Customer Reviews

Traffic - The Last Great Traffic Jam (with Bonus CD)

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Where to start? As a long-time Steve Winwood fan, I've grabbed everything I could get by Spencer Davis Group, Traffic, Blind Faith, solo material and side projects. Among these include several live concerts, such as Traffic Live in Santa Monica (released on laserdisc), a live 1987 concert for the German RockPalast, and the Austin City Limits performance for PBS. I've also seen Traffic twice, in 1973 and in 1994 (from which tour this was filmed).
The 1994 concert tour, promoting `Far from Home', was one of the best concerts I'd ever seen, and I've seen many. I was hoping the energy and musicianship I saw then had been captured for this DVD, and I'm happy to confirm it was.
Before commenting on the music itself, it should be noted that this is more than just a concert DVD. Woven into the film is footage of the band as they traveled the U.S., just being normal people (well, famous rock star normal), with such images as Winwood shining his shoes, or Bramlett and Winwood playing air guitar to the drone of a livestock auction show on TV. It's clear that the band enjoyed good rapport and had fun doing the tour.
With Winwood and Capaldi of the original band (more on that later), joined by Roscoe Gee (from `When the Eagle Flies'), Randall Bramlett, Mike McEvoy and long-time Winwood collaborator Walfredo Reyes, Jr. (who played on the live RockPalast, the Austin City Limits show and the About Time CD), these guys cook!
Concentrating their set on mainly Winwood/Capaldi compositions, they kick off in fine form with `Pearly Queen' and `Medicated Goo', giving freshness to these classic tunes with tastefully extended jams, Winwood blazing on guitar. ` Mozambique', from Far From Home, offers a glimpse as to the direction Winwood would take on About Time. An instrumental, it has a world-music type feel with fiery guitar work. The classic song `40,000 Headmen' has Winwood switching to organ, and the band pure perfection. Bramlett's flute work was true to the original, but was not merely derivative. Exquisite!

Another favorite, the instrumental `Glad', moves Winwood to piano for a rousing version, with an extended piano solo. The band offers a letter-perfect take on `Walking in the Wind' from the 1974 release `When the Eagle Flies), a song rarely done live.
The crowd was enthralled to silence as the opening chords to `Low Spark' began. I've heard this song countless times over the years, but this is the definitive version. It has never sounded better! With energy to spare, they kick into `Light Up' (they use abbreviated names instead of the full song title), with the late Jim Capaldi on lead vocals. To be honest, this is one Traffic song that I never really cared for, usually skipping it when I played `Low Spark'. While it's the same song, what a difference this performance makes! Capaldi's exuberant stage persona created an almost intimate atmosphere in the large auditorium, and the song segues into a long, rhythmic boogie jam with each band member giving a brief solo, followed by a mind-numbing Winwood guitar solo. No guitar player has anything on this guy! Amazing.

The version of `Dear Mr. Fantasy' found here is notable for two reasons. First, it was captured at an outdoor daytime concert in California; the other footage was from night performances in concert halls. Secondly, it had Jerry Garcia playing guitar with the band. Now, Deadheads will probably like that, but for me, it was no great shakes. Garcia looked really bad physically (as another reviewer noted), and frankly, I didn't think he added anything. His countrified slide noodlings didn't really fit the song, and when Winwood played his guitar solo, he virtually blew poor Jerry out of the water.

Closing the disc are two crowd-pleasers. First, the lovely `John Barleycorn', with only Winwood on acoustic guitar, Bramlett on flute and Capaldi on tambourine, presenting yet another textbook offering of superb musical craftsmanship. The final song, which must end every concert Winwood performs, was the obligatory `Gimme Some Lovin'. This version was reminiscent of the performance captured on `Welcome to the Canteen', with an extended, polyrhythmic arrangement, with lots of percussion.

To those that think Dave Mason's absence was a big loss, I disagree. Although he was an original member, his song contributions were weak, apart from the classic `Feelin' Alright'. And, while he was a gifted guitarist, he wasn't particularly distinquished. Moreover, he wouldn't collaborate with the other band members on songs, which was a source of tension throughout their relationship. It's no musical loss that he's absent.

