Behind The Vinyl: "Let Go The Line" with Kim Mitchell from Max Webster 

This is one of the few songs for me that I never ever get tired of hearing. That speaks volumes for how really great it is.

My favorite Max Webster song and one of my favorite songs of all time .

This made my day. Still gives me goosebumps 35 years after I first heard it.

'Let go the line' is an unbelievably gorgeous track.

i love how he praises Terry Watkinson

One of my favourite songs of all time.

I love the fact that, despite being a central figure in the creation of this song and probably has heard this song tens of thousands of times, he legitimately appears to be enjoying listening to it.

This is a brilliant song. Credit to Terry Watkinson. And Kim Mitchell is a class act. Not every front man would exhibit such deference, humility and respect to a peripheral member of the band who managed to sail the band in to the limelight with such a gem. Hats off to them both

I instantly fell in love with the song when I first heard it in the early 80s probably the best Canadian song ever written

This is when I started my MAX Webster love of the music

In 2001, Kim Mitchell appeared, with many other great acts, at the Minnedosa Rock Fest. I was fortunate to have a VIP pass that weekend, which allowed me to enjoy three free meals a day in the VIP section. During lunch, I was enjoying dinner with some fellow rock fans, when someone behind me asked (with an empty seat beside me) "Is this seat taken?" I said it was free, without even turning around to see who may have said that. So, sitting down right next to me, was Kim Mitchell! Super friendly guy, and very down to earth. Made my whole weekend!

I heard this song, asked my friend who played it, and bought the LP. Max Webster/Kim Mitchell fan thereafter.

This is a mood song. Something you only listen to late at night.

I remember being a little kid, and mentally dropping everything when this came over the airwaves. Yup, I had an awful lot going on as a youngster… I still find it kinda spellbinding. This song has so many cool elements and evokes all that was right with ‘70’s radio.

Kim Mitchell is one of a kind ..great musician, funny guy !!!😀...Max Webster 👍💯🎯

Terry Watkinson is cool. He's an artist now. I believe that for a long while there after Max Webster he worked as an illustrator for medical textbooks. Super talented guy and what an ear for unusual hooks. This song is something very special.

This was the first Max Webster song I remember hearing and it instantly grabbed me. It got a lot of air play back in the day. I was young at the time they were starting out and more into pop than hard rock so I wasn’t really familiar with all their earlier music but got into later on because of this song. This song strikes me as more prog rock than their earlier stuff which is more classic. Still sounds good today.

First band I saw in high school Niagara district secondary 79 and my fav Max machine tune

One of my absolute favorites, this song helps me every time I need a little smooth, spiritual pick-me-up. This band was a really big part of my teen years and is, still, a great source of nostalgia for me. Chalkers.

Growing-up in Winnipeg's North End every third or fourth basement had these young musicians wanna be jamming creating music. Then someone would come over and here's Max Webster's 'High Class in Borrowed Shoes' and here we were blasted with a style and energy that made us Portuguese kids eager to get big and be big fast. Great to have been growing up in an era of great Canadian Rock. Max Webster will for ever be a band that brought us all together. A toast!

Such a great song and story told. Kim is genuinely a great fellow. My first year teaching was at his old high school. A student in my class, a big fan of his, wrote him a letter as part of a class assignment. A few weeks later I got paged to the office for a phone call. It was Kim calling from Toronto asking about the letter he received from the kid in my class and what he should do to respond. We chatted for about 5 minutes about his time growing up in Sarnia and attending the school. He sent a nice letter back and his autograph. A class act . The drummer of Max Webster was a substitute teacher and he subbed for my music class a few times when I was in high school. Also a great fellow. Proud these boys are from my hometown.

1979 Minden Arena, Kim and Terry were obviously fighting so when "let go the line" was played, Kim was playing something else and making faces. I was appalled cause i really wanted to hear the song and never forgotten this. Seeing this now brought a tear to my eye. 42 years have passed . Mr Mitchell has become a true rocking gentleman.

Great song, played a lot on CHOK in Sarnia, Ontario. The band members were from there to.

Just a Masterpiece! The tone of that guitar, the bass, keys and the drums. Awesome!, all the way around!

One of my favourite guitarists. Doesn't get the recognition that legendary guitarists get, but he's just as good, if not better

Awesome album Very punchy and excellent songs and lyrics ! Terry’s songs are brilliant

Classic.❤️

Please do more Max Webster behind the vinyl!

Best Max Webster song!

Thank you. What greatness in the sound. All i can say is i need more !

Brilliant track

I love Kim Mitchell

Max Webster is the band of my High School years, and every great summer I ever knew. Cruising my pink and purple, 76 Chev Impala, dual sunroofs with a bar and double bed…..we knew how to rock, and really enjoy life. And we DID. “The cats in the bag, the neighbours holler….this party’s higher than the Eiffel Tower!”

