Back in the late '80s, the Butthole Surfers got tired of seeing inferior bootlegs of the band's live shows in record stores, so the group decided to record one of its own. That two-disc limited edition, Double Live, soon went out of print. But, thanks to the kindness of Gibby Haynes and the gang, you can now download the collection's 29 songs from the band's official Web site.

The sound quality of these tracks is exceptional for a bootleg. The DAT recorder the band took on the road in the winter of '88 did a far better job than the usual micro-cassette recorder stuffed in some entrepreneurial kid's backpack. True, these aren't studio quality, but if you like your live shows to sound live, this is the collection for you.

All the early favorite Butthole songs are included. Memorable tracks include "Psychedelic Jam," "John E. Smoke," "Sweatloaf," and, my personal favorite, "I Saw an X-Ray of a Girl Passing Gas." Pretty much most of Locust Abortion Technician and Hairway to Steven make it onto the collection along with tracks from Rembrandt Pussyhorse and Psychic, Powerless ... Another Man's Sac.

Nice additions include cover versions of REM's "The One I Love" and Grand Funk Railroad's "Paranoid." And, if that's not enough, additional bootlegs are also available on the site. They're not as good as Double Live, but they are free.

In a time when most new music coming out is blatantly derivative of something you've heard before, it's nice to be able to throw on these songs and step back in time to enjoy a groundbreaking group in all of its glory. It's almost as entertaining as seeing the band live. Other than Gibby's gnarly teeth and scary shotgun, the only thing missing is a good sex change operation video.