Customer Reviews

Family Guy Live in Vegas

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

From the "so darn talented it's sickening" mind of Seth MacFarlane comes this hilarious CD. It wasn't really recorded live in Vegas, but the CD cleverly constructs the sound of a Vegas act, complete with audience applause and the echo effect. And the gang is all here, with the voices of MacFarlane, Alex Borstein, Seth Green and Mila Kunis in place. (MacFarlane has a surprisingly smooth singing style.)

I had to get this the day of release. I was not a fan of "Family Guy" at first but it's grown on me so much I like it more than "The Simpsons". Plus, in a refreshing change from the TV censors, Stewie and the rest swear a great deal; (available in a family-friendly and an explicit CD version with a REALLY nasty swipe at Bea Arthur), yes -- Stewie finally curses.

Every song is written like a Broadway show-stopper. And there's an almost ten-minute medley where Stewie and Brian sing 80s sitcom themes, complete with bad lead-ins like, "imagine Brian if we were ... Perfect Strangers ..." Even funnier is the fact that anybody even thought to resurrect the "Perfect Strangers" theme.

Make this the CD of the week. Special appearances by Haylie Duff, Patti LuPone, Adam West and Jason Alexander. But no sighting of Asian reporter Trisha Takanawa.

I just purchased the CD and, even though I'm an ocassional fan of Family Guy, I really enjoyed this album alot because it's one of the first cartoon CD that tries to achieve the feeling of a live album. I've had the Simpsons CD and even though it has better music than the Family Guy CD, it doesn't have the same feeling of a live album...a live Vegas album with all the cursing and luridness and candidness that comes from a Las Vegas lounge act.

But besides the whole "Lounge Act", it also has some great music attached to the jokes (which goes beyond just the common fart jokes that the reviewer above seems to think). It reminds me of the best orchestration of a Tom and Jerry or an old Warner Brothers cartoon. It reaches back to the past in a lot of ways and I appreciate both the satire and the homage the CD gives to live lounge acts (like the motif of having random people Jason Alexander come up on stage and sing along with the cast for no apparent reason or the segue dialogue patter of the cast before they spring back into song) in the same way that the South Park Movie spoofs the tone and rhythm of an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical.

If you're a fan of Live Albums or 60s Lounge Acts or even the Family Guy, this album is for you.

This album is amazing! Just about everyone in Family Guy including great side characters like Tom Tucker and Diane Simmons, Mayor Adam West and even Herbert the pedophile get their moment on this album. It is very well written and produced and the lyrics are laugh out loud funny. There is also plenty of hilarious dialouge. This album was also a way for Seth MacFarlane to show off his amazing talent singing in Brian's, Peter's, Stewie's, and Quagmire's voice. Of course the Griffin family is well represented on this album, well other than Meg at least. Let's get to the tracks.

1. Intro with Tom Tucker and Diane Simmons
2. Family Guy theme extended version - 9/10 - the Family Guy theme song with plenty of added lyrics
3. Babysitting is a bum deal - 10/10 - Stewie and his babysitter Haylie Duff clash in this duet
4. Dear Booze - 9/10 - Brain sings about the only thing that hasnt betrayed him, alcohol
5. The Q Man loves nobody - 10/10 - A great Quagmire song telling everyone that he's a major player GIGGITY GIGGITY
6. All cartoons are F***** D*** - 10/10 - The Griffin Family along with Jason Alexander sing a hilarious song poking fun at old cartoon characters
7. The last time I saw Paris - 8/10 - Brian sings about his fling in Paris
8. But then I met you - 9/10 - Peter and Lois sing a duet about how they met
9. TV Medley - 10/10 - Brian and Stewie sing the theme tunes to old sitcoms
10. Puberty's gonna get me - 10/10 - This is your chance to hear Chris sing about puberty
11. But I'm Yours - 10/10 - My favorite song off the album, very funny
12. Slightly out of tune - 9/10 - Another great Brian song
13. One Boy - 10/10 - Herbert the old creepy guy sings a song about one special boy...
14. Quaghog Holiday - 10/10 - very catchy tune featuring the Griffin family, Mayor Adam West, Cleveland and Quagmire

Bottom Line, any true Family Guy fan has to get this album. It's what you would expect a Family Guy album to be: raunchy, hilarious and freakin sweet. I just wish the behind the scenes DVD was longer.

I'm a devoted Family Guy fan, and have been for years. I'm also a serious musician. I understand the Family Guy humor, and the format of the TV shows, and it's truly remarkable stuff.

Having said that, "Family Guy Live in Las Vegas" is not a TV show. This is a music album.
Music has been an integral part of the TV show since the beginning (Seth M. even says this in the dvd), and they have a brilliant composer/arranger (Walter Murphy, with the help of Ron Jones) crafting anything from creepy atonal cello licks to hip hop tracks to cheezy pop songs to bombastic tunes for jazz orchestra. Finally, Walter and his first-rate orchestra get their break in the spotlight to show off their musical genius - and that's what the album is about.
Of course, this album must (and does) retain the Family Guy charm that you can't help but shake your head and smile to, but don't spin this disc looking for gags and punchlines...that's what the TV show is for.

To conclude. This is a music album, so listen to the music because it is damn good.

The songs are good .. the conversations are funny .. the show itself is a beautiful tight unit and sounds real .. it's a MUSIC album .. not an extension of the show .. Peter won't say "this reminds me when I was Michael Jackson's Body Double on Thriller" or something like that .. you're supposed to enjoy the CD as a musical .. I give it 5/5 .. Good Job :) even Herbert's song is enjoyable (and I hate him) ...

