Rating: NNNNN
The complete Monterey Pop Festival Monterey Pop, Jimi At Monterey, Shake! Otis At Monterey (Criterion/Morningstar, 1968, 1987). Three discs, $115. Rating: NNNNN
Monterey Pop is the seminal rock documentary and an extraordinary moment in pop music history. As festival honcho John Phillips notes, look at Woodstock two years later and everything’s changed. More than three decades on, this film looks remarkably good, particularly given that Monterey Pop was shot hand-held in 16mm. More important, while they’ve cleaned up the soundtrack and made a 5.1 mix, they haven’t screwed up the mix of the original — it sounds like it always did, but better. There are the attendant period embarrassments: hair, Canned Heat, repeated non-ironic use of the word “groovy.” But if the performances are variable, the best of them still hold up. There’s Janis Joplin’s nuclear meltdown in Ball And Chain, Southern soul great Otis Redding preaching to the crowd in I’ve Been Loving You Too Long and, of course, Hendrix’s epochal feedback excursions on Wild Thing, which comes with great “what the hell was that?” crowd reaction shots. This is a model of how to construct a special edition. The extras are highly informative, entertaining and new. With the exception of certain archival interviews (Mama Cass, Pete Townshend), most of the supplemental material was put together this year. And as for outtakes, they include a full two hours of performances that were filmed but didn’t make it into the finished film — the Association, Simon and Garfunkel, Country Joe and the Fish, the Mamas and the Papas and many more. JH
NEIL YOUNG Rust Never Sleeps (Sanctuary/EMI). $40. Rating: NNN
Neil Young’s self-described “concert fantasy” features the songwriter backed up by a particularly raw Crazy Horse at San Francisco’s Cow Palace in 1978. For Young fans, this was a legendary show, featuring the band grinding through classics like Sugar Mountain, The Needle And The Damage Done, Hey Hey, My My and Cinnamon Girl, heads down and distortion all the way up. A good deal less coherent is Young’s particular stage vision, including giant amplifiers, roadies dressed up as Jawas scuttling around the stage and a halftime meditation on the nature of rust. The 5.1 digital sound makes the weirdness worthwhile, though. Stick with the music and you’ll be fine. Extras: script, photo gallery, lyrics. MG
DEPECHE MODE One Night In Paris (Universal). Two discs, $42. Rating: NNN
Tour DVDs are typically a nice memento for those who were there and meaningless for most others. What sets One Night In Paris apart is the look of the film itself. Designed and filmed by photographer Anton Corbijn (best known for his striking black-and-white photographs of U2 and others), this film is as much a visual treat as a musical one, starkly lit and with a massive projection screen behind the band showing giant sharks, droplets of water and other odd visuals. Even non-fans can’t help but be impressed with how good the band looks in the live portion of the film. A second disc includes interviews with the band and obsessed Depeche Mode fans plus a slide show of Corbijn’s photographs, complete with an over-the-top commentary that must be heard to be believed. Extras: interviews, photo gallery, bonus tracks, backing films.MG
COWBOY JUNKIES Open Road (Latent). Two discs, $22. Rating: NNN
Ever wonder what life on the road would be like? Open Road captures a year of touring with the Cowboy Junkies in five different formats. Diehard fans will love the live footage from the Quebec City Summer Festival and a duo performance between Michael and Margo Timmins, but the most interesting element is the road documentary the band has put together. Using music, video and some excellent road photographs, the 55-minute film captures the banality and occasional twisted humour of trekking from city to city, playing zoos, concert halls and clubs that look like slaughterhouses. There’s also an interview with the Timminses and a bonus live CD recorded during the tour.MG
BARENAKED LADIES Barelaked Nadies (Warner Reprise). $22. Rating: NNN
The predictable live concert footage and run-through of the band’s videos appear on this Barenaked Ladies DVD, but the real catch is the group’s commentary on themselves. Plunked into a hotel room, the quintet — bassist Jim Creeggan walks out halfway through — sit on a bed and watch their videos on TV, talking throughout. As the viewing session goes on, they become less interested and increasingly cranky, taking the piss out of their own lack of fashion sense, Steven Page’s fluctuating weight, their expensive cinematic failures and crew members who annoyed them in the past. It’s what the Ladies do best — crack jokes. Extras: commentary, karaoke feature.MG
