Customer Reviews

Poison - Seven Days Live

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

 

 

Poison's new DVD "Seven Days Live," (2006) from the band's performance at London's Hammersmith Apollo is a very unusual and unexpected concert that the band would choose to release. One might expect Poison to release a DVD from a more recent tour (which is more or less a nostalgia act) or release a DVD from the 1990 "Flesh and Blood" tour, when the band was at its commercial peak. But a show from 1993 is totally surprising for a few reasons.

First, this lineup of Poison features guitarist Ritchie Kotzen, stepping in for C.C. Deville, who left Poison from 1991 to 1996. Kotzen made only one album with Poison, 1993's mature and bluesy "Native Tongue," before being fired for shagging drummer Rikki Rocket's fiancé. It seems odd to release a DVD with Kotzen, considering that his tenure in the band was so short lived and that the classic lineup of Poison, with C.C., is hands down the definitive version of the band.

Another reason a show from '93 is an unusual choice is that the set list relies heavily from the band's "Native Tongue" (1993) album. Although "Native Tongue" is a strong and well-written album, it was a relative failure. "Native Tongue" was the band's first album that failed to go platinum, winding up in the dreaded cut-out bin, sitting next to Vince Neil's "Exposed," (1993) Motley Crue's 1994 self-titled album, and David Lee Roth's "A Little Ain't Enough" (1991) by the end of 1994. "Native Tongue" is now out-of-print and is only available used or as a cut-out. It seems odd to release a DVD from a concert showcasing an album that was virtually ignored upon its release and is now forgotten.

All this taken into consideration, a show from 1993 is either desirable or undesirable, depending on what you're looking for. If you are a casual fan or a Poison purist, and want a show of all the hits, you may find yourself disappointed with this DVD. As previously stated, a lot of the songs (nearly half) are from the "Native Tongue" album and many fans will probably be unfamiliar with that material. Also, Kotzen is far more technically proficient than C.C. Deville, and jazzes up the solos from the C.C. material, so purists may be put-off, or they may just be put off by seeing anyone but C.C. on lead guitar.

But other fans may get a lot out of this DVD. I've seen Poison a few times in the last few years, and although I always enjoy the show, I am disappointed that they play virtually the same songs all the time. It's as though the band is frozen in 1990. While a Poison show in the 00s is still a lot of fun, it's most definitely a nostalgia act. With this DVD, it's great to see the band out promoting fresh material. I really enjoyed the "Native Tongue" album, so it's great to hear those songs performed live, because the band nowadays certainly won't do it (although they have played "Stand" with C.C.) And while some fans may not like Kotzen's interpretations of the songs, I find them to be a refreshing change of pace.

Recorded at London's Hammersmith Apollo on April, 23, 1993, among a wildly enthusiastic sold-out crowd, it's easy to forget that outside the hall, most of the audience that so loved Poison only a few years before, were now listening to Nirvana and Pearl Jam. It's a shame that Poison never really survived grunge and has now been reduced to being a nostalgia act, because they deserve better. With "Native Tongue," the band didn't jump on any bandwagon or rehash a tired formula. With "Native Tongue" the band made an earnest attempt to grow as artists and made an album that deserved to be heard. It's a shame that the general public of 1993 wasn't mature enough to like both Poison and Nirvana and felt they had to abandon one and embrace another. But for a few hours within a hall, several thousand fans didn't care if Poison was cool or not.

The actual taping of the show is superb. Shot in mostly color, with some black and white footage, "documentary style," the show is professionally shot and looks and sounds great. Charismatic frontman Brett Michaels has the audience by the palm of his hand, and along with the rest of the band, gives 100 percent.

In conclusion, I would recommend this DVD for fans of the "Native Tongue" album and the more die-hard fans that are familiar with the lesser known material. Casual fans may be disappointed with the lack of big hits, although there are still enough big hits, like "Every Rose Has its Thrown" and "Something to Believe in" to please, although purists still may be put off by Kotzen's interpretations.

