Search - Marcus Miller - In Concert on DVD

THE GROOVE MASTER

Jeff Arenson | Colorado Springs, CO United States | 03/06/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Marcus Miller's career has been diverse and amazing. He was the bassist for people such as Miles Davis and David Sanborn, he has written film scores, and produced for many an artist in Jazz and R&B. For me, Marcus is best when he displays his ability to groove with the best of them. Marcus is more than a bassist, he is a composer whose style reflects his funk and jazz backgrounds. This disc captures Marcus Miller live with his own band during "The Sun Don't Lie" tour. If you're at all familiar with Marcus, read no further. This is Marcus at his Funky/Jazz/Groove best. No tunes with lyrics, only pure instrumental Jazz/Funk that is heavy on the low frequencies.
The DVD is part of the Ohne-Filter series. The performance is only 60 minutes, but a great 60 minutes. There aren't any extras of note. However, the sound and camerawork are very good and the performance is classic Marcus. The band consists of Poogie Bell, who has been performing with Marcus for years; Morris Pleasure and Bernard Wright on Keyboards, Bernard provides the solos, while Morris adds bass lines and rhythm; Michael Stewart on Trumpet, who is more than solid and Kenny Garret on Saxophone, who provides some great moments. This DVD contains 4 songs that are pure Fusion/Funk and 2 that are Miles Davis sounding pieces. There aren't any R&B love songs that appear on other Marcus Miller recordings. I, for one, am all for a disc that is pure instrumental.
"Rampage" is the opener and is pure funk. This is followed by the Marcus Miller classic "Panther" which displays both Marcus' and Garret's soloing abilities and Bernard Wright plays some funky music as well. This is a definitive Miller tune, Funky bass, some killer slap, and horns to add to the mix. "Steveland" is next and is more mellow and provides a break from the Funk. I would have preferred more funk, but I can see why the set would have a song like this in it. "Scoop" is another Funk masterpiece. Marcus' soloing and bass lines are must hears for any bassist. He plays bass lines during Kenny Garret's sax solo that are just pure Groove. Garret's solo is great. After this, the Miles Davis side of Marcus is revealed. 'Tutu' was penned by Marcus for Miles and appears on one of the late great musician's CDs. Classic electric jazz on both of the last 2 songs.
Overall, this is a Marcus masterpiece. Once again I found myself debating 4 or 5 stars, but I reserve 5 stars for discs or DVD's that are unreal. 4 stars simply means that it is great. This is a must have for Bassists and fans of Funky Fusion. If you're a fan of bass or an aspiring bassist get this. There isn't a better teacher of the "Groove" than Marcus Miller."

Marcus, Marcus, Marcus!!!

drfancypantz | Sarasota, FL United States | 03/27/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This DVD gives a killer opportunity to see one of the all-time best bassists in the world in a live setting. It is a little short and the audio mix is pretty poor (the bass is a bit buried for my tastes, especially because is a Marcus Miller- led band!), but the performances are killer, and it's definitely worth a look and a listen.
Kenny Garrett and Patches Stewart both contribute well on their horns, and the keyboardists do well also; Morris Pleasure (who's also the musical director for Earth, Wind, and Fire!) plays great keyboard bass under Marcus' soloing, and the other guy on keys (whose name escapes me!) sure makes some goofy faces, but his solos are killer.
And then, of course, there's Marcus and Poogie Bell, who provide a solid foundation anyone would die for.
Overall, not the best sound and a bit short, but DEFINITELY worth the trip."

Home VHS 8-Hour Mode Quality Video - Audio Even Worse

Steven E. Hollingworth | Hemet, CA United States | 06/22/2006

(1 out of 5 stars)

"I bought this from Amazon.com and I don't understand all the positive reviews. I'm a Marcus Miller fan with several CDs proudly a part of my collection, and yet my advice to anyone considering this DVD is save your money - it's HORRIBLE!!!!! With video and audio that appear to be the product of someone's $199 VHS camcorder set for 8-hour economy mode, all I can say is that both audio and video are beyond horrible. It's not even 1980's homemade kid's birthday-quality video. Like a VHS copy of a VHS copy of a VHS copy! The audio is totally washed out. Think 1970's 19.99 portable cassette-recorder with a $4.99 Radio Shack microphone...Or as if recorded from the $199 camcorder's on-board microphone. Unless Amazon sourced it from the back alley bootlegs division this DVD rates a MINUS-20!"

Oh YES!!!!!!!

ice--man | Auckland, New Zealand | 04/25/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"You know, ever since I was first introduced to Marcus by my father back in 1993, when I was just a young lad of 14, I've taken up the bass guitar. I have to tell you one thing about this DVD, and that is: If you have seen marcus perform live (like me) then you are in for a real kick when you watch this! He is better than I could possibly have imagined, and its grat that he has finnaly put a DVD out on the market.
Although the quality of the DVD itself is not 100%, it is still good quality, and well worth the money. The feature track for me was "Steveland" which is off his album "the sun don't lie", Kenny Garret and Marcus settle into one mean groove, and it really blasts off! If you are a bass player, or even simply a fan of REAL music, then I have to say this MUST be a compulsary addition to your audio-visual library."