Bow Wow's mercurial late-‘70s rise to the top of Japan's heavy metal heap was crowned by the release of their first live recording, Super Live, which was recorded in Hiroshima's Yubin Chokin Hall and emerged, fittingly enough, in the "year of the live album": 1978.

Indeed, not unlike other classic concert documents captured in the Land of the Rising Sun that year -- e.g., Cheap Trick's At Budokan, the Scorpions' Tokyo Tapes -- Super Live arguably surpassed the three Bow Wow studio albums leading up to it with scintillating performances showcasing a ferocious touring machine climaxing in its natural habitat.

Egged on by those incomparable Japanese fans, who were whipped up into an even greater frenzy by their patriotic duty on this occasion, Bow Wow rode the surging, Marshall amp mega-wattage to elevate fan favorites like "Heart's on Fire," "Jet Jive," and "Get on Our Train" to new heights of energy and excitement.

All the while, these studio creations rubbed sweaty shoulders with made-to-order in-concert beasts like the guitar and drum solo combo "Explosion" and the previously unreleased boogie masterpiece "Just a Rockin' Time." Guitar god Kyoji Yamamoto's signature ballad, "Still," was also given an extended and inspired, possibly definitive, rendition; the band's rousing "Theme of Bow Wow" afforded perfect singalong fodder for the notably female-filled crowd (only in Japan, at this point in time); and an unexpected encore of Eddie Cochran's "Summertime Blues" arguably referenced proto-metal icons Blue Cheer less than it acknowledged the immortal spirit of vintage rock & roll, binding all.

All told, these performances provided a perfect summation of Bow Wow's first golden era, which, unbeknownst to their fans, was about to grind to a halt with the inexplicable swerve toward pop/rock on the ensuing studio album, Guarantee.