Loggins and Messina Live - Sittin' in Again at Santa Barbara Bowl

There are three fundamental aspects to any concert recording: the quality of the performance, the quality of the recording, and the quality of the video. In this case, all three are outstanding.As fans of Loggins & Messina know, they were never supposed to be a duo. That’s why their first album was “Kenny Loggins, with Jim Messina Sittin’ In”. After three great albums and several more of descending quality they went their separate, solo ways. Thirty years later, in 2005, they got together again for a concert tour, which resulted in this video, a companion CD, and another retrospective collection. I only stumbled upon this disc recently, and have been kicking myself for missing it when it first came out.Several things are obvious immediately here. Loggins and Messina are great musicians, they really like each other, and they love their music. Likewise, their backing musicians are superb, and know the material inside and out.One of the reasons that I frequently dislike concert recordings is that many groups known for their studio recordings just fall to pieces in front of a live audience *cough* CSNY *cough* *cough*. Certainly not the case here. These performances are tight. Every note is were it should be, and where they differ from the studio recordings, it is clearly on purpose. Nor is this a simple note-for-note recreation of the originals; these people are having fun up on stage, and interacting with each other and the audience.Altogether they perform 20 songs, largely taken from their first three albums. There is a good mix of their bouncy, upbeat songs (Your Mama Don’t Dance, Vahevala), soft, sentimental songs (A Love Song, Danny’s Song), and longer jams such as Angry Eyes. My only disappointment is that they didn’t include My Music.Happily, the recording quality matches the performances. Every guitar note (and there are a lot of them, since both leads are guitarists) is crystal clear and pure, every saxophone riff is deep and throaty. And, while inevitably their voices have changed some over 30 years, neither Loggins nor Messina has any trouble hitting or sustaining the notes.Included are both stereo and 5.1 DTS mixes, which were created by Elliot Scheiner, the (now retired) genius who did the surround mixes for the later Steely Dan albums, as well as the Eagles’ Hotel California, and Van Morrison’s Moondance, among many others. Because this is a DVD there are no lossless tracks, but the sound is about as good as the technology allows.The video quality is equally appealing. This is a widescreen presentation, and like the audio, as sharp as a DVD allows. Unlike some concert films where the camera constantly jumps from place to place, here you get long, steady shots, varying from the entire stage to closeups of a soloist’s fingers, as appropriate (I hate it when someone is performing a fantastic solo and the camera is pointed somewhere else entirely).For what it’s worth, also included are six old live performances taken from individual appearances on the TV show The Midnight Special back in the seventies. The audio and video quality of these are vastly inferior to the modern recording, and of course they are standard TV aspect ratio. Still, it’s a delight to see how young and energetic the two were back in the day, and Loggins’ beard and hair back then are a sight to behold.Frankly, the only way this disc could be improved would be to re-release it as a Blu-Ray with lossless versions of the audio. I would purchase that in a heartbeat. Until then I’ll be watching this one frequently

Knowing that L&M weren't making a stop in ABQ New Mexico during their 2005 tour, this DVD became the next best thing. And what an exceptional record of their recent tour this is. Sure, there's some post-production sweetening, but you can tell from the opening strains of "Watchin' the River Run" that the musicianship and performances are going to be first-rate. I'm a old baby boomer who has seen the demise of so many great vocal artists from the sixties, among them as CSN and Simon and Garfunkel. Then here come Loggins and Messina laying out impeccable performances of not just their hit singles, but their wonderfully evocative FM tracks. In these days of buzz-saw rhythm guitars and rambling stream of consciousness lyrics, I can't tell you how refreshing it is to hear real musicians playing real instruments applying tasty arrangements to first-rate material. And I'm not talking about "Your Mama Don't Dance," although dang-it, that's a catchy little number. Listen and watch them perform songs like "Be Free," "Angry Eyes," "Same Old Wine," "Sailing the Wind," "Changes," and other of their many great album cuts featuring styles as diverse as jazz, folk, bluegrass, pop, reggae, and even funk. The mood onstage is upbeat and the musical energy is intense. Jimmy's guitar and mondolin playing are simple and tasty, the vocals are very tight, and the sidemen are all extremely talented. The drummer, keyboard player, and fiddle player are especially good, while the woodwinds are not quite as polished as they were in L&M's original backup band. But Messina's arrangements are still very much in tact and it's a pleasure to hear the flute, sax, and oboe parts weaving in and out of each other. If you're tired of disposable pop and musical "product," pick up this DVD and it will restore you faith that there are still major musical players out there, even if they're not selling double platinum, and being chased around by the poparazzi.

