Joe Jackson - Live in Tokyo

Rating:
Summary: Great show! Wish the camera work and sound were better.
Review: 2 channel Dolby sound. That's all. But that doesn't make it a dealbreaker, though. It is rare nowadays to find Joe Jackson live video performances, and this is one of the better ones out there. Great playing from his 3-piece band, though if you've heard his double live album that features some tracks with a much larger band, you know what you're missing!
Read some of these other reviews of this disc. They are right on the mark. Good, fun concert, but not with the superior sound we DVD fanatics have been spoiled with.

Rating:
Summary: Great show! Wish the camera work and sound were better.
Review: 2 channel Dolby sound. That's all. But that doesn't make it a dealbreaker, though. It is rare nowadays to find Joe Jackson live video performances, and this is one of the better ones out there. Great playing from his 3-piece band, though if you've heard his double live album that features some tracks with a much larger band, you know what you're missing!
Read some of these other reviews of this disc. They are right on the mark. Good, fun concert, but not with the superior sound we DVD fanatics have been spoiled with.

Rating:
Summary: Where's the rest?
Review: A previous review indicates that this DVD incorporates a "complete" show. If that is the case, I wish Joe Jackson had videotaped a show from earlier in the "Big World" Tour. I caught the tour in Vancouver, where he played an unabridged "Cancer," a long, spacey "Chinatown" and a version of the then unreleased "Acropolis Now" that brought the roof down. I can't complain about the material he did record, but I wish I had a more complete memento of that wonderful tour.

Rating:
Summary: Where's the rest?
Review: A previous review indicates that this DVD incorporates a "complete" show. If that is the case, I wish Joe Jackson had videotaped a show from earlier in the "Big World" Tour. I caught the tour in Vancouver, where he played an unabridged "Cancer," a long, spacey "Chinatown" and a version of the then unreleased "Acropolis Now" that brought the roof down. I can't complain about the material he did record, but I wish I had a more complete memento of that wonderful tour.

Rating:
Summary: Where's the rest?
Review: A previous review indicates that this DVD incorporates a "complete" show. If that is the case, I wish Joe Jackson had videotaped a show from earlier in the "Big World" Tour. I caught the tour in Vancouver, where he played an unabridged "Cancer," a long, spacey "Chinatown" and a version of the then unreleased "Acropolis Now" that brought the roof down. I can't complain about the material he did record, but I wish I had a more complete memento of that wonderful tour.

Rating:
Summary: The Master
Review: I have to quote a review from the Sydney Morning Herald that I read years ago. It went something like "Joe Jackson comes up with more musical ideas on a Sunday afternoon than most other artists come up with in their entire lives". This guy has the most intelligent (sometimes quirky) lyrics I have ever heard. The band is to die for (a 3-piece from heaven!), Joe is singing and playing his heart out, and having an absolute ball. "Wild West" is my favourite - check out the transition from sparse acoustic-ness to all out electric energy. Some of the songs are so beautiful, you will cry. JJ also has a great sense of humour (Jet Set will crack you up) and his "Jumping Jive" stuff is priceless. I have had the VHS for about 12 years now - elated to find it on DVD. I'd rave on for another 1000 words or more but its 2am where I am - gotta sleep. Just check out this monster performer in his element. Also check out Laughter and Lust video (recorded in Sydney, I saw the show on the previous night to the taping). Gotta go.....zzzzzzzz......

Rating:
Summary: Great show, but DVD could be miles better
Review: Joe Jackson Live in Tokyo has always been one of the better concert videos on the market. Rather than relying on special effects, the focus is on the performer and the songs - the presentation of which is straightforward. Though the between-songs banter is unusually subdued (because the comments are being translated for the Japanese audience by an offstage interpreter), the concert is presented in its entirety, without gimmicky editing or other visual tricks.

The emphasis here is on songs from the "Big World" album, but several other Joe Jackson favorites are also here, among them "You can't get what you want (till you know what you want)", "On your radio", a beautifully re-arranged "Steppin' out", and "Sunday papers" (renamed "Monday papers").

The performances are excellent throughout. Though the tour started out with Vinnie Zummo on guitar, Tom Teeley steps in and does a marvelous job; if you weren't aware of the mid-tour personnel change, you wouldn't even notice (and probably won't anyway - I don't, and I was at one of the earlier shows).

Overall, the DVD is pretty good, but two areas are in significant need of improvement. (1) The picture quality could be much better; lots of blockiness is evident in the darker areas of the screen, and is often distracting. (2) The audio could also be better. The PCM tracks are a bit harsh-sounding, and listening fatigue is likely should you have the volume cranked up at first; some of the upper midrange frequencies should have been attenuated slightly for a slightly warmer mix. The Dolby 2.0 tracks have a better overall sound, but the mix lacks the definition of the PCM tracks.

It's too bad that A&M/Universal didn't get the VideoArts Japan folks (who originally produced the video in the first place) to handle the DVD transfer; the results would have been much better.

