Queen: Rock Montreal & Live Aid [Blu-ray] | ![Queen: Rock Montreal & Live Aid [Blu-ray]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51M4NF17NAL._SL500_.jpg)
| Director: Vincent Scarza
Actors: Bob Geldof, Bryan Adams, Stuart Adamson, Adam Ant, Nick Ashford
Studio: Eagle Rock Ent
Category: DVD
List Price: $24.98
Buy New: $12.02
You Save: $12.96 (52%)
New (25) Used (7) from $12.02
Rating:  68 reviews
Sales Rank: 3825
Format: Best Of, Color, Live, Widescreen
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: Blu-ray
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 960 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 6.7 x 5.3 x 0.5
MPN: 33315
UPC: 801213331598
EAN: 0801213331598
ASIN: B000W00Y0Y
Theatrical Release Date: October 30, 2007
Release Date: December 4, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Description
"Queen Rock Montreal" will be released simultaneously in both high definition formats, HDDVD and Blu-Ray. This version includes the full Queen Live Aid performance, never before seen full performance footage of Queen rehearsing for Live Aid: Bohemian Rhapsody + Radio Gaga + Hammer To Fall and previously unreleased Live Aid interview with the whole band. The Montreal concert is presented in high definition, while the Live Aid and all bonus materials will remain in standard definition. Tracklisting: 1. Intro 2. We Will Rock You (fast) 3. Let Me Entertain You 4. Play The Game 5. Somebody To Love 6. Killer Queen 7. I'm In Love With My Car 8. Get Down Make Love 9. Save Me 10. Now I'm Here 11. Dragon Attack 12. Now I'm Here (reprise)13. Love Of My Life 14. Under Pressure 15. Keep Yourself Alive 16. Drum & Timpani Solo 17. Guitar Solo 18. Crazy Little Thing Called Love 19. Jailhouse Rock 20. Bohemian Rhapsody 21. Tie Your Mother Down 22. Another One Bites The Dust 23. Sheer Heart Attack 24. We Will Rock You 25. We Are The Champions 26. God Save The Queen Bonus Features: * Brand new audio commentary by Brian May and Roger Taylor * The full Queen Live Aid performance * Never before seen full performance footage of Queen rehearsing for Live Aid: Bohemian Rhapsody + Radio Gaga + Hammer To Fall * Previously unreleased Live Aid interview with the whole band * 1982 news feature from US TV series PM Magazine * "Before & After" restoration comparison * Weblink to microsite.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 63 more reviews...
 The Best-Sounding Queen Live Release Yet! October 30, 2007
Jason W. Bellenger (Byron Center, Michigan, USA)
31 out of 32 found this review helpful
The sound quality on this release is absolutely breathtaking. I cannot believe how much resolution has been tweaked out of these 26-year-old multi-track master tapes. This is by far the best audio quality I have ever heard of a music concert of this age. The sound quality can stand next to any sound quality of today. Yes, it is that stunning!!!
Honestly, I did not expect the audio quality to be as good as the audio quality from the 2004 DVD release of 'Queen On Fire - Live From The Bowl'. But this beats it, and the audio quality on that release is breathtaking as well. I had no idea that so much punch, bass, and kick could be lifted from a concert of this time.
The DTS 5.1 mix is unbelievable! It feels like I'm taken back in time and am right there in concert watching the show. The instruments are so crisp and clean! The music is not flat and lifeless. It is full, wide, and alive! These guys rock!
The picture is beautifully restored as well. In fact, it is hard for me to imagine that this concert was recorded in 1981. It simply does not show it's age, and now I understand why Queen Productions have taken technology further yet with Blu-Ray and HD DVD issues of this release as well. The picture is magnificent! No grain, lines, or darkness whatsoever! The picture glows and shines! Is it really this old? You won't believe it!
Since I do not own the original 'We Will Rock You' DVD release from a few years back I cannot do comparisons. All I know is that this is the best-sounding and best-looking Queen DVD concert in my collection. Overall, it is simply one of the best DVD releases in my collection.