After loving this song 40 years ago and taping it off the radio to one of my favorite mixtapes, why am I only finding out today that Kim Mitchell was in Max Webster!

Kim Mitchell plays a superb lead guitar in this song, and he is kind enough to give high credit to Terry Watkinson. This song is a brilliant masterpiece, rated (I believe) as high as some of the best songs ever written.

Kim Mitchell seems like a bright, nice, down-to-Earth guy. A brighter but otherwise average Canadian, in other words. ☮

Awesome song. Love KM ❤️

Just a Great song

The man Rocks !!!!

This song means that I was a fan of Max Webster way before I originally thought. My favorite album is Universal Juveniles, all of it!

Great format ... I loved this.

Of the handful of Canadian musicians (& a few other celebrities) I have been lucky enough to meet, after a show. Kim has been the only Canadian (Stephen Fry being the other) where I have no idea what I said, if I was able to say anything, felt like I was dreaming, and walked away feeling like my knees were non existent and my legs were made of jelly. Whatever I did say to Kim, when he asked my name, to sign my cd, that was not my name on the cd. 😂

Hadn't heard that song in decades and I thought man this sounds like Kim Mitchell's guitar...he already had his sound back then, unmistakable. My parents had an 8 track tape with this on and other hits, Bad Side of the Moon, Layla and others. How I wish I could find the title of that 8 track, surely there was a vinyl version as well.

This was my introduction to Max Webster so hearing the rest of their work was interesting because this song was sooo different than the rest of their catalog

While most chose High Class in borrowed Shoes as their go to album,I always find myself going back to A Million Vacations as my Favorite album From Max Webster not to mention Their great live Album Live Magnetic Air,which i played out so many times, I bought it more than a few times , and now with the Box set recently!

Can't believe it was only 41 on the charts in Canada as a kid it seemed like a very big song ...which it is

I really believe if Terry had stayed and perhaps wrote and sang another wonderful song like this they could have broke in the UK. Such an amazing song. Paradise Skies was equally amazing. The follow-up UJ was incredible, but never had hits like Let go the Line and Paradise Skies.

What a fun commentary. I really dig this tune, it’s great to hear Kim talk about it in such humble and easy going manner. Thanks!

One of my favourite songs.

It's still a dark haunting song to this day.

This is one of those songs that I feel in awe of the songwriting process. I like this song, but I wouldn't say it's one of my go-to favourite songs or anything, but it's just inspiring how all the pieces come together. I can't think of another song that sounds like this. I just don't understand what was going through their minds to make this happen. Some songs you hear and think they're cool, but you can kind of see how they were put together. This one just makes me wonder.

One of the best tunes that uses a whole symphony as the background musicians! Thank you Boom! ;)

love the stories Kim !! LOL .... one of "those" soundtrack of our lives tunes ...dont underestimate ... the guitar is absolutely genius

Thank you for recording and posting this. I have been a fan of Max Webster since hearing this song in 1979/1980. And it is literally my all-time favorite song, bar none. So listening to Kim give some commentary on the song, on Terry, is very cool ... and all of MW's stuff is on my favorite's playlist. They are the one band who I have not seen in concert who remain on my "i wish/hope" list. It'll probably never happen, but I am hopeful. Thanks to Kim for sitting down and making this also ... with such a large catalogue of great music, both with Max and solo, I appreciate the fact that this song was included.

That tiny catch in Terry's voice singing, " a trace of smile on a frozen face..." is so poignant.

BEAUTIFUL SONG....and wonderful heart-felt comments by Kim Mitchel. Love these guys.

another powerful creator thanks KIM LOVE AN LIGHT

Woke up one morning with that song in my head weird haven’t heard it for 30 years now I’m here i’m going to learn it on my guitar. Thanks Max Webster.⚡️

great performer awesome music always .... we relate to every note and lyric .... great stuff and Canadian too :)

Saw him at the Western Fair in London, Ontario many years ago and loved every minute of it. Hell of a show!!!

Always fascinating to watch these!

Beautiful song. So wonderful to see Kim Mitchell looking healthy.

Great story told by Kim Mitchell. I love how he describes Terry Watkinson's approach to the song, TSO's involvement and how he (Kim) struggled with his guitar part (which sounds super easy but maybe it's because Kim has that ability to make everything he did seem effortless). Kim, besides being a great musician, is the perfect raconteur. Max Webster did a lot of great songs but I agree with him that this song was their pinnacle.

great to hear Kim's anectodals on this tour de force // Terry's take on things is nothing short of magical ... was so lucky to see them back when

THE LEGEND - KIM MITCHELL!

Still have my original vinyl of Million Vacations. Great to hear Kim's retrospective on this track. Saw Max live at Sutton H.S. back in the day just after Live Magnetic Air dropped. Great memories.

