Product: Music for Montserrat (1997)
Rating: 4.0
Not perfect, but one of the best
I've owned the laserdisc version of this concert since it was first released. While the sound quality is occasionally disappointing (especially Sting), it's generally quite good. And most of the performances are excellent, particularly Knopfler, Elton, Clapton and McCartney.I'd buy it again, if only for the McCartney/Elton exchange on "Hey Jude." I've watched this concert many times, and it still sends chills everytime Elton's voice appears in the second verse of this song.As for the complaints about the "tambourine bloke" -- that's Ray Cooper, the legendary (with good reason) percussionist who has backed most of these performers in studio sessions, and who is a mainstay of almost every all star concert. If you want a video concert that will absolutely knock you over, try to find "An Evening with Elton John and Ray Cooper" -- it used to appear occasionally on the Disney Channel (oh, well, so did Annie Lennox's Central Park concert), and if I ever found it on a commercially released video, I'd pay almost anything for it. Listen to Cooper's incredible performance on this concert (or better yet, see one of the live Elton John/Ray Cooper, sans band, shows) and you'll never again complain about Cooper being a "distraction." Ray rocks!