Jethro Tull - Live At Montreux 2003
Performance 
Production
|
Jethro Tull - Live At Montreux 2003
Performance |
|
I've been waiting a long time for a good concert DVD from the Jethro Tull camp, and with Live At Montreux 2003, it has finally arrived. Now all I need is one like this from their 1970's heyday and I will be a really happy camper. Tull's Living With The Past DVD, from 2002, offered up a pretty decent jumble of performance footage, taken mostly from a 2001 London concert, but it was exactly that - a jumble. Behind-the-scenes footage was interspersed between, and during, most of the live performances, which also alternated between various shows. You will see no such nonsense on this here DVD. Live At Montreux 2003 was, to borrow a phrase from myself, exactly that. A complete and uninterrupted recording of Jethro Tull's July 4th, 2003 Montreux Jazz Festival appearance. Back in the summer of 2003, Ian Anderson and his Tull mates visited Claude Nobs' famous festival for the first time, and threw down this amazing 19-song set that covered everything from their 1968 debut album, This Was, on up to their soon to be released, at the time, Christmas album, which was appropriately titled The Jethro Tull Christmas Album. The DVD wastes no time getting right to the performance as it starts with the band already on stage as Anderson launches into a fiery harmonica solo to kick off "Some Day The Sun Won't Shine For You" from their bluesy debut. For most of the first half of the set they stick mostly to the acoustic and eclectic stuff such as "Life Is A Long Song", the Christmas album version of "Bourée", referred to here as "Version de Noel", of which Anderson humorously degrades as "sleazy, cocktail lounge jazz", and the folksy Benefit album opener "With You Their To Help Me". A couple of nice solo-album tunes were also thrown into the mix early, beginning with Martin Barre's acoustic jazz number "Empty Cafe", from his 1994 album Trick Of Memory, along with Anderson's own "Eurology", from his 2003 solo album Rupi's Dance. A few cool surprises were also trotted out this night, including the hard rocking "Hunting Girl", from 1977's Songs From The Wood, a mesmerizing percussion fueled "Fat Man", which saw Barre capably handling the flute duties while Anderson played mandolin, as well as newer material such as "Dot Com" from 1999's J-Tull Dot Com and "Beside Myself" from 1995's Roots To Branches. By the second half of the set, they had dispensed of most of the acoustic and Christmassy stuff, it was July after all, and proceeded to tear through a smoldering run of songs that could have each been chosen as concert highlights. "Living In The Past" and "Nothing Is Easy" finds Barre playing as heavy and energized as I've ever heard him, and the Aqualung classic "My God" certainly proved that Anderson is one of the greatest rock flutists in the world. Wait a minute. Isn't he the ONLY rock flutiest in the world? What I'm trying to say is that he had me shaking my head in amazement with his performance on this one. It was also great to hear "Budapest" again. This Crest Of A Knave gem has certainly been a band favorite to perform and has slowly turned into a fan favorite as well. It reminds me a lot of Dire Strait's "Telegraph Road" in the way that the piano and guitar work together to build from haunting ballad to epic rocker. After closing out the main set with a better than ever "Aqualung", they came back out and topped it with an amazing encore performance of "Locomotive Breath". As "Cheerio" played over the PA system the band bid farewell to the appreciative Montreux crowd as Anderson launched a couple of giant white balloons, each adorned with the Tull logo, out into the crowd. It gets easier to critique the setlist of a band who has so many albums and great songs to choose from as Jethro Tull does. Just look at my latest Rush concert review to get a glimpse of that in action. Sure I could have done without the new Christmas songs, although they were very good, and I was hoping to hear more of my favorites like "Minstrel In The Gallery", "Teacher", "Bungle In the Jungle", "Skating Away", and at least an excerpt from "Thick As A Brick", but this was still a very strong setlist indeed. Live At Montreux 2003 comes with stellar production quality, including a choice of three superb audio options to choose from; DTS 5.1 Surround, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, and PCM Stereo. The DTS option is particularly impressive, providing deep bass, excellent instrument separation, and an enveloping surround sound experience that puts you right out into the Montreux crowd. The hi-definition widescreen picture was clear and sharp, and the camera crew did a superb job making you feel as if you were at the show. Like most of the Live At Montreux releases, there were no extra features included on this DVD. Although Ian Anderson's voice has lost a little bit of its range over time, it has certainly not lost any of its unique flair. This current line-up of the band has been intact for nearly 15 years now, and their tightness really shines through during this amazing performance. Let's hope they make it another 15 years. Reviewed by Paul M. Roy - October 2007 |
|
Technical Details |
|
|
Audio Transfer |
Video Transfer |
|
Set List |
Performers |
|
Running Time: 117 Minutes |
DVD Release Date - August 2007 |