Michael Elliott
Senior HTF Member
Aerosmith: You Gotta Move
:star::star::star::star:/:star::star::star::star:
Studio: Columbia Music
Year: 2004
Rated: NR
Film Length: 168 minutes
Aspect Ratio: Standard (4:3)
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Digital PCM
Subtitles:
Retail Price: $19.95
I’ll go ahead and admit that this review is going to be bit bias since I consider Aerosmith to be one of the greatest rock bands in the history of music. I first saw them in Cincinnati way back in 1997 and for my teenage mind their music hit everything that was going through my mind at the time. Sex. I remember that August night very clearly in my mind. My buddy and I had driven out of state for the first time to experience Aerosmith in person. Before the concert started, we asked a veteran fan what an Aerosmith concert was like and he gave me some advice I’ve never forgotten. Son, your first Aerosmith concert will be like the first time you have sex. Going in you know it’s gonna be good but you have no idea how good it’s gonna turn out. Then, afterwards you’re gonna want it as often as possible.
From their early records like Toys in the Attic and Rocks all the way up to P.U.M.P the boys knew how to deliver a high energy concert full of sexual innuendo plus a crowd full of beautiful women who certainly didn’t mind showing off their sexuality. In 2004 the boys went back to their roots and released Honkin’ on Bobo, which was a blues album---done Aerosmith style of course.
Aerosmith: You Gotta Move originally aired on A&E but this DVD release features more interviews, more loud music all in a glorious 5.1 package. In interviews Aerosmith said they wanted their first live DVD to be something memorable and this certainly is.
The features works perfectly as a documentary, which mixes in the concert cuts perfectly. If you ever wanted to know what goes on back stage before the concert then this film gives you a wonderful look. Everything from the pre-concert rituals to even arguments over what songs to include on the set list is here for fans to see. The most interesting stuff is the talk about the making of the blues album and how it almost didn’t get released because they didn’t know if they could make it strong enough. Also mixed in is some scenes with the boys meeting fans plus the likes of other rock stars who are just as star struck as the actual fans paying for the tickets.
I’ve seen Aerosmith nine times since that show in 1997 but unfortunately didn’t catch this last one. I had high hopes this DVD would capture the spirit of an Aerosmith show and for the most part it succeeds. The show starts off with the always welcomed Toys in the Attic, which they can’t do any wrong with. The version is played just the same as previous tours but it’s a good way to get the crowd going. The raunchy Love in an Elevator follows and if you’ve ever seen these guys live, you just know this is a song to bring the roof down. Up next are Road Runner and Baby, Please Don’t Go, which are from the latest album. I first came familiar with the band with their Get A Grip album, which of course featured Cryin’. Out of the nine shows I’ve been to this one has been played at each and I can’t wait to hear it for a tenth time. The harmonica solo towards the end of the song is worth the $100 price tag for tickets.
Up next we get The Other Side from P.U.M.P. followed by classics like Back in the Saddle, Draw the Line and Dream On, which are all incredible songs for the show. The guitar solo by Joe Perry during Draw the Line shows why he’s one of the best in the business and can anyone top Tyler’s vocal performance from Dream On? Another highlight of seeing the boys in concert is hearing Perry take the microphone and do a blues number, Stop Messin’ Around. The encore then kicks in with recent crowd favorites like Jaded and I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing, which, depending on the show, can sound great or bad. As silly and as sappy as I find IDWTMAT, I can't help but fall for it each time I hear it. It's probably due to the vocals by Tyler but the concert version also has a nice piano solo, which sets the song up nicely. Finally the boys hit the climax with a rocking variety of classics and recent songs. Sweet Emotion kicks things off followed by the new Never Loved a Girl, which fits in perfectly. The greatest hard rock song, Walk This Way follows with Train Kept A Rollin’ closing the show out.
As with The Making of P.U.M.P, this feature here will be a huge delight to fans as well as though who haven’t experienced an Aerosmith concert before. The band perfectly blends the sexuality of rock with the blues and performs one of the best live shows out there. Plus, it never hurts when a band has played together for such a long time.
VIDEO---For the most part the quality here is very good, although the interview segments appear a bit soft but this appears due to how they were filmed and not a video issue. The concert footage looks really clear and the detail is quite nice especially when we get shots of the crowd. There’s some minor artifacts but nothing too distracting. The program is shown Standard (4:3) as it appeared on television.
AUDIO---The two audio options are a Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround and a PCM Stereo track. I compared both tracks and the clear winner is the 5.1 mix, which while not perfect, almost gives the full impact of seeing the band live. I personally think concert discs are the hardest to review because not many really live up to a live experience so perhaps I’m a little too tough on them. I think the mixes can be brilliant and for this you just need to listen to the Live Aid disc, which was perfectly done. This one here is very good but it doesn’t quite capture that concert feel. The best thing is the range of the concert, which uses all the speakers to give a circular effect, which does have the live feel to it. The rear speakers are used mainly for the crowd noises and are perfectly used for songs like Love in an Elevator and Dream On. The front speakers are very active with the guitar solos going from the left to right and the vocals are very loud and sharp.
EXTRAS---The bonus disc is actually a CD, which features live cuts from the show. The tracks are Toys in the Attic, Love in an Elevator, Rats in the Cellar, Road Runner, The Other Side and Back in the Saddle. The rest of the extras are on the feature disc and we start off with a discography of the band, which shows you the covers to all their albums. Click on an album and you’ll get to see the tracks as well as the date the album was originally released. Up next five songs, which were cut from the A&E performance. Fever, Rats in the Cellar, Livin’ on the Edge, Last Child and Same Old Song and Dance are presented in either Dolby Digital 5.1 or PCM Stereo. The Making of Honkin’ on Bobo runs just over 35-minutes and features more behind the scenes stuff that is also in the feature. This is a wonderful bonus since we get to hear the latest album being recorded and it’s nice to see some alternate versions of the songs.
OVERALL---Whether you’re a die-hard fan or a newbie this disc should make you quite happy and give you a good feel of what it’s like to be at a real show. Of course, after hearing this you’ll really be aching to get to a real show. The interview segments were all very nice and the extras were a great bonus. This is certainly a steal with the $20 retail price.
Release Date: November 23rd, 2004