This album is marvelous. This album is lush and crude and the same time. but its also one of the smartest album released this year. (50 cent cant compare to the musical qualities of the album)
Tracks: . Fanfare & Intro: intro from Tom tucker and diane simmons.
2. Theme from Family Guy - extended version of Tv theme song
3. Babysitting Is a Bum Deal - special appearance by Haylie Duff about her experiences with stewie.
4. Dear Booze - Brian's ode to his favorite beverage
5. "Q" Man Loves Nobody - Special guest Patti Lu Pone talking about her date with pervert Quagmire
6. All Cartoons Are (...) - the family plus JAson ALexander talk about some unusual classic cartoon charactes.
7. Last Time I Saw Paris - brians tribute to the City of lights
8. But Then I Met You - love song between Lois and PEter
9. T.V. Medley - A suite of different classic 80's shows
10. Puberty's Gonna Get Me - Chris talks about changes
11. But I'm Yours - another love song between Peter and lois
12. Slightly Out of Tune (Desafinado) - a lovely brian song
13. One Boy- (...)Herbert talks about his favorite subject
14. Quahog Holiday - featuring Adam West with the family talking about their home
15. Bow Music (Theme from Family Guy)- reprise and end of show

(My review scale: 1- Bad, 2- Average 3- Good, 4- Very Good 5- Excellent/Classic)

Holy crap is this freaking sweet! The Family Guy comes to cd, just in time to get us warmed up for the long-awaited return to television. Only thing is, this cd is so good and so much edgier than the show, it may make it a hard act to follow. Seth MacFarlane has really created an excellent "live" Vegas show, featuring Quahog's favorite sons/daughters, along with the excellent musical score of Walter Murphy.

Family Guy has always had great musical numbers, but this collection really lets the performers shine. Seth's voice is spectacular when he sings as Brian in particular.

The songs and in-between song banter are classic Family Guy. My particular faves are "The Q Man Loves Nobody", "All Cartoons Are F***** D*cks" (With guest appearance by Jason Alexander), "But Then I Met You" and "Quahog Holiday" (Guest performance by Adam West), but really all the songs are pretty good. The theme from Family Guy is a full-length version with additional verses, and it's a treat.

I have to say, this was a lot of fun to listen to, and who couldn't laugh at Stewie dropping F-bombs all over the place? Well worthy of four stars on my scale!

Any fan of the show must add this to his/her personal collection! This pseudo-stage show packed with tunes performed by the Griffin family and neighbors is a riot act. The music is the classic jazz/standard genre' backed by a full orchestra and background vocalists, is reminiscent of, naturally, a true live Vegas show. From the opening extended version of the "Family Guy" theme, to Stewie's duet with his caregiver on "Babysitting is a Bum Deal", to Chris' "Puberty's Gonna Get Me, each song was crafted to each character's unqiue personality. Notably missing is a solo number from Meg, which only furthers her ongoing plot and plight as the dying-to-be-popular-must-get-a-date-perpetually-misunderstood-full-of-angst teenaged girl. Listen for special appearances by Haylie Duff, Patti LuPone, Jason Alexander, and, of course, Adam West.

I was bit disappointed in the DVD, however. Stewie's video for "Sexy Party" was hilarious--check out those dance moves! Both the making "Family Guy Live in Vegas" and "Stewie's Sexy Party" seemed to be thrown in for good measure. It would have been nice to see more of the other cast members featured instead of just the brilliant Seth Mcfarlane. But as the date for reappearance (again) of the always edgy animated series, I am sure the DVD was added as extra incentive to both purchase the CD and watch the series.

All in all, well worth the money!

I'm listening to "All Cartoons are..." and I'm madly in love with this CD. The lyrics are hilarious, the music is VERY catchy, and if you know all the Hanna Barbera characters from the aforementioned song, the humour multiplies. It's great to hear what the characters sound like when they're turned loose.

Peter and Lois have a sweet and funny duet with "I'm Yours", while Quagmire's duet with Patti LuPone is just hilarious. The rest of the CD is loaded with great material and it's some of Walter Murphy's best. The DVD extra has some great footage of behind the scenes and you finally get a better look at the Family Guy offices and animation process.

My only complaint is that all of Brain's solos are slow songs, but Seth has a beautiful voice, so it's not that big of a deal.

EDIT: New complaint. This could only apply to hardcore Family Guy fans, but a lot of the jokes Stewie makes are also from his commentary on the Freakin Sweet Collection. It gets annoying. Still a great CD though.

Anyone who thinks this album isn't worth it and considers themselves true Family Guy fans is lying to themselves and everyone else. I absolutely LOVE Family Guy and was overjoyed to get to hear this album and see what the minds behind the show can do when they don't have to deal with the censors. I also think it's funny how anyone can say that the characters don't sound like themselves when it's obvious that they're the originals. And the guest appearances are great, Jason Alexander is hilarious. And the song "All Cartoons Are F***** D***s" takes a humorous stab at cartoon classics like Papa Smurf and Barney Rubble. And as for the person who wanted the album to be mostly skits...hello???? If it was all skits with a few songs, there would be no point in buying it because you could just watch the show and get the same concept. So with that in mind, I say, "This album is like Ken Griffey Jr hitting a home run to left field, we all know which direction he can hit but it's nice to see him excel in the other direction. Great job Family Guy cast!"