Mad Dogs & Englishmen - Joe Cocker

Buying all his early LP's being one of those young kids enamored with the blue eyed soul bands like the great Rascals,Animals, those great Box Tops singles and then Joe, this later day Woodstock legend from Sheffield UK that burst out fusing the persona of a manic spastic standing drunken Ray Charles with a voice of gravel, fire and honey delivering brassy rock gospel panache with a hippie entourage of dreamers,rock icons, passionate musicians who were clearly into jazz and good roots music cutting his 1st 2 studio albums with the then great musicians like Jimmy Page,Stevie Winwood,Leon Russell,Chris Stainton and then on Mad Dogs capturing a wild travelling minstrel show of hippie gypsy life on the road barnstorming through America is all captured here on this wonderful DVD showing you why Joe was one of the greatest at his game who unfortunately due to whatever excess, psychological and chemical who like most musicians that live the down and out portraits of their music become a self fulfilling prophecy.I later saw Cocker on the "Stingray" tour and he had to be escorted off the stage in a drunken stupor nonetheless I was glad to be there.As to the film itself, it is a treat..it's 1960's early 1970's imagery,improvisational dialogue,camera using 3 views simultaneously of the concert portion is all highly entertaining,never boring as the music is all driving soulful renditions of songs transformed by Cocker into a vehicle all of his own with a loose band of entertainers combining folly and intensity that worked very well.Too bad, that despite the likes of his then relationships with Leon Russel,Rita Coolidge, members of this large choir, noted rock horn men, his contacts and a@R men, how this driven exuberant performer like Cocker was a wanderer enduring without a steady band of his own,not being known as a major songwriter but a talent covering classics in his own fashion , groping through the rest of his career with various sounds and noted musicians whether reggae tinged,Randy Newman style tin pan alley,is all best summed up on his wonderful box set "Long Voyage Home" and like this film and the 2 CD deluxe edition of the soundtrack is your ticket into essential Cocker and into this highly sensitive man who did a lot to bring great jazz,soul music into the the white mainstream while covering the Beatles,Leonard Cohen,Traffic,Animals,Dylan,Box Tops,Lovin Spoonful(J.Sebastin),Rolling Stones.Jackson Browne,...

I have to admit: I missed Mad Dogs and Englishmen on its original theatrical release in the early Seventies. But I remember hearing several of the tunes from it on several FM radio stations and, based on what I had heard, went out and bought the LP. This album, with its mix of Rhythm and Blues and Gospel influences quickly became one of my favorite live recordings. The music that I heard then turned me into a fan of Joe Cocker, Leon Russell, and Rita Coolidge. So, I was really looking forward to the DVD release of the film. Now, don't get me wrong. The DVD has its moments (which is why I'm rating it a 3 rather than a 2). Cocker's versions of The Letter, Feelin' Alright, Sticks and Stones, and Honky Tonk Woman really rock. And I loved Joe going one on one with Lawdy Miss Clawdy. How much you enjoy the other tunes comes down to one's personal tastes. To my ears, Let It Be and Something both drag. I think that the Woodstock version of With a Little Help From My Friends overshadows the rendition heard here. And, no offence to Joe Cocker who always puts 100 percent of himself into every tune, his version of John Sebastian's Darlin' Be Home Soon is simply awful. The overall sound quality varies from terrible (especially at the beginning of the film) to average. It sounds as though the corporate execs felt that the market for this film wasn't large enough to merit spending a lot of time on quality remixing. So, the sound is definitely a disappointment. In the interests of fairness, perhaps the problems with the soundtrack are traceable to inadequacies in the source material. Having watched the show from beginning to end, I think part of the problem is that the film itself tends to drag. The running time is close to two hours and so, when the band is not performing (and it's truly a great band), we get backstage glimpses and interviews and airplane shots and fans and groupies (in other words, a lot of padding). We get a lot of split screen shots, which was an innovation in its day. Unfortunately, the combination of letterboxing and split screen cinematography means a smallish image unless you're watching on big screen TV. Mad Dogs and Englishmen comes off poorly in comparison with other "rockumentaries" of the period such as Monterey Pop and Woodstock. Now, I know some of you may say, "But what about Michael Wadleigh's use of split screen techniques for Woodstock." Point well taken - on the other hand, Woodstock isn't limited exclusively to one group for its full running time. I feel that the producers of this DVD missed out on something that would have provided some perspective. Besides Joe Cocker, several of the performers from the Mad Dogs and Englishmen tour are still around. How come nobody thought about putting together a 30 minute mini-documentary featuring interviews with Joe Cocker, Leon Russell, Rita Coolidge, Jim Keltner, and Bobby Keyes (whom I just saw this year performing with the Stones)? If you have to choose between the CD or this, go with the CD.

