Rating: 
Summary: "HUMBLE BUT NOT WEAK."
Review: (Quote above about Stevie by Tommy Shannon, the bassist.)Straight up, I must say this is ESSENTIAL VIEWING! One can tell Stevie and the band thrive in this type of a small, intimate setting. One of the things I love most about Stevie is HE DOESN'T HOLD ANYTHING BACK! He FLOWS! Stevie is so comfortable and natural in expressing himself...the fans around the world must surely see his inner beauty and SOUL--truly Breathtaking and Magnificent! Stevie is Spectacular to watch because of this inner beauty and SOUL which is fully expressed by his guitar mastery. The guitar is the conduit of what Stevie has in his heart--truly. TRULY! And what a HEART it IS. THERE ARE NO WORDS TO EXPRESS ALL OF THE BEAUTY I FEEL WATCHING HIM PLAY HIS MUSIC! I'LL CHERISH THIS DVD ALWAYS! A comment on the rapport he has with Tommy and Chris--it's so beautiful to witness. They fuel off each other and the audience; the energy shared...Wow! EVERY SINGLE SONG ON THIS DVD IS EXCEPTIONAL-- I LOVE 'EM ALL! I believe you will too! (Ok, here are some favorites: "Voodoo Chile", "Pride and Joy", "Tell Me", "Mary Had a Little Lamb", "Love Struck Baby", "Hug You Squeeze You", "Third Stone From the Sun" and "Lenny.") The DVD special features are exceptional: you can turn on the lyrics or off, and the interview with Tommy and Chris in October 1999 is worth the purchase price even if there wasn't a show on the DVD! Trust me on this, you must hear this interview! Here are the chapter titles from the interview: "Playing el Mocambo", "A different show every time", "Triple Threat", "Steve Onstage," "Stevie's Persona" (loved this one!), "What people loved about Stevie (Tommy and Chris both share their impression of meeting Stevie for the first time.), "Stevie's Gift", "Behind the Guitar", "Playing with the greats," "Stevie's influence", "Electricity and Stevie" (adore this one too! Looks like Stevie and I have something in common! Not joking!) and lastly "Stevie's Legacy." IF YOU LOVE STEVIE, THIS IS A MUST-OWN! Even if you don't, by the time you are done watching this DVD, you will. Stevie will never be forgotten and he will never die. HIS SPIRIT AND HIS MUSIC LIVE ON.
Rating:
Summary: good fidler
Review: Stevie is my hero. Rock and Roll and Blues rule...Stevie rules, expecially in this video. This is the most intensely played set that I've ever seen anyone do. Man what a thrill it would have been to actually be there for this blazing performance. A previous review claims that you might find yourself "laughing in awe" at his raw talent. This is entirely true. You can feel him working into the most impossible progressions and scales along the fretboard of his guitar. You can anticipate them and when he completes a run you can sense a feeling of approval from the fallen guitar god. Buy this,...get DVD if you want a real punch.
Rating: 
Summary: Great sounding SRV, poor sounding DVD.
Review: I passed on the "Live in Austin, TX" DVD because I saw this one had 5.1 surround sound, while "Austin" didn't. I've always been under the assumption that you can't go wrong with a 5.1 mixed DVD, but El Macambo's poor sound quality has proved me wrong. I found the 5.1 version not even worth listening to as it sounds like Stevie and the boys are playing in a box of Kleenex. Nevertheless, the Stereo version does a well enough job of supporting a SMOKING set by the legend, SRV. All the tracks from this show are solid, as Stevie seems to be at his best. Buy it for the great music and nice extras (lyrics, interviews) but beware the horrible surround sound.
Rating:
Summary: It's perfect.
Review: There isn't much else to say. Voodoo chile is better here than on his records. Hug You Squeeze you isn't on his records as far as I know. Seeing him do it is a million times better than listening. If you haven't seen him do a show, and you're a fan. You can't be dissappointed by this so buy it. Texas Flood is literally amazing. Lenny is perfect. I didn't get third stone from the sun till I saw it. The perfect way to understand his music and his showmanship even in this small setting. Tommy Shannon and Chris Layton are great but they're obviously way behind SRV no matter how competent they are. This album is awesome and it's perfect. Not a single flaw. Stevie Ray was bigger than life, especially here. He's tapped in, and you have to see him and feel it to believe it. 63 minutes. P.s. I am extremely angry if he really did do Little Wing on this concert and some fool cut it out. I'd buy it again if they released it with that song on it. We Love you Stevie!
Rating:
Summary: Pure and intense SRV
Review: This was an energetic and fun-filled evening with SRV at the peak of his talent. Compare these licks and antics to Jimi, Eric, Carlos, and Jimmy P. in their prime and I don't think you could rate one above the other. No disappointments here, just a sense of wonder at how SRV could play that geetar.
