Ted Nugent - Full Bluntal Nugity Live
Performance 
Production
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Ted Nugent - Full Bluntal Nugity Live
Performance |
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Whether you agree with everything he says, you've got to love a guy as unapologetically politically incorrect as Ted Nugent. Nugent may be one of the most outrageously outspoken anti-liberal, pro-gun, pro-hunting nuts you have ever known, but the man can make a Gibson Byrdland scream like no other. Heaven help you if he deems you anti-gun or unpatriotic, for you will be branded a bleeding-heart liberal by such aptly named gems as "Kiss My Ass" - but I ask you to turn the other cheek so that you may be able to appreciate all of the righteous cock-rock anthems such as "Cat Scratch Fever" and "Wang, Dang, Sweet Poontang" that were given to us by this man they call the Motor City Madman. Ted Nugent was an integral part of my teenage Kiss, Aerosmith, and Ozzy worshipping phase. He had a magnificent run of albums in the mid-70's beginning with his debut solo album Ted Nugent in 1975, and culminating three albums later with the ferocious Double Live Gonzo in 1978. Things started to go downhill from there though, as his bandmates began deserting him one by one, and the album sales started to dry up. After a fairly successful two-album stint in the supergroup Damn Yankees with Styx' Tommy Shaw and Night Ranger's Jack Blades in the early-90's, Nugent returned to his roots in 1995 with the excellent Spirit Of The Wild, thanks to some help from his old 1970's singer/guitarist Derek St. Holmes. He has been touring relentlessly with renewed passion ever since. Full Bluntal Nugity Live features an August 21, 2001 concert performance in Nugent's home town of Detroit, Michigan. Nugent is backed by and impressive rhythm section of Marco Mendoza on bass, and young drum wizard, and fellow Detroit native, Tommy Clufetos behind the skins. The show begins in typically outrageous Ted Nugent fashion, with him taking the stage straddling a massive buffalo. That's right, riding a giant, drooling BUFFALO, as the crowd nearly looses its minds. He then straps on his equally giant signature Gibson Byrdland guitar and proceeds to tear into the State Of Shock classic "Paralyzed". Hold on. The main feature is not a continuous concert but a mixture of live performances and a variety of behind the scenes stuff, including backstage and rehearsal footage, hunting expeditions, and target practice with the band, as they showcase terrible Ted's impressive arsenal of weapons. The highlight of these clips is from Nugent's manager's wedding in 2002, where he fulfilled a promise to play a "nugified" blues set. Nugent is dressed conservatively with his hair pulled back in a pony-tail, armed with a Gibson Les Paul, and he proceeds to tear the house down. Nugent should definitely take a stab at a blues-rock album, a la Gary Moore, as this short performance was phenomenal. The good thing is that each of these clips are assigned there own chapter number and none of the live performances are interrupted. The bad thing is that there is no option to play just the damn concert. The DVD is chock full of cool features - the best being a link to four vintage late-70's performances: "Free For All", "Wang, Dang, Sweet Poontang", "Cat Scratch Fever", and "Motor City Mad House". They are accessible by clicking a "craveman" icon during the recent performances of these songs, and this allows you to switch back and forth. The four vintage clips are worth the price of admission alone, as Nugent was once one of the most electrifying rock and roll performers of his day. Clothed in nothing but a loincloth, skinny as a rail, and hair to make Mariah Carey jealous, Nugent seemed to be in a psychotic trance during these mesmerizing performances, and the crowds were equally entranced. The most obvious factor that makes those performances so superior to his recent ones is the use of a lead singer and rhythm guitarist in his old band, especially when it was Derek St. Holmes. One of the other bonus features is a performance of "Just What The Doctor Ordered" featuring St. Holmes on lead vocals and guitar, during a guest appearance he made at a 2002 Nugent concert in Los Angeles. The superiority of the St. Holmes-led songs is blatantly obvious, but Nugent is too much of an egomaniac to share the spotlight and this helped to extinguish his career in the 80's. He even edited this performance down to a meager two-minute clip. If this is your first time seeing Ted Nugent live you will be very satisfied with the setlist, as most of the essential songs are covered. Along with the songs already mentioned, you also get such early classics as "Stormtroopin'", "Snakeskin Cowboys", "Hey Baby", and "Dog Eat Dog". If you have seen Nugent recently, like I have, then this set will seem kind of stale. The only semi-new songs performed were "Kiss My Ass" and the terrific "Fred Bear", which served as the show's final song. The first encore was none other than the epic "Great White Buffalo" where Nugent returns to the stage decked out in a full American Indian headdress and riding the buffalo once again. Did I mention he fires a flaming bow into the back of a guitar he hangs from the top of the speaker cabinets? Full Bluntal Nugity Live is an impressive, sprawling two-disk set that has enough bonus material to satisfy even the most ravenous Nugent fans. The production quality was stellar, with the exception of the audio mix being a little off. The sound appeared to be recorded straight from the board and the bass and drums dominated the guitar, which means this had to have been rushed out before Nugent heard it.. The crowd noise was also mixed a little too loud for my taste, but it was satisfying overall if you crank it up to a respectable volume for a Ted Nugent concert. The video quality was exceptionally sharp and vivid, and the camera work was superb. After watching this performance, it is hard to believe that Ted Nugent is now pushing 60 years old - but then again he started playing professionally in the 1960's. Just check out the priceless, 1967 Amboy Dukes clip as a baby-faced Ted Nugent tears through "Journey To The Center Of The Mind". Whether you love or hate the man's politics, Ted Nugent can flat-out play some rock and roll guitar. Reviewed by Paul M. Roy - September 2005 |
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Set List * Vintage performances are also included |
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Running Time: 120 Minutes |
DVD Release Date - March 2003 |