- Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
- Video Codec: AVC/MPEG-4
- Resolution: 1080p/24
- Audio Codec: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, LPCM 2.0, Dolby Digital 5.1
- Subtitles: English, Chinese, French, German, Spanish
- Region: ABC (Region-Free)
- Rating: Not Rated
- Discs: 1
- Studio: Eagle Rock Entertainment
- Blu-ray Release Date: June 7, 2011
- List Price: $19.98
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Purchase Sheryl Crow: Miles from Memphis — Live at the Pantages Theatre on Blu-ray at CD Universe
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Overall
[Rating:3.5/5]
The Performance
[Rating:3.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:1/5]
Click thumbnails for high-resolution 1920X1080p screen captures
(Screen captures are lightly compressed with lossy JPEG thus are meant as a general representation of the content and do not fully reveal the capabilities of the Blu-ray format)
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The Performance
[Rating:3.5/5]
I thoroughly respect Sheryl Crow as a musical artist, even if I am not an ardent fan of hers. She has had so many Top 40 hits, I often forget how radio friendly her music has been over the years and how many of her songs I actually know until I hear them being played somewhere and remember – “oh, yeah, that’s another Crow hit.” She’s struggled with cancer and survived, been an advocate for keeping the arts in schools, and had others cover her songs. It’s hard to believe that the one-time back-up singer for Michael Jackson is now a musical icon and veteran in her own right.
With all that being said, her last musical endeavor, 100 Miles from Memphis, the album title a reference to the town of Kennett, Missouri that sits about 100 miles outside of Memphis and is where Crow grew up, may have been a noble attempt at turning in a different musical direction, but it is one that really leaves me quite cold. It’s an album inspired by the classic sounds of soul and r&b that Crow recalls hearing coming out of Memphis in her youth, the music of Stax.
On tour for the album in 2010, Miles from Memphis – Live at the Pantages Theatre finds Crow and her newly-invigorated band performing in Los Angeles in the classic, art deco performance space, a big chunk of the playlist from the new album, with a few of her hits sprinkled about, with a bit of new life in them.
For the most part, for someone like me, this show is a disappointment. While some of the new material sounds good and settles into some slightly funkified grooves, it lacks the immediacy and addictive hooks that Crow is known for. Therefore, the standouts of the show still become songs like the sweet country ballad “Strong Enough” that ends here with a twist of reggae flavor, or “All I Wanna Do,” which turns into a medley on Marvin Gaye’s “Got to Give it Up” and The Jackson 5’s “I Want You Back.”
Track Listing:
- Our Love Is Fading
- A Change Would Do You Good
- 100 Miles From Memphis
- Can’t Cry Anymore
- Strong Enough
- Summer Day
- My Favorite Mistake
- Redemption Day
- Long Road Home
- Every Day Is A Winding Road
- Sideways
- Roses And Moonlight
- If It Makes You Happy
- Soak Up The Sun
- Peaceful Feeling
- All I Wanna Do/Got To Give It Up
- I Want You Back
- I Shall Believe
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
The AVC/MPEG-4 1080i/60 native HD video of Miles from Memphis Live looks bright, relatively detailed, and has a reserved amount of video noise. Some occasional motion artifacts can be seen, but the simplistic stage setting and relatively bright lighting lend itself to a solid video presentation.
Audio Quality
[Rating:5/5]
If you have the capability of playing back 5.1, then you must go with the excellent lossless DTS-HD Master Audio track on this release. It is well-balanced, offers a good a amount of instrumental separation, a dynamic soundstage, and musical low frequencies. If there is one flaw, it is that Crow’s vocals can sometimes get just a little lost in the mix. The surround channels fill with a goodly amount of ambience to capture the sound of the performance space, yet audience noise is minimal. The PCM 2.0 mix is no slouch either, continuing the strong balance and wide stereo imaging of the lossless surround mix.
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:1/5]
The only extra is a Behind the Scenes (1.78:1; 1080i/60; 0:18.49) featurette that features Sheryl Crow discussing her new album and tour with some peeks behind the curtain on the Miles from Memphis tour.
The Definitive Word
Overall:
[Rating:3.5/5]
Sheryl Crow: Miles from Memphis – Live at the Pantages Theatre looks good and sounds great on Blu-ray, but it will only be for the most loyal of Crow fans and completists. Otherwise, if you really need to get your Crow fix on Blu-ray, look for her Soundstage release (also from Eagle Rock), which is a live performance packed with her hits.
Additional Screen Captures
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[amazon-product]B004WJV6U8[/amazon-product]
Purchase Sheryl Crow: Miles from Memphis — Live at the Pantages Theatre on Blu-ray at CD Universe
Shop for more Blu-ray titles at Amazon.com
Overall
[Rating:3.5/5]
The Performance
[Rating:3.5/5]
Video Quality
[Rating:4/5]
Audio Quality
[Rating:5/5]
Supplemental Materials
[Rating:1/5]
