Rating: Summary: Tull rocks Review: Ian Anderson is the only surviving member of the original Tull lineup, but this DVD proves that they can still rock. The song lineup has all the classics like Aqualung, Cross-Eyed Mary, and Thick as a Brick. There are some great outakes and an awesome collaboration with all the original mebers of Tull. This DVD gets it all right.
Rating: Summary: Favorite Music DVD Review: I saw Tull at the Bass Hall in Ft. Worth two years ago. Having seen Tull many times in the past going back to 1972, it was one of the best performances ever. This DVD captures that tour. Well done video, lots of great music and interview footage. I think I'll watch it again!
Rating: Summary: Too Old to Rock and Roll - Too Young to Die Review: I have been a Tull fan since the early seventies. That being said, I found this outing thoroughly disappointing. It features highlights from 1 concert in 2001 at the Apollo. The footage is shoddy at best, Martin Barre is shot from the side, the BACK side, and you can rarely see his fingers. Most of the shots are of Ian, and these become tedious sooner than one might like. There is footage of the reunion with the original members from 1968 that is interesting.One might think that with more than 30 years' worth of concerts that a compilation of this magnitude might have included more: Different venues, different years, different songs. Instead, these songs are the same ones Ian's been pushing for the last decade, the same ones you always hear in concert. How many times do you want to listen to Aqualung, Locomotive Breath, and Fat Man? Better to pick up a copy of A Little Light Music from 10 years ago or Bursting Out. I'm not even going to talk about Ian's voice. . . .
Rating: Summary: Tulls gr8 lets talk audio... Review: The boys perform flawlessly, the jumping around from concert scenes didn't drive me as nuts as some of you. I have around 20 concert DVD's and if they were all just straight concert performances it would get a bit boring. I loved the 2 songs mixed in from Ian's house with the quartet. Now for DD.2 , I heard Ian in an interview once say that he believed all music should be heard through 2 stereo speakers w/o any added phony effects. Maybe that is why this isn't 5.1 or DTS. To make it sound good, you shouldn't play it in Surround mode which may make your processor default to Prologic. What I found was you have to switch your DVD player out of Bitstream mode and into PCM mode and wow what a difference. It goes from AM radio sound to full Stereo sound with intended range. Since there is very little if any audience sound, to sound realistic, (if stereo is set up properly) your sound stage will make the sound sound like it is coming from the center most of the time and left/right bias for some instruments as intended. This is actually how some audiophiles would prefer to hear a concert...ie, Ian Anderson
Rating: Summary: Great dvd...but not perfect Review: The picture quality on this dvd is very good and is full screen. In response to a couple of people whose reviews mentioned poor sound quality I'll have to say that the sound on my copy is superb! Maybe they are expecting surround sound but this dvd is in stero and sounds amazing on my system. I'm proud to have this dvd as I am a 30 year plus Jethro Tull fan. The only complaint I have is the picture often switches to another concert and other special effects are used but that is not too distracting because the music sounds so great.
Rating: Summary: El rock te mantiene joven, pero te mata rapido. Review: ...... o lo que es lo mismo "demasido viejo para rocanrolear pero demasido joven para morir". Tuve la fortuna de ver a Jethro Tull por primera vez en 1975 en la gira de "War Child"; ese concierto es el mejor que he visto en mi vida, hace 28 años Ian Anderson me cautivo no solo por lo impecable de su musica sino por la increible vitalidad mostrada en el escenario. De Jethro Tull no he tenido buenas referencias en VHS, es por eso que este lanzamiento en formato DVD me genero las mejores de las expectativas. Para sintetizar mi comentario califico en estos terminos el DVD "Living in the Past". Lista de Canciones: Excelente Calidad de Video y Audio: Bastante bueno. Material Extra: Malo, bastante economico. Edicion:Muy Buena, excepto ciertas interrupciones en Bouree. Frase Memorable: "uno no deja de componer musica, es como dejar de respirar". Esto ultimo es lo que le da validez a esta producción, se necesita tener mucha autoridad y oficio como músico para que a los 55 años sigas rocanroleando. Es cierto lo que dice Robert Fripp, "el rock te mantiene joven, pero te mata rapido", por fortuna Jethro Tull es una honrosa excepción.
Rating: Summary: Not too old to rock & roll Review: This DVD captures the essence a great live show. It's like being there only with more cool stuff (reunion show with the '68 band, stately manor set, etc.)! Great camera work and the sound is fantastic too! So many of today's music DVDs are full of lame camera work and lackluster performances, "Living With The Past" is NOT!
