Although the tapes were never anticipated to be released publicly, Raw 'n' Alive at the Cellar is commended for its good sound quality, and represents one of the better live concert recordings to emerge from the garage rock era.

[5] Recording at one of Chicago's more happening venues, the Cellar, the Shadows of Knight's setlist for the performance — speculated to have occurred in December 1966 — is composed mainly of blues covers taken from the band's first album.

[6] The songs "Tomorrow's Gonna Be Another Day", "Hey Joe", and "Gospel Zone" that represent some of the Back Door Men album, also figure into the Raw N' Alive set.

[5] Raw 'n' Alive also serves as a well-drawn document for the Shadow of Knight's progression as musical artists, with music historian Richie Unterberger pointing to "'It Takes a Long Time Comin', an original that never made it to the studio, makes extensive elastic allusions to the Beatles' 'Taxman', Frank Zappa is quoted elsewhere and, most impressively, the group pushes 'Hey Joe' toward the stratosphere, finding a comfortable intersection between a Yardbirds rave-up and proto-psychedelic drone".

The re-released album features three bonus tracks from the concert, including a rendition of "Peepin' and Hidin'" sung by lead guitarist Joe Kelley, "Willie Jean" and "Any Way That You Want Me", all compiled in a new artwork and a higher-fidelity.