Rating: 
Summary: Doo Wop at 50- A Delight !
Review: I purchased these tapes and got what I expected. These performers some 50 years later gave their all and pulled off some wonderful performaces which should bring back memories for all. Keeping in mind some of the groups members have passed on and the remainder of the singers to pick up their vocal parts, all did an admirable job. I have watched these tapes over and over and am simply happy that I purchased them. Simply a delight !
Rating:
Summary: Doo Wop 50
Review: I rate this DVD 5 stars for content, but only 1 for quality. Sadly, the volume fades in and out every few minutes or so. I have re-ordered, gotten a replacement and the replacement is just as bad. Any suggestions? I have checked the DVD player, cleaned it and watched other DVDs with no problems. I love this DVD and want it to work right. Help!
Rating:
Summary: excellent performances.
Review: I saw this vhs tape on television and I thought it was a very excellent performace by all the groups. they need to make more like these.
Rating:
Summary: IT DOESN'T GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS
Review: I watched this show on PBS in December, 1999. I was totally "blown away" at seeing all my favorite Golden Oldie Doo Wop groups still togther & performing all these years later. This is "Hog Heaven" watching this tape and listening to the TRUE REAL MUSIC which we grew up on (not the "noise" of todays groups who could all learn a lesson from these talented singers). The bottom line here is: IT SIMPLY DOESN'T GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS. I cannot imagine anyone who loves the unique sound of DooWop not buying this fabulous tape set. It's one of the best invetments you will ever purchase. The DOO WOP 51 SHOW (December, 2000) was good but couldn't hold a candle to Doo Wop 50. Treat youself to this fabulous tape set - you'll be glad you did !!!
Rating: 
Summary: Sincere, but seriously flawed.
Review: I watched this show, recently, on PBS. (Or several excerpts, anyway --in between, what seemed to be, endless pleas for financial support of the station.) The show's producer was raving about it, as though it was one of the greatest collections of '50's vocal groups ever assembled. Not quite. While some of the talent was on a high level, most of the singers were either mediocre, at best, or didn't represent what the best of the early sound really was. Part of the problem was the age of the singers. The rest of it had to do with who was included in this show.I'm coming from the standpoint of someone who's well acquainted with vintage Rhythm & Blues. (I prefer that term, over "doo wop".) I also have a love affair with the R&B records of the late '40's thru the early '60's. I believe that almost all of the best recordings came from black artists. White singers, with very few exceptions, try as hard as they might, couldn't, and still can't, match the quality of singing, or replicate the interesting, haunting aspect of the black voices. (No bigotry against whites here. Like many collectors, I'm a white fan of the music.) Some of the best examples were the Orioles, the Five Keys, the Swallows, the Ravens, the Clovers, the Dells, the Flamingos, the El Dorados, the Spaniels, the Solitaires, the Harptones, the Moonglows, the Five Royales, and Hank Ballard & the Midnighters. And that doesn't include many groups who appeared on the scene very briefly, made some exquisite recordings, and then left, after being unable to make a steady living from it. Those were the remarkable collectors' groups (e.g. the Vocaleers, the Jewels, the Mellomoods, and the Calvanes), whose recordings, in recent years, have been re-issued on CDs. As far as the mediocre quality of the singers in the videos is concerned, here are some illustrations. Lee Andrews' voice -- which used to be one of the most beautiful sounds to hear -- is shot. He gives a valiant effort. But he can't carry a note these days. That's not the same criticism I have with Earl Lewis, of the Channels. He could never sing, anyway. Well, hardly ever. His falsetto "notes", even in the'50's, were painful to the ear. And his group was usually off-key. Try listening, for example, to their recorded version of "That's My Desire", without having serious damage inflicted on your sense of hearing. (One nice exception: "My Love Will Never Die"). On the video, they're just as bad, if not worse. Cleve Duncan of the Penguins still has a great voice. But he's only backed by two (?) singers in this show. (The same was true with the Cadillacs.) Johnny Maestro has a fairly decent voice, even today. But being backed by the overbearing Brooklyn Bridge doesn't help. (I saw him with the original Crests, back in the early '70's, at the NY Academy Of Music. Different, intimate, and richer sound altogether.) The Capris, the Platters, (not