While this release was under the Traffic name, it really is more of a Steve Winwood/Traffic hybrid performance. Winwood is much more energized and in command here than in any other live performance mentioned earlier. He has great musicians who work flawlessly together, and this DVD captures that dynamic perfectly.

I paid less than $14.00 for this, and it included an excellent bonus CD with acoustic versions of '40,000 Headmen', `John Barleycorn' and `Low Spark'. I cannot recommend `The Last Great Traffic Jam' highly enough. It's a joy to have.

If the concert was the only thing to review on this DVD, there would without question be a lot more 5 star reviews here. What a treat to watch the band, particularly Steve of course, and hear such great live versions of these songs. Trouble is, the concert is buried alive under virtually constant, awful special effects and absolutely appalling editing. It made me feel like I was watching 2 DVDs at once. What the production team did to this wonderful concert footage is criminal.

This same concert needs to be re-released by a company who understands the point of watching a concert DVD.

Where to start? As a long-time Steve Winwood fan, I've grabbed everything I could get by Spencer Davis Group, Traffic, Blind Faith, solo material and side projects. Among these include several live concerts, such as Traffic Live in Santa Monica (released on laserdisc), a live 1987 concert for the German RockPalast, and the Austin City Limits performance for PBS. I've also seen Traffic twice, in 1973 and in 1994 (from which tour this was filmed).
The 1994 concert tour, promoting `Far from Home', was one of the best concerts I'd ever seen, and I've seen many. I was hoping the energy and musicianship I saw then had been captured for this DVD, and I'm happy to confirm it was.
Before commenting on the music itself, it should be noted that this is more than just a concert DVD. Woven into the film is footage of the band as they traveled the U.S., just being normal people (well, famous rock star normal), with such images as Winwood shining his shoes, or Bramlett and Winwood playing air guitar to the drone of a livestock auction show on TV. It's clear that the band enjoyed good rapport and had fun doing the tour.
With Winwood and Capaldi of the original band (more on that later), joined by Roscoe Gee (from `When the Eagle Flies'), Randall Bramlett, Mike McEvoy and long-time Winwood collaborator Walfredo Reyes, Jr. (who played on the live RockPalast, the Austin City Limits show and the About Time CD), these guys cook!
Concentrating their set on mainly Winwood/Capaldi compositions, they kick off in fine form with `Pearly Queen' and `Medicated Goo', giving freshness to these classic tunes with tastefully extended jams, Winwood blazing on guitar. ` Mozambique', from Far From Home, offers a glimpse as to the direction Winwood would take on About Time. An instrumental, it has a world-music type feel with fiery guitar work. The classic song `40,000 Headmen' has Winwood switching to organ, and the band pure perfection. Bramlett's flute work was true to the original, but was not merely derivative. Exquisite!

Another favorite, the instrumental `Glad', moves Winwood to piano for a rousing version, with an extended piano solo. The band offers a letter-perfect take on `Walking in the Wind' from the 1974 release `When the Eagle Flies), a song rarely done live.
The crowd was enthralled to silence as the opening chords to `Low Spark' began. I've heard this song countless times over the years, but this is the definitive version. It has never sounded better! With energy to spare, they kick into `Light Up' (they use abbreviated names instead of the full song title), with the late Jim Capaldi on lead vocals. To be honest, this is one Traffic song that I never really cared for, usually skipping it when I played `Low Spark'. While it's the same song, what a difference this performance makes! Capaldi's exuberant stage persona created an almost intimate atmosphere in the large auditorium, and the song segues into a long, rhythmic boogie jam with each band member giving a brief solo, followed by a mind-numbing Winwood guitar solo. No guitar player has anything on this guy! Amazing.

The version of `Dear Mr. Fantasy' found here is notable for two reasons. First, it was captured at an outdoor daytime concert in California; the other footage was from night performances in concert halls. Secondly, it had Jerry Garcia playing guitar with the band. Now, Deadheads will probably like that, but for me, it was no great shakes. Garcia looked really bad physically (as another reviewer noted), and frankly, I didn't think he added anything. His countrified slide noodlings didn't really fit the song, and when Winwood played his guitar solo, he virtually blew poor Jerry out of the water.

