Customer Reviews:
Brilliance.......2007-09-07
Although I tend to agree with previous reviewers over the production of this video/DVD of this seminal concert I still cannot give it less than 5 stars.I was there,18 years old and completely knocked out by the greatest rock band I have ever seen.Cream simply 'were'.The fact that the camera tends to focus on Bruce's mouth and the back of Clapton's head is pertinent but irrelevant.....you still hear Clapton's amazing guitar work.Baker's drumming is also majestic.
I too wish that this had been a straightforward filming of the concert but,alas, not to be.
Nevertheless...........what a great gig it was!!
That still shows through.
Ruined by mad egotist film director.......2007-09-05
As a piece of history this could be regarded as a must have and as it's quite cheap, it won't break the bank to get it.
However there are major flaws in the presentation here. The sound is actually pretty good and it is Cream so the music is broadly excellent. The video quality however is pretty poor, but the worst part is the camera direction. If you have epilepsy you will have to avoid this as each track involves shot/scene cuts at a faster rate than a strobe light. Really, there are sub-second cutaways all the time. The camera director must also have been related to or paid by Jack Bruce because even during brilliant Eric Clapton solos, the camera is usually on him and anywhere but on Clapton or god forbid his guitar. During Crossroads, one of EC's showcase solos you dont get even a glimse of the playing. (I've just watched the whole DVD again and the total time ECs guitar or his playing are actually in shot cannot amount to nore than a minute or so.(
The other "director's showpiece" is to overlay psychdelic images over everything, presumably to emphasise the then current hippy/druggy/psychodelic culture.
One thing you can tell from this DVD is how lacking in drive and energy the new Cream re-uniuon set is compared to this.
They must have been really something live....... but this is ultimately disappointing as it really doesn't show you that, mainly due to the cameraman/director believing he was part of the occasion. He should be strung up for ruining this little bit of history.
It must be possible to re-work the footage and release a better/cleaner version
Great music, shame about the production.......2007-05-25
Yep, it's pretty much down to that. I'm told that not all the footage on this DVD is actually from the final farewell show. Certainly, Eric must have nipped off sharply to change his shirt...However, the music is as good as it gets for someone who didn't get a chance to see Cream live.
And then there's the production; hmmm, well the sound quality is poor, the interviews interrupt the performances, there's voice-over, some "nice" lava-lamp effects and "psychedelic" camera-shake, much too little footage of the band as a whole - basically, it's rubbish. Oh, and was the final show ONLY 8 songs???
As a DVD of a live performance of any other band than Cream, I'd have given it 1 star at a push. For the performance only it's worth 3 stars but for Cream fans only. Shame, could have been brilliant.
I rented it to see if it was worth buying - it isn't.
A Better Version Of The Original TV Doc........2006-05-21
Like some fellow reviewers I attended this show at age 17. Cream had played Bournemouth's Pavilion Ballroom but I'd missed them. When the news broke of the Farewell show I was at Poole Tech studying 'O's. A flyer appeared on the noticeboards around college giving the Albert Hall box office address; 12/6d the ticket, I believe. 14 of us went up there in a 12 seat mini-bus, dropped outside the RAH, we hadn't heard about the matinee 'extra' show in the afternoon, had we, we may have tried attending both; but grateful for the one nevertheless. The show was fabulous despite the band's later statement that it "wasn't one of their best," and whilst charged with the adrenaline of seeing Cream live, it was also sad as they would never play together again.
In the January, the original of this DVD was shown on BBC2. With a reel-to-reel tape recorder, the microphone hanging in front of the TV speaker on a 12" wooden ruler held flat on the top of the TV by an ornament, I taped the show. Had to, I'd been there! Other than the memory, it was all I had as a legacy.
Eventually the same TV show was released on video, then on DVD, and now, this 'extended version.' It must be said I always had something of a grudge against Tony Palmer for not releasing ALL the footage from the show; after all, those of us whom attended are over 50 now, and I think it would be a great idea to do this whilst we're still alive and here as an audience to buy it. However, after watching the interview with Tony on the new 'Classic Artists Cream Authorised Story' DVD, I have a little more patience with the man as, it seems, his ride in filming the show was not an easy one.
