Customer Reviews

Foreigner - All Access Tonight (Live in Concert 25)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

I haven't seen the video in question yet I entirely believe the reviewers concerning lead vocalist Lou Gramm's voice not being what it once was(this was apparent in the semi-unplugged remakes of"Juke Box Hero" & "Waiting For a Girl Like You" that were added to the expanded/remastered "Foreigner 4" CD).Unfortunately,a few years ago,Lou Gramm underwent surgery to remove a brain tumor,and at the time,it was believed that he would not be able to sing again.The loss of vocal quality and weight gain are related to this operation.Guitarist Mick Jones put Foreigner on hold to see if Gramm could perform again,rather than hire a new singer.I know many of you will debate whether Jones should have hired a new singer,but the only previous attempt at making a Foreigner album with a different singer was rejected by the public,and saw the group reduced to playing at county fairs.Too bad someone couldn't arrange to release "Super Rock Japan '85" on DVD somewhere.This Japan-only VHS program captures the group in its'prime,touring behind the album "Agent Provocateur",with the classic Gramm/Jones/Wills/Elliot line-up.

This DVD has decent production, I don't think they sound as bad as some of these people are saying. I really enjoyed it as a matter of fact. Yes its not perfect but rarely is anything. The sound quality of the DVD itself is very good, just being able to hear some of these classics live when I never got to see these guys is still an awesome Experience. If your a fan of these guys, and want most of the hit songs on a live dvd with a decent show for a nice price check this out for yourself. Don't be swayed by those who are way too picky here, its not like they asked 25$ for this dvd. I still enjoyed hearing these songs, even though they are not in the prime, you have make some sacrifices to see the bands you like years later, no group from the 60's, 70's, or even 80's and 90's are in their prime anymore, to expect that is being unrealistic.

This is a poor offering from a once decent band. The audio mix is poor (Lou Gramm's voice is shot) and the video is worse. Not much to enjoy about this one. Save your money.

Knowing the great music and performances that Foreigner has done over the years, I can't figure out why they chose to make the DVD using only footage of Lou Gramm after his throat sugery. I mean, yeah...use some of it to show the present, but I would have to believe that far greater footage exists that would payng fitting tribute to an incredible rock band. I recommend LIVE at Deer Creek on DVD

Where shall I begin ? I no longer have the dvd of "All Access..." since I gave it away to a fellow Foreigner fan/Lou Gramm fan who later agreed with my opinion of the dvd. So what I will be recounting is my memory recollection of what I saw and heard. And it ain't pretty...

The dvd begins with a montage of tour bus travel footage and the audio sounds of the band performing LLWFH as background music. Lou sounds great on this live selection until you realize after close comparison and listening that the live version you are listening to of LLWFH is the one from "Live From Deer Creek." You would think that with all the home video footage shot by the cameraman during the 2002 tour that they would come up with one decent sounding live version of LLWFH. Nope. Nada. They had to steal one from the distant past.

It doesn't get much better later on in the video. Post-op Lou's voice does sound up to the task on a few Foreigner classics (e.g. "Head Games"). But for the most part, his post-op voice sounds very gravelly, hoarse, and strained (esp on "Juke Box Hero"). Seeing and hearing any of post-op recordings (live and in the studio) reinforce my opinion that his new post-op voice (however improving) is just not suited to singing many of the Foreigner classics anymore. Either he tailors new song material (e.g. Christian rockers) to his post-op voice or he join the blues club circuit and sing his soul out on blues classics/standards in some late-night, smoke-filled blues clubs. If he does that, I'll be there to support him. If not,...later dude...

There's one selection from Mick and Lou's "Night Of The Proms" appearance in Amsterdam in December, 2002:
IWTKWLI complete with orchestral and choir accompaniment. In any case, this is probably the bestest part of the dvd. The footage is filmed with multiple cameras/angles and because of the concert hall ambiance, has a "classy" look and feel to it. That is until Lou opens his mouth and starts singing. I winced in pain when I heard Lou's hoarse, strained voice and had to shake my head in despair and sadness. Although some of his fanatical fans/supporters will say otherwise, back in 2002, Lou Gramm was just a shadow/shell of the great rock singer that he used to be. That's my personal humble opinion. He may/may not have improved vocally since then, but I haven't heard any significant improvement based on the studio recordings/live bootleg recordings I've heard of his post-op voice.