"Seven Days Live" captures POISON (Bret Michaels, Bobby Dall, Rikki Rockett and Richie Kotzen) at the height of their international success with a full show recorded at London's Hammersmith Apollo in 1993. Featuring classic tracks like "Unskinny Bop", "Talk Dirty To Me", "Every Rose Has Its Thorn", "Nothin' But A Good Time" and more, the collection demonstrates what 10 years of hard work can do.

Track listing:

01. The Scream
02. Strike Up the Band
03. Ride The Wind
04. Good Love
05. Body Talk
06. Something To Believe In
07. Stand
08. Fallen Angel
09. Look What The Cat Dragged In
10. Until You Suffer Some (Fire & Ice)
11. 7 Days Over You
12. Unskinny Bop
13. Talk Dirty To Me
14. Every Rose Has Its Thorn
15. Nothin' But A Good Time

I actually own the original video release of this concert and having been a fan since I was 7 years old(and too young to go to their Perth concert a year later) this is the closest I will most likely ever get to a live experience of Poison. And from other vision I have seen over the years, while yes re-releasing this particular concert seems an odd choice given the history, I think it completely captures the band as performers. I love the selection of songs in this concert first & foremost because they cover so much material from Native Tongue, my far & away favourite album. While I love all their earlier party anthems, I think going that bit deeper with Native Tongue really gave them a new depth which is reflected in this concert. And it seems that the influence is not entirely with Richie Kotzen, because anyone who has listened to Bret Michaels solo effort "Songs of Life" will hear that same mature and amazing soulfulness coming through! Three cheers for re-releasing this concert! My vid is nearly warn out from constant watching!

I bought this on video back in the day when I was living in the UK. This concert was in support of the Native Tongue album (very underated) and was filmed in London. It's a small venue but Poison were never very big in the UK and frankly their popularity was waning when this came out. It's a great show with Richie Kotzen doing a fine job as lead guitarist and getting in to the groove. Highlights are actually one of the "new" songs "Until You Suffer Some" and a rip-roaring "Fallen Angel" and "Ride The Wind". It's a great concert video and if you're a Poison junkie a must have.

A Poison music dvd from the Naive Tongue album which featured Richie Kotzen on Lead guitar, it's a live concert from the Native Tongue world tour in 1993. Great concert, Poison are awesome live and it's great they finally released a Native Tongue dvd.
Also released as 'Poison Live In Concert' with a different cover but it's the same dvd.

First let me say I have seen the original lineup live several times with the latest being 7/30/06 and these guys always put on a great show.

That being said, I would have loved to have got the chance to see a show during the short lived Richie Kotzen era. I am a fan of Kotzen's Shrapnel work and think Native Tongue is one of Poison's best albums.

Though CC's solos fit the "classic" material better, it was so refreshing and entertaining to see Kotzen rip it up in the songs. The sweep picking on "Look What the Cat Dragged In" was KILLER! All of the Native Tongue material is played to perfection. After Kotzen finished his concert solo I thought, "Man that was short". It was hilarious to hear Brett's comedic rant when returning to the stage concerning the length of the solo.

The audio and video are OK, considering this was filmed 13 years ago. This is extremely entertaining and it's awesome to have the chance to see a show from this era. If you prefer the original lineup, buy a ticket and get out and see them on their 20th Anniversary tour. Highly recommend both the DVD and the current tour!

The Good
The show itself is shot in a documentary style, sans backstage interviews. The majority of it is shot in color, with some artsy back and white shots thrown in here and there. Poison sounds great throughout their fifteen songs set. Ritchie Kotzen injects new life into the band with his tremendous guitar playing. It's apparent from the first solo that Kotzen is far superior to DeVille. Most notable, a lot less tremolo wails and a lot more technical playing.

