Some Enchanted Evening (Expanded & Remastered) (CD/DVD) [Live]

What a great package and a treat for BOC fans. Not only do we get the album restored to it's original length but also video footage of a different show when BOC were probably at the peak of their career. The only reason I didn't give this 5 stars is because of one thing: why are "Don't Fear The Reaper" and "Godzilla" missing from the DVD? They're both on the CD, and even though the DVD is supposedly from a different show on the same tour, you know they did those two songs, so why would their two biggest songs not be in the video? For that matter, why isn't the DVD a full length show (it's only an hour)? Obviously they shot the whole show, why leave any of it off? Other than that minor gripe, I'm very satisfied and happy to see this come out. If there's more in the vaults, keep it coming.

From the second the new, remastered disc of SEE began to spin in my player, I could tell the sound quality was head and shoulders above the previously issued budget-priced disc released by Columbia; without having to crank the volume, my home office transformed into arena level sound and I was transported back to the late 70s and Blue Oyster Cult in their prime. SOME ENCHANTED EVENING always seemed like an afterthought compared to the band's first live set, the killer ON YOUR FEET OR ON YOUR KNEES, but now that the disc has been enlarged to almost full concert length (c'mon, 73 minutes is NOT a full BOC concert!), it finally makes a great companion piece. KNEES was Stage One, encompassing those first three groundbreaking albums and captured the Cult at a live frenzy; EVENING captured them at the height of their post AGENTS OF FORTUNE fame and glory. And finally, after years of listening to muddy bootlegs, we get to relive the excitement of "Five Guitars" as the Oyster boys storm the stage with Joe Bouchard pounding his bass as brother Albert jumps his drum kit to join the wrecking crew, guitar in hand. While the drum solo became a cliche in the 70s, few bands had a player good enough to enthrall us with a bass solo (and for the record, I consider the Bouchard brothers the greatest rhythm section in hard rock; Albert, a multi-instrumentalist, seemingly has never been given his due as a drummer -- for my money he's up there with Moon and Bonham as a drummer's drummer, and Joe comes close to matching the late, great Entwhistle as a "thunderfingers" to be reckoned with). This disc is now a great showcase for all members of BOC, a fact that is sadly not reflected by the concert DVD.

The DVD is the reason I can't give SEE a full five stars. The picture and sound quality leave a great deal to be desired, and yes, it's disappointing "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" and "Godzilla" are missing, but that said, the DVD is an invaluable record of the BOC in concert during their 77/78 period. I would like to know why this was filmed (was it a "live broadcast" projected onto screens at the arena? -- there doesn't seem to be any indication when the stage is shown in long shot). The camerawork is competent but not particularly imaginative, and the footage looks exactly like what it is -- video shot in the late 70s. I can understand why the record label didn't attempt to remaster the footage as it would only emphasize the limitations of the source material. Unfortunately, the camerawork does not do the BOC light show justice, and where are the freakin' lasers? (The legendary lasers are used twice in this DVD.) However, it would have been nice if they had remixed the sound, at least boosted the stereo, which should have been possible if the sound was recorded through the mixing desk. These gripes aside, any BOC footage is better than none. This is an essential addition to any Cult fan's collection.

I must say that I don't understand some of the criticism of this DVD!!! I think it deserves at least 4 stars simply because of the era in which it was recorded/filmed. Not only is it far superior to the "Live in 1976" BOC DVD, I can easily think of a dozen DVDs from the late 1990s to today that don't sound or look as good as this one. So, you obsessives used to modern releases need to get over yourselves when it comes to the limited quality of much of the stuff from the 60s, 70s and even early 80s and appreciate it for what it is. Remember, not every band had Led Zep's or the Stone's recording budgets!!

As for the new version Of "Some Enchanted Evening"....where to begin!!! I was quite excited to hear of its release not only because it's one of my favorite BOC albums; I was at the Fox Theater show in Atlanta that two of the songs were recorded at. So, naturally, I was curious as to where the bonus tracks were recorded, but, even more importantly - where the DVD was filmed!!!

And, therein begins the problem!! First, I think someone wasn't paying close attention to the original record because only 2 songs on the original are from Atlanta; "R.U. Ready 2 Rock" and "Kick Out the Jams" - "E.T.I." and "Astronomy" are actually from a show in Columbus, GA, 2 nights earlier.

But, according to the new booklet, all 4 are from the Atlanta show!! Oh well, I could make some joke about Yankees thinking Atlanta IS all of GA, but I think this is a simple oversight on someone's part. One thing I DO know is that they are the EXACT SAME recording of "Astronomy", good `ole Buck Dharma never plays the exact same solo twice, I don't think he can!! So either the original release, or this new one, is wrong. And considering the original 1978 release had the name of the venue as well as the date and city, I'm betting on it's correctness over this new re-release!!! And, to answer my initial question, none of the additional tracks are from my Atlanta show and the DVD was filmed in Landover, MD.

And my initial viewing of the DVD may help to explain some of the bad reviews......as much as I love BOC I have to agree that it's not all THAT good!!! But, disagreeing with the other reviews, I don't think it has anything to do with the quality of the sound or look; it's the performance of the band itself that's off!!!

Bands, like everyone else, have good days and bad days and Zappa himself once commented that contracting to record and/or film was almost a curse because, inevitably, someone would be sick that night or just having a bad day. A perfect example of this is Led Zeppelin - as good as "Song Remains the Same" is, anyone who has seen the new DVD 2-disc box know that the band was absolutely ON FIRE that night in 1975 at Earl's Court. So much so that it clearly shows in the filmed performance.

This BOC DVD, on the other hand, is the complete opposite and the band clearly wasn't "on" that night. Too bad they didn't film one of the GA shows; the Atlanta show, even almost 30 years later, stands out in my mind as the best of the 5-6 times I saw them and the "Astronomy" on the CD (from Columbus remember, not Atlanta) is THE single best version of that song I have ever heard.

And, to those who are complaining about the lack of "Reaper" and "Godzilla"...I say SO WHAT, it's not like we don't have 5 thousand versions of those 2 songs already!! I think it's great just finally having video of one of my fave BOC songs - "The Golden Age of Leather"!!

Bottom line, If you are a B.O.C. fan and can't get your hands on a copy of "Black & Blue", don't let the bad reviews scare you out of spending a few $$, go ahead and get this. If you only like BOC in passing, then get their modern DVD release, "A Long Day's Night!!!" Modern film & recording, great setlist and Eric Bloom's voice is almost as powerful as it was 30 years ago!! It's just not the original line-up!!

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