Another Great Music DVD In October

Last week I gave a sneak preview of Jimmy Page and Robert Plant’s Unledded, which arrives on DVD in late October.

This week, Matt Rowe of MusicTAP looks at another great music DVD also coming out this month: The Rolling Stones – The Rolling Stones’ Rock and Roll Circus:

The reappearance of The Rolling Stones’ Rock and Roll Circus is a shining moment in our musical history. This live audience extravaganza, conceived by Mick Jagger and performed in 1968, was intended for TV broadcast. It never made it. Due to perceptions and bad judgement, this excellent film lanquished on shelves for years until 1995, when it finally made it to VHS.

But we live in a DVD era where surround mixes abound and bonus additions thrive and make the package. The re-introduction of Rock and Roll Circus bring with it all the new features found on DVDs and then some more. The film iself is remastered to provide a new transfer from the original 16mm negatives. The 5.1 surrounds added into this package are largely ambient but a surround mix nevertheless. Stereo is PCM. The aspect ratio is standard 4×3.

For those who have yet to see Rock and Roll Circus and need a short primer on the film, it is simply this. Set in a circus atmosphere with live performances by Jethro Tull, The Who, the gorgeous Marianne Faithfull, Taj Mahal, The Dirty Mac (a convergence of talent featuring Eric Clapton (Cream), Mitch Mitchell (Jimi Hendrix), Keith Richards, and John Lennon), and, of course, The Rolling Stones and interspersed with trapeze acts and fire-eaters, this show embodied the emerging spirit of 70s rock.

I dunno–the free-form feel of it seems very ’60s, very different from the pre-packaged rock of the ’70s. But this was the last time the Rolling Stones played in public with founding member Brian Jones, who would be dead (via an accidental drowning) a year later.

But the band sounds–and looks great–as does the Who, who almost steal the show.

It’s out on DVD next week–check it out for yourself.