However, this release is pretty good. We have the original TV Doc, plus another 'extended version' with complete songs rather than those edited down for the doc. Much better. But it'd still be great to see the whole show as it was filmed, or as much of the footage as possible, please, Tony.
You will notice and no doubt have, how Eric changes from the red shirt he wore for the show to wearing an orange jacket on the Farewell doc.; even the guitars change! In Tony's interview, he says they kind of 'robbed' another doc featuring Cream, titled 'All My Loving,' for the excerpts of the trio in longer-haired days explaining their instruments, and this same doc must've been the source of the orange jacket/different guitar clips cut into the Farewell footage.
For me, this is a great release as it's some more of the Farewell show, but again I emphasise, if Tony Palmer or Chris Welch happen to read this, let's get the whole show out for us old duffers to be charged up with euphoria and adrenaline once again before they lower us down the hole in the wooden box!
Don't believe the knockers!.......2005-11-09
It's fine - they play exceptionally well. A friend who saw the programme many years ago and remembered it not being very good was blown away by watching the DVD. As for the commentary: it's of its time in that it tries to challenge what it sees as the current establishment view of rock musicians - and I applaud this intention; all three are interviewed about their musicianship; and they all display an interest in being interviewed. Interesting to see the innocent character of Jack Bruce, the darker more knowing Clapton, and Ginger's shyness. If you don't like the sound, try fiddling with the presets on your DVD player or hifi - my cheap Yamada DVD player has a Rock preset that makes this concert really burst out and grab you. They have such an amazingly accomplished and dignified way of performing their music and what a beautiful pair of voices! It would be nice to see more people play this way - treating their audience as grown-ups but without lacking raw rock power.
Customer Reviews:
Great Performance ruined by egotist film director.......2007-09-05
As a piece of history this could be regarded as a must have and as it's quite cheap, it won't break the bank to get it.
However there are major flaws in the presentation here. The sound is actually pretty good and it is Cream so the music is broadly excellent. The video quality however is pretty poor, but the worst part is the camera direction. If you have epilepsy you will have to avoid this as each track involves shot/scene cuts at a faster rate than a strobe light. Really, there are sub-second cutaways all the time. The camera director must also have been related to or paid by Jack Bruce because even during brilliant Eric Clapton solos, the camera is usually on him and anywhere but on Clapton or god forbid his guitar. During Crossroads, one of EC's showcase solos you dont get even a glimse of the playing. The other "director's showpiece" is to overlay psychdelic images over everything, presumably to emphasise the then current hippy/druggy/psychodelic culture.
One thing you can tell from this DVD is how lacking in drive and energy the new Cream re-uniuon set is compared to this.
They must have been really something live....... but this is ultimately disappointing as it really doesn't show you that, mainly due to the cameraman/director believing he was part of the occasion. He should be strung up for ruining this little bit of history.
It must be possible to re-work the footage and release a better/cleaner version
Now we're getting there!.......2006-10-13
Okay, this version is the best so far. With a running time of 127 minutes and the insert declaring 'Special Extended Version,' it exceeds the other, slightly newer 'extended' 'Farewell' DVD by 2 minutes. That version, with the black insert with a photo of the band within it, has an 80 minute version and the original 45 minute TV version from 1969. This version has the original TV version, plus an extended version with the extra track of 'Steppin' Out;' released for the first time ever, I believe.
So, on this, we have complete versions of 'Sunshine Of Your Love,' 'White Room,' 'Politician,' 'Crossroads,' 'Steppin' Out,' 'Sitting On Top Of The World,' 'Spoonful,' 'Toad,' and 'I'm So Glad;' along with the original interviews and instrument demonstrations from the band. Much better, we're getting there. We still have Patrick Allen's commentary, but not so much of it, which is a relief; and that awful 'psychedelic' bit which spoils 'Spoonful.'
