As flatscreens get bigger, sound systems widen their expanse, and video in general becomes easier to access, live rock and roll is just about everywhere. You can go to YouTube and see bits and pieces of everything we’ve listed below and then some (much of it questionable in quality). However, if you want the complete picture and have a home theater system to optimize their potential, we think the following 10 best Vintage Rock Live Videos of 2013, available on DVD, Blu-ray Disc and/or both, are the next best things to being there.
Aerosmith ~ Rock for The Rising Sun
Nine years have passed since Aerosmith have released a proper live video, so why not do it with meaning. Rock For The Rising Sun, on DVD and Blu-ray disc, is really more of a concert film feature with longtime Aerosmith video collaborator Casey Patrick Tebo in the director’s chair. The concert, of course, is only part of the story. In March 2011, an earthquake struck Japan, causing a horrific tsunami and the meltdown of the Fukushima nuclear plant. Eight months later, against all warnings, Aerosmith came to Japan in an effort to soothe the country’s woes with their music. The film ultimately aims to capture the relationship between Aerosmith and Japan by combining live footage from shows played around the country along with the usual kind of on-tour interludes you typically see in rock ‘n roll movies — hanging out backstage, talking to the press, traveling from city to city, roller-coaster rides, impromptu appearances, mingling with fans, and shopping for clothing and cutlery. Read more >
The Rolling Stones ~ Sweet Summer Fun: Hyde Park Live
Oh boy, it’s another live video from the Rolling Stones. But wait — Sweet Summer Sun: Hyde Park Live is really something special, with enough wings to warrant a film beyond an earlier audio download. Celebrating their 50th anniversary, the Stones played before 100,000 on their home turf in London, their first gig at Hyde Park since 1969 when they celebrated the life of Brian Jones, who had passed away a few days before, and introduced the world to their new guitarist, Mick Taylor. As it so happened, Taylor would be joining the Stones as a special guest for their triumphant return to Hyde Park. Read more >
Carlos Santana & John McLaughlin ~ Invitation To Illumination – Live At Montreux 2011
ThWhen guitarists Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin collaborated on 1973’s Love Devotion Surrender, it was grounded in their devotion to Sri Chinmoy, an Indian spiritual Master who guided both musicians in their quest for enlightenment and peace of mind. The record contained two pieces written by jazz legend John Coltrane for his own spiritual prayer, A Love Supreme. Santana and McLaughlin / Mahavishnu Orchestra fans were divided by the record, but nearly 40 years later, the payoff is an incredible reunion in the form of Invitation To Illumination – Live At Montreux 2011. Read more >
Black Sabbath ~ Gathering…In their Masses
There’s no denying that 2013 has been a bombastic year for Black Sabbath. First there was the aptly named studio album, 13, the first one with Ozzy Osbourne since 1978’s Never Say Die. Naturally, a tour followed and now, it gets a little extended love with a live release. For Sabbath, who’s always thrived on a concert stage, Live…Gathered In Their Masses (on CD, DVD and Blu-ray), shot in Melbourne, Australia, is the culmination of everything the Black Sabbath reunion set out to be. And maybe even more. Read more >
Deep Purple ~ – Perfect Strangers Live
In 1984, what was once deemed impossible actually happened: The classic second lineup of Deep Purple reconvened, cut an album and hit the road. It wasn’t easy, especially when you consider the tensions between guitarist Ritchie Blackmore and singer Ian Gillan. Somehow, some way, they were able to put their differences aside and record the brilliant Perfect Strangers album. The follow-up, The House Of Blue Light, didn’t quite measure up with its predecessor and 1988’s Nobody’s Perfect, a live album based on their 1987 The House Of Blue Light tour, didn’t little to temper a situation already on a downward spiral. It’s taken nearly 30 years, but Perfect Strangers Live, a double CD, DVD and Blu-ray Disc release that captures that first reunion tour, is finally here to show the cynics how it was done. Read more >
The Doobie Brothers ~ Live At the Wolf Trap
It’s certainly been quite the revolving door over in the Doobie Brothers camp over the past 40 years. Live At Wolf Trap, the group’s DVD recorded in 2004 at Virginia’s famous outdoor concert shed Wolf Trap, features original Doobies Tom Johnston, Pat Simmons, longtime guitarist John McFee, a grouping of blisteringly perfect horn players, and the last footage of drummer Keith Knudsen. We get 23 tunes running throughout the band’s history. Read more >
9) Concert For Ronnie Montrose – A Celebration Of His Life In Music
Maybe if Ronnie Montrose had known how loved and respected he was, things would have turned out differently. As it is, the Concert For Ronnie Montrose – A Celebration Of His Life In Music, staged at San Francisco’s Regency Ballroom and filmed for DVD release, is jam-packed with some major A-listers, paying homage to the guitarist who passed away on March 3, 2012. The show features the music and songs from various chapters in the Montrose story. Read more >
Bryan Ferry ~ Live In Lyon
Leave it to Bryan Ferry to film his show at the ancient Roman amphitheatre in Lyon, France as part of the Nuits de Fourviere Festival on July 25, 2011. Like the exotic, cosmopolitan aura of his music, Ferry and his slick 13-piece band (which includes two drummers and two dancers) are indeed well-dressed and adept in their chosen roles. Together they are elegantly captured and preserved on Live In Lyon, available on Blu-ray Disc and DVD. Ferry himself, even with graying temples, is virtually the same guy you saw in front of Roxy Music — radiating de rigueur, class and incalculable sophistication, virtually undiminished by the passage of four decades. Read more >
Flying Colors ~ Live in Europe
A group with only one studio album is typically not in the position to be issuing live sets, but Flying Colors is an exceptional case. When you have guys like drummer Mike Portnoy and guitarist Steve Morse involved, rules are broken and individual back catalogs are prime for the plucking. After a couple small stateside shows to road-test the material and get the juices flowing, Portnoy, Morse, bassist Dave LaRue, keyboardist /singer Neal Morse and vocalist / guitarist Casey McPherson headed over to Europe for a short fall tour in 2012. Seizing the opportunity of getting the five together, a show in Tilburg, Netherlands was filmed, recorded and now available as the double CD and DVD/Blu-ray Disc release, Live In Europe. Read more >
Move Me Brightly: Celebrating Jerry Garcia’s 70th Birthday
Jerry Garcia would have turned 70 on August 1, 2012, and like most any sort of event in the world of the Grateful Dead, it was a worthy notion for celebration. As other members of the Grateful Dead, especially Bob Weir and Phil Lesh, continue to fly the freak flag, a small friends-and-family-only concert at Weir’s TRI Studios in San Rafael, California, took place two days after Garcia’s posthumous seven-decade milestone, and filmed for prosperity. The concert serves as the centerpiece of Move Me Brightly: Celebrating Jerry Garcia’s 70th Birthday, now on DVD and Blu-ray Disc. Read more >
