The History of Rock and Roll
Binding : DVD
ProductGroup : DVD
Manufacturer : Time-Life Video
Brand : Warner Brothers
Label : Time-Life Video
Publisher : Time-Life Video
Studio : Time-Life Video
ReleaseDate : 2004-06-29
Lowest Used Price: USD $21.00
Lowest New Price: USD $28.99
Ten titanic hours of the greatest rock extravaganza ever! This definitive 10-part documentary covers rock 'n' roll history from its humble beginnings in the '50s to Lollapalooza in the '90s. Fans can experience their favorite rock 'n' roll moments all over again through hundreds of exclusive interviews, classic footage, and unforgettable in-concert performances from rock 'n' roll's biggest stars. A must-own for any rock 'n' roll fan!
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Serving as an introduction for neophytes and a refresher course for experts, The History of Rock and Roll is a mammoth and, when considered on its own terms, frequently successful undertaking. The series, which was first presented in 1995, consumes some 578 minutes, with 10 episodes (there are no bonus features) spread out over five discs. Its pedigree (executive producers include Quincy Jones, while respected writers Peter Guralnick and Greil Marcus are listed as consultants) is impressive, as is its scope, beginning in the pre-rock days of bluesman Muddy Waters and boogie woogie master Louis Jordan and continuing through the death of Kurt Cobain and the birth of the Lollapalooza festival in the mid-1990s. Along the way, dozens of big-name performers (with the notable exception of the Beatles) are on hand to lead us through the story.
On the minus side, the format--clips of musical performances cut short by a parade of talking heads--while typical of the genre, will frustrate those who come for the music alone. Nor is it likely that anyone who studies such things will find much here that hasn't already been seen. To be sure, there are some terrific moments, like the profile of Bob Dylan (in part 5, "Plugging In"), some cool clips of relatively obscure legends like James Burton and T-Bone Walker (in part 7, "Guitar Heroes"), and rarely seen live bits with Jimi Hendrix, Steely Dan, Iggy Pop (goofing on the Dinah Shore Show in '77), and many others scattered throughout the set. Part 8, which chronicles the '70s, is surprisingly compelling (one forgets how many major artists--Bruce Springsteen, Bob Marley, Stevie Wonder--came into their own in a decade remembered largely for disco and faceless arena rock), while part 9, "Punk," is arguably the most entertaining of the lot.
In the end, it's the lack of complete musical performances that is the set's Achilles' heel. Then again, with their appetites whetted here, perhaps viewers will move on to other, more detailed looks at their heroes--beginning with, say, The Beatles Anthology. --Sam Graham
History of Rock and Roll (2008-12-22)
It is a great DVD of our stars that made rock and roll today. Seeing this stars sing brings back great memorizes.
I recommend this DVD to anyone who likes music.
Great document (2008-09-07)
Some people say that it is bad, but for me, it's very good, because you can see and learn about rock different things, obviously, this documentary miss a lot of information and discard rock history of many countries, but nothing it's perfect.
History of Rock and Roll - DVD (2008-07-12)
Loving them - they go very well with the Rolling Stones History of Rock and Roll....HOORAY FOR GREAT SERVICE!!
Beware packaging...do not buy online here! (2008-01-17)
While this is an excellent documentary, (format of hour long segments is great for viewing and the interviewees range from Bono to Little Richard to Jerry Garcia), the box set does not ship well. Ordered from Amazon and received 3 damaged discs that had fallen out of the packaging. Amazon replaced once, but sent an even more damaged package that fell apart when the plastic came off. Amazon won't send more than one replacement and have no desire to help customers get a non-damaged product.
I finally ordered from Best Buy where I also received a boxset that had loose and damaged dvds (believe it's a problem with this batch of dvds) but they were willing to order two just in case that happened and I was eventually able to find a non-damaged set.
Save the time, energy and effort and don't buy here!
Do Not Buy This (2007-12-30)
I received this as a gift for Christmas this is not the History of Rock. The first band is U2 I like u2 but they did not start rock and then there is NWA (hip hop) and that is not rock and all this was in the first 20 min it has nothing to do with rock & roll it is different peoples thoughts on music and not even the founders of rock thoughts if you buy this and you will be so unhappy with it
