|
||||||||||
| Recent Interviews (rss?) 1. With Intent 2. Waking Hour 3. Box of Bones 5. Garagezilla 6. L.R.A. 7. Domesticide 8. eDDie cIZa 9. SCSI 11. Shimera 12. Onesdemise 13. Sciatica 15. Lovers Revolt |
 
When I was much younger, eh…about 30 or so years ago, music was a much simpler thing. There weren’t so many different categories, and much fewer bands. And if you liked Rock ‘n’ Roll, there were just two sides of it you could be on. Either you liked the Rolling Stones or you liked The Beatles. Of course, if you liked The Beatles you were considered safe and more mainstream. If The Stones were your preference you were considered aggressive, dangerous even. When asked, I would always say I liked The Stones because I wanted to be considered cool, but truth be told I was a closet Beatles freak. There…..I said it, the truth is now out, say what you will. So, even though I spent much of my youth pretending to be a Stones fan, I really didn’t know all that much about them. With this DVD, “The Rolling Stones Under Review 1962-1966”, I get a chance to make up on lost time. First, the technical stuff: This is a very well produced DVD. It mixes a ton of interviews with both live clips and early photos of the band and even though it is “An Independent Critical Analysis” (read – Unauthorized), the people they interview have a ton of intimate knowledge of the band. From the very first bassist to a tour manager, writers and a driver, these people know the Stones from a first hand perspective. Though there isn’t much in bonus materials (a really hard trivia game – I got 11 out of 25 – and bios of those interviewed), this DVD doesn’t really need it. The content is good enough that you will never feel the lack. The editing is first rate with the only criticism that I can make is that when someone is talking over top a performance clip, sometimes the music is too loud to hear the speaking clearly. Also, this DVD is clearly produced with a British audience in mind, and at times the British accents get a tad thick. But it flows so well that the 90 minute mark comes up before you know it. The DVD starts with the very roots of The Rolling Stones, from boyhood friendships and the first bands that would later merge into the band we now know. There is a ton of photos from those early days, and stories from the people that were there, of course without the actual band members. The material was thoroughly researched and augmented by classic and rare performance clips. Starting out with their days as a simple blues cover band, the DVD takes us through all the growth the band made in those early years. We get a taste of their influences, their struggles to record and get their “live” sound down, and even their relationship with The Beatles, who oddly enough “donated” the single that became their first big hit. We get to follow them on their early US tours and discover that their “bad boy” image was created to play off of The Beatles clean image. Most fascinating to me was that their manager had to force Mick and Keith to start writing about 2 years into the band, and how quickly they hit their stride. I don’t really want to give away too much more, because this really is a great DVD if you want to learn more about The Rolling Stones early history. From those early days, we are taken into 1966, the period just following their extraordinary run of hits and on the verge of their next transformation. Even though I am still not much of a Rolling Stones fan, this DVD was an excellent view. The content was outstanding and the presentation first rate. If you are a Stones fan, this is a must have. If not, but you have a passing interest, rent it at least and give it a spin. I give this DVD a 9…….out of 10.
To post comments CLICK HERE!
|
|
||||||||
| Home : Advertise : MERCH : Rock News : Interviews : Live @ 12 pm Pacific : CD Reviews : DVD Reviews : Concert Reviews : Book Reviews : Concert Pix : Forums : Email us : stats : Staff lists : db : MySpace : Privacy Policy : Rant |