Product Description

George Benson performs with his group during his Northern Ireland tour. This concert was filmed just months ago, on Sunday, May 28th, 2000 at the Belfast Waterfront Hall in Belfast. George Benson performs with his group featuring special guest Joe Sample, the BBC Big Band and members of the Ulster Orchestra. Songs on this live recording include "This Masquerade", "Breezin'", "Give Me The Night", "On Broadway", "Turn Your Love Around", "I Only Have Eyes For You", "Hippin' The Hop", "Danny Boy", "Deeper Than You Think", "Love x Love", "Never Give Up on a Good Thing", "Moody's Mood", "In Your Eyes", and more. The George Benson group is: George Benson - Guitar/Vocals; Joe Sample - Keyboards; Stanley Banks - Bass Guitar; Thomas Hall - Keyboards; Michael O'Neill - Guitar/Vocals; Dennis Saucedo - Pecussion/Vocals; Michael White - Drums; David William - Musical Director and Piano.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #51169 in DVD
• Released on: 2001-01-30
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Live, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 90 minutes

Amazon.com
Toward the beginning of his 90-minute set recorded on May 27, 2000, in Belfast, Ireland, George Benson gushes that he's always had a fantasy of fronting a big band and covering jazz classics. It becomes increasingly clear, however, that some fantasies should remain just that. There's no questioning Benson's contribution to jazz over the years. He's been hailed as one of the genre's finest, most expressive, and fluid guitarists. His ability to cross numerous genres is impeccable and he's influenced a generation of players. However when Benson ditches his guitar in favor of singing--something he started doing in the '70s and does frequently during this show--his material suffers. While his vocal range is impressive on songs like "I Only Have Eyes for You" and on his own hits like "This Masquerade" and "Breezin'," his style is awkward and often forced, and his numerous attempts at scat singing prove that Louis Armstrong he's not. Experiments are fine, but Benson should remember what instrument brought him to the dance. --Dave McCoy

From the Back Cover
One of music's most magnetic performers, George Benson shines in this live performance. Recorded at Waterfront Hall in Belfast, Ireland, this performance highlights the versatility of George Benson. With guest appearances by jazz legend Joe Sample, the BBC Big Band, and musicians from the Ulster Orchestra, George delights his fans with his straight-ahead jazz hits, contemporary R&B classics, and fresh interpretations of elegant and timeless standards. The program:

1. All of Me
2. I Only Have Eyes for You
3. Beyond the Sea
4. Deeper Than You Think
5. Hipping the Hop
6. Lately
7. The Ghetto
8. In Your Eyes
9. Moody's Mood
10. Danny Boy
11. This Masquerade
12. Breezin'
13. Love x Love
14. Turn Your Love Around
15. Never Give Up on a Good Thing
16. Give Me the Night
17. On Broadway

Customer Reviews

George Benson in concert..........Fantastic!!
I have seen George Benson roughly ten times in concert covering a period of fourteen years and would have seen him more given the opportunity. This performance is based on Benson's concert format used for over ten years, apart from the BBC Big band backing him in this concert.

This DVD perfectly captures Benson live and displays the diversity of his musical talent through Big band (Beyond The Sea etc..), jazz (Breezin etc..), pop (turn your love around etc..) and funk (Give me the night). Added bonuses include an interview with Benson, individual band member interviews and the chance to see Benson perform with Joe Sample from their 'Absolute Benson' collabaration.

It is quite obvious that the actual concert included allot more tracks that Benson usually performs, which didn't make the DVD probably due to format constraints (the only thing missing unfortunately). Hopefully, these will be available someday, but you never know.

I would conclude that this is the only visual media offering I have ever seen of George Benson that you can view on your home TV. A must if your a fan and an insight to his talent if you are inquisitive. I noticed one reviewer wasn't happy with the sound quality. Mine plays and sounds excellent and I only have nicam TV sound and a budget DVD player.

If you are a music lover, you won't regret this purchase as it's a wonderful musical experience.

Very Good
I simply can not understand some other reviewers that rated this DVD with less than 5 stars.

If you like Big Bands you will see an excellent one (BBC big band) playing. Also, Benson is a great guitarrist and singer and in addition the songs were well chosen.

Listen the first song (All of Me), listen to the BIG BAND and say if I am wrong.

WARNING: For you to really appreciate this DVD employ some good audio equipment. Dont use only the loudspeakers of your TV or that cheap hometheater set. I used an amplifier connected with a monitor quality headphone (AKG K-66) and thought I was in the show live.

As a pianist and can guarantee this DVD is great.

Outstanding Performance
This is an awesome concert performance - don't listen to some of the negative reviews! While George starts the concert with three vocal performances in front of the BBC Big Band, which may initially disappoint some viewers (like me) who crave his guitar playing, he soon dons the guitar in front of an electric band that includes Joe Sample. His versions of "This Masquerade" and "Breezin" are particularly powerful. I'm afraid I can't agree with some of the other reviewers that criticize his "diminished" vocal range - George's voice appears to me to be just as strong and expressive as it did when I saw him live in the 1970's. We jazz guitar lovers are very lucky - three of the five arguably best guitar players of all time (George, Pat Metheny and Lee Ritenour) are currently active and thanks to video and DVD, performances such as these can be kept forever.