The set lays heavy on the Native Tongue material, so if you're not familiar with it, you probably won't like it. It was a lot less glam and more alternative. Only one or two of them ever make it to Poison's `hits' compilations. That's not to say that songs like "The Scream," "Body Talk," and "7 Days Over You" aren't good, they're just not what I think of when I think of Poison. "Stand," which was also from that album, is really the only one that still follows the group. There's a splattering of their high energy hits that include, "Ride the Wind," "Fallen Angel," "Unskinny Bop," and "Nothin' But a Good Time."

The Bad
By relying heavily on Native Tongue material, I just don't see a lot of interest in this.

The Verdict
I have been a fan of Poison since day one, but even I found it hard to swallow the alternative, ballad-ridden Poison era. I saw it as a `sell-out' attempt by Michael's to jump on the grunge wave (although his group was not the only one to try this). This show sounds great, but a lot of the material does nothing for me. Kotzen runs circles around DeVille, but it was DeVille's wackiness and complete lack of guitar knowledge that made him interesting. I prefer the nostalgic Poison, but die-hard fans will enjoy Seven Days Live for sure.

Since your not going to find much on Poison DVD I say get it(If you love Poison). When I first watched the show I thought it sucked. The quality is low but over time you get use to it. I like CC and I'm glad he's been working on getting clean. You get to see the other side of him on Surreal Life and he is a cool guy but he is not on this DVD. Kotzen tried to fill CC's part but that didn't last long for many reasons. Richie is very good in this show but his ego is very apparent. I love Stand,Until you suffer and 7 days over you. Because of Kotzen and these songs I have ordered Native Tongue. Just got the 20 years of rock CD/DVD because I need more Poison on DVD. The new song American Band is good but I wish they had put Lay your body down on there too. That song rocks. Under $20.00 so get the DVD.

First of all Seven Days Live is a live performance from 1993 that has not been sanctioned by the band. This is from the Native Tongue Tour which featured guitar wizard Ritchie Kotzen, who replaced long-time guitarists C.C. Deville. Native Tongue is one of my favorite 90's rock albums, that album was a departure from the 80's glam rock that Poison was known for. Ritchie Kotzen gave them credibility among the musician's circles, the songs had more substance, and they were grittier and had a southern rock and soul element to them. For those like myself that didn't get a chance to see this incarnation of the band this is a real delight. Unfortunately Kotzen and Poison had a falling out and he subsequently was asked to leave the band. This show was shot at the world renowned Hammersmith Apollo on April 23rd, 1993. And while the fans welcomed Kotzen with open arms, it appears that there is some tension within the band at the time of this taping. Bobby Dall and Bret Michaels have great chemistry with one another, while Kotzen shreds away on his side of the stage. Still the band delivers a stellar performance. Notable examples are; "Stand," "Until You Suffer Some (Fire and Ice)," "Talk Dirty to Me," "Nothin' But A Good Time," "Every Rose has It's Thorn" and "Something To Believe In." At the end a good time was had by all and it documents an era of the band that some might have forgotten about in 2006.
By: R. Mosqueda

Well, as a long time poison fan, this is great. When Native Tounge was released I was stoked. I loved the direction the music of Poison was going. How Native Tounge ever made it to the cutout bin I'll never know. I seen Poison back in the 80's twice. Once with Ratt and once with Tesla. I always thought that Poison should have opened for Tesla on that tour, because Tesla made them look silly.
Back to the DVD. I thought it was great to see Richie Kotzen perform with Poison. He brings a lot to the table. He is a much more proficient guitarist than CC. While CC was good, Richie is great. His vocals were a great plus to the mix also. I guess Richie was just kind of a strange bird for the band, from what I remember reading back in the day. Most great musicians are usually half a bubble off anyways.
I seen some complaints about the sound quality, but remember this is going back to 93 and they probably never had intentions of releasing this. I found it easy to listen to and watch. Also, somebody mentioned they did not do enough of there older material. I thought they pretty much covered all the bases. Then again, I was pro Native Tounge.
Oh by the way, Richie Kotzen just released a bunch of live stuff that is available and he does a great version of Stand.