Doin It Again [Blu-ray] [Import]

VIDEO:

Beach Boys’ Doin’ It Again, a documentary, arrives at blu ray with 1080p 1.78:1 encode. The picture quality was uneven, because footages were derived from many sources. The 50th anniversary live concert footage was good. Colours were generally subdued. Details are there, including all those fine white hair strands. Blacks are inky. Those black and white footage, especially the never-been-shown before Good Vibrations, is great and simply priceless. The same applies to the old footage from the 60s. (3.5/5)

AUDIO:

The Dolby True HD 5.1 lossless track is great, especially the live concert footage. You can hear the four part harmonies of the Beach Boys…simply wonderful! The live band was very tight, with great drumbeat! Still, Dennis Wilson will be missed. The falsetto sound is clearly defined. Here, Carl Wilson is also missed. I always have trepidation about aging pop group, trying to revive their career with concerts at the twilight part of their career. This is definitely not true with the Beach Boys. The beautiful harmony sound is still in the forefront, crystal clear. With a great backing band, the final sound is like those from the 60s. Remarkable! Dialogue is clear. (4/5)

HISTORY:

The original Beach Boys consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Carl Wilson, and Dennis Wilson, with their cousins Mike Love and Al Jardine. They were known in high school as Kenny & The Cadets, Carl & The Passions, then The Pendletones. The Beach Boys ignited the surf-rock craze. Al Jardine was replaced by David Marks from 1962 to 1963. Brian quit touring with group in December 1964, replaced briefly by Glen Campbell, until Bruce Johnston joined permanently in April 1965. Brian continued to write for and produce group, and returned to stage in 1983. Daryl Dragon (of Captain and Tennille) was a keyboardist in their stage band. Dennis Wilson drowned on December 28, 1983 at age 39. Brian, Mike, Alan and Bruce continued to perform. John Stamos joined briefly in 1992. Carl Wilson died of cancer on February 6, 1998 at age 51. Brian Wilson’s daughters, Carnie and Wendy Wilson formed the group Wilson Phillips.

AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS:

The Beach Boys were enrolled into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame in 1988, and were awarded Grammy’s Lifetime Achievement in 2001. They have 62 charted singles on the Billboard Hot 100, with four Number 1 hits (I Get Around, Help Me, Rhonda, Good Vibrations and Kokomo). On Billboard 200 Album Chart, they have an amazing 51 charted albums, with Endless Summer and Beach Boys in Concert both reaching number 1. Their latest album release this year, That’s Why God Made the Radio, reached Number 3! Their most memorable video appearance got to be that in the T.A.M.I. show with their vertical white and blue stripes. Please note that the T.A.M.I. show including the lost Beach Boys footage is now available on DVD. Please check my review of this set separately.

DISC CONTENTS:

To commemorate their 50th anniversary as one of America's most beloved and chart-topping bands, The Beach Boys launched a triumphant 2012 reunion that has earned them massive critical accolades. This disc captured the moments of the surviving members Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine, David Marks and Bruce Johnston gathered earlier this year for an emotional reunion in Los Angeles to record their first album of new material in 20 years, to reflect on their remarkable history, and to kick off a worldwide tour.

The hour-long set features exclusive 2012 interviews with The Beach Boys, live performances from the band's 2012 world tour, never-before-seen footage from the 1966 "Good Vibrations" recording sessions, moving tributes to founding members Carl and Dennis Wilson and behind-the-scenes footage from the recording sessions for their new That's Why God Made the Radio CD.

There are many songs performed during this short hour, starting with Do It Again, and ending with a full concert version of Surfing USA. Other songs include popular hits, like I Get Around, California Girls, Help Me, Rhonda, Little Deuce Coupe, Catch A Wave, God Only Knows, Fun Fun Fun, etc, but not usually complete version, with interruption by commentaries. Good Vibrations footage really showed why Brian Wilson is a true genius. For trivia buff like myself, it is also nice to know that the Beatles were very impressed with Pet Sounds album, and their song Here, There and Everywhere was “inspired” by the song Wouldn’t It Be Nice. And the Beach Boys was voted Number 1 group in 1966 in England, beating out Beatles and the Rolling Stones! Amazing feat! (content: 5/5)

Final Thoughts:

The Beach Boys: Doin It Again is what fans thought they'd never see: The Beach Boys, with warmth, perspective and humour, describe their past, their present and their future. Now that the Beach Boys have teased us with this documentary, how about a blu ray release of their 50th Anniversary Reunion Tour Concert. Apparently, they sing at least 48 songs in each concert, with almost one song from each of their long list of albums! This is my wish and the wishes of many of their loyal fans! Let’s keep up with all the Good Vibrations! Although just a documentary, this blu ray disc is the only high definition disc of the Beach Boys, and is very highly recommended for all music fans.

Lastly, except for the major releases, it is recommended to preorder as soon as the item is announced. In this case, I ordered the above disc for $11.99, and now the price has gone up to $14.99. The opposite is true for popular major releases. For example, Battleship blu ray was first announced at $26.99, then up to $29.99, then down to $24.99, and finally settled at $22.99, which I paid. Another example is Snow White and the Huntsmen blu ray, the initial price was $29.99, and now before release, it was lowered to $22.99. Order it now before the price goes up on release.

I hope the above review is helpful to you.

UPDATE (October 14, 2012)

Great news. The full 50th Anniversary Reunion Concert by the Beach Boys on blu ray is now available for pre-order. The title is called Live in Concert, and it is now for only $13.99. Pre-order it now because this price will definitely be going up later. It will be released on November 27, 2012. This concert has another significant meaning in that the Beach Boys now is essentially broken up, with the name owned by Mike Love. Brian Wilson and the boys are kicked out of the band. This is simply ridiculous. However, you can still enjoy the Beach Boys in concert. I shall review that as soon as I receive the disc. I am really looking forward to this concert.

Nice to see a Rockumentary done on the return of the Boys.....but why didn't they use the behind the scenes stuff and interviews as extras on a DVD? They should've made the full concert reunion the whole point of this DVD. Instead you get what amounts to a Rockumentary about their reunion with various snippets of their concert and some interesting archival footage. It's well done but if you're one of many who didn't see them live, it would've been great to see the full concert instead of interruptions with talking heads. Let's hope they get it right and release the real deal when their tour comes to an end. The Boys deserve it!!