony and a swagger that defies classification. Hearing what they can play (and seeing it via the DVD) confirms it, these guys are real! Individually they are fantastic musicians, for me the best of the best and together they make something that is simply out of this world. Superb - a stunning 2 Hrs 40 minutes of music, well worth it.

Certainly one of my favourite live albums over the last 35 years (here are some of my other favourites over the past 35 years ...

- "How the West was won" from Led Zeppelin (1972)

- "Made in Japan" from Deep Purple (1972)

- "Yessongs" from Yes (1973)

- "Welcome back my friends" from ELP (1973)

- "Too late to stop now" from Van Morrison (1974)

- "On your feet or on your knees" from Blue Oyster Cult (1975)

- "Live in London" from Bruce Springsteen (1975)

- "One more from the Road" from Lynyrd Skynrd (1976)

- "Frampton comes alive" from Peter Frampton (1976)

- "Live Bullet" from Bob Seger (1976)

- "Seconds Out" from Genesis (1977)

- "A Live Record" from Camel (1978)

- "Bursting Out Live" from Jethro Tull (1978)

- "Two for the Show" from Kansas (1978)

- "Playing the fool" Gentle Giant (1978)

- "Waiting fro Columbus" from Little Feat (1978)

- "Strangers in the Night" from UFO (1979)

- "Live Rust" from Neil Young (1979).

- "Paris" from Supertramp (1980).

- "Exit...Stage left" from Rush (1981)

- "Under a blood red sky" from U2 (1983)

- "Stop making sense" from Talking Heads (1984)

- "Live in the city of Light" from Simple Minds (1986)

- "Live adventures of the Waterboys" from the Waterboys (1986)

- "Operation Livecrime" from Queensryche (1991)

- "Without a safety Net" from Big Country (1992)

- "Secret World Live" from Peter Gabriel (1994)

- "Together in Concert" from Tim Finn, Dave Dobbyn, Bic Runga (2000)

- "Live Scenes from New York" from Dream Theater (2000)

- "Hullabaloo" from Muse (2002)

- "Out West" from Gomez (2005)

- "Instant Delivery" from Flower Kings (2006).

- "Okonokos" from My Morning Jacket (2006)

If this sounds remotely like your sort of music, then go for it. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

I flew from Houston, Tx to New York City to see my favourite band ever. This three disc live album is absolutley amazing. It spans there entire career from the Majesty days, all the way to the most recent album, Octavarium. The tracklisting is absolutley amazing and it really shows the entire aspect of Dream Theater. Need I say more? Go buy it!!! It's amazing

So. Mad props to LaBrie on this recording. I don't think he's ever sounded better (save the screaming part toward the end of "Octavarium." that reeks of cheese.). The drumming feels a little muddy, but that's my only gripe, well, that and the song selection wasn't exactly perfect. But I can feel the intensity of the night from the recording! Must have been a magical show to witness.

Highlights include "Innocence Faded" which show LaBrie still has the versatile vocal chops of his youth and "The Spirit Carries On" along with "Metropolis." Also, it's cool to hear and have "Another Won" and "Afterlife" in a live setting. "Vacant" didn't live up to my expectations especially considering it was done with an orchestra. It didn't feel as intimate as the studio release, nor as desolate, which gave the song its power. Of course, "Six Degrees..." and "Octavarium" transfer well to a live setting with an orchestra. Even though I definitely prefer _Live Scenes From New York_ I must admit I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the show.

Great job, Dream Theater, this is a stellar live release that could have easily turned boring since it's the third one in five years.

I have been a die hard DT fan for years.I have seen a few stops on each tour from 6 degrees up to and including octavarium and I was also at this milestone show. I think the album is amazing, the only problem I have is that one or more of the string players are horribly flat during the entire second set. I noticed it during the show and I hoped that the band would do everything in their power to fix this problem. The most they could do was bring the entire string section down in the mix as soon as the band kicked in after the overture of 6 degrees. Now before people start attacking me, let me say that mistakes I can stand, we all make them. It's part of the live experience...but a flat violin is inexcusable. Instruments being played out of tune are one of the most offensive things to hear in music next to feedback. However, if you forget about that minor flaw, it's the best DT live album to date. After hearing Raise The Knife it makes you wonder why it never made the cut on falling into infinity. It's probably my favorite DT song right now. The setlist is perfect...the mix is perfect...and I can tell you that after being at the show ...that is exactly how the live house mix sounded that night which is very cool. Even though the strings weren't up to par...(and deserve a lesson in tuning their instruments)it didn't take any luster away from that special evening. That's the most important thing, so here's to 20 years of DT and we await 20 more.

