Search - Live in Germany on DVD

A stunner. I've danced, laughed and cried. For real.

Pharoah S. Wail | Inner Space | 09/22/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I got this on 9/20/06 and I've watched it 3 times so far. Usually I wait longer... more spins 'round the old Victrola before I review something, but this needs a high-praising review right now.

Wow! Excellent sound, incredible performance. This is all solo Brozman. He is THE MAN. Three Nationals, 1 of his Weissenborn types of Bear Creek guitars and a charango. These are the tools of the Magic Trade, in Bob's hands.

This is deep-groove kinetic music that's all about rhythm, tone and human connection. And I don't mean "beats". I mean RHYTHM. His idea of improvising isn't just making a "jam" longer, or playing a tune the same way he always plays it but then changing the solo. Bob has found music in the spaces most American guitarists never even consider. Beyond that, he's not merely a guitarist since he plays National Tricones most of the time. He's the guy who has unleashed the sonic potential of the physics of Tricones more deeply than anyone else. Ever.

If you have Bob Brozman In Concert, you'll find Bob to have grown tremendously since then. Bob's greatest attribute may well be that he is perpetually open to learning. The way he's playing here... oh my god! He has grown so much as a musician since In Concert. Hopefully you already own Live Now (the live album available via his website). Live NOW owners have no doubt already decided that new Bob kills old Bob. We are in the absolute golden era for us Bob Brozman fans. Right now at age 50, this is the best he's ever played. That is, until next year or 5 years from now.

The concert itself is a couple hours or so, then there is a guitar (music in general, really) workshop segment as well as a great interview. Since the site doesn't list them, the songs are Down the Road, Rattlesnake Blues, Hawaiian Heatwaves, Debussy A La Reunion, Jinx Blues Hop, Neuro Training Box, One Steady Roll, Love in Vain, Guitar Anthropology, Death Comes Creepin', Death Calypso, Hammock Blues, La Vie En Rose, Rolling Through This World, Little Tough Guy Blues.

Even if you're not a "concert dvd" person, if you like or love Bob, you need to have this. Heck, buy it, crank it and watch birds out the window or something. A Brozman fan without this will be missing out on what is, musically, 1 of his best releases so far.

(2/8/08 edit: In another great leap of songwriting, almost a concept album really, make sure to give his newest album, Post-Industrial Blues, a chance. I'm in love with that one as well.)"

Somebody, give that man a tabla!!!

D. Moore | NH | 02/05/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I bought this expecting just another fine program of warm Hawaiian slack key to get me past the blah end of yet another harsh New England winter. I found myself transported to a small German nightclub to sit among the lucky admirers of Bob Brozman and hear him play. The sublime and luscious lighting (often reminding me of flowers), clean camera work and sound are all top notch. Everything supports Brozman's performance beautifully.
At least on this particular night, Brozman is intense - both a genius and a madman. He pulls from blues and jazz and classical. If he was a painter, I would describe him as a cross between Dali and Jackson Pollock. He bends time and presents each selection in layer upon precise layer of variation. Seriously, along with all his other fascinating instruments I would like to see him play the tabla, even though I watched him replicate the sound perfectly by his musical (mis)treatment of his surroundings and his instruments.
After watching this DVD I have mixed feelings. I've witnessed genius and unmatched expertise. He has changed my sense of time. But if this was all Bob Brozman would choose to do, I would miss the simple enjoyment of hearing more conventional, more naive arrangements which he, of course, can also perform like no other. I suppose that if I was an accomplished guitar player (and not just an appreciative listener) I might never look back."

Amazing!

Sea Otter | Millbrae, CA United States | 03/13/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I am a part-time musician and although my main instrument is the bass, I also enjoy playing other instruments, especially the guitar. I purchase a lot of live music DVDs to see how people play what they play. Bob Brozman has a unique style of playing the acoustic guitar (mostly the steel resophonic guitar but other guitars too). He plucks the strings so hard you wonder how he keeps all the strings from breaking. He's good at getting all kinds of sounds from his guitars by his very percussive way of playing and they way he uses his slide. His rhythms are pretty amazing. His vocals are rough and almost funny at times but he also uses his voice as another instrument during some of the songs. He covers blues, Hawaiian, and some "Indian" sounding styles. The show is recorded live in a small German club and occassionally the camera swings around to show the people in the audience so you get an idea how intimate the setting is. Watching this enabled me to expand my own style further."