The addition of the 'Live Aid' material on the second DVD is a nice treat for those fans who do not already own the material on the previously released 2004 Live Aid (4 Disc Set) DVD box. Even if one already owns this live set an interview with rehearsal footage is exclusive to this release. Furthermore, a 1982 news feature from US TV series PM Magazine is a bonus.
Queen has never sounded and looked better! These guys were incredible! Highly recommended!
 WOW! December 6, 2007
David Shanklin
16 out of 16 found this review helpful
What can I say?
The picture quality is better than any other concert I have seen on blu-ray.
Shooting on 35mm film was definately the right choice. There is something about film and the way it captures the lights. The colors are all highly saturated and the detail is amazing. You can see the dust and finger prints on the monitors, the uneven texture on the surface of Brian's guitar and all the little details in Roger's drum kit. I have never seen a more beautiful concert video; and to think this was shot 25 years ago.
The sound is excellent too. But I found myself switching back and fourth between surround and stereo a number of times. The surround soundtrack provided a very open and spacious sound; but it was a little too reverberant. I found the stereo soundtrack to be more clear and direct.
Musically the band is in great form. Freddie's vocal performance is top-notch. He is in full voice and clear as a bell.
The reason's I only gave this DVD 4 stars are minor. Even though Queen were at their peak in popularity when they filmed this performance, in my opinion this was not their artistic peak. If only they could have filmed a performance 5 or so years earlier during their Night at the Opera and Day at the Races period. Also, even though the band sounded great, it seemed like their performance was somewhat lackluster. Compared to some of their other concert videos, this outing was not quite up to par.
Must-have December 28, 2007
Mauro Guzzo Decca (Sao Paulo, Brazil.)
9 out of 9 found this review helpful
It doesn't matter if you like Queen or not. This DVD is a must-have. That's my first Amazon review of a rock'n'roll item. I never cared too much about Queen but the DVD release seemed to me so awkward - I thought: why would they bother to release a concert from 1982 and a live performance in Live Aid which is in everybody's collective unconscious? - that I decided to give it a chance. I was prone to hating the item because Rock'n'Roll and Queen are not my cup of tea.
There I go, an innocent man inserting the beautifully boxed DVD in the player. I turn on the TV. I let the show run while I'm in another room studying and doing other stuff: I could barely listen to the music.
I grabbed a bottle of wine, sat on the sofa and started to look at the screen heedless of the music and the images. I laid down and was bound to sleep just when the player got to the chapter of Under Pressure. And man...
It's beyond description. Freedie Mercury delivers a performance that is perfect from beginning to end. In fact, Under Pressure is so wonderfully played and sung that it alone makes the DVD worth buying. The sheer power of his gutural voice constantly changing its register from bass and tenor is otherwordly in its beauty and sophistication. About the middle of the song his voice goes through a very logical and beautiful recitation of short, brief syllables, as if he were teaching you to sing, and then turns in a wonderfully executed falsetto as he faces the drummer - "these are the da-a-ys - just to get smoothly back to his powerful gutural voice: "it never rains but it pours". Then he starts to teach us to sing again beautifully ascending and descending in the scales by reciting very brief, distinct notes: there are legati and stacatte, all in a very short period of time, beautifully arranged and organized.
Suddenly, he threats to shoot us: his hands are clearly symbolizing a revolver shooting each note with accuracy. Then he goes out of his way to deliver a perfect progression from his natural register to a long high tenor-like note: "higher, high and hiiiiigh". He starks asking "why" in a vibrant, touching and thrilling way before the band develop the song to its climax. By then, you're already either crying or standing upright on your sofa. You're in for the final jewel: his desperate, almost dreadful questioning - "why can't we give ourselves one more chance... - and then the powerful, loud, but sofly and gently executed last verses: "cause Love is SU-ch an Ol-ld Fa-shion Wor-rd And LOve Dares YOU to CA-re FOR the PE-ople...". It's pure poetry. The guy rocks.
