Home :: DVD :: Music Video & Concerts  

Biography
Blues
Classic Rock
Concerts
Country
Documentary
DVD Singles
General
Hard Rock & Metal
Jazz
New Age
Other Music
Pop
Rap & Hip-Hop
Rock & Roll
Series
World Music
Michael McDonald - A Gathering of Friends

Michael McDonald - A Gathering of Friends

List Price: $12.99
Your Price: $11.69
Product Info Reviews

<< 1 2 3 >>

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: I WISH I WAS THERE!
Review: If there is one show I would've really wanted to see, it's this one! Michael McDonald, despite his age, still sings great... effortlessly hitting those high notes... what a voice! He still sings so well!!! I love the gathering of great talents, Patti Austin, James Ingram, Kenny Loggins... even those new ones I don't know, and of course, Patti LaBelle. It was also a delight to see some great talents in the back-up - I notice Kim Carnes (she should've been showcased more), Dave Koz and David Pack - this guys are great and superstars in their own right but still humble enough to back-up for Michael. One of the highlights of the show was Michael singing with the Doobie Brothers... I was just a kid when I first heard them but I've always thought they were great - and the still are! I'm sure there were other numbers that were not included in the DVD... too bad. The only part that I didn't like in the show was Jeff Bridges singing.. he's a great actor and a great host - but I wish he'd live the singing with the 'real' singers. Buy this DVD, one of my best collections now.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: I WISH I WAS THERE!
Review: If there is one show I would've really wanted to see, it's this one! Michael McDonald, despite his age, still sings great... effortlessly hitting those high notes... what a voice! He still sings so well!!! I love the gathering of great talents, Patti Austin, James Ingram, Kenny Loggins... even those new ones I don't know, and of course, Patti LaBelle. It was also a delight to see some great talents in the back-up - I notice Kim Carnes (she should've been showcased more), Dave Koz and David Pack - this guys are great and superstars in their own right but still humble enough to back-up for Michael. One of the highlights of the show was Michael singing with the Doobie Brothers... I was just a kid when I first heard them but I've always thought they were great - and the still are! I'm sure there were other numbers that were not included in the DVD... too bad. The only part that I didn't like in the show was Jeff Bridges singing.. he's a great actor and a great host - but I wish he'd live the singing with the 'real' singers. Buy this DVD, one of my best collections now.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great Moment
Review: In this DVD, Michael MC Donald remains himself. His voice is uncredible and the quality of his friends is also impressive.
Get one copy now...

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A Great Show
Review: Michael Mc Donald with Kenny Loggins, Doobie Brothers, James Ingram, David Pack, Dave Koz... what else can you ask for? A gathering of great voices. Despite Michael's age, he can still sing as well as he did in the 70s... talk about staying power. Michael is one talent that can still do great back-up, duet or solo. The relatively unkown talents were great too, loved theri music which was enhanced with Michael's voice. I noticed Kim Carnes at the back-up... what humility! All for the love of Michael I'm sure.

Although this was a great show, there were some stuff to comment on... firstly, Jeff Bridges singing? He should stay in the acting arena. Patti LaBelle, although extremely talented.. was a tad annoying with all her upstaging. i was also expecting Michael singing What a Fool Believes with the Doobies and co-writer Kenny Loggins. But, those are very minor points and the show was still great... why? Michael of course. This guy should'nt retire!

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Friends Are The Best Part...
Review: Michael McDonald does two things wrong in my opinion. He does a lot of vocal improvisation, and he yells as much as he sings, a lack of confidence? So if you buy this DVD, you will enjoy Edwin McCain, Christopher Cross, and Kenny Loggins. Don't count on liking the way Michael McDonald performs.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Missed the Point
Review: No one is a bigger fan of Michael McDonald than I am. This DVD proved
1. While McDonald is a great singer, composer/arranger, and musician, he is not an entertainer. This DVD missed the point showing this great artist as if they were giving him the Lifetime Achievement Award for Back-Up Vocalist.
2. McDonald was not the center of the show.....Where was HIS material?
3. I enjoyed hearing many of the talented artists. However, I bought the DVD to hear Michael McDonald. By the way, Jeff Bridges should keep his day job.
4. Should've had more of the Doobs, they gave him his shot.