Let Go The Line...a potently powerful song from my mind's past...fuck...so many times I came too close to letting go the line. ..

love K Mitch

love the candor. most airplay cuz it;s a standard

I swear, Kim’s the greatest. Here he continually pays homage to the song’s main writer, Terry, and in doing so, shows his class. He’s very self deprecating and always giving props to other musicians. Anyway, fantastic tune. ... I’m a monster Max/Mitchell fan. Several months ago I bought the MW box set on its day of release. Have seen KM in concert perhaps a dozen times. Just an incredible musician, guitarist, writer, and performer. A true Canadian gem. As an aside, I always wonder why his tones and sounds aren’t discussed more amongst guitar fans. Like Eric Johnson, etc., Kim has utterly tasty choices for his axe voices. Some are simply gorgeous. Thanks for this video!

I had no idea this song was big for them. In Canada maybe. In America, Battlescar was the only song I ever heard on the radio. Awesome song though. I remember listening to it at night in my room with the lights down, savoring each second of the song.

There's a nice live version of Let Go the Line from 79 on the New Music

One of the greatest canadian commercial hits of all time!

It's a shame you never got anyone from Procol Harum to do one of these segments on Conquistador. That song used to get played so much I looked it up on Wikipedia and found out it was made with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (just like this song was made with the TSO). I didn't even know until then Edmonton had a symphony orchestra. Also no one plays the song anymore for some reason and it's sad.

My fuck I love this song

I don't know who but somebody really goofed seeing as these guys never made it big outside of Canada. They had years of good tunes, brilliant guitars from Kim Mitchell (easily on par with Alex Lifeson from Rush for example) and great writing like this song. I like them better than Rush overall. Great to see how much Kim Mitchell gives back to the rock public (radio, video etc).

Exceptional Thank you.

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I always assumed Kim was a challenge to work with based on the high staff turnover in his bands, but great to see him repeatedly give props to Terry for his amazing songwriting and playing.

Fantastic!

Just love Max start to finish......that’s it.

I screw up that run 50% of the time. Very pleased to know that it gave Kim Mitchell trouble as well. Fabulous song!

I saw Kim Mitchell at the Oshawa civic auditorium in like 83/84? Anyhow, Nash the slash opened and it didn’t go well......unless you like golf!!! To quote Kim at the time “only in Oshawa!”

I don't know why, but this song has always had a sinister vibe to me. It scared me a little when I was very young. I've always liked it, thought it was mysterious and broody, but...yeah, those changes, some of them are very dark.

Excellent song , childhood memories, I have the LP.

I wish he had told us the song's meaning, what the lyrics were about...Love Kim!!

This song is a masterpiece. I think MW should have utilized Terry Watkinson more often as a singer/songwriter. That's not a dig at Kim, just a way to fill out and smooth the edges of the band's unique sound.

Kim may say he had trouble with that part, but he pulled it off flawlessly just like everything else he played.

Love the diminished chord riff, Words to Words was another great ballad. Gravity, so many great songs. I still play Max songs when I play out here live in San Diego. People say who was that song? I say, that was Max Webster the best most creative Canadian rock band ever. They would have made it if they moved to California no doubt in my mind, but it's hard to break out of shitty boring Canada. I did it, Burton did it, Randy did it. Robby Robertson, Neil Young, Pat Travers, do I need to go on. Love you Kim, I got your autograph at a Drum Clinic in 1981 in Toronto. I almost shit my pants, I thought Kim was from outer space and he is. My dream is to have Eddy Van Halen, Kim Mitchell, Terry Watkinson, Elton John Jimi Hendrix over for a jam. Gregg

Nice insights, Kim is the man. Was only hoping for a bit of story behind the lyrics also. What a monster band they were- I've got the box set and it gets a lot of play. I keep trying to get my fellow Phish fans into Max.

So polite.

Max Webster is still and will always be quality tunes. So many songs you wish you wrote yourself dammit, though glad somebody did. Here amongst the cats. ~solo inserted here~

CBC used the riff for the theme of the National way back in the day

You need to do the entire "Million Vacations" album...Best Canadian band ever!!!

I think Terry should have been commenting on this particular song!

cool

Why is the record showing an Alert label? Max Webster were on Anthem.

Listen to the lyrics, what do you think he is talking about? Blurred lines indeed...

Cancion tributo a sharon tate

It is kind of sad that hardly any Americans even know who Max Webster was and the only thing they were exposed to as far as Kim Mitchell goes was "Go For Soda" I was one of the lucky ones- My older brother bought all their albums as Max always opened up for Rush back in the day and he took a liking to their music. I STILL listen to anything Kim did to this day. I can't think of anybody more under-rated in music.........