If there were just this song in the DVD, it'd already be magical. But the whole thing, once I started to listen carefully to it, is wonderful. His performance in Live Aid beggars belief. The stage is just an extension of his body: he moves freely, beautifully, and delivers what's likely the greatest feat in the history of live rock and roll concerts. Play the Game, Hammer to Fall, Radio Ga-Ga and We are the Champions are given their most incredible performances in Live Aid. He commands the crowd, the stage, and, above all, his voice.
But the real treat is the Montreal gig DVD. It's perfect every step of the way. Therein is probably one of the most impressive versions of "Bohemian Rhapsody". In Montreal, he's much more elegant in his moves and dances than in Live Aid: he throws his fist in the air as he opens and closes his hands; he gets his arm in a hook-like disposition, the muscles all strained, and lifts it as if he were trying to break some barrier.
I give up. The band is wonderful and the guy is just a genius. I can't watch people singing just after listening to him: it's dull. The way he commands the stage, his beautiful presence and his jaw-dropping vocal technique are peerless in Rock and Roll's history. Maybe Robert Plant in his good old days could match him, I don't know.
Buy this cd. It's too cheap for the treasure that's in it. It really doesn't matter whether you like Queen or not.
Big Audio Improvment November 5, 2007
Mark E. Smith (Pearl River, NY United States)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
When I first saw this being released, I'll admit, my first opinion was "oh no, now they're releasing stuff to make money". But, as usual, like any true fan, I bought it! And how happy I am!
To anyone with a home theatre, who owns the previous release, this is NOT a waste of money. There is a definate improvement in sound. A HUGE improvement in sound. Much more low end, more even sound. I really enjoy this release, unlike the previous version, where I felt I wasn't part of the concert. This puts me right in the middle. An important record of this era of the band.
Queen have been releasing very special concerts representing important eras of the band, and this is no less important. Keep up the great work Brian and Roger! (and John? where are you John!)
Some good improvements and some not so good November 14, 2007
***MATT***
7 out of 8 found this review helpful
I've listened to the Rock Montreal concert and noticed how they cleaned up a few mistakes from the WWRY DTS version like the sour guitar note in Somebody to love during the "work till' I ache my bones" part etc. Also, the video seems to match the sound this time around(two nights were shot and often one video was substituted for the others sound and vice versa). I also noticed the overall mix on Rock Montreal has less midrange than the prior WWRY and sounds slightly more clean and less angry/raw which is a good and bad thing. It definitely sounds cleaned up though.
However certain things didn't sound as good, like the "thunderstorm intro". I always used to stick the prior WWRY disc in to show off my sound system to friends, and the new version lacks the intensity of the sound of the prior release. It sounds so much more intense on the WWRY DTS version because that mix cleverly makes much more use of the rear surrounds which create this *big* atmosphere/ambiance for the bands grand entrance. Instead, they chose to mix the crowd noise in the rear surrounds. Try to A/B both disc if you have them and you will see what I mean. I guess this was done to be more realistic from a concert seat standpoint(band- front speakers, crowd- rear speakers). I should mention that the sequences done with delay(or echo) do make use of the surrounds.
I believe the drums are mixed a little bit louder on the newer release and they sound very good. The guitar is low at points like on the lead on the fast version of WWRY, but the fading of the guitar volume up and down found on the prior release seems more cleaned up on Rock Montreal. Less of a swishing sound.
I liked the commentary by Roger and Brian as well. It's not overly entertaining, but it's quite informative at times. Queen fans will enjoy it, but the average person would probably find it boring due to a few gaps in commentary.
This probably is my favorite live dvd release though, especially since it lack the snyths found on the later releases, and doesn't have any additional players. I think more could have been done with the surround mix, but this is probably the best one out right now. If your looking to buy your first live Queen dvd, this one is probably the best. If you have WWRY DTS, this isn't all that different and might want to rent it first. If you have the original VHS or DVD(not DTS), you will enjoy this one much more. Plus this one has the bonuses of Brian/Roger commentary and Live Aid.
I rented this first since I already own the WWRY DTS, but the bonuses alone make this worth buying, not to mention the cleaned up audio.
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