But I'm grateful. However, my letter to Tony Palmer would read something like this. Dear Tony, Like you, I was there on November 26th, 1968, me for pleasure, you working. Then, I was 17. Now, I'm 55. Is there any chance, please, can you (or someone) release the whole show from start to finish without Patrick Allen and the psychedelic bit before I turn my toes up? If so, myself and everyone else who was there will be very happy people, and will be able to depart this mortal coil fully satisfied with our lot. Thank you.
Other than that, of the various versions of the Farewell show available, this is the best one.
Just play.......2006-06-18
Forget the lyrics
Forget the message
Just play
This is a review of the Special Extended Edition.
I grew up on the Cream and never realized how short lived they were or the dynamics of the people that make up the Cream. This DVD allows one to revisit the time and place with a new vision. Hindsight can be as entertaining as the original vision.
The cream went with me into the Vietnam War so they are hard to forget. Even today I find myself singing "in the Sunshine of your love" and someone in the next cube would finish. One day that will be my ring tone. I'm always telling my wife to get into my big black car. Speaking of cars they make great driving music. Now I actually have a visual to match with this film. You definitely need this for your collection.
Customer Reviews:
This is how it was shown on the BBC2 documentary........2006-10-07
Younger buyers beware! From the two reviews below I guess these people didn't know this DVD was all we had as a memory of Cream's 1968 Farewell show? Yes, the Patrick Allen voice-over is extremely boring by now, very patronising, and making the 'then' generation out to be a bunch of freaks; (okay, we were as far as our parent's and grandparent's generation were concerned as we had rebelled againt the short-back-and-sides and were regarded as freaks, let-alone the 'free-love' and 'consumables' they didn't get to hear about!). But this is and was it, Patrcik Allen, band interviews, (which are great, especially Eric with that fabulous to-die-for psychedelic Gibson SG!), and heavily edited clips of the songs in true 60's documentary fashion.
But you must remember, music of this new and young rebel generation was odd, they, the BBC in particular, didn't know how to handle a doc like this. Our music was new and fresh, it had only been going since 1961 or 2, and of course, this reflects in this programme with its rather dyed-in-the-wool almost Last Night of the Proms treatment. It was a miracle the BBC even realised this show was the end of not only a world-famous band, but also the end of an era, and were (upon hindsight) gracious enough to even bother filiming it.
It's not possible for the younger rock/music fan to travel back to 'how it was' in the 60's, and I honestly wish you could, then you would realise that crappy and 'Heath Robinson' as this DVD may appear be, it's actually solid-gold; the best we have, and far better than the nothing there would have been had 'Auntie' not cobbled it together. A statement of the times in more ways than one.
Cream rocked!.......2001-02-19
Maybe there is lengthy interviews, but the music still remains a tribute to the creators of the genre!
excellent music hidden among a lot of blether.......2001-02-13
A bit of a disappointment, this. I eagerly slotted the DVD in the drive, but it turned out to be a frustrating experience. I bought it for the music - I got a lot of talk, and it is difficult to get to the songs. The scene selector leads you to lengthy intros, followed (at the far end!) by each of the eight songs included. So if you come home after a frustrating day and want to play White Room, you have to fast-forward it past those endless intros. The sleeve notes mutter about wonderful music interspersed with interesting interviews, but it is the other way around. Sure, it is interesting to hear Ginger Baker talk about his techniques, but to be obliged to go through that every time? That's not spoonful, to me...
DVD Review:
- Crowded House - Farewell To The World [2006]
- David Bowie - The Best Of Bowie [2002]
- Dear Mr Fantasy
- Def Leppard - The Best Of
- Del Amitri - The Videos
- Diana Krall - Live At The Paris Oly [2001]
- Dido - Live At Brixton Academy (DVD + Bonus CD) [2004]
- Dig! [2004]
- Don Henley - Live Inside Job
- Electric Light Orchestra: Out of the Blue, Live at Wembley [1978]
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Cream - Royal Albert Hall - 2,3,5,6 May 2005
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Royal Albert Hall: London 2-6 May 2005
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