Product Description

Celebrating 35 years of hitmaking, the Bee Gees take the stage in New York City with host Mark McEwen taking the requests as Barry, Maurice and Robin play your favorite songs from the last four decades. From A&E's popular "Live By Request" music series, the brothers Gibb perform five new classics and over a dozen all-time favorites in this unique, intimate concert captured in glorious surround sound. Songs: This Is Where I Came In, She Keeps on Coming, Sacred Trust, Man in the Middle, Massachusetts, To Love Somebody, I Started a Joke, Jive Talkin', How Can You Mend a Broken Heart, Gotta Get a Message To You, Acoustic Medley: New York Mining Disaster/Run to Me/Too Much Heaven/Islands in the Stream/Holiday/A Woman in Love/Guilty/Nights on Broadway, Wedding Day, Lonely Days, How Deep Is Your Love, You Should Be Dancin'.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #22905 in DVD
• Brand: Image Entertainment
• Released on: 2002-01-02
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, DTS Surround Sound, DVD, Live, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 90 minutes

Amazon.com
A rapturous if occasionally frustrating experience, Bee Gees: Live by Request is the video release of a program that originally aired on cable television's A&E channel. While the brothers Gibb are more than happy to shake out a few numbers from their May 2001 album, This Is Where I Came In, the centerpiece of the show is a somewhat tiresome gimmick that finds the trio taking song requests via phone from excited fans who often chew up valuable time with rambling reminiscences. Still, the pop legends are able to lay out lush, highly polished versions of "I Started a Joke," "Jive Talkin'," and "How Deep Is Your Love," while short-changing other gems from the Bee Gees catalog in a throwaway medley. A visibly thrilled audience certainly enhances the fun, but this is really a show for the group's diehard (and most patient) fans. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews

As Crisp As A Live Recording Can Be
Recording with an audience of less than 1,000, this DVD feels like a club recording with it's Dolby Ditigal and DTS audio sound. Host Mark McEwen gushes a tad much and the 'Live by Request' gimmick is not original. Still, it manages to captivate. Fifteen songs (one a medley of eight), five being from the last album, it's a collection that defies the ear with the groups tight instrumentals and harmonies. "She Keep On Coming" and "You Should Be Dancing" rock the house, while "Sacred Trust" and "How Can You Mend A Broken Heart" lull the audience into a trance. This recording is unique in that there are plenty of star 'call-ins' and lots of joking around. Its surprising to hear Barry sing, "Woman In Love", but "Nights On Broadway" is, once again, cut far too short for a song that contains some of their best work.

This is as close as a great live recording gets and a DVD well worth owning. "One Night Only" is a great live recording as well, but nothing matches the intimacy of this presentation.

Magnificent live performances
Alright, I admit the "phone in" gimmick is corny and a distraction, but you can simply fast forward the calls. Buy this for the music, which is absolutely gorgeous. The Bee Gees have always given stellar live performances, replicating their original records as close as possible. Well, I have news: this live performance beats any I have heard, it's *that good.* The Bee Gees, like McCartney, have always taken great pains to sing their songs live as closely as possible to the original. I appreciate this and their efforts to duplicate their classics here meet with much success. Particularly amazing is Robin's haunting, gorgeous vocal on "I Started a Joke," one of the great Bee Gees of all time. Similarly impressive is "New York Mining Disaster," which shows the brothers still had the ability to harmonize beautifully.

The only slight criticism is Barry's high notes and falsetto, which he strains to reach, especially on "Stayin' Alive." He's backed up with some invisible (and pre-recorded) mystery voices, but his ability to sustain the high notes has decreased with time. Personally, I don't care. This is an awesome live performance and for anyone who admires the brothers Gibb, this is something from which you'll derive hours of enjoyment.

EXCELLENT!
If you're a huge Bee Gees fan as I am, then you'll LOVE this DVD! It also brings about a new meaning since Maurice Gibb's death on January 12, 2003. Also, don't forget "One Night Only"! I've been a Bee Gees fan as long as I can remember, & these 2 DVDs are MUST HAVES for avid Bee Gees fans like myself :)