Live At Montreux 1994 [DVD] [2005]

This is a real gem.I didn't know this DVD was coming out until i saw it in a shop today but once i did i had to have it.Why?
Well , i was dying to see Johnny doing songs from American Recordings live and i was NOT disappointed. The bulk of the set comprises he and his band doing the Greatest Hits and would be worth buying for that alone as a snapshot of the Man caught late on in his career , still at a peak. The real treat for me though is when the band take a backseat and Johnny brings out the black acoustic guitar and treats us to live renditions of songs from his Classic "American Recordings" album . A real treat.He kicks off with Delia's Gone followed by Tennesee Stud , Let The Train Blow The Whistle , Bird On A Wire , The Beast In Me and then Redemption .Truly fantastic stuff . If you,re a fan of Cash in general it's worth getting but it's utterly essential if you love his first Rick Rubin produced record.
I'll be playing that album and watching this disc 'til i die !!

I'll have to give this dvd 5 stars, despite the fact that JC sounds a bit weary and tired, especially during the first songs. He obviously has some health-related voice problems. Maybe from the jaw-operations. But the fine thing with this concert is that he just gets better and better.
The tunes that really open up this dvd for me are the tunes he does alone with his guitar, the stuff from his "American recordings" album. Now this is where his uniqueness as a performer shines through: that inimitabe intimacy, that direct rapport with the audience that very few performers have. And his voice suddenly resounds and rumbles and quivers as it should! It is not that the other performances are bad, but they are more routine stuff, and I don't think JC adds anything to them that make them stand out from his other excellent performances of those same songs. The band is fine: David Roe is very good on the upright bass. Wooton and Holland are solid, they can't make mistakes. JCs son plays rhythm guitar like his life depended on it and June Carter comes out for "Jackson" and a sing-along version of "Will the circle be unbroken". The concert ends aptly with a fine version of "The Next Time I'm in Town". Cash's sense of humour is also displayed, f.x. in the duet with June on "Jackson". Highly recommendable!

The recent Walk The Line biopic following the early career, self destruction and ultimate redemption of Johnny Cash does not do the Man In Black full justice. Whilst the brooding presence of Joaquin Pheonix ticks many boxes,including a passable imitation of "that voice", a few minutes into "Johnny Cash - Live at Montreux 1994", you'll be captivated by the strutting, commanding aura of the man himself.
This concert, filmed whilst Cash would have been in his early sixties, spans every age. From the early Sun Records songs (Get Rhythm)to Ring of Fire (co-written by June Carter), Ghost Riders in the Sky, right up to his latest - American Recordings, produced by the impossibly bearded Rick Rubin.
Cash & The Tennessee Three are joined by John Carter Cash on various acoustic guitars throughout the performance, along with June Carter on Jackson (of course) and Will The Circle Be Unbroken.
What must surely tip anyone having any doubts as to whether to purchase this DVD or not, will be the promise of the midsection of this uniquely beautiful show. Alone with just his trademark, black Martin guitar and a voice sculpted by God himself, J R Cash sings the songs that reinvented him in the publics eyes and pathed the way to his recent 600% rise in sales following the movie. There may never be a sadder lament sung than Delia's Gone.
The sound takes a few tracks to settle down and although the crowd are enthusiastic, it is part of a festival and not the "young long haired" element that would venerate Cash following his Glastonbury appearance.
There are no reasons why this is not worthy of five stars that I can see. It is something that I return to constantly to find inspiration and entertainment from and will certainly be of interest to the curious and the knowledgeable alike. Enjoy!