Rating: Summary: AWESOME! Review: AWESOME CONCERT.MUST FOR ALL STEELY DAN FANS. HOPE THE PAL VERSION COMES OUT SOON FOR EUROPE AND AUSTRALASIA!
Rating: Summary: What a show, what a band! Review: Witty, and hip with a groove so deep I'm still trying to crawl out of it. Excellent selection of tunes with "Bad Sneakers" from 75's Katie Lied a nice surprise for me. Production is rich with respect to both video and audio (you are THERE baby!), with long time Dan producer Roger Nichols twisting the knobs on the audio side. This band is tight! Having Ricky Lawson, Tom Barney, and Dan newcomer Jon Herington on drums, bass, and guitar respectively, everyone else just has to show up to be absolutely stellar,...and they do. Interviews with audience members waiting on line to get into the show, shot at NYC's Sony Music Stages are both interesting and funny. Becker and Fagan's "community access" TV show with the non-stop mic boom has some of the best humor I've witnessed in quite some time. If the Dan is your deal, buy this DVD now!
Rating: Summary: Faithful To A Tee Review: This is an album on DVD.The gifted duo has once again surrrounded themselves with superlative sidemen and produced a dvd fitting their legacy. Yes,they could have included such luminaries as Jeff "Skunk" Baxter but they stayed away from the more incindiary guitar work songs which would have been spectacular (hope they do someday)
but included their heart and soul and reproduced it to a level not often found on dvd. For fans of Steely Dan their songs are like a glove that fits various moods of their life.The songs included are recreated with all the heart ,soul and passion that made you like them in the first place.Yes,some favorites are missing but what is here is truly wonderful.Tight ,soulful,funky and introspective.THIS IS STEELY DAN.Would have been 5 stars if Bodhisattva and a few others were included.Great!!!!
Rating: Summary: Great concept, disappointingly executed Review: The Two Against Nature - a video accompaniment to the album of the same name - attempts to be half-documentary-half-live-concert but strangely fails to be either. Documentary-wise Steely Dan fans should check out the slightly better Classic Albums Aja movie, where an animated Dan duo talk us through the making of that seminal recording. The prevailing mood in Two Against Nature is fatigue and lack of inspiration. The live performance is immaculately staged but the sound is thin, the performances lack spark and Donald Fagen is not in good voice. Walter Becker plays some tasty guitar but is not exactly Jimi Hendrix when it comes to showmanship or stage presence. In fact, given that the Dan aren't really a sensational live band at the best of times, putting a made-for-the-studio live performance on the DVD is a questionable move from the start. The camera team shows plenty of enthusiasm for the backing vocalists (girls, attractive), zooming in on them whenever possible, perhaps to add a touch of showbiz glamour that is otherwise conspicuously absent. The documentary footage consists of Fagen and Becker attempting to interview their musicians but doing all the talking, dull-as-dishwater rehearsal footage (in black & white for added `authenticity'). Nothing wrong with the musicianship, however, with the entire ensemble playing with panache and skill to a man. Although not an unmitigated disaster (Fagen and Becker are funny guys in real life), this is a project that could have been so much better. The set list is, unsurprisingly, culled mainly from the Two Against Nature album, with a few oldies thrown in (Babylon Sisters, Peg, Green Onions, Kid Charlemagne) but none surpassing their studio versions. In short, this is a long-overdue DVD but seems to have been be executed by people who have been making too many documentaries about prisons. It's not very rock n' roll in other words. Two Against Nature is unlikely to win the band any new fans, and indeed will probably try the patience of many existing Dan enthusiasts. The ultimate Steely Dan DVD remains to be made.
Rating: Summary: Great, inspiring music and musicians BUT... Review: ...constant out of sync pic/sound; the picture is by far less than one second late, but might appear disturbing and should be obvious to any untrained eye. Furthermore there are millions of moving camera angles constantly switching. Looks like they've let a hyper kid into the editing room - 5+ second still camera angles are few. If you find this disc cheap, though,--or if you're a true fan and don't care what it costs--you can put it on and just listen, because as I wrote - these are inspiring performances by great musicians.
