Music/Concert DVD Review: Rolling Stones: Let's Spend the Night Together (1981)

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Regardless of the fact that it was a brand new track when Harold and Maude filmmaker Hal Ashby and his Being There cinematographer Caleb Deschanel shot the Stones concert film Let's Spend the Night Together in 1981, Mick Jagger waits until roughly the middle of the set-list to unleash “Start Me Up.”

Instead, as a natural born entertainer who most likely is “on” every waking minute of his life, it's only fitting that Jagger kicked off the show with “Under My Thumb.”

Looking out into a massive crowd that's roughly the size of an ocean, Jagger sings at admirers rather than to them.

Thus, knowing full well that in stark contrast to Thumb's openly misogynistic lyrics wherein he likens an obedient girlfriend to “the sweetest pet in the world,”when Jagger opens with that tune he's changing the meaning completely, acknowledging that his captivated audience has become his largest, highest paying pet in the world.

And unfortunately, this is the biggest part of the problem as although we see a polished, highly energized Jagger lunge onstage, he's been started up to go through his chart-toppers completely on dispassionate autopilot.

Gyrating wildly in what has become his trademark “eroticism” that leaves nothing to the imagination, Jagger tries to force sex into some of his most earnest hits, forgetting the fact that not everything works well as a double entendre when you're applying the double meaning in laughable crotch-accentuating football pants.

In my mind, there's absolutely nothing sexier than the right rhythm and blues laced Rolling Stones song and especially the ones that allow death-defying guitarist Keith Richards the chance to wail and this could've only been heightened with a more bare-bones, intimate venue concert. Sadly and aside from the inclusion of a jukebox worth of Stones hits, there's nothing less sexy than the performance on this DVD.

Seeing Jagger's androgynous presentation as a cross between Olivia Newton John's jazzercise aerobics favorite “Let's Get Physical” and glam rock era David Bowie is the equivalent of “baby, I've got a headache.”

And given the stellar material of the Stones catalog, I think he'd be much more effective without the cold shower inducing pomp and neon circumstance of the '80s arena rock concert venue and weird Aerosmith flag plus football attire approach.

Throughout, Jagger speeds through classics he must be tired of singing like “Jumpin' Jack Flash,” so that we lose the punch of those pre-punk, post-Dylan poetic lyrics about being “born with a spike right through my head.”

Essentially, he's the only band member that tries to ignite lust or excitement in the audience (even if by force) as amusingly even a parade of gorgeous girls during “Honky Tonk Women” can't distract the perpetually smoking Ron Wood and Keith Richards from showing each other their killer guitar skills.

And while we'd love to know exactly what he seemed peeved about, privately mouthing off to himself after it appeared as though Ron Wood gave Jagger some direction, Ashby's film remains a slick commercial concert piece.

Obviously, Let's Spend the Night Together may please some die-hard fans looking for a quickie that masquerades as a one-night stand. However since I prefer a musical love affair, let's just say that athletic wear and male eyeliner simply doesn't “Start Me Up” like hearing the album version of “Satisfaction.”

Text ©2010, Film Intuition, LLC; All Rights Reserved. http://www.filmintuition.com Unauthorized Reproduction or Publication Elsewhere is Strictly Prohibited and in violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.  

FTC Disclosure: Per standard professional practice, I received a review copy of this title in order to evaluate it for my readers, which had no impact whatsoever on whether or not it received a favorable or unfavorable critique.

Music DVD Review: Elvis Presley: The Ed Sullivan Shows: The Classic Performances

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Although originally he'd vowed never to invite the man he would eventually describe as a "decent and fine boy" on his popular television show-- when rival host Steve Allen beat Ed Sullivan's ratings with the debut appearance of Elvis Presley on Allen's variety series-- eventually Ed Sullivan caved.

And sure enough the paperwork was completed in the summer of 1956 as Sullivan signed Presley to the tune of fifty thousand dollars to appear for three exclusive performances on The Ed Sullivan Show.

However, tragically a horrific head-on collision found Sullivan ordered to miss five weeks of hosting duties as friends filled in guest-hosting the show while he was convalescing following the car crash. Sadly, much to his disappointment-- (and regardless of the fact that he'd be there for the subsequent two appearances)-- ultimately the host ended up making television history as one of more than 72 million viewers who tuned in when Charles Laughton introduced the the young and relatively new singer to the world.

