Excerpted from "Steve Goodman release continues his legend" by Chrissie Dickinson in the September 24, 2006 Chicago Tribune. Click me!

Chicago folk legend Steve Goodman died of leukemia in 1984 at 36. But thanks to a recently unearthed recording that hit store shelves earlier this month, it feels as if the singer-songwriter is more alive than ever.

"Steve Goodman: Live at the Earl of Old Town" (Red Pajamas Records) features Goodman performing live at the Chicago folk club in 1978. It's a high-quality recording that captures him in peak form...Goodman's spirit crackles off the grooves.
[...]
It was record producer Jim Tullio, a close Goodman friend and colleague, who rediscovered the tapes that would become the Earl of Old Town live release. The tapes were originally stored at the Chicago Recording Company. Two years after Goodman's death, the CRC called [Al Bunetta, Goodman's longtime manager and co-owner of Red Pajamas Records] and asked what he wanted to do with the recordings. Bunetta called Tullio, who retrieved the tapes and took them to his Winnetka home for safekeeping.

In the ensuing years, Bunetta and Tullio became busy with other projects and forgot about the recordings. Six months ago, Tullio came across the box. "I called Al and said, `You'll never believe what I just found.' And Al had completely forgotten about it, which I had too."

They decided it was worth checking out. After the tapes were transferred to a digital format, Tullio was knocked out by what he heard.

"Steve's guitar-playing is just stunning," says Tullio, who went on to mix the record. "This is Goodman in his element at the Earl of Old Town. And '78 was his prime. Steve was at his best then. He was still in remission at the time, he was feeling great. It's just a fantastic record. Al decided to put it out. I think it's very timely."
[...]
"Unbelievable," Bunetta says. "We spent so much time together, he was my best friend. And I didn't remember him being that great, and I mean over-the-top great. I remember always wanting him to do an instrumental record, and he never did. And that's the only regret I have, period."
[...]