Customer Reviews

Paul McCartney - Paul Is Live in Concert on the New World Tour (Jewel Case)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

Here's the deal. When we buy a concert video we want to be at the concert. That is, some close ups, some long shots, and awesome surround sound. For the ultimate DVD, let the viewer choose what band member to watch with the "angle" button.

We do not want quick takes, with fast cuts, and for goodness sake, no "artsy" camera work. And while you're at it, why don't you focus on the act on stage, NOT THE AUDIENCE!!

This video suffers from mtv-syndrome. super fast cuts, that prevent you from seeing what's going on, and the oft-mentioned, documentary / archival grainy b&w footage.

Further, whoever directed this video seemed more interested in the audience reactions than what's going on onstage.

Yep. Looking for changes in the way Paul makes his concert videos! Ever since Paul left the Beatles in 1970, he's been giving us one great tour after another...and one bad concert film after another. First he gave us Rock Show, which was pretty darn good. Then, Get Back, which was a good effort. Next came this film, Paul is Live. Paul cuts to different performances (and sometimes different footage altogether) within the same song. Some of the footage is in color, some in black and white. Again, it cuts between the two within the same song. The music in this video is awesome. For the casual fan of McCartney, I recommend the "Paul is Live" CD. It features the same great music but without the bad video. If you're a die hard fan like I am, you'll probably enjoy this DVD.

I remember going to see this eccellent concert in 1993 and unfortunately this very badly produced video does not do it justice.
In the first song "Drive My Car" which lasts only 2 minutes and 16 seconds,the picture jumps from colour to black and white and back 38 times and shows a car on a highway another 8 times.
And that's just the first song!
Somewere in all this mess Paul is singing.
This bad producing goes on all through the twenty two song concert and ruins it for viewers.
The music is good but the video is terrible and producers Stewart J Swartz and James Clark deserve criticism for this video,the worst production job that I have ever seen.
Someone should tell them the old saying "keep it simple stupid".

Paul still stirs you with all his energy and emotions he puts into every song! I liked this video. I loved the backflashes of the Beatle-days gone by, plus some scenes from Paul's home life with his wife and kids. However, I didn't like the animal torture scenes! It was very disturbing to me, as I am an animal lover. I guess that was his intent to move you to respond to the wrong that is being done to animals today. Aside from those agonizing scenes, Paul still has all the charm, energy, talent, and charisma he has always had since his youth. I especially liked all the Beatle songs he sang. Yeah, Yeah, Yeah! He still has it! I love you Paul!

The songs and the performances are strong, of course, but, as everyone else here notes, the direction and editing on the video seem lazy and misconceived. Paul is Live doesn't flirt with disaster like the Get Back dvd, but probably this dvd is best for those wanting a souvenir of a concert they attended. As a document in its own right, it's merely lukewarm.

For a full concert dvd, the Back in the US dvd is the one to get first: the band is smokin hot and the video direction is a little snappier than you'll find on Paul is Live or (lord help you) Get Back. After Back in the US, the next concert disc to get is probably the Live at the Cavern dvd.

The best solo McCartney dvds are probably the Wingspan and the In the World Tonight documentaries, though fans of Standing Stone will definitely get a charge out of that one too.

I don't have any of the audio problems some of the other reviewers describe (but I am only half way through watching it). But what a waste of money the purchase of this DVD was. If the editing was meant to be "artful" then the verdict has to be: Misguided, complete failure. The jumpy cutting, the switching from b&w to color, the insertions of irrelevant images make this DVD unwatchable. If you are a Paul McCartney fan: Stay away from this DVD, save your money!

I saw the concert in Charlotte on TV some 10 years ago, and recorded it on VCR. The concert was (I believe) a part of 1993 tour. The performance was absolutely great, and there was not much operator's work - we just saw Paul on stage singing and joking with the audience.

When buyiing this cassette I wanted to get better quality version of that concert, or something similar.

The video proved to be a big disappointment. They show song after song without any chat between. They show videoclip-style kaleidoscope of recordings made at different concert stages during the show. The length of fragments is so short (I think 2 to 3 sec) that you can't even see Paul or his musicians well. So during one song Paul "changes" his clothes 20 times. Weird!

They apparently tried to make the video look like it was produced in 60's or early 70's, so most of the time you see Paul either in poor quality black and white on artificially worn and scratched film, or on the background of bright spotlights. They also show a lot of audience, much more than needed to my personal taste. Worse, you can't tell if this audience was shot on Pauls show or somewhere else because you never see the public and the stage in one shot - they are completely isolated.

Overall, the atmosphere is completely gone.

On the other hand, the songs selection is good, and, as I mentioned, the performance is great. If I were to write a review to the "Paul is live" CD, that I also own, I would give it 5 stars, but for this video - only 3.

