Entertaining Holiday DVDs

Reveal Four Chapters Out Of Rock & Roll History

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By John Voket

Every year a few acorns fall out of the tree while I’m foraging for research material on bands and songs, and 2010 was no different. This year I acquired four DVDs which, while entertaining, also provided an education, the equivalent of chapters out of the Rock & Roll History Book.

These DVDs introduce fantastically candid glimpses into the lives and/or talents of four rock acts that each, in their own way, made highly unique and compelling music during the 1960s, ‘70s, and are mostly all still around to talk about it today.

Except, of course, Jim Morrison – which brings me to my first recommendation:

When You’re Strange:

A Film About The Doors

The strangest thing about this project is that it came from the folks at Wolf Films, which issued its first attempt at a rock film, after producing a critically acclaimed documentary on 9/11, and the most successful brand in the history of primetime television, Law & Order.

Produced by Wolf Films/Strange Pictures, in association with Rhino Entertainment, the 90-minute film is the first feature documentary about The Doors. Directed by the award-winning writer and director Tom DiCillo and narrated by Johnny Depp, the DVD provides a visually dazzling account of the band’s history while making frequent references to the important role in American rock and roll history The Doors played.

There is a slightly annoying running subplot incorporating a Jim Morrison look-alike tooling around the desert in a jacked-up muscle car listening to accounts of Morrison’s own passing on the FM radio. But that clunky and unnecessary attempt to prop up a theory about the charismatic lead singer faking his own death does not overwhelm the historical stock footage, cleverly intertwined with still frames, film and video of the band and its members.

There is also a touching bonus segment featuring some intensely revealing thoughts from Morrison’s sister and father about how they saw their son’s and brother’s life playing out on television and in the press, while they were effectively shunned by the luminary singer, poet and film maker.

Be prepared: the various lingering or repetitive images in the main feature come at you fast, and film clips play out to the hauntingly gripping music of Morrison, Ray Manzarek, John Densmore and Robby Krieger, perfectly complimented by Depp’s hushed and brooding voiceover.

Rolling Stones — Stones in Exile

There is a moment during one of the many, many interviews packed into the Stones in Exile main feature and extras where rocker Liz Phair makes an astonishingly astute observation. She talks about how it took a bunch of British pop stars to finally bring some musical credibility to the many American southern blues, soul, folk and country musicians creating their sounds for the mass music consuming public.

That concept generally seems to be supported by most of those contributing to this new DVD, which chronicles in sometimes painful detail the recording of what many rock historians call the greatest album in history: 1972’s Exile On Main Street.

While the feature is good, it makes a particularly special gift for Stones fans, or those who know nothing about the band. Much of the 90 minutes of behind-the-scenes bonus footage is packed with insight about the band, the logistics of planning and producing the album, and some of what was going on around the small but highly self-sufficient entity that has oft been described as The Greatest Rock & Roll Band on The Planet.

Stones in Exile captures perfectly the spring of 1971, providing a never-before-seen eye into the villa called Nellcote at Villefranche-sur-Mer in the South of France where Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts, Bill Wyman and Mick Taylor created this historical rock and roll benchmark.

Phair, Martin Scorsese, Anita Pallenberg, producer Jimmy Miller, engineer Andy Johns, photographer Dominique Tarlé, legendary sax man Bobby Keys and many others are featured talking about their experiences with Main Street, whether they were directly involved in it or highly influenced by it.

Stones In Exile is directed by Stephen Kijak and produced by Oscar-winning filmmaker John Battsek, Victoria Pearman and executive produced by Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and CharlieWatts.

Jackson Browne Going Home

One of the more fascinating but seldom discussed influences on much of the music happening in rock and roll in the 1970s, and some say continues strong today in the country music market is the “Southern California Sound.” Sure, you may not immediately conjure up the names of any of the artists who contributed to this chapter in rock history, but they include artists like JD Souther, Linda Ronstadt, Glenn Frey, and perhaps the most prolific songwriter among them, Jackson Browne.

That’s why this DVD, a re-release of a 1994 Disney Channel Special which also won a Cable Ace Award, is an important addition for one’s music collection. Effectively chronicling Browne’s lasting legacy, Going Home is part documentary and part live experience.

Since the early 1970s, Browne has created compelling, moving music, which earned him inductions in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2004) and the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame (2007). And his songs are described as some of popular music’s most literate and honest.

There is plenty of candid interview footage, that captures Browne reflecting on his four decade career, intercut with live footage, the most compelling of which overlay in the course of a single song, different decades seamlessly blended into one another.

These blended segments reinforce to those who have followed Browne’s career, and to newcomers to his work, the timeless nature of his music. Guest appearances also fill in a lot of blanks about Browne the person and musical talent. Don Henley, David Crosby, Graham Nash, The Eagles, David Lindley, Jennifer Warnes, and Bonnie Raitt are among the musical cast who complement this feature.

Emerson, Lake & Palmer

Pictures at an Exhibition

Having interviewed each member of this highly influential act, which made an indelible contribution to progressive rock, it was most intriguing to see them performing live — arguably at their peak. This concert film, which has previously been released on VHS and DVD, was made available this year as a special 40-year anniversary package.

I vaguely recall seeing the original late-night movie house premier of this concert film which was released in 1973. But even sitting in your living room watching it today, Pictures At An Exhibition represents a snapshot in time, blending the integrity of the music with ‘70s psychedelic special effects.

The title of this release truly fits the presentation. This is a musical exhibition, showcasing the incredible musical power of keyboardist Keith Emerson, vocalist/bassist Greg Lake, and drummer Carl Palmer. Formed in the early ‘70s, Emerson (of The Nice), Lake (of King Crimson) and Palmer (of Atomic Rooster, The Crazy World of Arthur Brown) infused jazzy improvisation with the reckless abandon of rock, birthing their brand of music as aural artwork.

Alternating with long lingering and tightly focused clips devoted to each member of this English power trio performing at the Lyceum in London in December 1970, this DVD is the most complete version of the film, presented with the best possible sound and picture quality.

As a bonus, the DVD features a previously unreleased 1970 live performance from Belgian television program Pop Shop, as well as the original theatrical trailer.