The Performance
A Concert by the Lake brought together a supergroup of rock and roll musicians for a one-night concert at the historic Wintershall Estate in Surrey, England to benefit HASTE -- the Heart and Stroke Trust Endeavour. Billing themselves as Band du lac, the supergroup consisted of Procol Harum's Gary Brooker acting as musical director with guitarists Andy Fairweather Low and Mike Rutherford, keyboardist Paul Carrack, and drummer Henry Spinnetti.
Those familiar with classic rock or AOR radio will be all-too-familiar with the 23-track tracklist from the concert performance here, that would also see appearances from Eric Clapton ("Lay Down Sally," "Cocaine," "Willy and the Hand Jive") Ringo Starr ("Act Naturally," "Photograph," "With a Little Help from my Friends") and newcomer Katie Melua ("Crawling up a Hill," "My Aphrodisiac is You," "The Closet Thing to Crazy").
Clapton's performances are the strongest from the show, but other standout highlights include Andy Fairweather Low's soulful, gospel inflected rendition of "Lay My Burden Down", the show opener "Tequila," which would make Pee Wee Herman proud, and Gary Brooker doing the classic rock radio staple "Whiter Shade of Pale."
The Picture
Originally captured in high definition, A Concert by the Lake appears on Blu-ray in a 1.78:1 AVC/MPEG-4 1080i/60 high definition presentation that looks lifelike, detailed, and free from artifacts. Blacks are inky, flesh tones are natural and shadow delineation is extended. Apart from some mild video noise in darker areas, the picture is clean, especially in close-up shots. It's a solid effort from Eagle Rock.
The Sound
A Concert By the Lake comes with DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, LPCM 2.0 and Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtracks. I was so impressed with the DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack on this release that I nearly forgot to check the LPCM stereo version. Vocals were full and clear in the mix, low frequencies were deep yet tight and quick, and highs were smooth. Instruments were all well balanced and audible across the front speakers and ambience in the surrounds added a good amount of spaciousness and depth.
The Extras
There's only a brief interview segment entitled The Road to Wintershall (1.78:1; 480i/60; 0:09.50) provided as an extra on this release, which is a bit disappointing. With all the great musicians around, one would think there would at least be the odd jam session that could be used as an extra.
Final Thoughts
A Concert by the Lake is one long jam session with one of the best house bands you're ever going to hear. With the solid high-def picture and excellent lossless sound, this release is an easy recommendation.
Product Details
- Performers: Various Artists
- Video Codec: AVC/MPEG-4
- Audio/Languages: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, LPCM 2.0, Dolby Digital 5.1
- Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
- Number of discs: 1
- Rating: NR (Not Rated)
- Studio: Eagle Rock Ent
- Blu-ray Release Date: February 16, 2010
- MSRP: $24.98
- Extras:
