October 2000

Sheryl Crow - Rockin' the Glove Live
Reviewed by Doug Blackburn
DVD Format

Overall Enjoyment:
Picture Quality:
Sound Quality (DD):
Sound Quality (DTS):
Packaged Extras:

Featuring Sheryl Crow

Director: Laurence Jordan

DVD Release: 2000
Dolby Digital 5.1/DTS 5.1
Full Screen

Fans of Sheryl Crow will undoubtedly enjoy this 83-minute live concert DVD. However, it’s not the out-of-the-park performance needed to gain the respect of those who aren’t already on-board with Sheryl Crow’s music. The performances are steady, well rehearsed, and well played, but something is missing -- life, verve, spunk, the sexy edge she sometimes has, attitude. The performance is fine, but it isn’t anything special. The stage set holds little visual interest; the clothing worn by band members is dark so the visual excitement is low key. However, this disc does do a good job of representing live performance; you really do feel almost present at the actual event.

Technically this DVD is right up there if you select the right audio option. The DTS soundtrack is startlingly superior to the Dolby Digital soundtrack and the difference is not the least bit subtle. The DTS track is far more transparent and sparkling. In comparison, the Dolby Digital soundtrack is clearly thick sounding, muddy and dull. There isn’t a large amount of low bass, but the LFE channel definitely gives a subtle foundation to drums and bass. The sparingly used LFE channel is definitely in keeping with this music, which doesn’t have or need a big fat bottom end. Guitar tone is quite natural and there is a good snap to transients that give a pretty nice sense of a live performance if you have selected the DTS soundtrack. Sheryl Crow’s voice is also captured quite well throughout the performance with clarity so good that virtually every word in the lyrics is easily understandable.

The video quality is quite good. It is very clean and clear, probably shot directly to digital video. You get that unmistakable video clarity that just doesn’t happen when film is transferred to video. There are no motion artifacts from converting 24 frames per second movie footage to 30 frames per second video, so on-screen motion is as good as it gets with normal NTSC video. The camera work is much like the music, no jumping around too quickly. This makes for a pleasant viewing experience, which meshes well with the music and performances. The cameras consistently highlight important elements of the music at the right times.

There’s only one thing to say about packaged extras, there aren’t any.

There are a few tracks on this disc that you might think about using to demo your home theater system for a Sheryl Crow fan: "A Change Would Do You Good," "All I Wanna Do," " Every Day Is a Winding Road" and "If It Makes You Happy." Each of these tracks highlight a bit of a different sonic flavor that will bring out the best in a high-performance home theater system. This disc will be best appreciated by Sheryl Crow fans who want to experience the feel of a live performance without experiencing all of the negative aspects of actually being at a live performance. For instance, you won’t have to put up with terrible sounding loudspeakers and amplifiers, the dork in the seat next to you who has to dance standing up for the entire concert, and filthy restrooms. And you can see much better and you have much better sound quality on this DVD than I’ve experienced at any live rock concert. Does that make it "better than live?" It does in my book!

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