The Film
The height of Peter Gabriel's post-Genesis career was probably the 1986 album So. It unleashed a stream of hits and killer music videos (remember those?), which cemented Gabriel's superstar status. It also stands as the singer's best-selling album.
It took Gabriel three years to follow-up with Passion: Music for The Last Temptation of Christ and another three after that to give us the album, Us. That one netted quite a few hits as well. With his catalog and fanbase growing steadily, it's no wonder that when he embarked on the Secret World tour, cameras followed.
Eagle Rock just released Peter Gabriel: Secret World Live, which captured the singer's live show over two nights in Modena, Italy in 1993. The Grammy-winning film has a lot of songs you'll know ("Sledgehammer," "Solsbury Hill," "In Your Eyes," etc.), but also feels like an entire disc is missing. There's so much more material that isn't featured!
That said, Gabriel puts on quite a show. Secret World Live has two stages, crazy effects, choreography, and a few recognizable faces, including Manu Katche on drums, Shankar on violin, and a pre-famous Paula Cole on vocals. It's a well-rounded, entertaining 15-song set, which also includes "Steam," "San Jacinto," Don't Give Up," "Kiss That Frog," and more.
The Picture
The opening of this concert may have you feel like you're in the nosebleeds. It doesn't take long to get an upgrade, but even up close, the 1.78:1 image isn't really a good one. According to the back of the Blu-ray, this release was digitally restored and remastered from the original 16mm film. Yes, 16mm. Hope they didn't spent too much time and money on all of that tweaking, because it hasn't done a lick of good here. There's really not much that could have been done, but the image never gets sharp, the colors are off, and everything gets a little drowned out by the blue stage lightning.
The Sound
If you don't like the image, close your eyes and open your ears. The DTS-HD Master Audio track is pretty magnificent. Like many of Eagle Rock releases, this one defaults to LPCM Stereo, so you're going to want to bulk it up to the DTS-HD Master Audio track. The vocals are excellent, but the track makes a lot of use of the surrounds with various instruments (bagpipes!), sound effects, crowd sounds, and more.
The Extras
Fans will be treated to one extra song from this show, a piece that fast-forwards through the stage setup process, and an interview with Peter Gabriel talking about the tour. However, the real gem is "The Rhythm of the Heat," a little tease from the New Blood: Live in London Blu-ray, a newer performance that looks and sounding absolutely stunning.
Final Thoughts
Peter Gabriel: Secret World Live is a nice little flashback. Considering how Gabriel looked like a fleck from miles away the first (and every) time that I saw him, I wasn't too put off by the image. Also, it's the best it could possibly ever get. However, the audio more than makes up for the rest. It's excellent throughout, and enough to make this disc worth the purchase price.
Product Details
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