REO Speedwagon - Live Plus
Performance
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REO Speedwagon - Live Plus
Performance
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As I checked out the discography section, from the special features portion of this DVD, I was reminded that REO Speedwagon has been on the scene since 1971, with the release of their self-titled debut album, and have since put out a total of twenty albums. I remember when they really burst on the scene, in 1982, with the release of their multi-multi-platinum Hi Infidelity album, which gave them the incredible radio airplay, and popularity, that they had been missing. Sure, they had developed a loyal fan-base, along with minor commercial success, through non-stop touring and strong albums such as 1977's Live - You Get What You Play For, and 1979's You Can Tune A Piano, But You Can't Tuna Fish, but they had never dreamed they would achieve the popularity that Hi Infidelity would bring. Kevin Cronin, REO's lead singer, and band spokesperson, joined the band during the recording of their 2nd album, REO Two, only to leave and not reappear until their 6th album, REO, four years later. He and founding members Neal Doughty (keyboards), and Bruce Hall (bass) have been with them ever since. Guitarist and founding member Gary Richrath left the band in 1990, under unusual circumstances, and this story was recounted brilliantly on VH1's REO Speedwagon - Behind The Music special from a few years back. I must admit, I did some serious partying to REO's A Decade Of Rock And Roll album, while I was in high school. This great double album contains most of their best pre-Hi Infidelity songs, including some smokin' live tracks. I fell out of favor with REO with the release of the Hi Infidelity album, which basically turned them into a wussy, chick band. The albums that followed were so dominated by sappy ballads that they made Hi Infidelity sound like a damn Slayer album. No wonder Richrath couldn't take it any more, and nearly drank himself to death. I do still like a good dose of old-school REO every now and then, so I decided to give the Live Plus DVD a whirl. This concert was recorded in 2000, at the Riverport Amphitheatre, in St Louis, and was part of a co-headlining tour with, fellow Chicagoans, Styx, which was dubbed Arch Allies. This particular incarnation of the band features relative newcomers Dave Amato on guitar, who has played with Ted Nugent, and Bryan Hitt on drums, who I have never heard of. The show began with a rather weak version of the Hi Infidelity hit "Don't Let Him Go". Right off the bat I knew there was something wrong with the sound. I always begin a concert DVD with the 5.1 surround mix selected first, and on this DVD it sounded terrible. To come right out with it, the mix just had no balls. The lead guitar was buried way down in the mix, and the bass had no oomph. Kevin Cronin's vocals, acoustic guitar, and the drums sure did sound good though, but I didn't want to listen to a damn unplugged show! I was hoping that this would be something that the sound guy would correct during the first song, but unfortunately it was like this for the whole show. I switched over to the Dolby Stereo mix, which was recorded several db's lower, to see if I could find some improvement. The stereo mix had a slightly more meatier guitar and bass mix, but the overall sound was very flat. This was very disappointing because, especially on the older songs, the guitar always had a huge, crunchy, "Les Paul through a Marshall" sound that had dominated most of the songs. This was a shame because Amato's guitar playing was pretty impressive. He played with a lot of energy and enthusiasm and nailed all of the solos. As far as the show goes, they played a satisfying mix of older and newer tunes. Obviously, they would have to play the hits from Hi Infidelity, as well as their last monster hit ballad "Can't Fight This Feeling". God, I can't stomach that song. My wife was swaying back and forth and holding up a lighter though. Lucky for them. One of my favorite REO songs, "Time For Me To Fly", was nearly ruined by the very tame performance, and was made worse by the weak guitar mix. Tame is a good description of this entire performance. Even the faster, rockin' numbers like "Roll With The Changes" and "Ridin' The Storm Out" sounded restrained and did not have nearly the impact of the originals, and didn't even come close to the dynamics of the Live - You Get What You Play For versions. The best performance of the night was definitely the classic "157 Riverside Avenue", which was saved for last. This is just a great extended jam song, which showcased Doughty's keyboard chops, and was anchored by Hall's funky bass playing. Amato tore this song up, but once again his guitar didn't receive proper justice in the mix. On a good note, the video quality was exceptional. Bright, and sharp, and with no noticeable graininess. The camera work was good, but was often a little overzealous with the crowd shots. The stage and arena lighting was too bright and appeared as if they had extra lights on the stage and over the crowd just so everything would be well lit for the cameras. This created an unnatural and unauthentic live concert environment that I didn't like. This was the same problem as with the Heart Alive in Seattle concert. I actually saw REO Speedwagon live on their Hi Infidelity tour, over 20 years ago, and they rocked the house. Those that have seen them in concert recently can judge whether or not this DVD performance was just the victim of a bad mix, and poor arrangements, or that they have simply lost a few steps over the past couple of decades. Reviewed by Paul M. Roy - September 2004 |
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Running Time: 65 Minutes |
DVD Release Date - July 2001 |