On the other hand, for just a little bit more than the price of a CD, you get just under two hours of a fine concert by an often-overlooked artist. From that perspective, this disc shouldn't be missed. But don't get rid of that VHS copy just yet.

Rating:
Summary: At His Peak
Review: The perverse Joe Jackson finally found the perfect audience in the typically inert Japanese. After all, he recorded the Big World album (from which this tour video comes) in front of an audience that wasn't allowed to clap until a few seconds after the songs were over.

While the sound quality isn't the greatest and the camera work is at times amateurish and stiff, Joe Jackson Live In Tokyo represents the artist at his peak. Big World is his best CD and is (for some reason) out of print. Here are great versions of Soul Kiss, Right & Wrong, Jet Set, and Survival found nowhere else.

From the LP to the CD, then the short laserdisc "The Big World Sessions" and now Live In Tokyo, I now have four documents of Joe Jackson circa 1986 and wouldn't have it any other way.

For Joe Jackson fans everywhere.

Rating:
Summary: A great snapshot of a genius composer
Review: This concert was filmed during a tour supporting one of my very favorite Joe Jackson albums - "Big World." It was actually the first JJ cassette (showing my age here!) I ever bought. I got it at a national retail chain for [money amount]! But I've loved it ever since and it fostered what would become a strong affection for the man's music. Being a songwriter myself, the "Big World" album was very much like the things I writing for my own band at the time, I felt I'd discovered a kindred spirit in Joe's music. Unfortunately, "Big World" was not a huge success in the U.S., so for years, I've spent a fortune acquiring import CDs (and wearing them out, having to buy more), never dreaming that I would ever have the opportunity to see any footage from this tour.

Well, it's not just footage. It's an entire show, unedited and complete. Many of the songs from "Big World" were included, as well as all of Joe's hits of the time. Afficianados will enjoy the version of "Steppin' Out," which is similar to the one on Joe's live 2 CD set. At a slower, more melancholy pace, the song takes on a completely new atmosphere. The "Jumpin' Jive" medley, containing three songs culled from the album of the same name, is another treat. The reserved Japanese audience seems to please Joe to no end. They are attentive and appreciative, unlike the American and European audiences who insist upon whistling and caterwauling throughout performances. The combination of the tight band, incredible composition and respectful audience make this one of the most enjoyable concert films I've ever seen.

Another good thing about it is the quality of the production. It - thankfully - lacks the whole moving-camera-cinematic-effects that we've come to expect from concert films since the eighties. I have a wonderful Elton John DVD ("One Night Only") that is just beautiful, but the sweeping camera angles and economy of motion take all the realism away from the performance. With this DVD, you honestly get a sense of being there. The cameras (I think there are four angles altogether) focus with news-camera quality on the details of the sparse stage from the cups on Joe's piano to the pop-marks on Gary Burke's drums. The total effect is one of genuine credibility. It's as if you're sitting there yourself.

Get this now and enjoy it!

Rating:
Summary: A great snapshot of a genius composer
Review: This concert was filmed during a tour supporting one of my very favorite Joe Jackson albums - "Big World." It was actually the first JJ cassette (showing my age here!) I ever bought. I got it at a national retail chain for [money amount]! But I've loved it ever since and it fostered what would become a strong affection for the man's music. Being a songwriter myself, the "Big World" album was very much like the things I writing for my own band at the time, I felt I'd discovered a kindred spirit in Joe's music. Unfortunately, "Big World" was not a huge success in the U.S., so for years, I've spent a fortune acquiring import CDs (and wearing them out, having to buy more), never dreaming that I would ever have the opportunity to see any footage from this tour.

Well, it's not just footage. It's an entire show, unedited and complete. Many of the songs from "Big World" were included, as well as all of Joe's hits of the time. Afficianados will enjoy the version of "Steppin' Out," which is similar to the one on Joe's live 2 CD set. At a slower, more melancholy pace, the song takes on a completely new atmosphere. The "Jumpin' Jive" medley, containing three songs culled from the album of the same name, is another treat. The reserved Japanese audience seems to please Joe to no end. They are attentive and appreciative, unlike the American and European audiences who insist upon whistling and caterwauling throughout performances. The combination of the tight band, incredible composition and respectful audience make this one of the most enjoyable concert films I've ever seen.

Another good thing about it is the quality of the production. It - thankfully - lacks the whole moving-camera-cinematic-effects that we've come to expect from concert films since the eighties. I have a wonderful Elton John DVD ("One Night Only") that is just beautiful, but the sweeping camera angles and economy of motion take all the realism away from the performance. With this DVD, you honestly get a sense of being there. The cameras (I think there are four angles altogether) focus with news-camera quality on the details of the sparse stage from the cups on Joe's piano to the pop-marks on Gary Burke's drums. The total effect is one of genuine credibility. It's as if you're sitting there yourself.

Get this now and enjoy it!