The Grateful Dead - Ticket to New Year's

Rating:
Summary: See "Down Hill From Here"
Review: I was at this show, What a blast. New Years Eve was always the clunkiest show of the run, from a musical stand point, but NYE was always about more than just the show. They started this show a little sluggish. By the time the video reaches the parts where they are warmed up in full stride, you can't see anything because some one decided to put tracer effects and fotage of WWII in the way, (I kid you not) the post production video effects are about as nice as the strings they used to attatch to pop songs of the mid 60s. Either show us the footage or don't. The 1989 Alpine vid on the other hand is the real deal. It will blow you away.

Rating:
Summary: Missing 3rd Set !
Review: I would rate this as the weakest of the Dead videos that are currently released. The song selection is OK, nothing special. Performance is acceptable. The biggest problem is the exclusion of the 3rd set, where the Neville Brothers joined for a few songs. Only the "Knockin" encore is included.

Rating:
Summary: Stop the madness!
Review: If there are any GDP people reading I am BEGGING YOU to stop putting out DVDs with those disastrously cheesy video effects which you inevitably lay on thick during the most interesting musical improvisations ("have pychedelic experience here"). They really ruin it for me. Allow me to create pictures in my own head, thanks (I recall seeing some pretty wild stuff back then but can't for the life of me remember a sailboat gliding across Jerry's axe!). As the years go by these horrible effects just seem more and more dated and embarrassing. The only way to go forward with these releases is to preserve maximum video and audio integrity, let the Grateful Dead speak for themselves and RESIST THE URGE to press the effects button. Let me try to put this as succintly as I can: NOBODY WANTS TO SEE THAT GARBAGE! In the case of this DVD it really ruins for me what is an otherwise very enjoyable experience. For those who have the disk, watch UJB again and tell me that the video retards don't go absolutely ga-ga PRECISELY when you don't want them to. Please people, get a clue. Stop the madness!

Rating:
Summary: Not a bad show
Review: In reference to the editors note, there is no Dark Star on this DVD! The Dead merely trickle into The Other One coming out of Drumz. The show on the whole is well played but I agree with the other reviewer about the exclusion of a great 3rd set with the Neville Brothers! One more note, the opening Bertha is good but the editors, for some reason, lopped off the the Bobby opener of Promised! Who knows? Anyway, like any dead video, digital or otherwise, this is a must have for your libray, enjoy and keep the faith!

Rating:
Summary: Ticket back in time...
Review: Just watched the "Ticket to New Year's" DVD and thoroughly enjoyed it. Of the four Dead DVD's out as of now, I don't know if its the best, I seem to like View from the Vault I. But hey, this well worth having in your collection. The audio is crisp and sharp and while the special effects that were added to the video may annoy some, I thought they are pretty funny. Funny in the sense that I wonder if whoever was in charge of putting the effects on the video was saying "Wow man, this is gonna trip people out..." Whatever, no big deal. I recommend getting your hand's on every Dead DVD you can, in hopes that the powers that be see that there is a demand for them. There are alot more shows that could be put out (View from the vault III in October) and I hope they come around soon. It's a great escape to tune into Jerry and the Boys for a few hours, they were a unique band that communicated a vibe that doesn't seem to be prevelant anymore... MY ADVICE TO YOU: TURN OFF THE SIX O'CLOCK PARANOIA NEWS CHANNEL OR WHATEVER OTHER JUNK THAT MAY BE ON TV, POP A COUPLE OF HEINEKEN'S, SLIDE IN A DEAD DVD AND YOU'LL FEEL MUCH BETTER ABOUT YOURSELF.

Rating:
Summary: Ticket back in time...
Review: Just watched the "Ticket to New Year's" DVD and thoroughly enjoyed it. Of the four Dead DVD's out as of now, I don't know if its the best, I seem to like View from the Vault I. But hey, this well worth having in your collection. The audio is crisp and sharp and while the special effects that were added to the video may annoy some, I thought they are pretty funny. Funny in the sense that I wonder if whoever was in charge of putting the effects on the video was saying "Wow man, this is gonna trip people out..." Whatever, no big deal. I recommend getting your hand's on every Dead DVD you can, in hopes that the powers that be see that there is a demand for them. There are alot more shows that could be put out (View from the vault III in October) and I hope they come around soon. It's a great escape to tune into Jerry and the Boys for a few hours, they were a unique band that communicated a vibe that doesn't seem to be prevelant anymore... MY ADVICE TO YOU: TURN OFF THE SIX O'CLOCK PARANOIA NEWS CHANNEL OR WHATEVER OTHER JUNK THAT MAY BE ON TV, POP A COUPLE OF HEINEKEN'S, SLIDE IN A DEAD DVD AND YOU'LL FEEL MUCH BETTER ABOUT YOURSELF.

Rating:
Summary: Ticket back in time...
Review: Just watched the "Ticket to New Year's" DVD and thoroughly enjoyed it. Of the four Dead DVD's out as of now, I don't know if its the best, I seem to like View from the Vault I. But hey, this well worth having in your collection. The audio is crisp and sharp and while the special effects that were added to the video may annoy some, I thought they are pretty funny. Funny in the sense that I wonder if whoever was in charge of putting the effects on the video was saying "Wow man, this is gonna trip people out..." Whatever, no big deal. I recommend getting your hand's on every Dead DVD you can, in hopes that the powers that be see that there is a demand for them. There are alot more shows that could be put out (View from the vault III in October) and I hope they come around soon. It's a great escape to tune into Jerry and the Boys for a few hours, they were a unique band that communicated a vibe that doesn't seem to be prevelant anymore... MY ADVICE TO YOU: TURN OFF THE SIX O'CLOCK PARANOIA NEWS CHANNEL OR WHATEVER OTHER JUNK THAT MAY BE ON TV, POP A COUPLE OF HEINEKEN'S, SLIDE IN A DEAD DVD AND YOU'LL FEEL MUCH BETTER ABOUT YOURSELF.

Rating:
Summary: Audio is OK, but get the CDs instead and use your mind...
Review: The audio quality on this is OK. It's a real shame that not much exists from the true heyday of the Dead. This catches them at a New Year's Eve show as they were on their low, slow, sad decline. It's not a BAD DVD. It's actually fun in places, but a Dead show was to be experienced IN PERSON and it just doesn't translate well to video. There is a companion 3-CD set to this, and I would highly recommend that you get it instead, crank up the sound, party a little, and use your imagination and pretend that the Fat Man is still up there making those sweet, round notes that just soothed the soul.

Rating:
Summary: Good sound but poor setlist
Review: This concert does not feature the best setlist imaginable. But when the music is good it is excellent, such as "Bird Song" and "Other One." Another problem with this video is the camera "special effects" which bogg down the music. I personally want to see Garcia play, not swirls and other things like that. This video, however, is a must own for any deadhead, or those wanting to relive the experiance in the comfort of ones own couch.

Rating:
Summary: This one should get six stars
Review: This concert DVD is one of the best things I have ever seen. The camera work is perfect and there is good visual work with the video lightshow. The setlist is basically perfect with maybe one exception. SetI Bertha//Cold Rain and Snow//Red Rooster//When Push come to shove//Masterpiece// Birdsong//Music never stopped Set II Hell in a Bucket//Uncle John's//Terrapin (2 tracks)// Drumzspace//Other 1//Wharf Rat//Throwing Stones// Not Fade Away//E:Knockin' w/Neville's. So as you can see the song selection is meaty and Jerry's face is HUGE!! This one is a must purchase and other bands such as Phish, Dave Matthews, and Widespread Panic should start makin' em like this. Enough said