Concert films often work best when they’re about one band.
The problem with gig shows, like Monterey Pop, is that not all musicians are created equal.
So they have to be about the moment, and the experience.
CL
My review after the jump.
Monterey Pop brings together a number of performers, but only a couple will make you lose your minds.
The show starts with some Mamas and the Papas, and the song “California Dreaming.”
The Mamas and the Papas feature John Phillips, who some people might feel differently about these days.
Then you get two songs from The Jefferson Airplane “High Flyin' Bird” and Today."
Very San Fran, very Beyond the Valley of the Dolls.
She’s alive, she’s got the blues down, and it’s electric.
The Animals (with Eric Burden) doing “Paint it Black”?
But then comes The Who doing “My Generation” and killing it.
It’s head music of the time.
But then the two most killer acts of Monterey hit the stage.
If you like a good sitar jam, this shit rocks.
The fest was setup by Lou Adler, and the film was made by D.A.
Pennebaker, and they reminisce about making the film on the commentary track.
It’s solid, but nostalgic.
For those who like it louder, there’s a DTS-HD master audio 5.1 track.
The picture quality of the film is excellent considering the 16mm source.
As for extras, they are legion.
In the Outtakes section, the songs are arranged by day.
Laura Nyro does “Wedding Bell Blues” and “Poverty Train.”
Jefferson Airplane closes out Day 2 with “Somebody to Love.”
The Who are pretty spectacular, and these are great tracks.
The band was on the verge of breaking up, so this is an end of the road performance.
There’s also four songs by Tiny Tim.
Lou Adler and D.A.
Pennebaker offer additional remincings in an interview (29 min.
), while John Phillips (16 min.
), Cass Elliot (12 min.
), David Crosby (9 min.)
and Derek Taylor (29 min.)
all offer their thoughts via audio interviews.
The bonus disc contains Jimi Plays Monterey, and Shake!
Jimi Plays Monterey is longer, running 49 minutes, though with more padding.
There’s an early Hendrix appearance where he plays Sgt.
This also comes with a trailer.
He sings: “Shake it like a bowl of soup!”
one of the great lyrics of all time.
And that, mixed with the drive of the rhythm section makes for a more delicious double entendre.
It’s hard to argue with their reaction.
This is a man at the top of his game.
Otis wraps it up by dedicating a song to all the miniskirts he dated.
“Try a Little Tenderness” closes out the night.
If you don’t like this song, then well, you probably don’t like fucking.
Also included is an interview with Redding’s Manager Phil Walden (19 min.).
This is available in 5.1 DTS-HD audio, or the uncompressed Stereo master.
The film is in full frame (1.33:1) and it looks as good as it can.
