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Rating: 
Summary: Be careful
Review: At least my copy pauses automatically here and there on my region-free player.
Rating: 
Summary: What You All Missed
Review: First, as always, a couple of confessions. Number 1, I am a Steve Goodman fan. Number 2, I am an author. Words matter. Steve Goodman, while a fine vocalist and a stunning guitarist, was, first and foremost, a lyricist. ...Now for the review: This is as good as you're gonna get now that Steve is playing with the angels. I had the chance to see him live in the late '70's and that concert remains, without a doubt, the single most beloved musical event I ever attended. This DVD does have a technical glich here and there in terms of an unforeseen pause or two. So what? The concert footage is priceless, the sound quality is good, and the interviews with Kris Kristoferson, John Prine, and others, are memorable. You can't watch Steve's interview about the Chicago Cubs, where it's clear he's battling the cancer that ultimately killed him, without shedding tears. Buy this DVD and buy any of Steve's CD's. Any CD. And you will be an immediate Goodman junkie. Guaranteed.
Rating:
Summary: A Season Ticket with the Angels...
Review: Steve Goodman never found fame, not the kind he deserved anyway. A gifted songwriter, a splendid guitarist, and a charismatic live act, his death in 1984 left holes in lot of folks' lives. John Prine still dedicates "Souvenirs" to Steve in every concert he does. The DVD captures a couple of Austin City Limits shows where Steve was in good form, high energy in the first half, lower energy in the second half, sapped a bit by the chemo and the disease that killed him. Between those two halves, there's an interview from an apartment overlooking Wrigley Field. Even the poor editing can't take away from the heart-wrenching Q&A, or diminish the "Dying Cub Fan's Last Request" as Steve sings it, with Wrigley in the background, a few months before his death. This is the closest you can come in this life to seeing a Steve Goodman concert. For those of us who are fans - and I am an unabashed fan - it is a rare and precious treat. For those who don't know Steve and his wonderful songs, this is a great chance to experience a Steve Goodman show. Highly recommended. Simply delightful.
Rating:
Summary: A Season Ticket with the Angels...
Review: Steve Goodman never found fame, not the kind he deserved anyway. A gifted songwriter, a splendid guitarist, and a charismatic live act, his death in 1984 left holes in lot of folks' lives. John Prine still dedicates "Souvenirs" to Steve in every concert he does. The DVD captures a couple of Austin City Limits shows where Steve was in good form, high energy in the first half, lower energy in the second half, sapped a bit by the chemo and the disease that killed him. Between those two halves, there's an interview from an apartment overlooking Wrigley Field. Even the poor editing can't take away from the heart-wrenching Q&A, or diminish the "Dying Cub Fan's Last Request" as Steve sings it, with Wrigley in the background, a few months before his death. This is the closest you can come in this life to seeing a Steve Goodman concert. For those of us who are fans - and I am an unabashed fan - it is a rare and precious treat. For those who don't know Steve and his wonderful songs, this is a great chance to experience a Steve Goodman show. Highly recommended. Simply delightful.
Rating:
Summary: Please, let there be more video of Steve!
Review: This video captures Steve as the on-stage dynamo I remember and love, and is absolutely priceless. Everyone who performs for an audience should watch this video and learn. Steve played the audience almost as well as he played the guitar, and it's nice to see him do what he did best - perform solo (or with Jethro, or Prine) - without a lot of studio backup drowning him out. He could get an audience to spontaneously begin clapping in rhythm, without even asking them. To see the love and appreciation his audience had for him - this is about as close as we can get now to the experience of a live show. The air-piano on "You Never Even Call Me By My Name" is amazing, and the Elvis impression is a classic. About the only thing missing that was a semi-regular feature of his live shows is the string-breaking routine.
Having watched both the DVD and the VHS, I'd recommend the VHS, at least until they fix the glitches on the DVD, but either way, this is overdue, and I know there are other Steve videos out there (like the Soundstage he did with Arlo and Hoyt Axton) that are great and need to be seen again.
Rating:
Summary: Surprised
Review: Well I don't own this DVD, but I'm so thrilled that I've discovered it's available, that I have to write a review about what I think it will be like. I've seen a lot of concerts in my 48 years. The Rolling Stones, with Steve Wonder as a warmup, Dylan and The Band, Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon tour from 10 rows back, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young & CSNY in their prime, The Hip in a little bar on Long Island and many more. I've probably seen a concert a month since I turned 16. Of all of those concerts, the best I ever saw was Steve Goodman at the Winnipeg Folk Festival. He sings and plays with such an abundance of joy that I defy anyone to watch him and not get swept up in the love he has for life. His determination to take on life smiling, has always inspired me to quit whining and realize how lucky I am to see life for all that it has to offer. I saw one of the Austin City Limits concerts several years ago when I was travelling and it showed up on my hotel TV. I loved what I saw, and the video caught the wonderful energy, the kind-hearted joy of Steve Goodman in concert. Truly, in my life, no one has ever come close to what Steve Goodman is like in concert. He was a humble, incredibly fun person, who played guitar amazingly, and still sang songs that could become benchmarks for your life. I am thrilled that this DVD is available, and I'm counting the days until I actually get to see it and share it with my wife, who never was lucky enough to see him.
Rating:
Summary: The Best Performer I've Ever Seen
Review: Well I don't own this DVD, but I'm so thrilled that I've discovered it's available, that I have to write a review about what I think it will be like. I've seen a lot of concerts in my 48 years. The Rolling Stones, with Steve Wonder as a warmup, Dylan and The Band, Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon tour from 10 rows back, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young & CSNY in their prime, The Hip in a little bar on Long Island and many more. I've probably seen a concert a month since I turned 16. Of all of those concerts, the best I ever saw was Steve Goodman at the Winnipeg Folk Festival. He sings and plays with such an abundance of joy that I defy anyone to watch him and not get swept up in the love he has for life. His determination to take on life smiling, has always inspired me to quit whining and realize how lucky I am to see life for all that it has to offer. I saw one of the Austin City Limits concerts several years ago when I was travelling and it showed up on my hotel TV. I loved what I saw, and the video caught the wonderful energy, the kind-hearted joy of Steve Goodman in concert. Truly, in my life, no one has ever come close to what Steve Goodman is like in concert. He was a humble, incredibly fun person, who played guitar amazingly, and still sang songs that could become benchmarks for your life. I am thrilled that this DVD is available, and I'm counting the days until I actually get to see it and share it with my wife, who never was lucky enough to see him.
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