Guns N' Roses - DVD Collector's Box Review

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(More customer reviews)"This DVD Collectors Box is a 2 disc set which tells the complete and extraordinary story of Guns N Roses using never-before-seen performance and interview footage..."
This was the blurb used to sell this DVD. Reading that, I kind of expected to see something relating to Guns n' Roses that I hadn't seen before. I'm sad to say I was sorely disappointed.
The first warning sign appeared before the documentary even started, as when I pressed play, a disclaimer appeared on the screen stating that the DVD contained NO MUSIC BY GUNS N'ROSES as it was an unauthorized documentary (I'm not paraphrasing). I was then bombarded by interviews with people who claimed to have "hung out" with the band in their early days, edited together with old newspaper and magazine photos of the band and occasional footage from the Use Your Illusion tour (Without any sound). What's the point of showing Guns n' Roses concert footage without sound? The only time you actually hear band members speak is in a really old interview which has absolutely no bearing on the documentary at all.
What I'd really like to know is, where is this "never-before-seen performance footage" that's mentioned in the sales blurb? I learned nothing new from this DVD. All that's talked about in the documentary could quite easily have been picked up in an hour or so on Google. The publishers of this DVD are nothing more than opportunists trying to cash in on the re-emergence of Guns n' Roses. Amazon and other retailers should perhaps make it clearer that this is unauthorized, and doesn't even contain any music by the band. People might think twice about wasting their money.
For now, all I'll say is: If like me you are a true Guns n' Roses fan, DO NOT BUY THIS DVD.

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This DVD Collectors Box is a 2 disc set which tells the complete and extraordinary story of Guns N Roses using never-before-seen performance and interview footage, interviews with close friends, fellow band mates, family members, music biz colleagues, and

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Born at the Right Time (1991) Review

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(More customer reviews)This video, part of the 'American Masters' documentary series broadcast on PBS, is a somewhat revealing look into the musical life of the very private Paul Simon.
Interviews with Art Garfunkel, with Paul's brother, Eddie, comics Steve Martin and Chevy Chase, Lorne Michaels, (producer of Saturday Night Live) and members of Paul's 'Graceland' tour band give a well rounded, if one-sided view of Simon. Paul sits for an interview that makes up about 1/4 of the video to express his views on his music, his former partership with Garfunkel, and his hit album 'Graceland'.
The most interesting part of the video is the footage of the "Born At The Right Time Tour". This footage reveals some of the tension that Simon and his band experienced while in S. Africa, where members of a radical political group threatened to bomb the stadium they performed in. Simon revealed he had to make a few concessions to the group, which evident in the film, he was not pleased about.
A complete overview of Simon's career, from his beginning with Garfunkel to his last trip to S. Africa is covered. The film includes quite a bit of Paul's music and some photos that the public has not seen.
Since this is the only documentary of Simon in existence, it is the only source of 'in depth' information on him. If you are a follower of Simon's music, you probably know most, if not all, of what is covered in this video. Newcomers to Simon's work would enjoy this video. Followers of Simon don't need it, but it is a good addition to your collection nonetheless.

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Fleetwood Mac - Rumours (DVD-Audio Surround Sound) Review

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(More customer reviews)Often the passage of time diminishes the quality or aesthetics of a piece of art; the art (particularly music) becomes "dated." Many recordings from the Seventies--songs that were phenomenally popular--today come across as stale, corny, or contrived.
Anyone remember "You Light Up My Life"?
Such is not the case with Fleetwood Mac's masterpiece, RUMOURS. The energy, emotion, passion, and musical mastery of this album is just as compelling today as it was in 1977. On top of that, today's technology only makes listening to RUMOURS even more of a pleasurable and spellbinding experience.
For me, having been a college student when this album was released, each track from this troubled band is a wondrous trip down memory lane. Among my favorites: "Dreams"; "Don't Stop"; "Silver Springs"; "You Make Loving Fun." And "Go Your Own Way" is musical nirvana, a glimmering, golden rock 'n roll keeper.
The inner turmoil Fleetwood Mac was experiencing when RUMOURS began shattering the Billboard charts received as much publicity as the album itself. Despite the band's dysfunction--or perhaps because of it--members Lindsey Buckingham, Stevie Nicks, Christine McVie, Mick Fleetwood, and John McVie were hitting on all musical/creative cylinders. As a result, RUMOURS is timeless, ageless, and enthusiastically recommended.
--D. Mikels

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Fleetwood Mac's "Rumours," one of the biggest-selling albums in music history, the most celebrated album from one of the most popular rock groups of all time. Now added to the album lineup is the previously unreleased studio track "Silver Springs," recorded during the "Rumours" sessions but not included on the original album due to time constraints. Songs: Second Hand News, Dreams, Never Going Back Again, Don't Stop, Go Your Own Way, Silver Springs, The Chain, You Make Loving Fun, I Don't Want to Know, Oh Daddy, Gold Dust Woman, Songbird.

