Customer Reviews

Frank Sinatra - Sinatra: The Main Event

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Taped live in New York's Madison Square Garden on October 13th, 1974, Sinatra stands on a small stage encircled by an audience of 20,000 fans, and as Howard Cosell says in his intro, "celebrities are here in profusion", like Robert Redford, and his look-alike, N.Y.C. Mayor (1966-1973) John Lindsay; Sinatra says during the concert, "I have never felt so much love in one room in my whole life", and as one can see from the applause and outpouring of affection, he conquers them all.
Sinatra was 58 at the time, and his voice is far from the perfection of his younger years, but his incredible musicality shines through the occasional vocal crackle.

The band led by Don Costa is terrific, with brass blazing and crisp drum beats, and highlights for me are the jazzy, swinging "I've Got You Under My Skin", and one of my top 10 favorite songs, "Angel Eyes", which no one has been able to interpret as well as Sinatra; in this rendition he compensates for his diminished vocal power by making it a theater piece, and showing his acting skills....watch his hands during this song, which are so dramatically expressive.
Those who seek the vocal excellence of Sinatra's youth should get one of his wonderful CDs instead (my choice is the extraordinary "Only the Lonely"), but true and faithful Sinatra fans will cherish this tape.
Total running time is 53 minutes.

Song list:
"The Lady is a Tramp"
"I Get a Kick Out of You"
"Let me Try Again"
"Autumn in New York"
"I've Got You Under My Skin"
"Bad, Bad Leroy Brown"
"Angel Eyes"
"You Are the Sunshine of My Life"
"The House I Live In"
"My Kind of Town"
"My Way"

Frank definitely looks and sounds as if he has been doing alot of boozing and staying out late on this performance. What he lacks in vocal power in this performance, he makes up for in charisma and confidence. He cuts notes short, knowing his limitations. The highlight for me was his performance of Angel Eyes. His voice was perfect for the message in this song. As always Frank was classy and professional. I would recommend this more for the attitude and swagger that was Frank, than for his vocal capabilities during this particular performance.

I personally loved this DVD... those expecting 5.1 surround and HDTV quality video need their heads examined!!! REMEMBER... this was a live ABC special from 1974! DVD's didn't even exist, much less VHS... so this is what we get. Be thankful that the master tapes even existed to produce this for the home market.

I'm not sure I understand the "Sad State..." reviewer's intention. He has posted the same review (verbatim!) on each of the Sinatra Reprise concert DVD's, giving them each one star. The point of the rating system is to rate the DVD for what it is, not for what you believe the label should produce. Yes, it would be nice to get these all in a box set, but Amazon.com's review/rating system is NOT the place to express your opinion. Let the producer know!!!

This is certainly not Sinatra's best performance, but it's not his worst either. I just love the fact that it even exists on DVD!!!

This is probably Sinatra's best live performance on DVD. Recorded in 1974 it buzzes with excitement from his entrance down the aisle at Madison square Garden till the last moment. His selection during the concert was well balanced and his interaction with the crowd delightful. The only thing missing was "New York, New York" but he released it a tad too late for this airing-around 1979. Overall a great buy. One Sinatra fans will play over and over I feel sure.

If you just want to hear and see Frank Sinatra in concert, then go with it. If you care further for Picture and sound quality as we expect in a DVD format, it is more like watching it on a VHS original format.

Ole blue eys owns New York city this night. He is the king in this fabulous performance by one of the greatest singing performers - ever! Other young pop singers today, who have no talent, except to fill the areanas with empty heads, need special effect fireworks on stage, back ground sissy dancing performers, lousey bands, electro strobe light flashing to cover up for that fact that these girls and boys today cannot stand even near Frank Sinatra's shadow.

All the Chairman of the Board needs is one spotlight, and a great arrangement back up band and he will melt your heart and rule the entertainment world. You know, in this show, he's not just singing to the elite of the big apple, who have come to hear and see the great one; he's also singing to the blue collar worker who saved his money to see this once in a life time great performance. Like Judy Garland he acts and performs his songs with great interpretation. We don't see this from the young kid singers of today.

Yes it was shot with the old color TV cameras and so it's not like blue-ray quaility but the sound is great and the artist is the best. A must have DVD. It has to be the best live performance of Mr. Sinatra.

One of his best concerts on DVD. Great transfer to DVD.

THIS MAN GOT BETTER AS HE GOT OLDER. EVERYTIME I SEE HIM ON DVD OR HEARD HIM ON CD, HE GETS BETTER. MY NAME IS ANGELA AND I LOVE FRANK SINATRA. HE IS WONDERFUL ON MAIN EVENT. STILL THE SENSUAL AND SEXY MAN NO MATTER HOW OLD HE GETS. THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER! THIS IS THE MOST COMFORTABLE IVE EVER SEEN HIM WITH THE AUDIENCE AND THATS WHAT MAKES HIM SO APPEALING. HE DOESNT JUST SING HE HAS A PARTY WITH THE WHOLE AUDIENCE WHILE DOING THIS. HE WAS TRULY A MUSICAL GENIUS!! AND IVE GOT MOST OF HIS DVDS AND MAIN EVENT IS THE BEST ALTHOUGH I DO LOVE ROYAL HALL. ITS GREAT TOO!! WHEN IM FEELING STRESSED ALL I DO IS TURN ON ONE OF HIS CD OR DVDS, DRINK A LITTLE GLASS OF WINE AND HE MAKES YOU FEEL WONDERFUL!! HE MAKES ME FORGET EVERYTHING BAD. AND NO MATTER HOW I MAY NOT LIKE A CERTAIN SONG, IF SINATRA SINGS IT, I END UP LOVING. FOR EXAMPLE I ALWAYS HATED BAD BAD LEROY BROWN BUT WHEN I WATCHED HIM SING AND ALMOST ACT OUT THIS SONG, IT IS GREAT!! HIS MUSIC WILL NEVER GO OUT OF STYLE FOR ME!! HES THE GREATEST!! SO IF YOU EVER WANT TO FORGET ALL YOUR CARES GET THIS DVD OR ANY OF HIS MUSIC. AUTUMN IN NEW YORK IS WONDERFUL AND THE HOUSE I LIVE IN IS PHENOMENAL.

In all the years I followed the Voice and Entertainer of the Century (30 in "real time"; 60 in terms of going back and discovering him from 1939 forward), this moment, and not his being down and out in the early fifties before the "From Here to Eternity" Oscar, was the low point. The anticipation was running high, but on this live telecast on a Sunday night from Madison Square Garden in 1974, Sinatra took a big-sized gamble and came up in singularly bad voice. I recall even having to endure, at work the next morning, the dismissive, derogatory comments about Sinatra being "washed up."

Anyone who doesn't understand what all the fuss was about concerning America's premiere singer-actor-entertainer, an extraordinary musician and artist, should save this one--whether on video or audio--til the very end. Thankfully, he would rebound from this embarrassing performance--and with a vengeance!

This is a real emotive dvd, fom the MAESTRO Frank Sinatra, a real great concert with a real great sound