Search - The Complete Monterey Pop Festival- Criterion Collection [Blu-ray] on Blu-ray

Essential but not complete. Where's Janis?

Karen Anderson | USA | 05/18/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I begrudgingly give this DVD boxed set five stars because this is a fantastic, albeit incomplete, document of the most important rock event in history. Everyone who considers themselves to be a rock fan should own this set. Having said that, the filmmaker's idea of "complete" is questionable in terms of the long-awaited outtakes disc, especially when you consider that he devoted five, count 'em five, outtake songs to Tiny Tim, and only one (??!!!) to Janis Joplin, who was considered "the star" of the festival as stated by Mama Cass in her commentary included in the package. (Not to mention Big Brother guitarist James Gurley, who received equal praise at Monterey as did Janis.)This sad state of affairs is beyond explanation. Why wasn't Big Brother and the Holding Company accorded their entire set instead of one token song, which is "Combination of the Two?" There is very little footage of the singer that exists at all, anywhere. Knowing that there is an entire set of her landmark performance stored somewhere in a vault is maddening.The Grateful Dead are also missing in action. Sadly, the liner notes in the package proclaim them to be one of the outstanding acts of the festival. Even if there was scant little footage captured, it could have been included. I'd much rather watch them than suffer through five ditties of Tiny Tim in the green room. Despite the peace and love vibe, you can imagine yourself if you were there, slapping him upside the head for being an annoying idiot. Laura Nyro, who supposedly bombed at Monterey, is given two outtake songs, but it's interesting to discover that she was quite captivating. (The festival review included in the booklet states that Nyro and the Byrds were the low point, which again makes one wonder why the filmmaker chose to highlight three Byrds songs on the outtakes disc, rather than BBHC/Janis.) The Mamas and the Papas are bestowed with their entire set on the outtakes disc; no surprise since they were the ones who founded the festival. In the commentary by John Phillips, he states his group turned in the worst performance of the festival. Not true; they were excellent, as highlighted on this disc. Hats off to the Association, who proved that they were a progressive, musical force to be reckoned with. I would have reveled in being able to witness more than just one Association song ("Along Came Mary") in lieu of five, I must repeat, five pathetic Tiny Tim songs. URRGGGGH. And if you also own the Monterey Pop complete CD boxed set, you will know that the Electric Flag was introduced as the greatest band in the world, considered a top act at the time. Give me five of their songs featuring the great Michael Bloomfield instead of five of Tiny Tim's, pleeze.I hate to keep being a cranky head, but another incredibly annoying addition is the "expert" commentary about the Jimi Hendrix performance. This guy, with his pedestrian music reviewers' pomposity, sets forth the lamest comments imaginable. (Such as: "And I might add that you have to be very confident in your masculinity to wear a pink feather boa.." or "nice flairs, Jimi." etc.. GROAN.) Well, don't let my grumblings keep you from purchasing this set. You'll find yourself wondering why more wasn't included too, but the complete Jimi and Otis performances are worth the entire price, plus you have the original film, which was incredible, and some great, if incomplete outtakes, and tons of info and features to sink your teeth into. Plus the fantastic, candid shots of the many hip and beautiful people in attendance. Buy it."

"Summer of Love" revisited

Ted | Pennsylvania, USA | 10/25/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This box set released by the Criterion Collection is one of the most impressive sets they've released to date. It contains the original "Monterey Pop" film plus three others "Jimi Plays at Monterey" "Shake! Otis at Monterey" and "Outtake Performances"

Disc one has the first film "Monterey Pop" which portrays the festival from construction to the festival's end.

It contains performances of (in sequence): "Combination of the Two" by Big Brother and the Holding Company, "San Francisco" by Scott McKenzie, "Creeque Alley" & "California Dreamin'" by the Mamas and the Papas, "Rollin' and Tumblin'" by Canned Heat, "59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)" By Simon and Garfunkel, "Bajabula Bonke (Healing Song)" by Hugh Masekela, "High Flyin' Bird" and "Today" by Jefferson Airplane, "Ball and Chain" by Big Brother and the Holding Company, "Paint it Black" by The Animals, "My Generation" by The Who, "Section 43" by Country Joe and the Fish, "Shake" and "I've Been Loving you too Long" by Otis Redding, "Wild Thing" by Jimi Hendrix, "Got a Feelin'" by the Mamas and the Papas, and "Raga Bhimpalasi" by Ravi Shankar.

Disc two contains the films, "Jimi Plays at Monterey" and "Shake! Otis at Monterey"

The Jimi Hendrix film contains performances of: "Can You See Me?", "Purple Haze", Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", Monterey", "Killing Floor", Foxy Lady", "Like a Rolling Stone", "Rock Me Baby", "Hey Joe", "The Wind Cries Mary" and "Wild Thing". At the end of the performance he sets his guitar on fire and smashes it.

