Let There Be Rock [DVD] [1982] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

I'm one of those that has sat staring at my prized VHS copy on the shelf wishing that I had a dvd copy. So finally someone gets round to giving it a 21st century treatment. The images stand up well, albeit it was shot in the late 70's, so don't expect any fancy shots. It is a real shame that there was no cutting room floor to plunder for candid moments or outtakes.
Still Bon in his prime, all the swagger, all the bare faced cheek and posturing. The real deal...the real AC/DC. It is a great record of Bons last great tour...featuring the Highway to Hell tracks. The interview stuff is just as I remember it..a bit of a distraction from the concert footage. But these days I value it more. It is an important snap shot of my favourtie band at their peak.
I do prefer the 1978 stuff at the Glasgow Apollo...not given the benefit of a remaster except for bits and pieces on the Family Jewels DVD...and really the perfect partner for a deluxe If you want blood, if they ever get round to it.
I'm glad the time has been spent giving this DVD an altogether vastly improved sound. My one real gripe..the awful re-packaging. Gone is the original sleeve and replaced by an appalling black effort. I know the original sleeve, cover art from LTBR, wasn't really a good match given that this is from the Highway to Hell tour era but the new one does nothing to evoke the spirit and energy of the concert. Corporate branding gone mad, this concert was in the 70's not part of the Black Ice tour...so what's with the rubbish graphics?
Go on though...buy it..you won't regret it.

be aware there are a couple of issues with this, the picture is not 16.9 it is a narrower 4.3 old stylee as at the time this was the norm, now the box states Dolby Digital and also this is slightly misleading as its not 5.1, it is pro logic.......but there is a DTS soundtrack which is fantastic, but not everyone has a DTS decoder. The picture is great and the sound in DTS is great too as is the content, just a shame about the misleading technical info on the box.

I'm not one of the Bon vs Brian fans with regard to AC/DC - I like both equally for the different sound they gave/give AC/DC. However regardless of the huge concerts and incredible polish of the Brian Johnson era concert DVD's this will always be my favourite. It's not as flash, the sound isn't as good and of course no matter how well the original format has been transferred it isn't as slick as modern output. But that doesn't matter. The sound is reasonable and the 5.1 is fine, whilst the image quality is perfectly acceptable, however it is the atmosphere that is generated which makes this a magical experience.

I first bought this back in the mists of time as a VHS - which eventually degraded to my disappointment. At the time I thought that the raw energy and aggression of a new(ish) band on a roll jumped out of the screen at me. Being a French production there is a bit of weird stuff going on with odd-ball interviews and surreal video clips which should hack me off. But they don't, because the overall effect is to provide a feel to the concert that is both powerful, sad and uplifting at the same time. Angus really is playing out of his socks here, needing oxygen half way through. Bon is just on top form as the sly, sleazy genius he was, somehow injecting just the right level of devilment into the whole proceedings. You almost get the feeling that he can't quite believe that he is fronting a band who is on the worldwide up. The other band members do what they always do best - back up the front men.

The concert is of course packed with the Bon era classics - we all know and love them. This is probably the definitive concert recorded with them sung especially poignant given the sad end soon to come of Bon.

And if like me you really got into music around this time then it's a wonderful nostalgic trip back in time to a period when proper rock and musicians counted more than the condition of your hair or the whiteness of your teeth.

Simply a wonderful record of a band at it's best.