[.ca] Various: British Invasion Returns

From Amazon.com:
The British Invasion of the early and mid-1960s is alive and well in this reunion concert, recorded at the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut, and broadcast in 2000 as a PBS special. There's no way to recapture the exuberance of the original invasion that began with the Beatles in 1963, but as nostalgia tours go, this one's ambitiously inclusive, consisting of 31 songs by nearly all of the top performers that found fame on both sides of the Atlantic. They include Herman's Hermits, Mike Pender's Searchers, Billy J. Kramer, Gerry & the Pacemakers, and the Troggs. Each band plays two or more of their hits, and while some of these old-timers have lost their edge, the musicianship is consistently high (even if the voices aren't), and Eric Burdon turns his raspy bellowing into a stylistic asset, staying honest to his bluesy roots and allowing the New Animals ample room for lengthy instrumentals. (Of all these performers, only Burdon seems willing to stray from the familiar; the others repeat their hits with high fidelity.) And while this is more of a museum piece than a great rock show, it's a fine reminder that there was much more to the British Invasion than the Fab Four. Without exception, these are talented bands with a legacy of great songs, and the DVD's informative performer biographies will quickly get the uninitiated up to speed on the timelessness of this good ol' rock & roll. -- Jeff Shannon

Very good, but shows some warts.:
Overall, this is a good video for anyone who enjoys the music of the British Invasion; however, at least one of the performers (namely Eric Burdon) should have either sung his songs the way he did in the sixties when they were introduced and made famous, or not shown up for this concert. The way the concert was set up, the lead singers of each of the groups seem to be the only ones from the groups who performed - they used backup musicians, who did a fine job. Billy J. Kramer is losing his voice, Freddy Garrity looks silly jumping around (but is eminently loveable because he is obviously enjoying himself still), Peter Noone is excellent, the lead singer from The Troggs still sounds the same singing his beautiful hits, and these are just a few of the performers on this tape. The weak spot, however, is Eric Burdon, who still has the voice, but doesn't sing his songs the way he used to. He has changed lyrics, added too many instrumental breaks, and seems to think that he has improved his music. He hasn't. He should sing his songs the way he did when they first came out. Hello! They were hits back then for a reason! All in all though, a very good vhs that one can view many times without getting tired of it.

Could've been great, but.....:
Great selection of artists and songs,BUT: Eric Burdon should've sung his hits with the original arrangements and this show should have been recorded with better sound equipment. The sound on this DVD is only in stereo and TERRIBLE at that! I'll still watch it from time to time, but the above mentioned 2 items take away from my full enjoyment of this disc.

Worth While Adding To Your Collection:
I base my review of four stars on the number of songs I enjoyed (20 out of 31). I especially enjoyed Peter Noone/Herman's Hermits (6 songs), Freddie & the Dreamers (2 songs), and Clem Curtis and the Foundations singing Build Me Up Buttercup. Other songs are enjoyable as well. There are too many to list. If you enjoyed this music during its heyday, you'll enjoy it on this DVD.

The British Invasion Returns,:
I agree with others who rated it 4 stars. It would have been 5 Stars had there been some dialogue. Still, its nice seeing the guys again and most of them still sound great for their age.. The selections picked had variety and opened up my memory gates..

Brits rule ok:
MY FIRST AMAZON SHIPMENT... THIS AMAZES ME... THIS DISC NOT AVAILABLE IN UK... OR AUSTRALIA... THE PRICE DIFFERENCE IS STEEP COMPARED TO AUSTRALIA PRICES... BUT WHO CARES... THIS DVD WAS A PLEASANT SUPRISE... I WASNT EXPECTING THE QUALITY OF SOUND FROM THIS ERA... BUT ITS ABSOLUTELY GREAT.. EVEN THE AMERICAN AUDIENCE LOVED THE ACTS... THIS DVD COMPILATION MUSIC WAS OF MY PARENTS ERA... BUT THESE ARE CLASSIC SONGS AND WELL WORTH BUYING...