Search - Blondie: Live in Toronto on DVD

Finally on DVD in the USA!

Henry Branham | Howell, MI USA | 09/18/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I can't believe this is finally on DVD in America! I LOVE THIS SHOW! My first concert ever was Blondie & Duran Duran in Detroit (August 9, 1982) only a week or so before this concert was filmed and it is one I will never forget. This Toronto show originally aired on HBO in March 1983 and has been on VHS ever since. Each time I watch it I am instantly transported back to that 1982 concert.
Obviously this was the end of the first phase of BLONDIE and critics were harsh in their reviews of the band's performance. While there may have been fighting, drug abuse, and intense drama behind the scenes at the time, I never would have known it watching this show. When Debbie Harry comes up in the elevator in the opening number ("Rapture") it's pure magic! I love how she loses her shoe in "Danceway" (such a classic Debbie mishap) and goes crazy during "One Way Or Another", to the point where she almost transforms into Cousin It from 'The Addams Family' (you have to see it to appreciate it)!
My only complaint is that the concert is too short (4 songs that were performed during the tour are left out) and that the box art is clearly a picture of Debbie from the 1970's and not 1982. There is also a CD version of this concert that was released earlier this year.
If you are a BLONDIE fan do not hesitate to buy this incredible and historic concert."

Get it, but don't expect it to be the best video you've ever

Adipocere | United States | 08/31/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"If you're a true Blondie fan, of course you have to own it. Recorded in 1982, it's probably the closest you'll ever come to seeing a concert recorded just before Blondie stopped touring and recording not long after release of The Hunter. As such, the performances are fair to middlin' on most songs. Frank Infante isn't even present.

Personally, I like the energy and enthusiasm of the Glasgow concert and the Musikladen videos better than this one.

And if you haven't already purchased the Eat to the Beat CD/DVD...don't even think of buying this before you've purchased that one!

High point: probably the performance of War Child has the most energy.

Low point: Frank Infante's replacement seems to be singing background vocals annoyingly off key in spots.

"

Blondie Live In: The Grainy DVD

C. W. Schultheis | Las Vegas | 01/15/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This DVD release is awful!
Immortal DVD should be ashamed. I have owned this concert on two other VHS releases and they both looked way better than this DVD.

My original 1984 Mono VHS of this looks entirely better.
This DVD looks like it was transfered from VHS and not taken from the original footage that was used for the HBO special this was filmed for.

The only reason I give this release 3 stars is becuase it contains 3 audio options:
2.0 Surround
5.1 Surround
DTS Surround

It sounds awesome but looks crappy.
There are other DVD releases of this concert out there. Get those instead.


"

End Of An Era

Timothy T. Ward | 07/16/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This review is about a month overdue since seeing Blondie in Baltimore, MD about five weeks ago on the Parallel Lines 30th Anniversary Tour. I watched this concert a couple of times prior and I could see more than ever how Blondie have come full circle. Recorded live in August of 1982, I can still remember when HBO aired this concert on my 13th birthday and seeing Debbie riding up on the elevator to an arena of cheering fans. This was Blondie's last dance before the budding musical tastes of American pop culture were to change again. Despite Chris Stein's declining health and Debbie reaching a burnout phase due to mounting tensions within the group, Blondie put on a great show and the added sax players enhance their sound quite nicely. The highpoint is "Heart of Glass" through "War Child," and even the weaker moments are not that terrible now by virtue of "Island of Lost Souls" never really holding up with most fans anyway, plus they encore with "Start Me Up," which I had dismissed as lame many years back, but now I see how Blondie value the Rolling Stones as an timeless rock inspiration. They included "Paint It Black" in their encore two years ago at a Buffalo, NY show, and ended their set with "Get Off Of My Cloud," during the Baltimore show. Blondie did define a time in music history from the emergence of New Wave in 1978 to the night they performed this very show in Tornoto, and called it quits not long after, but history has given Debbie and the band a second coming as trendsetters in pop, punk, and even classic rock, and this video illustrates the style Blondie created making it a must for both Blondie and music fans alike."