While this DVD was a disappointment, I'm glad I got it. I am still a fan and I sure I wouldn't have found it in the local stores.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: LONG OVERDUE
Review: The Highlight's of this DVD are Mcdonald's duet's with James Ingram,Kenny Loggins,Christopher Cross. Patti Austin does a great job with (YOU BELONG TO ME). I was looking forward to seeing Mcdonald sing with Ray Charles but for some reason it was left off along with Brian Wilson give the Yamaha Award to Michael Mcdonald at the end of the program. No bonus footage i.e. interviews deleted songs. Preformers who did not make the cut Steve Winwood, She Daisy ,Crystal Bernard & Billy Dean ,The Wilkinsons ,Boz Scaggs.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Poorly staged, boring, slow, and overly contrived
Review: This concert was apparently just a stunt. It has all the feeling of being assembled to please the performers, not the audience. The false Hollywood feel between the performers, the shortness of the show, the waste of talent, and the meandering pace all detract. The stage is too wide and poorly used, and it's like this was all done to give everybody some work. A big disappointment. McDonald's voice and ability to entertain are not in question. This DVD detracts.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: They Blew It
Review: This could have been great, all the pieces were there-- I mean, anything with Michael McDonald is great-- but it could have been SO much better. There are some HUGE holes:

1) They get James Ingram, Patti Austin and Michael McDonald together on stage and they don't sing their #1 hit "Baby Come to Me"?? How does this happen? I mean, it's the only thing Patti Austin is even famous for! Instead we have to sit through her rendition of Michael McDonald's "You Belong to Me" which was also a hit for Carly Simon, who probably cancelled at the last minute.

2) Put Kenny Loggins and Michael McDonald on stage and have them not sing their biggest hit, "What a Fool Believes", which won Grammys for Song and Record of the Year? What idiot chose the set list? Also, I saw Kenny in concert and he blew the roof off with "Heart to Heart", but here he seemed afraid of outshining Michael. He deserves an "A" for decorum, a "C-" for the performance.

3) Why edit out the parts between the songs? That's the reason it's on DVD, so we can skip over that stuff the second time we watch it. But I didn't watch the concert just to hear Michael sing... I wanted to at least see what he's like conversing as a normal human being (without reading anything scripted by MCI)

HOWEVER, there are some great highlights:

1) James Ingram struts his amazing voice on a stirring rendition of "Yah Mo Be There." He is the man. Where did he go? He needs to come back. He even made Patti Labelle look weak.

2) Getting to see Christopher Cross seemingly find his old talent during a rendition of "Ride Like the Wind" proved quite enthralling. And when they did the "Ba Badda Ba" section, it sounded amazing.

3) The fact that Tommy Johnston relegated himself to tambourine and backup vocals really meant a lot, to me, at least. I always wondered if he felt jealous that Michael came in and redefined the band's sound. But here he seemed totally supportive of his bandmate and that was touching to watch. Rumor has it the band stuck around and played "Listen to the Music" at 1am. Can't end a show without it.

4) Is that Steve Winwood on stage at the end? And Kim Carnes on backup vocals? Talk about swallowing the ego...

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Absolutely Great!!!
Review: This DVD is really worth buying, the man with the blue eyes really puts on a show here!! The first song (on my own) sounds like he is a bit nervous (the sound isn't that good..) but after this song it keeps getting better and better. It rocked my world with the fifth song, 'Ride like the wind' with Christopher Cross. The sound in general is very good (DTS) and for a Michael-fan (which I'm sure there are a lot) is this a Must-have!!
So, go on and buy, you'll never regret it!!


<< 1 2 3 >>

© 2004, ReviewFocus or its affiliates