It's Alive 1974 - 1996 [DVD] [2007] [Region 2,3,4] [NTSC]

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The Ramones never scored a hit record in the United States and were little more than a cult item through most of their twenty-two year career, but they were also one of the most influential rock bands of their generation, and few artists have enjoyed a more loyal following than the pioneering punk rockers from Queens. The Ramones: It's Alive 1974-1996 is a exhaustive collection of performance footage of this legendary band, stretched over two jam-packed DVD's featuring highlights from thirty-three different concerts and television appearances. The quality of the source materials varies wildly over the course of this set -- many of the early shows were on video tape with a single black and white camera, while at least one was preserved using Suerp-8 movie film, and the first semi-professional multi-camera shoot pops up eleven songs in. However, the producers of this collection have done a heroic job of cleaning up both sounds and images in this material, and all the material has been presented in its original aspect ratio (which most of the time is the full-frame 1.33:1, though some widescreen footage has been letterboxed). The audio on all cuts has been mastered in two formats, Dolby Digital Stereo and Dolby Digital 5.1, and the quality is surprisingly good on the early stuff and often outstanding on the later material. The songs and interviews are in English (with a few exceptions), with no subtitles or multiple language options included. Bonus features include archival interviews with original members Joey Ramone, Johnny Ramone, Dee Dee Ramone, Tommy Ramone and Marky Ramone, as well as early manager Danny Fields; five extensive galleries of rare photos from different photographers; rare music videos for "It's Not My Place In The 9 to 5 World," "The KKK Took My Baby Away" and "Somebody Put Something In My Drink"; clips from the Ramones' appearance on Sha Na Na's television show; video of a Swedish television host attempting to interview Joey despite the language gap; and footage documenting the group's first visit to Argentina. While the documentary End Of The Century: The Story of the Ramones is a superior look at the inner workings of this important band, as an artifact of the band's prowess on stage, The Ramones: It's Alive 1974-1996 is practically definitive, and fans will revel in this embarrassment of riches. Gabba Gabba indeed.