Distributed by
Sanctuary Digital Entertainment

Cert:

Cat.no: SDE 2011

Running time: 73 minutes

Year: 1990

Pressing: 2002

Region(s): All, PAL

Chapters: 13

Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1

Languages: English

Subtitles: None

Fullscreen: 4:3

16:9-Enhanced: No

Macrovision: Yes

Disc Format: DVD 5

Price: £15.99

Extras: Brit Awards clip, "Rockmeister" clips

Some groups celebrate milestones by playing Castle Donnington, some played Wembley, but the Quo play... Butlins. Yes, that's where their roots began. I don't know anyone who'd want to go to Butlins and I can't say that this gig would've changed my mind.

The concert footage is mixed in with footage of old - and not very well, so it's an ill-at-ease mix, with notes scrolling along the bottom of the screen about what happened during the years. If you do take an interest in watching such a DVD like this, it would be something you'd look at once and rarely return to. If you are a fan, you've no doubt got all the videos and CDs and they don't play their music any differently on this stage.

The fact that this release was filmed and came out on video 12 years ago doesn't help things either.

There are 13 chapters on the disc, each with a track, which are as follows:

1. Caroline 2. Roll Over Lay Down 3. Little Lady 4. Medley 1 5. Hold Yer Back 6. Down Down 7. Medley 2

8. In the Army Now 9. Rockin' All Over The World 10. Don't Waste My Time 11. Medley 3 12. Burning Bridges 13. Medley 4

Filmed in 4:3, the picture is reasonable but not particularly outstanding as you get little more than some ageing rockers belting out their old hits, and not a single sign of "Pictures of Matchstick Men", which I did like.

The sound comes in both stereo and Dolby Digital 5.1, according to the menus, but the latter doesn't sound anything like a DD5.1 soundmix should. Old footage just sounds muffled and the concert footage shot at Butlins just sounds like when you've tweaked your TV so that the sound is now using the 'wide' or 'ambience' mode. In other words, stick with the original version as it certainly doesn't envelop you either way.

Extras? A 5-minute piece about their Brit Awards 1991 award and around the same for an interruption from the Rockmeister, some pillock who looks like an ageing Radio 1 DJ and is trying to teach a couple of "rock chicks" all about the Quo. He also crops up during the gig when a red showreel logo appears and he's intensely irritating.

There's a subtitles option for English, but nothing uses it(!) The menus are nicely laid out and have some clever bits between them, such as the jukebox menu (scene selection), but if the nicest thing you can say about the DVD is a menu, it really questions the purchase.

FILM CONTENT PICTURE QUALITY SOUND QUALITY EXTRAS
OVERALL

Review copyright © Dominic Robinson, 2002.