Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Babs at her best, 12 Jan 2006
Beautifully packaged set of five discs with all the material that those of us who love the early Streisand (ie everything before about 1970) have waited for years to see. Priceless material, you can see why the first shows swept the board at the Emmys: the first three specials are true works of art, full of visual wit and flair. They fizz with the excitement of America's discovery of a highly unusual new star, one who was to be, for a short time, the final exemplar of the Broadway/Tin Pan Alley/Vaudeville tradition; who provided a bridge between the old order and the horror of Rock 'n' Roll.
Apart from the related LPs, many will have seen fuzzy bootlegs of My Name is Barbra and Color Me Barbra. The Central Park concert has been commercially available for some time on VHS. It is wonderful to have these shows available now in pristine DVD form.
Of enormous interest here though, are two shows that we have only really known through production stills: The Belle of 14th Street and BS... And Other Musical Instruments (though this latter also had an album attached). Unlike another reviewer here, I LOVE The Belle of 14th Street. True, it is highly unusual and some will not like seeing BS sharing the soundstage with other performers. Personally, I found the first two parts of the show enthralling, with excellent support from the great Jason Robards and a beautiful number from John Bubbles (the orginal Sportin' Life in Porgy and Bess). BS proves herself a wonderful team player too in some brilliantly mounted numbers and skits. Others will not agree but to me, the final solo section is the weakest here.
And Other Musical Instruments is also fascinating but... is it just me or is it a complete mess? There is a long production number in which she seems to be trapped in a nightmare where she is doomed to sing her old hits to wildly inappropriate accompaniments. She ends this bit by holding a note so long, you could leave the room and make a cup of tea before it finishes; when it does, she does a hammy act of staggering about breathlessly - but since it was mimed, what is the point? I felt that there was a hint of desperation in such a freakish, unmusical stunt. It seems to show how far she had come since the heady days of the mid-60s. The simplest numbers are the best here, with the Ray Charles duets (including one where she does not sing but just watches him enraptured) and I Never Has Seen Snow outstanding.
An absolute joy to have these shows!
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42 of 46 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A True Happening At Last, 24 Sep 2005
Finally after all these years and poor quality bootleg copies doing the rounds, the Streisand specials are finally coming to DVD in all their remastered glory.My Name is Barbra broke the television special mould in being the first time a performer could hold a whole hour with no guest stars, and what an hour. Every early Streisand classic..the voice in all its youthful exuberance. Color me Barbra, though not quite as good, is still a great musical outing for the great lady, if not the best collection of songs. A Happening in Central Park is almost that. I am sure if you were there that night it truly was a happening, but the televised version was a real mish mash, and not even presented in any order. What a missed opportunity at the time and sadly never to be repeated or restored, but still worth owning. Belle of 14th St..least said the better. In a word crap, apart from Barbra's mini concert at the end in the style of Sophie Tucker..Vot Vas She Thinking doing this special.Finally, and for me the 2nd best, Musical Instruments. Very experimental in it's layout, but the choice of songs is superb, apart from the big number at the end, which is a monstrosity. Barbra's voice soars to new heights, her look is modern, her style is hip, and her duet with the great Ray Charles is awesome. This set is a must own, and at last it is getting the treatment it deserves with a beautiful box, and booklet. Let's hope the long awaited DVD accompaniment to Just For The Record which is in the works, gets the same treatment.
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8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Barbra in all her glory, 5 Dec 2005
At last I have waited years to see this again. Any Streisand fan should not be without this collection.
Wow, wow, wow this is Streisand at her best, buy it !
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