Who would ever have thought that Joe Cocker would still be recording and touring 35 years after the release of "Mad Dogs and Englishmen. This 35th anniversary edition DVD has one big advantage over the original release, and that is superior sound and picture quality. This film captures the frenzy and energy of one of the greatest rock tours ever. Cocker and a 43 member entourage stormed across America for several weeks, playing to packed houses and rave reviews. Although this event nearly ruined Joe Cocker, it never the less captures a young Joe Cocker in his wired prime, belting out such favorites as "The Letter", "Feelin Alright", "Delta Lady", "Space Captain", "With A Little Help From My Friends", "She Came In Through The Bathroom Window", "Honkey Tonk Woman", and a heartfelt rendition of George Harrison's "Something", just to name a few. This film captures a hippie commune circus with back stage footage, interviews etc. To music fans today, this will seem somewhat dated, but to us baby-boomers, this was cutting edge rock music of the times, when we had a proliferation of AOR radio playing this music everyday. I highly recommend this Dvd to all classic rock fans, as well as the companion 35th anniversary cd, which is loaded with 10 bonus tracks, which has now displaced the original recording as obsolete. Hopefully, the Rock n Roll Hall Of Fame will wake up, and realize that COCKER POWER is alive and well, and induct this deserving rock legend.

Filmed in the year after Woodstock, with a new band backing Joe. When youve got Bobby Keyes, Leon Russell behind you, and Rita Coolidge as one of the backup singers, theres not much more to say. The Letter and With A Little Help From My Friends were the standout numbers. Eat your heart out Phil Spector, my wall of sound is bigger than your wall of sound!

quelle tour spontané et joie de vivre. plus possible aujourd'hui.

久しぶりに見たくなって購入しました。高校生の時に映画で上映されていました。懐かしかったです。この時代のロックはどれも良いと思います。

Joe Cocker at his best

dieses wirklich klasse zeitdokument ist nicht nur ein muss für cocker fans, nein eigentlich für alle die rock mögen....ein durchaus gelungener konzertfilm zeigt eine reihe von talentierten musikern am höhepunkt ihres schaffens....mit freude bei der sache und wirklich harmonierend die truppenehmen wir doch einfach cocker her: sichtlich noch nicht gezeichnet vom konsum, kraftvoll und energiegeladen. mit seinen unverkennbaren verrenkungen ist er einfach kult....der großartige leon russell an der gitarre, ein riff von ihm bedeutet mir mehr als keith richards gesamtes lebenswerk.....die nummern sind allesamt großartig interpretiert, abgerundet mit klasse backstage aufnahmen sowie interviews....gant toll:"feelin alright" da konnte es der cocker halt noch..."let it be"- interessante interpretation eines beatles-klassikers...."honky tonk woman"- hätten die stones es so spielen können hät ich mehr platten von ihnen..."with a little help from my friend"- wieder beatles, sowieso gefiel mir cockers rockige version immer besser, hier großartig eingefangen....."something" auch hier beatles, kann mich nicht entscheiden welche version ich besser finde....das schöne booklet ist ein feines gimmick und als nicht unerwähnenswert einzustufen...der sound und das bild sind unter historisch einzuordnen, hat mich aber keine sekunde wirklich gestört, dafür gibts aber bei aller fairness einen punkt abzug....Fazit: klasse, toll gemacht, aussagekräftig und so wirds gemacht......

Item arrived intact. Well packaged.