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DVD Review:
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble
Live At Montreux
Copyright 2011 Christina M. Guerrero
DEDICATION
R.I.P. SRV. This one is for you.
STORY BEHIND THE STORY
I love this DVD.
ABOUT THE DRAFTS
About Draft Number One:
When I posted this on my site,
I noticed that it was the thirty-fifth article I had written for Suite101.
Stevie Ray Vaughan died at age 35.
Concerts from 1982 and 1985, a short documentary, and a twelve-page booklet make this a must-have item for SRV fans.
A Professional Presentation
During the 1982 concert on the DVD Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble: Live At Montreux 1982 & 1985, the band is booed regularly by a few people in the audience. Vaughan and his band continue to play and none of them respond to the rude noises.
Vaughan continues to interact with the audience between songs; aside from rarely looking up from his guitar, he does not indicate that the troublemakers are bothering him until he walks offstage with his head slightly bowed. This dedication to professionalism is evident in all aspects of the DVD.
Two Different Concerts, Three Years Apart
Although the band plays an almost nonstop rapid shuffle-time for sixty minutes during the 1982 concert, pausing only for Vaughan to explain the history of a few songs, drummer Chris Layton says in a 2001 interview (printed in the DVD's booklet) that they were “heartbroken and bewildered” by the audience’s response and says during the DVD’s documentary that he does not like to watch this concert.
They left the stage not knowing that within a few moments English rock musician David Bowie would be looking for them, and that within less than a day, American rock musician Jackson Browne would enter their lives.
Vaughan would eventually play lead guitar on Bowie’s Let’s Dance album (Vaughan can be heard playing a haunting solo towards the end of the single song “Let’s Dance”); and Browne would offer recording studio time to the band. The Montreux DVD’s twelve-page booklet explains more about the band’s associations with Bowie and Browne. The DVD’s 1982 concert is in good condition: clear, with excellent sound.
Three years later, on July 15, 1985, Vaughan refers to the band’s experience in 1982 by gleefully explaining that it was the first time they were booed. They proceed to play fifteen songs, and are accompanied masterfully by blues guitarist and singer Johnny Copeland on “Cold Shot,” “Tin Pan Alley,” and Look At Little Sister.”
Vaughan plays brilliantly, especially on “Voodoo Child (Slight Return)” which he dedicates to Jimi Hendrix, one of his influences, and the song’s original composer and performer. Other songs include “Pride And Joy,” “Mary Had A Little Lamb” and “Texas Flood.”
During this concert, musicians may be interested in Vaughan’s interactions with bass player Tommy Shannon; they communicate frequently during the concert, sometimes with only facial expressions. The 1985 concert is also in good condition although, for reasons known only to the camera operator, the concert is sometimes shot from several rows above stage left, providing lengthy wide shots of the whole band rather than close-ups of individual members.
Bonus Features And The Booklet
Disc One of the DVD also includes Success In Disguise, a short informative documentary about Vaughan, bassist Tommy Shannon and drummer Chris Layton; their experiences in Montreux; and how Vaughan almost became part of Bowie’s entourage.
Those who are interested in the DVD, but who may not be familiar with Vaughan's life, should know that Vaughan died at age thirty-five in a helicopter crash in 1990. Both Shannon and Layton speak emotionally and fondly of Vaughan during the documentary, as do Jackson Browne and American musician John Mayer, who comments on various aspects of Vaughan's life and music, and who considers Vaughan a major influence.
The booklet provides supplemental information about the Montreux concerts and background, including extensive quotes from Vaughan, Layton and Bowie. Also of interest is a postcard on the back of the DVD cover, signed “Stevie and Lenny (his wife)” and a sepia-tinted photo of Vaughan in concert.
A Treasure For SRV Fans
Fans of Stevie Ray Vaughan should be delighted with Stevie Ray Vaughan And Double Trouble: Live At Montreux 1982 & 1985.
Sources and further reading:
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble: Live at Montreux 1982 & 1985. DVD. Michael B. Borofsky and John Jackson, producers. USA: Sony Music Entertainment Inc., 2004.
Patoski, Joe Nick and Bill Crawford. Stevie Ray Vaughan: Caught In The Crossfire. (Boston: Little, Brown & Company, 1993).
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