Customer Reviews

B.B. King: Blues Summit

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It really looks like a great concert is in the DVD. And the interviews are really interesting; I think they are maybe the best reason for why one would like to have this DVD. But two facts made me feel really disappointed.
First, the songs are not all in their complete performance. The beggining of most of them is overlapped with the interviews, some solos (which are the best expression of any blues performer's excellence) are cutted!!, and the final jam is chopped in three parts by the interviews, reducing the instrumental part to a minimum. Maybe is a really great jam but I just can't tell. This is unacceptable for any blues lover. So, if you really want to see what BB King is on a stage and admire him as a great blues performer, do not buy this DVD.
Second, the compression quality does not seem to be the best. Maybe this is a minor concern, but in some scenes the lossyness of MPEG compression can be really noticed. I am not an expert in video compression, but in other movies I have not seen such a thing. So, if you really want to feel that you are getting the best out of your DVD player, you should also consider not to buy this one.

Next to Albert King, BB is my favorite blues singer/ guitist. The CD is awesome, so maybe I expected the DVD to be on the same level. Wrong! 65% of DVD is filler with comments from BB as well as other authorities such as Rufus Thomas and the smart white guy who teaches at some local Mississippi college.

Where is the concert? Although the DVD gives you the option of "playing just the music" , you just don't get much. The producers should have just recorded the show in its entirety and the DVD would have been close to a masterpiece!

Instead, they make it a documentary instead of a concert.

I was very disappointed!

If you were to only get one BB DVD, get the BET Jazz one. This one was filmed in the mid 90's [BB is actually standing!!] at this Blues Club in NY. It is in documentary format. Interview, song with guest, interview etc. you get the picture. Somehow, I wish they could deliver the full set... but this is the only DVD I know that has all his great guests (Buddy Guy, for example).

It is full frame, mastering is decent, some bleeding and fuzziness - no big deal unless you have some monster 61" screen.

What annoyed me the most is that the master is sped up by about 7-8% Ugghh! and the DVD is short to boot.

I wind up playing the JAZZ DVD over this one. But, this has it's moments (except for the songs are way too short, and the sped up master doesn't help).

Recommend for fans of BB! I am a huge fan of BB and still must give this a 3.

This DVD is well worth it as it contains several solid duets. Is it perfect? no way. Whomever decided to cut off the jam between BB and Robert Cray should be shot. Regardless, its one of the best BB King/Blues DVDs out there.

The only problem with this DVD is that it is designed as a concert DVD, with great names of all generations, while it is in fact a (not so brilliant) documentary on of the true legends of the blues and his recent activities.
In addition to that, this is supposed to be at least partly the documentary about the B. B. King's blues summit, and yet the authors haven't really interviewed other participants, some of which are blues legends themselves, with the additional younger star or two...

Portions of the concert seem quite spirited, although at times not rehersed enough, so this is far less a thrill to the blues fans than it should be... King's magnetic persona and remarkable music still shine through, but they don't shine strongly enough...

Definitely not the best quality or sound but since there is not a DVD of the original show, BB King and Friends, this will have to do. The duet between Etta James and Dr. John was and is probably the best track on the video or dvd.

This is one of the greatest performances ever. Every blues fan from the casual listener to the bluesmaniac should have it on there shelf. It gives an in depth look at the roots of blues and some of the legendary artists that built blues into what it is today. B.B.'s performance was spectacular, and this version of "The Thrill is Gone" is one of the rare energetic, almost hypnotic renditions ever recorded, unfortuneatly the producer ommitted the song from the accompanying CD, but the live DVD performance is phenomenal. Don't leave home without it...