The Otis Redding film contains performances of: "Shake", "Respect", "I've Been Loving You Too Long", "(I Can't Get No) Staisfaction", and "Try a Little Tenderness"

Disc 3 contains the "Outtake Performances" These are the artists and the songs played (In order): "Along Comes Mary" by The Association, "Homeward Bound" and "Sounds of Silence" by Simon and Garfunkel, "Not-So-Sweet Martha Lorraine" by Country Joe and the Fish, "(I Heard Her Say) Wake Me, Shake Me" by Al Kooper, "Driftin' Blues" by The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, "All I Ever Wanted to Do (Was Love You)" by Quicksilver Messenger Service, "Drinkin' Wine" by The Electric Flag, "Chimes of Freedom", "He Was a Friend of Mine", and "Hey Joe" by The Byrds, "Wedding Bell Blues" and "Poverty Train" by Laura Nyro, "Somebody to Love" by Jefferson Airplane, "Flute Thing" by The Blues Project, "Combination of the Two" by Big Brother and the Holding Company, "For What It's Worth" by Buffalo Springfield, "Substitute", Summertime Blues", and "A Quick One While He's Away" by The Who, "Straight Shooter", "Somebody Groovy", "San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)", "I Call Your Name", "Monday, Monday", and "Dancing in the Street" by The Mamas and the Papas. Finally there is a performance by Tiny Tim of "King for a Day", "Laugh, Clown, Laugh", "May God Be With Our Boys Tonight", and "My What a Funny Little World This Is".

The first two discs also have special features.

Disc one has a theatrical trailer and radio ads, video interviews with D.A. Pennebaker and Lou Adler, audio interviews with John Phillips, Derek Taylor and others. There is also a facsimile of the scrapbook and audio commentary by Lou Adler and D.A. Pennebaker.

Disc two has the following:

For the Jimi Hendrix film there is audio commentary by Charles Shar Murray, a trailer and a video interview with Pete Townshend
The Otis film has an interview with Otis Redding's manager, Phil Walden and two audio commentarties both by Peter Guralnick.

There are none on Disc three.

There is also over 60 pages of essays, a list of performers and a lot of other stuff.

This is a must buy for people interested in the festival!"

Revelatory performances.

Eric S. Stroud | 01/07/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The film restoration work looks and sounds magnificent. Eddie Kramer gets extra congratulations on the 5.1 audio mix. That said, the 3rd disc is mainly in stereo only.

Karen's review below is a bit harsh. If you actually listen to the main film's commentary, you will understand why more footage isn't available: Not every second of 3 days of performances were captured. Concert films did not exist as a genre at this time (see the annoyingly choppy 'Festival!' documenting Newport), so this was new territory and the point of the film was to make a document that gave an overall feel for the event and time. Pennebaker and his crew had to decide which songs to film, which seems to have been predetermined by Dylan's buddy Bob Neuwirth who was more familiar with the scene than the filmmaker. They would turn on a red light on stage to signal to start filming the next song. At some times, they didn't have a plan and the camera men would shoot at their discretion, so some performances may have been captured by only 1 camera and therefore considered not presentable. Also, film reels would end during performances and need to be changed (approx every 20 minutes), hence footage missing from two of Jimi's songs.


Regarding the lack of more outtake footage:
1. Your precious Janis and Big Brother's new manager Albert Grossman didn't allow them to be filmed the first day, but finally they were asked to play again the next day because of the crowd reaction and the desire to get something on film. The whole set could exist but I doubt it. Grossman and his need for control is probably to blame, and it's no coincidence that Woodstock's filmmakers were also refused to use her footage in the original release. She only appears now in the directors cut.
2. The Byrds set is extremely historic, and that is one that should have been included in whole if it exists.
3. The Who's set is only missing 'Pictures of Lily' not counting 'My Generation' which is in the proper film. It is on bootleg Who dvd's so why that wasn't included is inexplicable. I would have like to have seen all footage from each artist's set put together on the bonus disc including the songs included in whole or in part in the actual final film, so that it's all in one place. What we get is anything besides what made the final cut.

4. As far as Tiny Tim, yes his impromptu performances are annoying, but they are part of just that, impromptu candid backstage footage supplied as bonus, not part of the 2 hours of bonus footage. So, skip past it like I did and get over it.

5. Regarding the Grateful Dead, a small glimpse is seen at the beginning of the 'Jimi Plays Monterey' film, but the liner notes from the 4CD box set from 1992 tells us, that like Janis, the band and or management refused to allow any audio or visuals to be used. I assume they didn't like their performance, or wanted to control it like the rest of their own vault. The whole festival was for charity, as we also learn from the supplementary interviews, and the artists therefore had to sign waivers releasing the rights to their performances. My guess it the Dead refused to comply.
6.The real shame is that there is no footage of Lou Rawls' electrifying set, which would also show more of the diversity of genre's that were at the festival.
7. Charles Shaar Murray's commentary during the Hendrix film is actually quite insightful and entertaining. Yes, there are some funny comments about substances and clothing. He wrote a definitive biography of Jimi, and his commentary is well founded and gives context to why his perfomance at the festival was revolutionary.

That said, this is a definitive package, and a must own release for a serious rock collector's library."

Must-see; must-hear; must-have

Eric S. Stroud | 11/22/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Run, don't walk, to pick up this DVD set. In addition to a crisp rendition of the original classic movie (with choice of audio options including 2.0, 5.1, DTS and original), and a second disk of Otis Redding & Jimi Hendrix, the addition of never-before-released performances on the "Outtakes" disk 3 make this release even better than the original. Revel in the innocence of 1967.
Feel the shiver down your spine as you hear (every nuance of) Janis Joplin delivering "Ball & Chain" to the appreciative audience (including a stunned Mama Cass Elliot)."Outtakes" doesn't do disk 3 justice - these are mostly concert-quality renditions, some with remixed 5.1 audio: Simon & Garfunkel (Sounds of Silence); Jefferson Airplane (Don't you need somebody to love); Scott McKenzie (San Francisco); Buffalo Springfield (w/o Neil Young, For what it's worth); another Janis Joplin, to name but a few. This set was worth the wait."