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Supertramp - The Story So Far (2002) Review

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(More customer reviews)This could have been done so much better. Let's start with the best bits first; the band is in fine form throughout and a healthy dose of great songs. The interview segments are, not surprisingly, rather old but still give pretty good insight into how the band started.
The picture quality and transfer are so-so. It could simply be the master tape or the transfer itself. It's difficult to tell. Considering the length of most Supertramp concerts, this one is rather short. Given the dual layer DVD capacity to hold information, this could easily have been stretched out to include material not on the original DVD release. The videos, fine though they are, aren't essential but are fun to view.
The sound quality is mixed. While the band sound great throughout most of the disc, the audience is mixed way too loud. This could have easily been remedied during the remastering phase for the DVD. Most of the hits and popular songs are included but, again, there was plenty of room for inclusion of lesser known Supertramp tracks included on the Paris live album. It's rather surprising that so little is included from Famous Last Words (although admittedly that's the weakest of their later albums).
There's other areas that could have used improvement as well. There is concert footage from a variety of venues over the years (1977 and 1975) but they're incomplete. Since the footage exists, why not include all of it? It would make for an interesting look at the band over the years. Or, for that matter, why not include some of their television appearences (well that would involve more $ and they'd have to clear the rights).
The Story portion plays like a poor man's Behind The Music. There are a number of mistakes throughout (including the "fact" that the same line up recorded the first two albums. In fact, only Roger and Rick remained and they recruited three new musicians who also left shortly). There really isn't much insight generated into what made the band click in version three. Also, there could have been more said about how Rick and Roger's songwriting partnership worked. Like the great sounding remasters, it appears that A&M/Universal did little to enhance the original video packaging. Basically, they just took a couple of video titles, stitched them together and created this companion piece to the remastered CDs/Best of collection.
I didn't expect a warts and all video but I also expected a bit more quality from A&M given the wealth of material to work from. All the members (from the original first line up to the third most successful) could easily have been contacted for a better, overall view of what occurred. It's not a bad video but it doesn't live up to its title, either.

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SUPERTRAMP THE STORY SO FAR - DVD Movie

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Fleetwood Mac - Destiny Rules Review

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(More customer reviews)The Fleetwood Mac: Destiny Rules documentary goes where the band has gone before in terms of the kind of documentary you see here. The band previously released such a retrospective about the recording of their classic album Tusk, but this one is very different.
For one thing, the band is much older as it set about recording their album Say You Will. Secondly, Christine McVie has retired, so the band was left to its own devices with the three men (drummer Mick Fleetwood, bassist John McVie, and guitarist and vocalist Lindsey Buckingham) recording while singer Stevie Nicks was on her tour to support Trouble in Shangri-la so she couldn't be in the studio while the men were until she finished her tour.
One of the things that is obvious when watching Destiny Rules is the fact that, despite a flaky reputation, Nicks is surprisingly grounded at key moments in the filming. While Buckingham was pushing for a double album, Nicks explained her reasons for being reluctant to go along: The band's familiar audience was older and a double album would be a hard sell. She also displayed a grasp of the current music scene that seemed to escape the other members when she pointed out how difficult it would be to compete with the likes of N'SYNC or the Backstreet Boys.
Nicks does have her moments of drama. When the cameras were filming her and Buckingham debating the merits of lines in "Thrown Down," she says, "you can't change that. It's beautiful." A VH-1 All Access special caught one moment that Destiny Rules unfortunately missed: Nicks screaming at Buckingham, "of course you hate it. It's because I wrote it!"
All in all, the decision to go from a double album to a single album with 18 songs could have been explained more thoroughly and some of the sequences seemed out of whack, but the documentary was a very revealing glimpse into the changes that happen to older artists who go into a recording studio.

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DESTINY RULES - DVD Movie

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