Lyle Lovett Album: “Sound Stage Presents Lyle Lovett: Live In Concert...”

Well, it's hard to go wrong with Lyle. This dvd gets a 4 because of the content. He is in rare form with the "large band" being as great as ever including some phenomenal vibes with Francine Reed.It was good to see them all together again and the thing about Lyle in this dvd is he really seems to be LOVING being there. Randy Newman and Mark Isham were awesome. There are great shots of him and the band and I will confess that I didn't know he had blue eyes until now!

Anyway, the biggest disappointment for me was the sound. Almost returned the disc and thought better of it. I think it is just the way it is. It goes from a full concert/stereo big sound to a canned, far away sound. That is the only way I can describe it. I am curious to know if others had the same problem. It also seemed like the lighting could have been better and the vision sharper. I am comparing this to some James Taylor DVD's and a Sarah Macglaughlan (sp?) that I have. Great content, but technically lacking.

I guess I'm becoming impatient for the new Lyle Lovett Live DVD. I bought this one to hold me over until then. I hadn't researched this one much so I didn't know what to expect when I purchased it. On first listen, I am impressed. I didn't know most of the songs since I only have Joshua Judges Ruth and His Large Band on CD. The song material is different than those two cd's so this is a bit of a change. In my opinion, it's not as bluesy or folky, but maybe more jazzy... i don't know, how do you categorize this guy? The sound quality is good, the video quality is good. If you like Lyle Lovetts music, you really can't miss.

The music is enjoyable, but Lyle has no stage presence whatsoever and honestly, his facial expressions and looks are very distracting from the music. Not to sound mean, but he has the perfect face for radio.