B.B. King: Live at Montreux 1993 on Blu-ray Disc Review
By Brandon A. DuHamel
The Performance
Born Riley B. King on September 16, 1925, the bluesman now known to the world as B.B. King is one of the most successful and influential blues artists in history. In the 1960's, King was already a highly regarded musician in blues circles and abroad, but in the United States King remained a relative unknown thanks to racial segregation, which also meant the segregation of the airwaves and performance venues.
King and other fellow bluesmen like Muddy Waters and Willie Dixon would eventually rise to prominence amidst the British Wave of bands that, without hesitation, referenced these veterans as the major influences on their style of electric Anglo-blues. Eventually, King's talent and his time spent hanging out with bands like The Rolling Stones would yield the bluesman what is still the biggest hit of his career, "The Thrill is Gone," in 1970. The single, written by Rick Darnell and Roy Hawkins in 1951 would reach #3 on the Billboard Black Singles chart and #15 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart.
In 1993, the singer/guitarist with the silky smooth, relaxed style on the guitar would play the famous Montreux Jazz Festival, a longtime stomping ground of jazzmen and bluesmen alike. King himself has made nearly twenty appearances at the festival. This release from Eagle Rock documents that 1993 occasion, and it is a grandly entertaining affair. Supported by a tight backing band, B.B. King pulled out old favorites like the Louis Jordan classics, "Let the Good Times Roll" and "Caldonia," "Rock Me Baby," and of course, his signature song, "The Thrill is Gone."
B.B. King: Live at Montreux 1993 will be a real treat for fans of King and his style of blues, and it continues Eagle Rock's run of strong concert video releases on Blu-ray Disc nicely. I recommend this without hesitation.
The Picture
B.B. King: Live at Montreux comes to Blu-ray in a 1080i/60 high definition AVC/MPEG-4 encoding from Eagle Rock that looks relatively good, with natural colors, good shadow detail and a lack of any noticeable compression or processing artifacts. Contrast is a little low, giving the picture a somewhat dull appearance at times and overall detail is a bit soft. Close up shots look the best with solid details in skin texture, clothing and instruments, but other than that detail is not as sharp as it could be. Perhaps these deficiencies have more to do with the 1993 recording than the transfer itself, but this concert video still won't "wow" anyone with its picture quality.
The Sound
Whether you choose the LPCM 2.0 or DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless option, you're going to get a superbly balanced, full sounding recording with deep but not boomy bass, a punchy midrange and clear vocals. The high frequencies sound a little rough and brass instruments may be a tinge on the grating side, but they do not detract too much from overall enjoyment of the performance. The DTS-HD MA 5.1 track is mixed from an audience perspective and adds a reasonable level of ambience to the surround channels.
There is also a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack available.
The Extras
The extras on this release come in the form of three bonus performances from a B.B. King 2006 performance at Montreux. The tracks available are:
- "Why I Sing the Blues"
- "When Love Comes to Town"
- "Guess Who"
Final Thoughts
With both a lively performance from the 1993 Montreux Jazz Festival and bonus performances from the 2006 Montreux Jazz Festival, this Blu-ray disc is a must have for fans of the legendary bluesman. The video quality is not quite up to modern standards, but it is good enough and the sound is well recorded and mixed. Run out and get this one as soon as you can.
Where to Buy
Product Details
- Performer: B.B. King
- Video Codec: AVC/MPEG-4
- Audio/Language: English LPCM 2.0, English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, English Dolby Digital 5.1
- Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
- Number of discs: 1
- Rating: NR (Not Rated)
- Studio: Eagle Rock Ent
- Blu-ray Disc Release Date: June 2, 2009
- Run Time: 114 minutes
- List Price: $24.98
- Extras:
- Bonus Tracks 2006:
- "Why I Sing the Blues"
- "When Love Comes to Town"
- "Guess Who"
