Search - The Animals and Beyond on DVD

Three and 1/2 stars: Interesting but lacking full music perf

James Zinn | Kansas City, MO | 02/11/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This video is a documentary of The Animals and Eric Burdon's bands after the Animals broke up, up to and including War.

There are quite a few interesting interviews and commentary but all the music contained herein is all just short clips.

At least they mostly interview people relevant to the story, mostly Eric Burdon in a really laid back way. There are also interview clips with Chas Chandler, Alan Price, etc., but the appearances of Sammy Hagar is awkward & out of place. I guess since he says he saw them at Monterey it has some relevance.

Very interesting stories about the Animals days, especially touring England on one bus with Jerry Lee Lewis and Chuck Berry, who apparently were not very compatible touring partners, to put it nicely. That story is a hoot. Also who knew that "House Of The Rising Sun" was done in one take, and their management (Michael Jeffries of Jimi Hendrix fame)and producer Mickey Most resisted even doing it. The story about Eric meeting Nina Simone was also very interesting. Interesting views about Jimi Hendrix, too, of whom Eric was supposedly a good friend of.

You could tell that early R&R management, producers, touring, etc. took its toll on musicians, even when they were strong and young. The Animals just got screwed from the get-go. No wonder why they didn't last.

All in all, a good documentary for Animals, Eric Burdon (and the Animals), and War fans. My main gripes are a lack of identification of people being interviewed (at least do it on their first appearance), and music clips that only last a minute or two. Come on documentary makers, many of us want to see the ENTIRE song, not just a short clip. At least make it a menu item to watch the entire performances separately, if possible. Warning - if you must have a performance clip of the song "Sky Pilot", it does NOT appear here.

Sound quality varies (stereo and mono) but is acceptable considering the sources."

Worth the money

M. fleck | 09/08/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Interesting dvd with some hard-to-find footage and interesting interviews. Must have for any Burdon/Animals fan; however, I was a little bummed that no full-length performances/songs were included. Also, the video primarily focused on the two incarnations of The Animals and Burdon's time with War was very quickly glossed over. :( All in all though, this was a great dvd and I recommend it."