Closing the disc are two crowd-pleasers. First, the lovely `John Barleycorn', with only Winwood on acoustic guitar, Bramlett on flute and Capaldi on tambourine, presenting yet another textbook offering of superb musical craftsmanship. The final song, which must end every concert Winwood performs, was the obligatory `Gimme Some Lovin'. This version was reminiscent of the performance captured on `Welcome to the Canteen', with an extended, polyrhythmic arrangement, with lots of percussion.

To those that think Dave Mason's absence was a big loss, I disagree. Although he was an original member, his song contributions were weak, apart from the classic `Feelin' Alright'. And, while he was a gifted guitarist, he wasn't particularly distinquished. Moreover, he wouldn't collaborate with the other band members on songs, which was a source of tension throughout their relationship. It's no musical loss that he's absent.

While this release was under the Traffic name, it really is more of a Steve Winwood/Traffic hybrid performance. Winwood is much more energized and in command here than in any other live performance mentioned earlier. He has great musicians who work flawlessly together, and this DVD captures that dynamic perfectly.

I paid less than $14.00 for this, and it included an excellent bonus CD with acoustic versions of '40,000 Headmen', `John Barleycorn' and `Low Spark'. I cannot recommend `The Last Great Traffic Jam' highly enough. It's a joy to have.

It's been a very long time coming for this DVD release, first mooted by Steve in an internet interview I did with him a couple of years ago . Has the wait been worth it, well yes it is.

Rather than the safe option of a straight performance run through, there are elements of documentary but with no annoying commentary, there are behind the scenes soundchecks, dressing room and hotel room glimpses etc, but done in such a manner that the whole thing succesfully flows as a continuous piece, apart from the concert footage nothing is longer than it needs to be, a 10 second clip of Rosko messing about on his bass in the dressing room, Steve playing some remarkable guitar some place else, the start of a great soundcheck jam that kicks into a groove, that you probably would like to hear in full, Steve and Randall getting into a televised cattle auction and Jim so often as not bringing us flashes of wit and wisdom in no particular order !

I've watched the whole thing several times now and keep picking on on material I did'nt see before. There is a dreamlike quality that wraps itself around this road movie, like some grand travelogue we see footage of the tour bus passing place name signs, under girder bridges, long expanses of highway they all blend into a whirlpool of anonimity, as Steve says 1 down 78 to go after the tours opening show, thats a lot of hotel rooms, a lot of towns passed through , a lot of highway and a lot of music !

It seems futile to mention the music, if you're reading this you know it ! It's the presentation that works here interspersing colour, black and white , sepia tones, and psychelics merging into the abstract. One day we'll hopefully see a full Traffic career retrospective DVD, but for the time being (apart from the Santa Monica DVD) this is the only Traffic visual footage officially available, so enjoy the moment. Be amazed at the rythmic groove as Pearly Queen gathers steam in the closing segment, be impressed at seeing so much of Steve on gutar, admire the power house rythm section of Jim and Walfredo anchored by the wonderful Rosko on bass. Enjoy the versatility of Mike McEvoy (keyboards and guitar) and Randall on saxes, flute , hand percussion and harmonica. Mozambique, well yes it does sound like Santana, but listen to the Spencer Davis Group on I'm A Man, the latin rythms were already instilled , and with real flute courtesy of Randall you get this tune out of it's box and bring it to life, Jim said to me when I spoke to him in 2003, that he enjoyed Far From Home, but had reserved response to some of the technology involved in the recording process, the live band interaction here justifies that point of view. Glad is a great instrumental track and Randall gets to blow, in a brief interview snippet he says that he does not go out of his way to emulate Chris Wood, I'm sure Chris would have been proud of his efforts. Winwoods piano on this is mesmerising, when he hits the quiet section of his solo the visual is interspersed with footage of ripplig water and a child diving into a pool, a rare musical and visual momemt. I wasn't going to hark on about the music, but you just have to, Jims energetic vocals and band intro's on light up give the Traffic lyricist the opportunity to take pride of place centre stage, and again on the wonderful Barleycorn, shot in black and white, Steve plays an unfamiliar acoustic guitar intro, before playing the opening chords and singing a few verses alone, Randall joins on flue, followed by Jim on tambourine and sings with Steve as a vocal duet for the remainder of the song. This song is beatifully filmed and shows that even when tackling a traditional folk song they could put the Traffic stamp on it and give it their own individual slant (Chris Wood took the tune to the band, for which we must be eternally thankful). Walking in The Wind is a wonderful tune from 1974, Rosko played on the original studio version and his wonderful bouncy bass line lifts this along just nicely, with Randall hitting all the right noted on sax. We don't see much of the performance on this one, but the visuals flow perfectly, we see people playing roller hockey, playing chess outdoors, girder bridges, skyscrapers, tour busses and trucks, muted tones, just wonderful. I could go on about how great Gimme Some Lovin' and Low Spark sound, but you already know that, but I will give mention to the late great Jerry Garcia, who guests on Dear Mr Fantasy, his ditinctive guitar tone is an interesting foil to Steves more agressive guitar work, it works in a different way, which I'll probably appreciate more when I get hold of the audio CD version of the album.

