Parallel Realities Live (DVD)

  Concert DVDs can be tough to get totally right.  Many of them get too gimmicky with the visual effects (quick cuts between musicians, totally losing any flow of the music), sometimes the 5.1 mixes are a distraction rather than an enhancement, and frankly some artists’ music just doesn’t come across as well live as in the studio.

Recorded 20 years ago, Parallel Realities Live has long been my favorite concert DVD.  It nails all three of the main criteria I have for a concert DVD (in ascending order of importance):

1.  Video:  No frenetic cutting between camera angles, this DVD lets you take in the concert with a nice, relaxed perspective.  It was also shot in 16:9 aspect ratio (surely a rarity in 1990) so it looks great on a widescreen TV.

2. Audio: The obligatory Dolby Digital 5.1 mix sounds very good, and the DVD also includes a PCM stereo (lossless) audio track for your 2 channel listening pleasure.  Superbly recorded and mixed, this one is a gem and sounds better than many CDs.  

3.  The Music:  Talk about a super-group!  Herbie Hancock, Dave Holland and Jack DeJohnette are all among the premier jazz players on their respective instruments, and Pat Metheny is arguably the greatest living jazz guitarist.  The performances here are top notch, and cover a wide range stylistically.  

Another nice thing about this DVD is that you can just pop it into the DVD player and it starts playing, no messing around with a menu required.  This is an excellent release featuring four premier jazz musicians who are playing at the top of their game from start to finish.