This DVD was a bit misleading to me. Affixed to the packaging was a sticker saying among other things "bonus footage" This is not true, The DVD has the identical content as the VHS version released in 1993. (Including the 12 minute opening concert film/ disturbing animal testing and abuse footage contained in the original)

However if you DON'T own a copy of this in any form, and you like Paul McCartney, I very strongly urge you to buy this DVD!

This in my opinion was Paul's BEST backing group. Unlike the drummer he is using these days with his ridiculous playing over the top, showboating, beating the drumset with reckless abandon, this line up had a little powerhouse guy named Blair Cunningham. He plays aggressivly but with style and very tasteful.

The lead guitarist Robbie Macintosh is a killer on guitar. He rocks hard, can play some very mean blues, and pick "Chet Adkins" style with the best of them. (For an excellent example of the latter see Paul's 1993 cd entitled "Paul Is Live" Track 6: Robbies Bit (Thanks Chet)

Hamish Stuart plays rhythm guitar and handles the bass when Paul is busy playing piano or guitar. Great job he does too..has a beautiful voice and it blends with Paul's voice so well it's scary.

Wix Wickens is a total keyboard wizard. It takes a special talent to emulate different keyboard voices and making them sound authentic. With so much attention to detail and accuracy, you'll swear you are hearing REAL horn sections, full string sections, not to mention he is an amazing soloist as well. (Paul is still using Wix these days)

I attended one of the shows that make up this dvd. If you are curious as to what that tour was like..trust me, this DVD is the next best thing to being there.

NOTE: I'm giving this item 3 stars, ONLY on the basis that it boasts having bonus footge. The program itself is worthy of a 5 star rating.

This DVD makes clear why the Talking Heads' "Stop Making Sense" DVD should be manditory watching for all wanna-be concert movie makers. Stop Making Sense provides clear instructions how to make awesome concert movies. Lessons include no stupid cut-away interviews, few crowd shots, and clear, non-jumpy shots of band members.

This is DVD is just the opposite. Instead of supporting camera work that emphasizes the performance, we get a "HOW TO" on what not to do. In this DVD we get the "artsy" grainy black and white shots for half the performance along with interdispersed stupid video scenery (This scenery is taken from the large screens from the stage that were played during the concert). As someone who saw this tour live, I can testify that the video cuts of the screen material DOES NOT make one feel closer to the original performance. Worse, the camera almost NEVER focuses on anyone for more than 2 seconds at a time. Occaisionally you will get Paul singing, but NEVER do you get to see the finger-work on any musician including Paul (with the possible exception of the first stanza of "Yesterday").

This is bad, but truly annoying is the extra junk that has been added to "spruce up" songs that just don't need the extras. The worst example of htis was during the Beatles classic, "Paperback Writer." One might think that Paul singing this classic could stand on its own, but no, the movie makers decided during this song, see-through paperback book pages should cover the screen with ever increasing rapidity. If you concentrate hard, you can see Paul through the pages, but if you were like me, you were too pissed to care. Magical Mystery tour also apparently can't stand on its own, needing wierd "acid colors" to dominate the display.

As a final annoying aspect to this DVD, it provides a tribute to Linda at the back that shows lots of home movies of Paul's life, along with Beatles and Wings concert footage. Unfortuately you can only get to it after the end of the credits, and there is no dividing chapters for it.

The ONLY reason I give this 2 stars is because they did not destroy "Live and Let Die." When I saw this tour in DC, that song, with the fireworks and all was awesome, easily the high point of the concert. It provided me with a fond memory of the show.

DVD concert videos played on high end supersound home theater systems becoming the rage. So why would anyone deliberately shoot 30% or more of a concert DVD in grainy black and white? PAUL MCCARTNEY IS LEAVING A LEGACY OF TERRIBLE CONCERT VIDEOS. His videos are textbook examples of how NOT to produce a concert video. (jumpy camera cuts, cheesy effects, interruptions of the show with interviews etc.) This one is no different. However, if you must own one McCartney dvd, this one might be the best choice because the music is not interrupted with stupid skits and juvenile backstage antics. "Back in the US 2002" is so poorly produced it is unwatchable. The garden hose and the gorilla scene at the zoo was an abomination. Put that garbage in the "extras" section of the DVD. This is really sad, because Paul and the band gave a fantastic performance.

A good concert video has great sound, steady camera work, perhaps a few well timed fades, absolutely no interruptions or black & white and gives the viewer the feeling of "being there". What a joy it would be if Paul would re-release the "Back in the US" properly produced.... It would be the DVD of the decade! But, something tells me that he is uninformed or he just doesn't care. Too Bad.