To write a review for any DT album is a very difficult task to me, because in my opinion Dream Theater is the best band I've ever heard, simply the best and therefore sometimes I feel I could not be very objective on my opinions because I really love this band.

Every album is the best but never better than the other ones they realeased that could not happen `cause they are very different one from the other, so it happens with every live album they released now SCORE is the 5th live album by DT and to be honest when I read the track list I was a little bit sceptical but inside of me I truly believ I was going to like this album so I wait fo its realease, now I been listening to Score for over a month and I still have no word to describe this masterpiece.

Let me start by saying that on March 06 Dream Theater performed at the National Auditorium in Mexico and believe me is the best concert I have ever attend to (includind the other Mexico's performances), I was at 1st row and I could feel the music as I have never before it was the perfect concert and to me it could never be repeated, just the best day of my life and for that reason I really wanted a Live album of this tour, I really believed they played pefectly and James sang as he has never befored... flawless, believe me it was so perfect that even my wife (who is not a DT fan as myself) was banging with their music, it was mindblowing simply perfect, the track list, the mood, their attitude, their performance everything was over the top and for that reason when I read the track list of Score I was a little bit dissappointed, because to me the Mexico's track list was perfect so I wanted to be repeated on the Score album... that doesn't happen not even close and today I love this set list because in Score you can hear (and see) how DT has evolved through the last 20 years...

Something that for me was perfect is that they don't include for the 1st time a Pull me under version, it's not that I don't love this song I really do, but it appears on every DT live album, so now it is a perfect change; the combination of songs is one of the best of all the live albums, and let me tell you the preveously unreleased songs are becoming favorites to me, Another Won, Afterlife, Raise the Knife is so great, is really unblelievable they did't realeased this song yet..

Th perfomances are as usual impressive but I am going to concentrate on James's voice, it was unbelievable, in Mexico he sang flawlessly and believe me one of his best nights but in Score he was even impressive, I believe he is singing as never before, in my opinion he sounds better than in studio if you really apreciate the way he sangs then you're gonna love this album, about Jordan, John, Mike & John Petrucci what can I said that hasn't been said before, they are simply geniuses and in Score theY prove it again

The Orchestra part... well what can I said when I first read that on April they will play with an orchestra I was so excited I knew already it will be so breathtaking an yes it was so nicely blended it seems like those songs were composed to be played with orchestra it was really beautiful but the important things was that every song was even more powerful than the studio version so they were arranged mastefully.

In Score you will find songs that weren't released or it would be very difficult to have such as Innocence faded, Another won, Afterlife & Six degrees on its enterity and believe it worth the time for them to be relesead they sound incredible.

My top 5 of this album would be:

1. Octavarium (the petrucci's solo an the end worths the whole album the live and studio ones)

2. Raise the Knife (One of my DT favorites at this moment)

3. Six degrees (The end is so impressive)

4. Sacified Sons

5. Root of all Evil, Metropolis, The Spirit carries on, AfterLife (so difficult to chose only 5¡¡¡¡¡)

Again its hard to tell if this is the best DT live album I really have mixed feelings about this but afet a month of listening everyday in my IPOD, in my car, in my house and on my PC I think that yes this si simply the best live album, not because the tracklist or the band performance (which is flawless on every album, except for James who sound tired on some songs on the other albums) or the orchestra, simply because for the first time you can hear James singing perfect, flawless and that gives the extra point to make SCORE the best live album on DT's careers.... Obviously I am waiting for the next albums to come..

Once again DT gave us a masterpiece Score is so great, if you like DT go and buy this album it worths every penny you pay for, it is a 10 STARS ALBUM.. what a way to celebrate¡¡¡¡¡