The idea of a one man show had intrigued me for a long time. It's a well known fact that the film is a director's medium and the stage belongs to the actor. Once the curtain goes up nobody yells "cut." But the one man show is the ultimate of the actor's medium and it was this thought that led me back again and again to what I could do, along, on the stage. It would be merciless, I knew. If I were good, it would ge the actor's dream-- but if it failed I would be alone. Alone up there with thousands of eyes peering at me -- opera glasses raised for a closer look, and the unasked but heavily felt question "what's he going to do?"

All this was going through my head as I learned the lines -- all this was in front of my eyes as I lay down at night -- and when the day came that I was to open at Texas A&M University I was filled with fear.

A very primitive fear -- the fear of the actor. The nightmare that all actors have from time to time is appearing naked in front of an audience -- not knowing the lines, not knowing the play -- I was living the dream.

Thirty-five hundred people awaited me expectantly; the buzz of their voices reached me backstage, the lights dimmed, the M.C. announced my name and I walked out. The spotlight hit me like a physical force and I was on -- oh muse, be with me know -- I took a breath & started to speak...

(signed) William Shatner

Track listing

1. SIDE 1: 1. "Earthbound" (Irene Jackson) (c) 1971 by Jane Hipolito and Willis E. McNelly
   Willis E. McNelly
   Willis Everett McNelly was a professor and writer best known for The Dune Encyclopedia, the 1984 companion to Frank Herbert's classic Dune series of science fiction novels....
   
     "Go With Me" / "High Flight" (time 12:02 from LP label)
2. SIDE 1: 2. " The Flight of Man" / "Galileo" (c) 1952 Bertolt Brecht
   Bertolt Brecht
   Bertolt Brecht was a German poet, playwright, and theatre director.An influential theatre practitioner of the 20th century, Brecht made equally significant contributions to dramaturgy and theatrical production, the latter particularly through the seismic impact of the tours undertaken by the...
   
    (time 9:38)
3. SIDE 2: 1. "6 Ways To the Moon" (from Cyrano de Bergerac
   Cyrano de Bergerac
   Hercule-Savinien de Cyrano de Bergerac was a French dramatist and duelist. He is now best remembered for the works of fiction which have been woven, often very loosely, around his life story, most notably the 1897 play by Edmond Rostand...
   
    by Edmond de Rostand [sic] Edmond Rostand
   Edmond Rostand
   Edmond Eugène Alexis Rostand was a French poet and dramatist. He is associated with neo-romanticism, and is best known for his play Cyrano de Bergerac. Rostand's romantic plays provided an alternative to the naturalistic theatre popular during the late nineteenth century...
   
   ) (time 8:12)
4. SIDE 2: 2. "War of the Worlds" (Martian description by H.G. Wells) (time 12:02)
5. SIDE 3: 1. "The Movie" (time 17:45) [note: talking about the pending Star Trek: The Motion Picture
   Star Trek: The Motion Picture
   Star Trek: The Motion Picture is a 1979 American science fiction film released by Paramount Pictures. It is the first film based on the Star Trek television series. The film is set in the twenty-third century, when a mysterious and immensely powerful alien cloud called V'Ger approaches the Earth,...
   
   ]
6. SIDE 4 SHORT TAKES 1. "William Shatner -- Audience" (time 1:28)
7. SIDE 4 SHORT TAKES 2. "Starship's Facilities" (time 0:26)
8. SIDE 4 SHORT TAKES 3. "Peter" (time 4:18)
9. SIDE 4 SHORT TAKES 4. "Summer Spaceship" (time 4:20)
10. SIDE 4 SHORT TAKES 5. "Three-Way Alchemy -- The Brain" (from "The Hyphen" by Norman Corwin
    Norman Corwin
    Norman Lewis Corwin was an American writer, screenwriter, producer, essayist and teacher of journalism and writing...
    
    ) / "Finale" (time 9:50)

Credits

• Original Music on Go With Me / High Flight, The Flight of Man and War of the Worlds created and arranged by Mark Goldenberg.
• All keyboards and synthesizers programmed and performed by Jim Hirsen.
• All acoustic guitars performed by Mark Goldenberg.
• Edited and assembled at Sun-West Studios, Hollywood, Calif.
• All music recorded and mixed at Spectrum Studios, Venice, Calif.
• Mastered at A&M Studios, Hollywood, Calif. Engineerd by Bruce Ablin.
• Mastered by Frank De Luna.
• "William Shatner Live" was presented by Jerry Tokofsky Productions, conceived by Susan Price Root and Jerry Tokofsky.
• Written by Susan Price Root.
• Special thanks to Marcy Shatner for spiritual and practical guidance.
• (c) and (p) 1977 Lemli Music, Inc., 760 N. La Cienega, Los Angeles, Ca 90069. This recording can only be purchased through: LEMLI MUSIC, P.O. BOX 1710, HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA 90028.
• Art Direction: Ria Lewerke.
• Photography: Moshe Brakha.