Seeing the shy, polite Southern country boy in his record-breaking premiere on September 9, 1956 make this newly released DVD that much more compelling since it offers us a chance to look back at the icon before he went into the army and met the teenager who later became his wife, before he went Hollywood and long before the pressures of being "The King" began to affect him.

Likewise, it's a fascinating opportunity to witness the way that Elvis Presley began working on his stage persona. Since, even when delivering a hit like "Love Me" where he appears to forget the words twice and/or gets lost in the crowd we can hear him experiment with different vocal approaches including some that would become his signature and others that as a fan of the music, I had never heard before.

Additionally you must bear in mind that this was during the controversial era of religious outcry over Elvis and the music he sang. For on the DVD, it's quickly visible that every so often he becomes overwhelmed by the magnitude of the experience given what sounds like a few slurred words, melodic mix-ups (wherein he puts a finger to his ear to adjust his tone) and a strange stab at a humorous ironic lead in to "Hound Dog" as a sad song that baffles even his band.

However, the little quirks make him that much more endearing as viewers simply couldn't care less. Moreover, even now in 2009, it's easy to be utterly drawn in by what is arguably the greatest entertainer of all time performing for millions in his prime. Beautiful, nervous, and consciously provocative with the abundance of hip gyrations-- even though Sullivan's studio gave him a dull music note background, your eyes only focus directly on the man himself.

And fortunately, Presley's confidence in front of a live television audience would increase with not just their ecstatic screams but each successive appearance-- whether he was actively helping to support the Hungarian relief effort for which he performs a moving rendition of "Peace in the Valley" or celebrating his [then] biggest record with rocking performance of "Don't Be Cruel."

Indeed, by the time the third appearance of Presley's occurred, he was so relaxed that the hip thrusts had gotten him in trouble to the point wherein the undeniably soulful, sexy singer was filmed from the waist up to avoid public outcry.

While a majority of entertainers today would've taken that as their cue to try and shock even more as the mainstream media seems to prefer behavior that can be considered salacious over actual substance, Presley was unflappable under what must have been the most appalling scrutiny and judgment. Instead, filled with kindness-- after of course, letting it rip in his usual level of rock 'n roll-- when Presley took Sullivan's stage during the holiday season, he addressed his viewers as "friends," politely thanking them in a way that seemed both genuine and truly humble.

Given the age of the footage, it's not the cleanest presentation imaginable with visible dirt and grain but it's a true find to see the Sullivan appearances back to back to back. And while on paper in the press release or on the back of the box, the bonus features seem as though they're going to offer some truly mind-blowing footage for devotees of the King to accompany the forty-seven minute disc, unfortunately the promos for the appearances are extremely dull, the remembrance interview footage is dated and the special moments and home movies feel very familiar.

However, the one very brief treasure included on the disc is the very first recorded video footage of Presley. Captured near Houston, Texas by a young couple testing out their brand new 8mm video camera-- the historical artifact presents us with the man before he'd been discovered let alone signed by Colonel Tom Parker. Featuring an upbeat and impossibly young, casual looking Elvis Presley performing at a local, disorganized outdoor gig-- it's the one extra that you should jump to before the rest in this slight yet otherwise fan-friendly DVD.

Text ©2009, Film Intuition, LLC; All Rights Reserved. http://www.filmintuition.com
Unauthorized Reproduction or Publication Elsewhere is Strictly Prohibited.

Music DVD Review: Iggy Pop -- Lust For Life (1986)

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Although it's hard to argue that the music of Iggy Pop is “worth a million in prizes” as he sings in his most famous hit “Lust For Life” (which first landed on my radar following its inclusion in Danny Boyle's film Trainspotting), my first image of the man himself came from his appearance in Jim Jarmusch’s understated arty movie Coffee and Cigarettes.

In its episodic structure-- filmed over the course of nearly two decades-- Jarmusch, who has always employed musicians since his early breakout hit Stranger than Paradise, offered small groups of people (two or more) the chance to shoot the breeze over the requisite coffee and cigarettes.

In the case of Iggy Pop -- Jarmusch stuck him across the table from none other than Tom Waits. In a hilariously awkward conversation wherein Pop informs Waits that he could just call him by his birth name of Jim (as in James Newell Osterberg, Jr.), instead and continually busting his balls, Waits opts to engage in a verbal chess match that exploits both men's egos, alter-egos, and insecurities, and the result is priceless.

