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Ah, the documentary – while the word can conjure up painful memories of vapid educational films or hours stuck in an art-house theatre learning about the
life and times of Bob Ross, we’re here to prove that documentaries can indeed rock. For your viewing pleasure, we present three DVDs that will provide
both knowledge and entertainment.
Keith Richards – Under Review
The intro of this documentary doesn’t bode well for things to come, with a
Richards-esque – rather than genuine Keef – riff playing beneath the
voice-over, giving the viewer the
i mpression of a long two hours ahead.
L uckily, it seems it”s a case of a small
b udget rather than lack of vision.
Refreshingly, the focus here isn”t so
much interviews with Mick and the
rest of the band, or ex-wives and
girlfriends, or even with Keith him-
self, although they are present; it”s
about how Keith affected change,
first within the band, then with
the band”s music, and ultimately
within popular culture. Let”s face
it – even today, at the height of
elegantly-wasted couture, if the
Toronto-bust-era Keef walked by,
heads would still turn.
Having sat through and read
many bios of the man, as well
the Stones, I was surprised
at the amount of knowledge I
had gleaned by the time the credits rolled. The interviews
in Under Review rely on those who were within Keith’s periphery during
the Stones’ heyday; among them critics Anthony DeCurtis and Robert
Christgau of Rolling Stone magazine. Christgau, in particular, makes some
of his trademark laser-like insights throughout, and DeCurtis is just plain
funny.
Other standouts include interviews with rock critic Chris Welch and biographer Kris Needs, who both offer insights that only people close to Richards
could offer: Keith as a family man and a junkie, a musician and a husband,
a man willing to live with his choices and their outcomes. Interviews with
legend Bernie Worrell – P-Funk founder and member of Richards’ X-Pensive
Winos – are alone worth the price of the DVD.
Oddly, some seemingly key points are conspicuously absent: a few major
albums, Black and Blue, Ronnie Wood’s first Stones foray, and the last
commercially and artistically well-received Stones album, Tattoo You, aren’t
even mentioned. Additionally, Some Girls gets slagged pretty hard, whether
deservedly so is debatable.
But despite its shortcomings, Under Review is thoroughly enjoyable, and
easy to recommend to any Keith Richards aficionado, or anyone wanting to
learn more about the man behind the legend. -JE
$19.95
mvddistribution.com
Strat Masters
This video opens upon the late Rory Gallagher playing some delicious slide
on his workhorse Stratocaster. As the notes ring through your ears, there’s a
distinct feeling of this is going
to be good. And for
the most part, Strat
Masters, a two-disc
epic of a documentary about the most
famous instrument
to emerge from
Fullerton, California,
d oesn”t disappoint.
The bulk of the film
consists of interviews
with famous Strat
aficionados –
heavyweights like Jeff Beck,
M ark Knopfler and
R obert Cray show up
t o pay their respects.
While generally
enlight-e ning, this reliance on
artist interviews is a real
d ouble-edged sword;
there are some hilarious moments spent with Ry
Cooder (When asked if the guitar changed the world: “The electric guitar
made a huge difference to the world – Jesus!”) and some great stories
from Bruce Welch, but there are equally as many longwinded interviews
that slow the film’s pace and divert the focus. This film is at its best when
it covers the guitar that ties all of these musicians together, not the other
way around.
Commendably, the film spends a considerable amount of time exploring
the technical side of the instrument. There are in-depth discussions, by the
artists themselves, about the effects of string gauge on the instrument’s
sound, the use of the classic 3-way switch to achieve different sounds and
the defining traits of single coil pickups – culminating in an oddly-placed trip
through Seymour Duncan’s factory. For the true gearheads among us who
relish discussing scale length and winding techniques, this DVD will provide
hours of amazement.
Inevitably, there were some production decisions made that might not
vibe with viewers –while Jonah Sithole, an African guitarist with Blacks
Unlimited, is featured and Richie Kotzen’s first signature model (actually a
Telecaster!) is discussed at length, Eric Clapton’s Blackie is somehow lost
in the mix and there’s even less mention of a Strat-toting bluesman known
as SRV. The narrow focus and considerable length of this video may leave
some players fidgeting in their seats, but for the Fender faithful, Strat
Masters is definitely a ride worth taking. -AM
headstockmedia.com
72 PREMIERGUITAR NOVEMBER 2007
www.premierguitar.com