Also included is an audio CD Acoustic Session with Steve in guitar for 40000 Headmen and Low Spark and Jim on percussion recorded at Steve's home studio in England. They get it wrong on ".. barleycorn" and start again, it's all good fun in a lo-fi knock about sort of way. Low Spark features Steve on piano, and turns out to be a nice arrangement, Jims percussion complementing nicely. Chuck the CD into your computer and you get the visuals as well. How much more of this stuff is kicking around? It would be good to hear more from the archives. How about it Steve ?


Great music, and some gems off stage, Jim showing us his luxury hotel suite, commenting "I must be doing something right", Jim instructing one of his crew how he likes his cup of tea made, and Jim ringing about 10 gallons of sweat from his post gig t-shirt, before putting it back on for an interview. A wonderful poinant moment at the end is Steve getting out of a hotel lift and waving goodnight to Jim. We'll miss you Jim but his helps to jog the memory. The DVD liner notes dedicate this film to Jerry Garcia, Chris Wood , former Traffic percussionist Rebop Kwaku Baah and finally as Winwood states "To The man without Traffic could never be: my lifelong friend and partner, jim Capaldi.

God bless `em all.

Paul Minkkinen - Slough, England

I remember this show very well.Just as the sun dipped out of sight the stage lights went on and the band blasted into "Pearly Queen" and "Medicated Goo" and it was like muscial heaven hearing this stuff actually played live (after hearing it so many times on CD). The only way to really experience TRAFFIC is live and this tour was the last chance to do that (now that Wood and Capaldi are both gone). TRAFFIC's sound remains unique, its never really been imitated. And this band has never received much radio attention (save the occasional "Dear Mr. Fantasy") and though everyone knows who Steve Winwood is, a lot of people still don't know TRAFFIC's music. But thats fine with me, they are like a well kept secret and this allowed us fans to be able to actually afford tickets to see them when they came through our towns in the summer of '94. Another advantage of this bands notoriety-lesness is that none of these songs sound dated. In fact much of the TRAFFIC catalogue (with the exception of a few psychedelic numbers on their first two albums)sounds timeless (I'm thinking here especially of the JOHN BARLEYCORN and WHEN THE EAGLE FLIES albums). Masterfully played and highly evocative folk and jazz as well as good ol' blues-based rock does not date. Hearing these styles played next to each other as well as mixed together is as exciting as music gets. I must say,though, that the sole number played from their new album FAR FROM HOME called "Mozambique" sounds a bit too much like SANTANA. That doesn't mean its not a good song and I love SANTANA but it didn't make me want to buy FAR FROM HOME.

I was not a first generation TRAFFIC fan but I became interested in the band in the early 90's so this tour came along at just the right time for me. I've never been a Steve Winwood fan and his solo stuff just seems weak and souless to me. I would say his solo stuff sounds like a watered down radio friendly TRAFFIC or a TRAFFIC without the imagination but to my ears his solo stuff just doesn't sound like TRAFFIC at all. With the SPENCER DAVIS GROUP and with BLIND FAITH (and a live DVD of BLIND FAITH is now available as well) and especially with TRAFFIC, however, Winwood made music that is absolutely unique and has that unforgettable magic to it that few folk/rock/jazz/blues groups or groups of any kind ever capture.

This was really a great show, and the art work that was displayed behind the band was perfect, mysterious and a bit surreal though in a very appealing way, so the show was evocative to the ear and the eye.
Plus it was summertime, outside, and a river flowed quietly behind the stage as the band played. I don't think I stopped grinning through the whole set.