Rating: Summary: "I've seen a thousand times before but only on my video" Review: Well, I HAVE seen this DVD nearly a thousand times in the 3 weeks that I've had it. Poverty prevents me from owning a state-of-the-art sound system, so I really can't gripe about the supposed poor sound (it sounds fine on my Reagan-era stereo). And as to the complaints of Ian's vocals, I believe he sounds excellent. For those not in the know, Ian's voice over the last fifteen years or so has veered from his Heavy Horses-era richness and range to sounding something close to a demonic Popeye on some nights. Thankfully, his vocals seem to regain the former glory each additional time I see him and the band perform, which is pretty often. Secondly, the band itself is in excellent form. Martin Barre is right up there with Richard Thompson in the criminally undervalued guitarist department; puts old Jimmy "hackneyed blues riff" Page to shame with his usual staggering performances. Martin's performances on "Sweet Dream", "Budapest", and (of course) Aqualung are particularly splendid. Drummer Doane Perry is certainly a worthy heir to the great tradition of Jethro Tull drummers. Although I prefer Barrie Barlow's more martial style, Doane Perry's fluid drumming does add a lot to these pieces; marvelously so on "Roots To Branches", "Locomotive Breath", and "The Water Carrier". Keyboardist Andrew Giddings shows obvious respect for Tull fans: he's Jethro Tull's webmaster, he always gives a lot of theatrical effort during the Tull shows (in the beloved John Evan manner), he recreates a letter-perfect "Locomotive Breath" piano intro nightly (to the delight of the fans), and most importantly, he gives consistently awesome performances. I really can't think of a more difficult job in rock music than to be Jethro Tull's sole keyboard player. Giddings shines in "Budapest", "Locomotive Breath", and in a creatine-driven "Living In The Past". Lastly, Jon Noyce's precise bass playing and eccentric humor recalls Tull greats John Glascock, Jeffrey Hammond-Hammond, and David Pegg. Watch him shine while playing Glenn Cornick's difficult quasi-Bachian solo in "Bouree". The string quartet adds great organic beauty to "Wond'ring Aloud" and "Life Is A Long Song". "New Jig" is great fun, complete with dancing rabbit, and "Protect and Survive", of the woefully neglected "A" album, was quite a pleasant surprise. The reunion tracks with Mick Abrahams, Clive Bunker, and Glenn Cornick are great fun. Personally, I'm glad Tull didn't proceed in that direction (there wouldn't have been a Heavy Horses), but it's great to see and hear the original band play "Song For Jeffrey" and "Some Day The Sun Won't Shine For You". The special features are great fun; I laughed myself silly (well, just chuckled actually) at the Tull awards. One of the "winners" actually performed THE cardinal sin at a Tull concert and referred to Jethro as "him". That, along with some spastic dancing from various fans, made for a humorous experience. A few gripes, though: I DO find the conversation during the songs to be a little distracting. I do enjoy hearing what the band has to say about the pieces, but perhaps before or after the songs would be better. Secondly, the bonus track collaborations with Fairport Convention and Uriah are strangely edited, cutting the songs off a little after the halfway point. Finally, "Hunt By Numbers" is an extremely redundant song. Yes, Tull have to live with the past; yet, they're one of the few "classic rock" bands that still has a future.
Rating: Summary: A Must Have Review: I have enjoyed watching this DVD. It was great seeing the original 1968 line up performing together. The reditions of "Wond'ring Aloud" and "Life Is A Long Song" accompanied with the string quartet were awesome. The DVD has a good selection of old and new material. The performance of "Budapest" was superb and shows Tull at their best. The only drawback is that the DVD is not long enough. I would have enjoyed more concert footage and more interviews with the band members and fans. This DVD is a "must have" for Tull fans!
Rating: Summary: somewhat of a disappointment Review: I eagerly awaited the release of this DVD.I was disappointed when I first played it. Only in DD 2.0? Also the annoying switching back and forth to the psychedelic scenes could have certainly been omitted. Switching back and forth between the two concert venues is tolerable though barely. I agree with others the interview dialog should have been part of the "special features". The DD 2.0 sound quality is superb and the picture crystal clear. I saw this show last summer in Baltimore and just a few weeks ago in Washington DC and this DVD faithfully represents their talent. I've been a die hard Tull fan since Aqualung (well except for the 80's)! No doubt Tull fans will love this as it is a very good show (apart from above). Hopefully disc number two will be just a concert disk with the likes of My God, Farm on the Freeway and many others. DD 5.1 and/or DTS and an uninterupted concert would have gotten this DVD 5 stars.
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