Rating:
Summary: No words do Stevie justice.......
Review: Ok, I'm obsessed, remember that. Aside from my one and only daughter, there is no other more beautiful human being than Stevie Ray, and Stevie live at the El Macambo shows you all of that beauty. Whoever the brilliant camera person was, I want to thank you!!!!! Everyone has said it here, from the most awesome guitar performance ever (IMHO!) to the pleasure of watching Stevie's grace, ease, facial expressions, the occaisonal surprise smile,and putting his voice together with the movement of his talent, body and soul makes this video the best. Live in Austin and Pride and Joy are both excellent, but this is a must must have! & keep & play over and over :o)
Rating:
Summary: Stevie's Best, But the DVD Could Use Some Work
Review: There is nothing like seeing great blues in a small club. Stevie has done a lot of great live work (except while in the depths of his drug abuse), but this video is the pinnacle of what he was capable of. This small club in Toronto, with rowdy fans has more energy and fire than any arena, stadium or theatre could match. This was also a musical high point of Stevie's career. He was older than the "In the Beginning" disc (also taken from a small club), and his playing reflects it. He was more fluid and confident, and you can see that he was REALLY feeling "it" the night of the El Mocambo show. I have never heard or seen a better rendition of Texas Flood. I have never even seen a beter blues guitar performance by anyone on any song compared to it. The versions of Tell Me, Wham!, So Excited, Testify, Voodoo Chile, Mary Had a Little Lamb, and Lenny also are the best I have heard from any recording (official or bootleg) of Stevie's. As for the DVD, it could use some work. I noticed, in comparison with the VHS version, the mixers have brought the volume down a bit on Stevie's guitar, while making the low end sounds more prominent. This takes away from the power of Stevie's performance a bit. They also still have not included the version of Little Wing that was performed right before Third Stone From the Sun! Please! Include it, I will buy the DVD again! On a bright note for the DVD, the interview included is quite interesting, with Tommy and Chris' thoughts and relflections on Stevie and the night of the El Mocambo show. All in all, I would still get the DVD over the VHS copy. But regardless, every fan of the blues, Stevie, and/or guitar should buy this video. Ever hear Eric Clapton describe Stevie as an open channel, in which musical ideas just flowed through him? This video is proof, and it is amazing.
Rating:
Summary: WHAM!
Review: Lest you should ever forget what rock 'n' roll was originally all about, and what it still IS meant to be all about, check out this eye-popping performance from a young and unknown Stevie Ray Vaughan. The guitar playing world in 1983 was heading in two directions: electronic buffoonery of the worst order from the likes of those dullards Satriani and Vai, and directionless "energy and raw power" school of thought, populated by idiots who couldn't play their instruments and didn't understand any better what this wonderful medium is all about. Oh, it makes me so ANGRY to even think about it. So exactly what Stevie Ray Vaughan and his merry men thought they were up to in that sort of context is anyone's guess. But who cares - all I can say is THANK THE LORD. From the first second of the show, shimmying in from stage-right, Stevie pulverises the stage, his instrument, his face and the crowd with the most gut-wrenching sonic assault I have ever seen or heard. Outstanding though most of his studio albums may be, you have no idea - really, none - of the energy - the man's sheer brute strength - the power of Stevie Ray Vaughan's playing until you see it unfold before you, even on a slightly tinny video. And WHAT he plays is inconceivably brilliant. You will shake your head in wonder. Hendrix, the great deconstructor himself, is pulled apart limb from limb and ghoulishly re-arranged like the victim of some crazed serial killer. Lonny Mack is gunned down the straight like an over-powered dragster. SRV's wife Lenny is eulogised, sweat cascading down face, as the man gets through a whole smoke in one go without taking it out of his mouth. Even if you don't like his music the video is worth getting simply for Mr Vaughan's legendary facial expressions, and the marathon take on Texas Flood will do you till Tuesday week. Truly, TRULY outstanding. You should just SEE the looks on the faces of those lucky Canadians in the audience.
Rating:
Summary: Great performance, but audio/video quality is mediocre
Review: I love SRV, and this is a good DVD, but not a great one. The audio quality is mediocre, as to be expected given when and where it was made. If you love Stevie, but this DVD. I like it even given it's faults. I just wish we could have a modern day made DVD of Stevie. Stevie, where ever you are, thanks for the great music!
Rating:
Summary: SRV LIVE
Review: YOU BETTER STRAP YOUR SEAT BELT ON WHEN YOU WATCH THIS ONE SRV GOES ALL OUT GIVING 100% IN THIS LIVE COVERAGE HE WAS A GUITAR GENIUS!!!
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