Review of Bryan Adams Unplugged

Introduction

Bryan Adams is probably best known to most of you for his record breaking 16 weeks at number one in the UK singles chart with "Everything I Do, I Do It For You", from the soundtrack to Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. The song also appeared on his sixth studio album "Waking Up The Neighbours".

That`s right, sixth studio album. Because Bryan Adams has been making records since before 1980, when his debut album was released. He didn`t hit top form until a few albums later, with "Cuts Like A Knife" and "Reckless", and then had quite a long break before making more albums.

His other large claim to fame is that summertime rock radio anthem "Summer of `69", one of ten excellent songs from what is considered by many to be his best album, "Reckless".

Following in the footsteps of so many other artists, Bryan made his appearance on MTV Unplugged in 1997, and the vast majority of that performance appears on this DVD. There are a few tracks that are missing, some appear on the CD release, and one other appears as a b-side on a single.

Video

A full frame transfer, which looks pretty much like every other release in the MTV Unplugged series, with that "NTSC conversion" look to the visuals. At least the Unplugged releases are consistent in this way! One other thing that you spot is that the logos that appear before the ad break are still there!

Audio

A PCM stereo soundtrack, which whilst very good (sounds slightly better than the CD version), feels like a letdown, as several other MTV Unplugged releases have been remixed into DD5.1 with excellent results. There`s nothing wrong with the sound here, everything is clear and crisp, but it just seems like a missed opportunity to offer something over the CD version.

Features

A four page text biography, which tells you precisely nothing of interest, and nothing that you didn`t already know. And that`s it.

Conclusion

Another excellent musical addition to the MTV Unplugged series. The disc itself is not amazing, with an average picture, slightly better than CD quality sound and no extras, but it`s the performance that`s the most important thing.

The show opens with an excellent re-working of "Summer of `69", and moves onto concert crowd-pleaser "Cuts Like A Knife" as if these songs had been played unplugged for years. Adams is not afraid to dip into the back catalogue with new versions of "I`m Ready" and 1981`s "Fits Ya Good" sandwiching an excellent new song "Back To You".

"18 Till I Die" doesn`t really work in the new format, but "I Think About You" makes a very good bluegrass stomp! "If You Wanna Be Bad, You Gotta Be Good" and "Let`s Make A Night To Remember" join well as straight blues numbers, before the ill-advised "I Wanna Be Your Underwear" interrupts the flow.

The show finishes with an absolutely excellent performance of "Heaven" and Keith Scott`s excellent guitar work on "I`ll Always Be Right There".

Most fans will probably already own the CD of this performance, as it makes a brilliant album in its own right. This DVD doesn`t really add much, apart from a few different tracks. It`s a tough decision on whether you should buy this if you already own the CD - hardcore fans probably will.

An excellent "Unplugged" performance and a worthy addition to any music lover`s collection.