the original group), the Cleftones, and the Passions are OK in the videos. But they don't come close to what the R&B sound really was. (That was also true when those four groups first made their records. They were pop recordings, relatively speaking) Their performances on these videos are heart-felt. But they represent pale, close-to-pop imitations of the gutsier, more robust voices, and soulful records, of '50's rhythm & blues. So who's left? Who's even worth mentioning? The Marcels do a nice job, along with the Moonglows, the Del Vikings, and the Jive Five. Also, Jerry Butler gives a great rendition of "For Your Precious Love." His back-up group isn't bad, either. Gene Chandler (backed by the same group) goes all out on "Duke Of Earl", and shows that he still has it -- although the song is done a bit too fast in the show, to call it a ballad anymore. These two videos would be a treat for anyone who has a surface knowledge of the music, and connects with it on a nostalgic level. They can hum the tunes, and mouth the words, along with the singers on stage. It all brings back warm memories of their childhood, or teen years. The videos do serve that purpose. But for the person who's already discovered the riches of the early vocal groups from the "Golden Age Of Rhythm & Blues", or really wants to know '50's R&B, there's not much here to experience. It does reflect the fact that black music, once it achieved mainstream acceptance in the 1950's, changed into a watered-down version of the wonderful urban folk music it once was. Then white groups got into the act, the music developed into a "teenage sound", and it would never be the same again. To a good extent, that evolution -- into "doo wop", from Rhythm & Blues, in the mid-late '50's, and on into the '60's -- is what's represented on the video. It's fun in it's own way, but doesn't go very far. (The United in Group Harmony association, in New Jersey, has consistently put on better shows, in New York and New Jersey, with a greater assortment of R&B talent from the early years.) These videos might give the viewer a mild introduction to the music. But saying it's a fantastic display of '50's groups, at their best, is a gross overstatment. If you buy these tapes, don't expect too much.
Rating:
Summary: WOW !!!!!
Review: If you grew up in the fifties, then this is for you. What a marvelous DVD. I have watched this over and over and still enjoy it just as much as the first time I saw the show on PBS. Rhino certainly did justice on this release. The picture and sound quality are simply GREAT. This is the next best thing to being there, maybe the first best thing, since you can watch over and over. and never grow tired of the performances.
Rating:
Summary: Definitive Visual DooWop Performance
Review: If you love DooWop or if you're merely curious about it, this DVD provides an outstanding musical experience. Yes many of the groups are no longer intact. Unfortunately great singers like Tony Williams and Bobby Lester are no longer here. Nevertheless, this concert presents DooWop in the same form as it was presented at the legendary Alan Freed stage shows of the fifties. The costumes are there, the choreography is there and the great band backup sounds are there. I would argue that some of the bass tracks could have been bumped up, but overall the harmonies are pretty much intact and some of the lead performances, by people like Gene Chandler, Johhny Maestro, Jerry Butler, Pookie Hudson, and Earl Lewis are truly outstanding and worth watching. The sound quality is terrific, complete with the surround audience track. The camerawork is also first class, often getting up close and personal with the performers. DooWop has been a uniquely American musical artform that has been pretty much ignored visually. Most people had to rely on the lip-synched black and white appearances in the early Alan Freed Rock & Roll movies to see the groups. Finally, there is a way for all of us to experience this music in a live setting. Rhino says that this DooWop concert was the most successful fund-raising vehicle in the history of PBS. This DVD shows why.
Rating:
Summary: Incredible Sound
Review: In listening to this DVD, I felt as if I was sitting in the first row. Sound quality is fantastic. The groups who strut their stuff the best in my opinion were the Legends of Doo Wop, Johnny Maestro and the Brooklyn Bridge, and the Del Vikings. Overall, this is a can't miss for your collection if you enjoy vocal harmony.
Rating:
Summary: Simply The Best
Review: Simply put DOO WOOPS 50 is one of the best dvds I own. If your in the 50 plus crowd or just appreciate good music, I defy you to sit still when any of these tunes are playing. Aside from the flood of memories they brought back, I was amazed at how many of the tunes I still knew the words to. This is one DVD I highly recommend.