The disc consists of concert material with a few words in between the tracks. 102 minutes. 5.1 sound available (great audio quality,) but no extras.
Rating: Summary: Great music, Great Audio, Bad cinematography and Editing Review: If you are a Steely Dan fan, which you most likely are if you are reading this, then this good buy since it's really the only live Steely Dan DVD out there. If you have surround sound, then the buy is worth it even more since the audio is mixed rather nicely. In general, the band gives a solid performance especially considering how difficult Becker and Fagan's compositions are. Fagan sounds very similar to the way he did in the 70's. HOWEVER, the downfall of this DVD is that at times it's hardly watchable, which is ok because you can just listen. But, the camera work is shaky and there are some very strange angles that make no logic. Some of the shots leave about 85% head room on the screen. And, the editing is relentless. Every few seconds there is a new cut. It rarely gives us a chance to sit and marvel at Becker's guitar playing or Bumpus's sax playing. Bottom line, buy it for one the rare opportunities to see Steely Dan play live, but there is a good chance the camera work and editing will distract you from the stellar music being played.
Rating: Summary: If you're a Dan Fan buy it, you won't regret it! Review: I have long been a Steely Dan Fan. I bought this DVD two years ago. I have to say it is now the most watched DVD in my collection. Excellent performance by a well rehearsed band. Lawson lays down such great grooves and the band is tight!As for production values, the sound is simply mindblowing. Offered in both DTS and D/D 5.1. The only negative is what your neighboors might here as I love to crank the volume and turn up the subwoofer. Buy it you won't regret it.........
Rating: Summary: Great Audio Quality and a Great Working Band Review: I bought this dvd close to when it came out. The band is amazing, including Ricky Lawson on drums, plus backing horns and vocals. Most of the tunes are from 2AN, but there are some great older tunes (Josie, Peg, Babylon Sister, FM) as well. The audio quality is outstanding, especially the DTS track. I was thoroughly impressed by the improved sound quality when I upgraded my system. The reason is the set was recorded at a sony sound studio in NY, and edited in the studio later. You can tell some things, like some of the drums had been rerecorded, but I don't think this is a bad thing, considering what we are used to from Steely Dan. You won't be dissapointed when you hear how good it sounds. Some of these versions rival the originals. As far as what I didn't like, this was promotional for 2AN, and there is an accompanying documentary. The problem is that it has been spliced between songs, making the concert less fun to watch. You have to press fwd chapter to get to each next song. Other than that annoyance, this would be 5 stars.
Rating: Summary: Great Concert...Edit the Chit Chat! Review: I have been a big Steely Dan fan for many years. I was able to catch some of this performance on a local PBS station a year ago, but I missed the show in its entirety. Ever since then I have been trying to find myself a copy especially since I saw them in concert this year. I highly recommend this disk to any fan or even someone who enjoys seeing a group of top notch players getting together. The camera angles can be a bit annoying at times but the sound more than makes up for it and listening to Becker and Fagen talk with the band and others between songs is great to. Buy it and enjoy! You won't be disappointed.
Rating: Summary: Did it again... : (( Review: Why in the hell can't these artist pre-screen their material BEFORE they let it be released? I enjoy the interviews and other info on DVD's in general, but PLEASE, put it ALL at the END of the concert! There is'nt many things worse than sitting down to enjoy an hour plus concert and then having it INTERUPTED with jibberish! I have found so many concerts that either have to much background noise or video from the bands tour of the city they are playing in. Excellent concerts include, Eagles (Hell Freezes Over), Styx (Return to Paradise) and Journey (2001) to name a few. I'd like to see more reviewers mention interuptions in the DVD if there is one. The listed reviews just saved me a few bucks. Thanks to all that mentioned the short comings. Very disappointed, John
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