That said I was somewhat disappointed with this DVD as it just didn't match my own memory of this show. The filmmaking here is just plain amateurish so as a collection of great songs this works, but as a concert artifact I think its much less succesful. That amateurism might have worked had the filmmakers simply employed handmade cameras for that would have created an improvised spontaneous feel to go along with the spontneous improvised music. The filmakers should have taken a more subdued, as well as maybe a bit more avant-garde approach, but, instead, the filmamkers got busy and decided to decorate or trash a perfectly good concert video with some unforgivably cheesy and painfully obvious special effects and visual metaphors (traffic lights, time-lapse highway travel, traffic)which were nowhere near as subtle and evocative as the graphics that adorned the stage. These 'special' effects were just not that special, and they give the video all of the visual mystery and excitement of a local televison commercial. The idea, apparently, was to share with the DVD audience the feel of traveling with the band but the filmmakers seem to forget that what we want to watch over and over is not the interviews and sound bites and jump-cuts to band members getting on tour buses or hanging out in hotel rooms(unless its a band that is doing something that we want to see like say the Stones in '72 ) but these guys when offstage just seem like ordinary guys who are not really interested in tearing it up. The music itself is what counts, the musicians say so themselves, and thats what we want too, the music. Lets face it Winwood is a genius onstage (so long as he's surrounded by great players that allow him to jam) but a dynamic off-stage presence he's not, so he's just not that interesting to follow around. Capaldi, on the other hand, has great camera presence and his character and humor really come across. His mugging for the camera is on occasion pretty funny. But, on several occasions, the filmakers cut-away from musical jams in progress in order to give us more of this stuff and this is sheer madness. When you buy a live album or a live DVD (especially one of a band that is known for its awesome jam potential) the one thing that you do not want is for those jams to be interrupted or edited or interefered with in any way. This music is sacred so light up, enjoy, and leave it alone. Really not cool of the vidoegraphers to cut-away mid-jam ever for any reason! Note to future concert vidoegraphers: keep camera focused on the band, watching them play is plenty of entertainment. If you want to cut-away occasionally to show crowd shots thats fine so long as its a shot of a dancing girl soaking-up-the-music-and-sun, but no cut-aways that involve cutting songs short (as these filmmakers do in the middle of "Glad"). Also probably would have been best to leave Jerry Garcia out of the "Dear Mr. Fantasy" sequence, Jerry just wasn't feeling the song, so why do we need to watch Jerry not Feelin' all that Alright. I love Jerry but I don't want a video record of this particular moment which was not one of his best.

I am guessing that this DVD was the work of more than one filmmaker because occasionally it does achieve that ground level and grassroots feel that we want from a live performance that we attended and have more than fond memories of. Of course the people we see at the concert on this video are not the ones we saw when we were there (our own absence from the procedings is maybe why concert videos always seem to be mssing some key ingredient) but it is nice to be reminded that part of the concert experience is what happens before the show, and what happens offstage in the audience during the show while sitting on the grass among strangers who are nonetheless feeling the vibe along with ya.

No better show opener than "Pearly Queen" and no better show closer than the TRAFFIC version (complete with long drum build up) of "Gimme Some Lovin'".....lots of good stuff inbetween as well..."40,000 headmen" & "John Barleycorn".....

At the show I saw I do seem to remember hearing "Empty Pages" and "Dream Gerard" in addition to the rest of the set list on this DVD. So, what's up videographers?

By the way these performances sound virtually identical to the live versions of these songs on WELCOME TO THE CANTEEN and that is not a bad thing since that is one of the best live albums I've ever heard. If you are new to TRAFFIC and don't really want or need a concert DVD but want to experience the live TRAFFIC then WELCOME TO THE CANTEEN is the way to go. CANTEEN has "Pearly Queen" and "Medicated Goo" as well as "40,000 Headmen" and "Dear Mr. Fantasy" and Gimme Some Lovin'" but it also has three Dave Mason songs so you get "Feelin' Alright", "Shouldn't Have Took More Than You Gave", and "Sad and Deep as You."