First I must say for those of you that think this concert is going to be all Kenny and singing his material (like the "Redwoods concert), you will be mistakenly dissappointed. This concert is Kenny Loggins & Jim Messina singing their great songs of the years when they first started playing together. Secondly, I must say that Jim Messina has not lost his musical talent-where has he been all these years? As much as Kenny Loggins is a master at vocals and guitar, this DVD should have been named "Jim Messina in Concert". Jim's vocals and guitar playing were masterful, and in my book, he out played Kenny by a long shot. Not that Kenny Loggins didn't rock, but I was amazed by Jim Messina's talent. Not colorful as Kenny, but none-the-less, Jim was the start of the show. The 5.1 dts audio was outstanding, but I was however, dissappointed in the video portion of the concert. I realize the concert was "live" at the S.B. Bowl,(which I've been to and it's a great venue), but it came accross as being filmed and didn't deliver that "live" sensation. The best example of a "live" sensation concert in my book is "Simply Red-HOME LIVE IN SICILY". I'm not a electronic geek so I don't know the correct explanation, but the video could have been better. All in all, I enjoyed the music and both Jim & Kenny were great and the true fans of this duo will not be dissappointed.

wer die Musik der Anfangszeit liebt, also frühe 70ziger wird von diesem Konzert umgehauen, sie spielen 2005 die Lieder der frühen 70ziger mit einer umwerfenden Gruppe von Begleit Musikern in einer fanatastischen unnachahmlichen und mitreissenden Art und Weise, hervorragend tonlich abgemischt unglaublich gut. Loggins mehr bekannt aus dem Film footloose und Jim Messina auch einer der Ur-Musiker früher Poco für Kenner haben nichts verlernt einfach fantastisch!

Eigentlich unglaublich bei den vielen Reunions der letzten Jahrzehnte: Bis 2005 mussten die Fans (leider nur) in den Staaten warten, bis sich Kenny Loggins und Jim Messina wieder einmal zusammentaten , um ihre Songs und Balladen aus den 70ern live auf der Bühne zu präsentieren. Wer Poco, Buffalo Springfield und ähnliches mag, kommt hier voll auf seine Kosten. Im heimatlichen Bowl von Santa Barbara zelebrieren Loggins und Messina mit einer fantastischen Multi-Instrumentalband im Rücken ihre alten Hits von " House at Pooh Corner" über "Your Mama don't Dance" bis zum abschließenden "Danny's Song". Höhepunkte aber sind die "Trilogy" sowie der Segler-Song "Vahevala", die schon beim 74er Live-Album  On Stage  ertönten. Dass Loggins singen kann, weiß man, aber die Überraschung des absolut gelungenen Konzerts ist ohne Zweifel Jim Messina. Gut bei Stimme mit scharfen Gitarrenlicks und - solos bringt er das Countryrock-Feeling ins Konzert. Eigentlich müsste man einen kleinen Abstrich bei der Menuführung der DVD machen, aber die Musik in guter Aufnahmequalität ist einfach super ! Als Bonus gibt es noch sechs Songs aus der Fernsehsendung "The Midnight Special" von 1973. Auch hier und schon damals: Live-Musik vom Feinsten ! On Stage

If you go to a Stones gig you will find a fifty year age cross section in the audience. This is not the case with L&M and, maybe I'm wrong, but if you weren't 'getting down' in 1973ish then you are unlikely to enjoy this. But if you were BUY THIS DVD. It is a very intimate concert relayed from Santa Barbara in 2005. There is plenty of interraction with all involved and it must have been great to have been there and see these guys and a great band after so many years. Kenny looks great. Jimmy looks like he's been eating too many pretzels but he still plays a mean set of strings! My one 'spit my dummy out' is that my favourite L&M track (Move On from the Mother Lode album) is not on it but it still gets 5 stars and multiple goose bumps of nostalgia. Thanks Guys!

In the 70s I collected all of their vinyl which I still have and listen to. This concert is a wonderful mix of their songs which is well recorded and a joy to listen to and watch. For me it's an emotional roller coaster with some tunes almost making me laugh and others bringing a tear to my old eyes. I will treasure this DVD.

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