Which leads to the other major flaw of this dvd. The amateurish, grainy "public access tv" air to the footage. The video was shot initially as a private home video record of the band's 25th Anniverary tour. It was not initially meant for public viewing. After seeing what they had (one angle shot footage by one cameraman) Mick & Co strangely elected to release the footage as part of their 25th Anniversary Year Celebrations. Bad move. The boring, staid footage should have stayed in their private archives. Imho, the dvd just detracts from their legacy as a once-great AOR band.

Btw, there's some revealing behind-the-scenes footage that makes for interesting viewing. I particulary liked the funny comments made by ex-Montrose/ex-Heart drummer, Denny Carmassi esp when the band hopped out of their tour bus and checked into the lobby of a hotel late at night. The hotel staff apparently had not been informed of the band's late night arrival and were frantically assigning them hotel rooms. Denny responds incredously, "I'm assigned to Room # 5046 (or something similar) but there's only four floors !"

Unfortunately, it wasn't enough for me to keep this dvd. And I don't miss it one bit.

Foreigner is one of my all time favourite bands. This is the 2nd concert on DVD/video I have bought. While I have always thought that Lou Gramm has probably my favourite male voice of all, I have to say that his vocals were woeful in these performances. I realise Lou has has had health problems and this probably goes a long to way to explaining things. So, for fans like me it was still interesting and the band itself was great - even though I got tired of Bruce Turgon prancing around on stage. I also noticed that the sax player kept playing and even played a different note once he took the reid out of his mouth???? Oh well. As for 'Waiting for a girl like you' not being on it - on the first video I have 'Feels like the First Time' Lou does sing it but changes the tune completely in the chorus because his voice was worn out or for whatever reason. On the one occasion when he did try for the higher notes ("I've been waiting") it sounded awful. On the positive side of things, the studio versions are excellent and I find them hard to fault. I have also seen them live in 1995 and thought they were great then as well. So for any new would be fans - buy the CDs and listen to some great music courtesy of a great voice in its prime and some geat guitar playing. (PS - Mick and Lou do quite a good version of "I want to know what love is" as a bonus feature with a full choir and orchestra(

Once more I purchased a DVD concert nightmare. If only I would have read these reviews. I have been collecting Concert DVDs for about a year. I only recently came to Amazon, and have reviewed a few of my collection. Please read my reviews if you are an 80s Concert fan.

I like some of the others was excited to find Foreigner on DVD. My wife and I sat down, grabbed a couple of Beers and were shocked. It was so bad we couldnt even get through the first song. It looks and sounds like I filmed it from the audience drunk. There really isnt anything good about any part of it, except that you have Foreigner on stage.

If only I would have seen this one before I reviewed the Police. I would have at least given the Police Concert 2 stars for sound.

Take these reviews seriously, for real...

Matt in K-town..

The music is OK. But it sounds like they got a drunk guy out of a Karaoke bar to sing lead. Wow. I wish I could send it back. What a waste of money.

Seems like Mick Jones had to drag poor Lou Gramm with his ailing vocal performance just to make a quick buck in case Lou's health got worse. I could have hung in there but using one camera to shoot the whole DVD made it even boring to watch let alone listen. And I use to love Foreigner. Shameful.

Not to berate the band, but this is the worst music DVD I have spent money on. The video looks like it was taken from some crew member's personal camcorder. The picture is blurry and washed out - the lighting is horrible. The sound is even worse. I don't know about the previous reviewer's mix, but there is no true Dolby 5.1 or DTS. The noise coming out of my rear speakers doesn't even qualify as sound. The personal vignettes between songs, like "Checking In", are nothing more than filler. (What's interesting about watching the band standing around at a hotel desk, waiting for the keys to their hotel rooms? There's no real dialogue, and this segment goes on for several minutes.) This DVD feels more a practical joke, than an intimate portrait of the powerhouse supergroup I loved and grew up with in the 80's. Save your pennies and wait for a better quality production - sadly, this one won't see the inside of my DVD player again.