Customer Reviews

Black Oak Arkansas: Live at Royal Albert Hall

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

 

 

This is a dual disc. One side is a DVD with the concert footage and the other side is a CD with the soundtrack of the concert. Herein may lie the problem. The DVD footage is grainy. I know it's from the 70s but I also have "Black Oak Arkansas (BOA): The First 30 years" DVD which has this whole concert plus much more and the footage is clearer.

The Royal Albert Hall concert was FANTASTIC! I got addicted to watching it and cranking it loud on the "First 30 Years" DVD. The riffs are so funky, jamming, blasting...awesome!

I loved the concert so much, I wished that I could have it on CD so I could crank it in my car. Soon as I saw this CD come out, I bought it.

I have a premium, after market car stereo which sounds great with all my cds except this one. It appears to have some type of sound leveler on it. I've tried it on 2 different car stereos. On one, I couldn't get the volume any higher than a moderate output no matter how much I turned up the dial and I had plenty more dial to turn up.

On my premium car stereo I have a sound processor, but none of the settings yield a satisfactory sound. Either there is no bass, or if I boost the bass then I can't hear the guitars. The sound from the "BOA: The 1st 30 Years" DVD is very good, SO IT'S NOT BECAUSE THE RECORDING IS 30 YEARS OLD. I don't know what happened when it was transferred to this CD. But the the sound is disappointingly poor. I'm finding that I just don't listen to it because it is so unsatisfactory even though this concert is TOTALLY TOTALLY AWESOME.

I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND purchasing "BOA: The First 30 Years" DVD which has this concert in very good fidelity and video, plus other concert footage, although oddly, no Ruby Starr footage, as opposed to getting this version unless your willing to settle for a very mediocre CD recording.

The music side of this dual-disc release has spotty sound quality, at best, as mentioned previously by another reviewer. Even as a diehard BOA fan, it was hard to listen to. The DVD side, however, was a little different. Though the video was filmed at the same concert from which the CD music was taken, perhaps it's the 5.1 Surround mix (even when listening in two-channel stereo) or the vision of Jim Dandy's gyrating hips and other stage antics that makes it easier to take than the audio-only portion. Be warned, however, that this is not suitable for younger viewers, in my opinion. Throughout the entire video (concert), Jim Dandy is wearing his trademark skin-tight Spandex® leggings. They are so tight, that in conjunction with Jim Dandy's suggestive movements, it seems his seemingly large 'package' is all but visible. If you're interested in seeing Jim Dandy's (now dated, for all but ardent fans) stage performance from the 70's, then this is a decent disc to purchase. If, however, your primary interest is in the music, buy one of the studio albums instead.

I would have given this 5 stars if the audio was re-mastered in 5.1. although it sounds like what you would expect from a 1970's concert. It's great to see one of the best country rock bands from the 70's in a live show. Tommy Aldridge could be the best double bass drummer of all time so he is a show all by himself. For those of you who have always loved 'Raunch n' Roll' this is a must for your collection. I still can't believe they do there own version of the Beatles classic 'Taxman'. It's also cool to hear a live version of 'Jim Dandy' which is not on 'Raunch N' Roll'. If you are a 'Black Oak' fan this will leave you yearning for more.

This a really good one sound could be better plus it would be nice if There was something older to watch,the blond guitar player is good but I didn't think he goes well in this group.

I met Jim Dandy once he is really cool.

Andy