Yes, Iggy Pop-- the iconic and mostly shirtless “Godfather of Punk”-- who spent the earliest part of his musical career on the verge of self-destruction via drugs and onstage mutilation, seems downright casual, fully-together, and meek by comparison to Waits in the tongue-in-cheek exchange fueled by male pride and too much caffeine.

What a difference a few decades makes and this is definitely evident in thebrand-new DVD release of Iggy Pop – Lust For Life, which was originally filmed for German television in 1986 following his success with the single “Real Wild Child” and the Blah Blah Blah album.

Clocking in at roughly forty minutes and filled with candid interview footage featuring both Pop and former Stooges guitarist (the late Ron Asheton who sadly passed away this January) along with archived video and audio clips-- the disc which begins with Pop’s modern shirtless performance of the title track-- quickly segues into his own recollection of what first drew him to music.

Recalling a youth spent in Michigan fascinated by the sound of the endless electrical hum of everything around him with a life-changing breakthrough upon seeing firsthand the machine press at a local Ford Motor Plant, the young man began playing drums around his house and spent his entire high school career in the successful local group The Iguanas (from which he derived his stage name “Iggy.”)

Although he had enrolled and briefly attended the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor but spent most of his time avoiding class in favor of coffee and sugar which inevitably led to sleepy crashes that found him missing his coursework-- soon Pop made the decision that he'd gotten as much out of that particular town as he possibly could.

Noting that he'd are a studied all of his albums and knew his Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan records back and forth, he ventured to Chicago at the age of nineteen to investigate the blues. Being drawn to the way that Pop stated music seemed to ooze out of the players like "tree sap or honey" and digging their very loose and improvisational movement, he realized that he wanted to take everything he had learned both in Michigan and Illinois and apply it to his next act.

Punk enthusiasts know precisely what this led up to with the advent of The Stooges whose songs like “No Fun” and “I Want to Be Your Dog,” and the sheer volume that became “the spirit” of their admittedly simple tracks took the music world by storm.

Unwilling to do the safe thing and imitate the British invasion groups popular at the time, Pop and guitarist Ron Asheton (interviewed at great length) described the way they used the sounds they admired from bands like The Rolling Stones, The Velvet Underground, The Doors, Jimi Hendrix and others to apply it to lyrics that would fit their Midwestern surroundings.

For example, when Iggy sang “No Fun,” it was a response to what he felt life was like in his immediate surroundings and as Asheton acknowledges, the entire playing style for The Stooges was to offer every guy the opportunity to go “free form”as they would leave the stage with their hands swollen and bloody with roadies allowing the amplifiers to continue to sound that signature electrical hum for a few minutes following their walk off the stage.

Joking that the sound was so loud that it almost physically assaulted the audience so that they couldn't even leave and were stuck by the veracity of the “raw power,” soon their antics became much more infamous following their addiction to hard drugs. Like most sad tales of rock 'n roll and fame-- when drugs entered the equation, instead of the creativity the artists were hoping to draw from tripping, expensive instruments were being sold to support a habit that costs them several hundreds of dollars a day.

Eventually, The Stooges broke up and while there are varying stories as to precisely what led to this decision, unfortunately the DVD’s narration is completely spoken in an entirely different language. While initially it sounded as though it could be Dutch, later it morphs into a dialect that seems decidedly German but I’m unable to offer any accurate criteria on the languages involved since they aren't listed on the DVD or press release.

Luckily, the narrative sequences are brief and the disc is easy to follow given the emphasis on English-language interviews with Pop and Asheton as well as vintage footage of his now extremely famous speech on the Canadian talk show wherein he addresses what punk rock means to him. Additionally, it offers some incredible insight into his friendship and later professional partnership with David Bowie whom Iggy Pop admirably describes as the hardest working person he'd ever seen in his life as Bowie spent a virtually sleepless existence performing, studying, and appreciating music.

When you couple this with great footage of Pop performances (including a vintage tape featuring The Sex Pistols’ still infectious “Anarchy in the U.K.”), the disc is well worth exploring even if you cannot understand the brief foreign narration. Although it was released in February of this year, ironically just a month after Asheton died, it furthermore helps renew interest into the ultra-talented Pop himself who is set to become the subject of an upcoming and approved biopic called The Passenger (after another one of his hits), which is in development and set to star Elijah Wood. Another great and rare release, this all-region (or “region free” or “Region 0”) compatible DVD also features a color insert with a short biography of Pop’s professional career.