The music is fantastic, but as others point out, Glad is interrupted mid-jam, and there are a lot of teases of songs that we don't get to see. The bizzare editing reminds me of what I used to do with my dad's Super-8 when I was 13. The ridiculous cutaway scenes and pointless superimposition of random objects into the concert footage ruin this production. The video director would do well to watch a Norah Jones concert DVD to get an idea of what people who are buying concert footage are looking for.
The music on the bonus CD is nothing special, and CDExtra doesn't work, but it does take you to Sony's web site. If you trust them after the rootkit fiasco then go ahead and try it.
Get this DVD only if you must have everything Traffic ever put out. Otherwise, I suggest you buy the double CD for the excellent music, and leave this low quality DVD on the shelf.

This is a wonderful DVD. Recorded during the time of Traffic's last tour in 1994 in support of "Far From Home", this footage shows Traffic at their best. Sadly, it is now only a tribute to Jim Capaldi, as he recently passed away. Capaldi is in great form on percussion throughout and his raspy reading of his own "Light Up Or Leave Me Alone" rocks. Capaldi also offers wonderful comic relief in this half performance, half documentary style DVD. However, the real star here is Steve Winwood. Winwood has always been a capable guitarist, but he has advanced his guitar chops by light years in this live set. Incredibly melodic solos flow from Winwood's various Strats as he tears through extended improvs in songs like "Dear Mr. Fantasy" and "Medicated Goo" and his keyboard playing on "Glad" and "Freedom Rider" are picture perfect. The set is beautifully balanced and the very poignant duet of "John Barleycorn Must Die" reflects the almost symbiotic musical relationship that Winwood & Capaldi had; Capaldi harmonizing beautifully to Winwood's wonderful reading of the song. This release was a welcome surprise and it showed that even though Chris Wood is sorely missed, Traffic went away much too soon.

Although I agree with another viewer that it would have been great to see Dave mason and Chris Wood, it is wonderful to see a DVD of traffic recorded with such high quality finally available. An accompanying CD provides audio only tracks to three additional songs. Jim Capaldi was an unsung great musician and this DVD is long overdue. As for Steve Winwood, what can I add which has not already been said better by others. There is also a good video out there including Winwood, Wood and Capaldi recorded during the '70s which hopefully will be released in the future. I'm giving this 5 stars because it provides an opportunity to see a great group in fine form performing many of their best songs to a sympathetic audience. Remember, Traffic was Britain's answer to the Band. Set back and enjoy a wonderful musical experience. Can't get much better than that.

I had heard bits and pieces of Traffic over the years and had not cared much about the group. Because of lack of anything else, I bought the Low Spark of High Heeled Boys on cassette while in a lengthy stay at a military hospital. I didn't get it at the time and again was not interested in the group. 1976 at a remote stint in Eskisehir Turkey, a friend was playing When the Eagle Flies on his cheap cassette machine. I vowed to buy it on album when I got back and did. In 1987 while watching MTV, The band did a concert performance of John Barleycorn Must Die...Wow! I didn't realize that they did Dear Mr. Fantasy and got that album. It finally all clicked and I decided to get Low Spark on CD. Now I got it.

This band is of some of the greatest musicians I have heard. Steve Winwood alone ranks with the greatest guitarists and keyboardists not to mention his distinctive vocals. Did I mention songwriting?

I almost didn't buy this DVD on account of the quirky packaging. With the orange and black theme, I couldn't imagine it on my shelf with other nicely illustrated DVD cases. The price was much less than the other offerings in the bins as well, which of course I am all for. Not to mention a 3 song CD is also included. Three good songs.

I think if you have never even heard Traffic that you would be happy you took a chance and bought this DVD.

This only gets a four star because of the fact that each format has it's own drawbacks and because of the songs played on this tour that didn't make the cut. I saw them a few times on this tour. At only a hundred minutes it would have been easy to throw in a couple of more songs from Far From Home as well as older tunes like Dream Gerrald and the cut off Freedom Rider. Also, I remember them playing a couple of songs from Fantasy Factory on this tour but not here. As far as Jerry Garcia, he wasn't in good shape on this tour so that's why his performance is below par. Aside from that, the DVD is great but I do wish there was more. By the way, I like the way behind the scenes footage was used as well as the crowd scenes and effects.