Customer Reviews

The Old Grey Whistle Test, Vol. 2

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This second volume of performance clips from the BBC's historically significant "Old Grey Whistle Test" series continues to goad and tease music geeks. When you research the (amazing!) contents of the THREE volumes already available in the UK, this latest domestic offering, like Vol 1, seems a tad timid and eager to "play it safe" (I can appreciate an "eclectic" mix, but Hall & Oates, Loggins & Messina, Jim Croce and Simply Red are better suited for the ubiquitous "Soft Hits" FM station in your market). There are a few more questionable choices-I love the Who, but why offer a clip of one of the world's greatest LIVE acts LIP SYNCHING thier worst single ever, "The Relay"? Although I am an avid Anglophile, even I could have done without Heads Hands & Feet (erm...who?!) or the in-jokey "skiffle" jam (would it have hurt to include the odd Alex Harvey, Gary Moore or Roy Harper clip that is available on the UK disks instead?) On the plus side, there are enough genuine "live" performances to balance things out. The most dynamic clip belongs to Montrose, really ripping it up with "Bad Motor Scooter". Another highlight-spunky pixie Carla DeVito makes such a sexy splash during an exhaustingly epic rendition of "Paradise By The Dashboard Light" that you'll barely notice that her boss Meat Loaf hits a lot of bad notes due to some obviously over taxed pipes. The NY Dolls are hilariously energetic, even though the deliciously sloppy "Jet Boy" is lip-synched (they were mostly about stage presence anyway). You'll also have a chuckle when you see the Average White Band's Hamish Stuart, sporting the biggest 'fro ever grown by a Scotsman. Some nice moments on the introspective side as well, particularly from Beach Boy Bruce Johnston, delivering a breathtaking "Disney Girls". An appearance by Tim Buckley (performing the lovely "Dolphins") will be revelatory for younger viewers when they glean the spooky parallels in physical appearance and vocal expression with his son Jeff. Punk, New Wave and mid 80's pop are covered as well, from the Adverts to Pre-Fab Sprout. A worthwhile disc (albeit frustrating) for serious music collectors.

There is a huge dropoff in quality from Vol 1. of the Whistle Test clips to this package, simply because there is a huge dropoff in the quality of the artists between the two volumes. Sorry, but Loggins and Messina, Average White Band, Jim Croce, Hall & Oates, Thomas Dolby and Simply Red just don't match up to Bill Withers, Captain Beefheart, Talking Heads, XTC, Iggy Pop and the Specials. The commentary from the show's hosts and the various musicians is still enjoyable and enlightening, as on the first collection, and this whole volume is almost made worthwhile simply for the stunning clip of the sublime Judee Sill sitting at the piano and painfully/beautifully singing her majestic ballad. And Jools Holland is a lot of laughs, both when talking about the Squeeze clip that is included and in the clip itself. So there's some nice moments here, but I really don't want to own anything that includes Loggins and Messina on it.

I haven't bought either of these volumes yet, but what a shame the Beeb doesn't put out complete shows. Do I want to buy a disk where I don't care for maybe 1/3 of the content? No! For example, I have a DVD of Rory Gallagher on OGWT whose set is presented in its entirety and it blows me away.

THAT'S how this material should be released!

I have read other reviews expressing unhappiness with this second edition on the Old Grey Whistle Test and i must disagree completely. Of course we all wish our favorites could be inlcuded but there is so much great stuff on both of these DVDS that i would urge everyone who appreciates music from all decades to purchase them.

I found myself seeking out and finding the albums by artists that i never had truly listened to before, like Head Hands and Feet and Tim Buckley, both of whose performances are stellar. The Jim Croce and New York Dolls clips are wonderful and if you mocked the 1980's you will find yourself pulling out your old Stlye Council and Aztec Camera records after watching their clips. Prefab Sprout were a great band. OK, so i still want to see the Runaways "School Days" on the next volume 3, but this collection is well worth having and i for one am addicted to this series.

The BBC have chosen to treat OGWT as if it's run was one long homogeneous series and the selection of music a history of the show. It wasn't. It was obvious at the time and interviews from Vol 1 really confirm that it was really 2 shows... The Bob Harris era, which featured eclectic art rock in a tiny studio characterized by high quality and occasionally impenetrable musicianship and the Anne Nightingale era characterized by whatever pseudo counter culture image the major labels were promoting that year.

In keeping with the fact that the BBC, when it caught on, ditched the former in favour of the latter - a lot of the real gems have turned up missing from these collections.

That said, they're still pretty good and have a few magnificent performances on them. In keeping with the OGWT philosophy this is mostly about the music. The chats before each are vaguely interesting but can be skipped once you've heard them once. Scene breaks separate the music from the chats in a way which music lovers love and video producers hate. Kudos.

Back to the real content. There is some good music, some disappointments, a couple of nice surprises and a couple of real gems here.

Patti Smith was disappointing, singing Because the Night like she'd been moking cigars constantly for the last 3 hours and was afraid to breathe for fear of her lungs collapsing.

Head Hands and Feet were a nice surprise with a neat bluesey opening number I'd never heard before.

Thomas Dolby provided a great performance of Hyperactive. I liked the song but never realised how richly complex it was before seeing it performed.

For me, though, the high and the low point were one and the same - Joan Armatrading, looking both astonishingly young and frighteningly mature for her age sings Love and Affection in a way that still gives me shivers when I think about it. An unbelievable amount of musical, emotional and poetic talent crammed into that one 3 minute performance. And that song alone was cut short before it finished. Other artists got to ramble the last chorus over and over while they faded out and this song they cut off the denuement. What a joy and what a travesty.

The presence of that performance alone made this a 4* product but that 5-10 missing seconds cost them a star and that was a well deservered demerit.

All in all a mixed bag with enough good to be worth owning both for pleasure and history.

Another in what will hopefully be many volumes of this excellent music series from the UK. This show is the British version of Austin City Limits, with pop bands, and the some hard rock bands too (Montrose!). Most of the performances in this volume are live, although there might be some lip-sync occasionally. The over-the-top performance of Meatloaf singing "Paradise By the Dashboard Light" is worth the price of the DVD alone. The first volume of this series is better, but volume two rocks too!

Sometimes it is hard to figure if some of the performances are lip synched, and some of them are, and I usually am turned off by that, but it's impossible not to love this.

The test performances are treasures.

"The Old Grey Whistle Test Vol 1" is the favorite music DVD in my collection. Volume II offers up more of the same type of intimate performances that this show was famous for. Unlike many shows of this nature, particularly those in the US, Whistle Test focused completely on the music. It was substance over style, though the dress favored by some of the acts looks hilarious now. Start with Volume 1 and then like me, you're going to want the second and third volumes. I hope there's more of these editions in the pipeline.

I liked the first one better, but there's a few memorable performances on this volume. Roxy Music is fascinating to watch AND listen to. If you're suffering from "complete-ism" like I am, g'head and get it.

The Old Grey Whistle Test hosted some incredibly groundbreaking FULL CONCERTS, two of which were the original Bob Marley and The Wailers, and Return To Forever (performing most of Romantic Warrior). Bootlegs of many of these shows are available but were recorded from nth generation tapes. Any one of these classic full shows would have been a much better choice for release than this hit and miss (mostly miss) collection of singles. I'm disappointed in this, and I believe they will be too once they see their sales numbers.