Customer Reviews

James Taylor - Pull Over

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I'm a bit torn when it comes to this DVD. On the one hand, James Taylor is an extremely talented musician, especially in concert. The material on this DVD is everything a Taylor fan could hope for - the classics like Fire and Rain, a few less well-known songs such as Frozen Man (beautifully done on this DVD), and some stuff from October Road. But the production values on the DVD itself are a bit less than stellar. The quality of the picture is okay at best, and at times rather poor. Also, whoever did the camera transitions should be fired - call me picky, but the transitions between views were often poorly timed and lent absolutely nothing to the experience of watching the performance.

Still, despite all this, I give it five stars because I love James Taylor, and I love his music. Any fan who can say the same will surely like this DVD. The technical issues aside, I am very pleased with Pull Over. It's no substitute for seeing James perform in person, but it is nevertheless a must-have for James Taylor addicts.

I must confess I almost passed this one by on the premise that I had his Beacon Theatre performance on DVD and didn't need duplication of material. However, I was wrong. This performance far surpasses his earlier DVD for he is more relaxed and seemingly having the time of his life before a wildly enthusiastic audience. The filming of this performance gives one the feeling of actually being there and the picture and sound quality are outstanding. I recommend this DVD without reservation. It is by far the greatest JT performance I have seen thus far. He just keeps getting better all the time--a consummate artist and icon who richly deserves all the accolades that come to him. I feel Mr. Taylor has found his way home and is at one with himself and the audience.

I found that James Taylor's latest DVD "Pull Over" Is loaded with many of his hits and songs that promote his latest cd "October Road". This is a fine concert with great picture and sound and I recommend this to any fan who does not own a Taylor DVD. However, if you own "James Taylor Live At The Beacon" I see no reason to purchase this edition unless you are hardcore JT fan. The Dvd format which is a fantastic medium for concert and digital sound has caused record companies to release live concerts one after another by the same artist to $cash$ in because they know loyal fans will buy everything they put out. Take my word for it and that is, If you have the Beacon DVD [which is fantastic] you will not need "Pull Over" unless you like duplication?

Having owned the `Live at Beacon Theatre' DVD and thoroughly enjoyed it I was almost not going to bother with `Pull Over'if I had listened to some of the reviews here saying the sound is weird and the picture average etc.
Well all I can say to anyone put off by these is don't take any heed of them and buy this DVD.
Okay some of the hits are repeated but there are some classics here that weren't on `Beacon' such as `Sweet baby James',Carolina on my Mind,Millworker and the new material off `October Road' is excellent.
I prefer this band especially with `Russ Kunkel' on drums and the addition of horns.

This is the second James Taylor concert I am aware of that is available on DVD. If you are a James Taylor fan (I am) you should buy both this and "Live at the Beacon Theatre" because you will appreciate the different performances. If you are a casual listener of James you should choose the Beacon Theatre disk.

If you are an audiophile or care about sound quality, this one is ok but not great. It sounds like it went through a significant amount of electronic processing. The sound from the Beacon Theatre recording is much, much better. That is strong competition though as the Beacon recording is probably the best sounding DVD I own.

The advantage that this DVD has over the "Beacon" is that it is obviously the best cuts from a number of different performances. I have been following JT since early '69 (the Apple album) and have seen him perform in England on many occasions. I have been fully appreciative of nearly every performance, the main exception being the last tour in September, when most of the musicians were not the "regular crew",seemed to be rather sparse in number, and not as "tight" as usual.
This DVD has the benefit of JT being fully "pumped up" and giving it his all!. With the benefit of "cherry picking" a number of different performances the result is an impeccable DVD which is superior to the previous VHS/DVD's that have been released before, although the apparent seamless production makes it seem as if it is just one performance.
The backing singers, brass section....need I say more?

As somebody who has just about everything that James Taylor ever did it'ss hard to belive that, after all these years, he's surpassed all his previous works.

I first saw JT at the City Hall in Newcastle, England in 1970. From that point I knew that this was something different. It wasn't folk, it wasn't rock, it wasn't R&B yet it was all these things. With every album the music got better, brilliant compositions, beautiful lyrics which have only improved with years.

It has to be said, and this is not in any way detrimental to JT's work, that as the band got bigger so did the sound. Until this DVD came out I thought that the JT Live double CD was probably the best live performance, Don Grolnick brought something really special to JT's music at this time, but Clifford Carter has amply stepped in to fill the void left by Don's untimely death.

Pull Over is without doubt JT and Band at the very zenith of his career - just when you thought that 'Hourglass' and 'October Road' were superlative here goes that guy again getting better and better as each year passes.

If you buy 1 DVD this Christmas make sure it's Pull Over. You will not regret.

PS Just had my fifth viewing of this DVD since it arrived - listen out for the sax and horns and reflect upon Clifford Carter's beautiful extemporation on Hammond Organ. Great to see Russ Kunkel back also, Don Grolnick & Carlos Vega - wherever you are, rest easy - the bands in good hands.

Great performances and arrangements of JT material. That being said, I found myself cringing at the amateurish camera work and video editing. Good camera work is invisible, you'll find yourself distracted from the performance by the shaky cameras, jumpy edits and other poor production techniques.

Sweet Baby James is back, this time with yet another terrific concert performance of his ever-growing catalogue of unforgettable songs. While he is easily one of the most successful of all of the record selling artists of the last thirty years, he is also one of the hardest working live performers in the business, and is in perpetual demand throughout the country, indeed, the world, as a first class draw for huge crowds. I haven't had the pleasure of seeing him sing live in decades, but always anticipate his new record releases and DVDs such as these in order to stay in touch with this most singular talent. Like the late John Denver, Taylor approaches the stage with enthusiasm and a charismatic charm that is simply hard for me to resist. Needless to say, I succumbed to the temptations herein pretty quickly.

Included here are many works not previously available on DVD, such as "Frozen Man" here with a funny and yet poignant introduction that shows how well Taylor succeeds at broaching bittersweet and often meaningful subjects with a touch of humor and satire. Also new here is "You Can Close Your Eyes", "Millworker", and "That's Why I'm Here", all delivered with the typical flawless Taylor rendition. Of course, the panoply of perpetual favorite favorites like "Fire And Rain", "Copperline", "Everyday", "You've Got A Friend", and "Sweet Baby James" are all here, as are many others, for a total of some two dozen songs or so. Old JT is aging, as are we all, but he has mellowed even more over the years, and by prevailing over his own demons and continuing to do what he does like no one else can, has once again offered us a gift that I urge you to go out and grab for your very own. Enjoy!

Are you a fan of James Taylor? Then this is a must have DVD!

I bought his first, very highly rated DVD, Live at the Beacon Theatre, and enjoyed it so much I just had to have this one even though people said if you own one there is no need to buy another. I must disagree...both offers something unique.

That said, I feel this is the better of the two DVDs currently offered and here's why:

The songs are awesome. Frozen Man is just outstanding. Millworker is such a great song. The version of the popular Fire and Rain is better on Live at, but this one is more in line with the original version.

James Taylor seems much more relaxed and animated at this concert.

The visual impact of the stage is more pleasant with the color and openness of the stage.

The only negative with this DVD is the same as Live at, and that is the constant quick change of camera angles. There are dozens of shots in each song. This seems to be a very common theme with concert DVDs and one I wish would change.

As I stated in my review of Live at, if you can only get one James Taylor DVD this is the one to get.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!