Rating:
Summary: Listen With Your Heart
Review: Some background on this tape, made in Pittsburgh, by a resident: It seems that some time back, the local PBS station had a Doo Wop show for its fund drive. The most return anyone had hoped for was on the order of $10,000, but Doo Wop pulled in 11 times that. The producer of the show, a remarkably young fellow named T. J. Lubinsky, must have received the green light to produce more Doo Wop stuff, and to distribute it nationally to PBS stations wishing to broaden their contributing demographic. Lubinsky did an admirable job. Whereas the first attempt had consisted of some (variably engineered) in-studio stuff, and some borrowed video, subsequent shows were staged in a grand theater (The Benedum Center), which was required to house a good portion of Pittsburgh's ample aging, Doo Wop-loving population. Some of the voices on the tape have, of course, faded. More remarkable are the ones that have not. On this score, Johnny Maestro stands out. He delivers an impressive - nay amazing performance. Jerry Butler also delivered - but mostly as a master of ceremonies. His singing was on-key, but let's face it, he could never keep the beat very well. The Del Vikings sound just like they always did, even though they are not all there anymore. The Cleftones were wonderfully entertaining, and seemed to be having a good deal of fun. The Moonglows were excellent, even though the televised arrangements both had Harvey Fuqua as lead singer. Harvey is great as a songwriter and as a manager, but he is far from the group's strongest voice. Fuqua came through, though, and the group's signature blow harmony was intact. There are some special moments, like a gracious speech given by Herbie Cox, the lead singer of the Cleftones, thanking the producers and expressing respect for the groups with which the Cleftones appeared. The reunion of the Chantels with their former lead singer, Arlene Smith, was moving (if perhaps a trifle overdone). This was also one of the very last appearances for the Flamingos before Jake Carey passed on, and even though they only hinted at their former celestial harmonies, the hint was the more precious as a last glimpse. Speedo of the Cadillacs doing his steps and strut was also memorable - particularly for yours truly. Ya see, I came to Pittsburgh in 1989 to go to graduate school. My choice of cities was made, in part, because of the city's Doo Wop tradition. Years later, I watched this tape, and there, as Speedo strutted through the audience, was my old adviser - who was standing up, grinning from ear to ear, and clapping in time to the music. It's a side of him I never saw before, and now I have it on tape! (He'll never live it down!) Less memorable were Lee Andrews, and also The Capris. Jimmy Gallagher, who really can still sing, was painfully off-key that particular night. Earl Lewis and the Channels could easily have been a high point, but Lewis was evidently more interested in showing off than he was in contributing to the collective effort. The tape transcends these things, though, and the lower points have the ironic effect of making the good stuff seem even better. To anyone who remembers the racial tension of the 50's/60's, and the controversy about black music and white covers, it is gratifying to see black and white performers on the same stage and even in the same groups. The Del Vikings, a group out of the Air Force, were always this way. (Johnny Maestro's original group, The Crests, were too.) One of the new reorganized groups consisted of members from Vito and the Salutations, The Impalas, and The Teenagers. The equally mixed audience, now allowed to listen to music simultaneously in the same theater, approved. Everybody is finally on good terms. There! That wasn't so hard, was it? One last note: A number of reviewers, here and elsewhere, commented on the quality of the unnamed group who backed up Jerry Butler and Gene Chandler. They are fine indeed. Some of their members were also playing in the orchestra, and if they are credited anywhere, I haven't been able to find the place. Even Jerry Butler didn't know their name, and he was on stage with them. They are from a larger local Pittsburgh group named, PURE GOLD, and if you are ever out this way, they will probably be playing somewhere. They put on quite a show. Wish I could name the graying Sax player in the tux. He looked like he should be playing classical music, but his rock 'n roll wailing was... perfect. Taken for what it is, the tape is also perfect. Mostly it's a bunch of old guys (and some old ladies) trying to sing. If you listen to them with your ears, you will find points to criticize. If you have a heart for this music, though, you will listen with that. It's the very best way to appreciate this tape. I give it all the stars.
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