VIDEO

Rip It Up, Issue 121, 1 August 1987, Page 36

VIDEO

Jimi Plays Monterey , (Virgin Video) •' If there was such a thing as a time machine, I wouldn’t worry about landing in the mud of Woodstock, I would spin those dials to June 18, 1967 to see Jimi at Monterey. . This is as close to time travel as possible. Pennebaker’s camera shows us the Grateful Dead, Ravi Shankar, Joplin and Brian Jones. Setting the scene for Hendrix and his re- : turn to America. He had to impress, especially after following the Who, and he does. Opening with Howling Wolf’s ‘Killing Floor,’ slamming into 'Foxy Lady’ and then the best version of ‘Like a Rolling Stone’ ever, Hendrix builds his set up .through blues standards like B B King’s ‘Rock Me Baby' and his own classics like ‘Purple Haze,’ ending with a blazing 'Wild Thing,' complete with - burning guitar. Here at Monterey he showed white middle class America two things. The power of innovation, new styles, of guitar, playing with his teeth and the use of feedback. Secondly, the power of tradition, for no matter how' much Hendrix changed history, he also followed in the tradition of the black guitar styles Johnny “Guitar” Watson and T-Bone Walker. Conservation and. revolution on the same guitar fret. Obviously a must for Hendrix fans, and for anyone who loves modern music; there will never be anyone like him again. Sadly, three years after Monterey, Jimi was gone. Kerry Buchanan Sweet Dreams (Cannon Video) Karl Reisz’s film about Patsy Cline is just like a country song: it's about faith and infidelity, sex and death,

pain and joy. Most of the film concentrates on the relationship between Patsy and her husband Charlie Dick, whose first words to her are “that bitch sure can sing.”

Reisz shows the two lovers backlit by neon dancing to ‘Be Bop a Lula’ — Charlie is a wild man, but Patsy is attracted to him. The film is about this attraction. In a way this tends to leave out a lot of her life, things just seem to

happen. All of a sudden she becomes a star, the classic songs like 'Crazy,' ‘Walking After Midnight' just appear with no real buildup. Her many television and Vegas appearances are not shown, the film doesn’t really show just how big a star she was, and just how important she was to country music. Her new agent says to here “You want to be Kitty Wells." Patsy replies, “Hell no, I want to be Hank Williams," and in a way she was. The first to really cross over into the pop charts and the first woman to really succeed as a “woman" in the male dominated world of country music. Jessica Lange plays Patsy wonderfully, from the very early days honky tonkin’ to the Grand Ole Opry and the studio hits with Owen Bradley. Miming perfectly to the original vocals, Lange brings Patsy to life. Also good is Ed Harris as Charlie, a bit wild but also a bit lost in his wife's world.

It’s their superb handling of their roles that make this a must-see film, as well as the amazing music, all the hits and her great verson of Monroe’s 'Blue Moon of Kentucky’ and Wills’ ‘San Antonio Rose.’ If you haven't yet warmed to country music this could change your mind. Kerry Buchanan Motley Crue Uncensored (WE A) “Motley who?” someone asks as the camera peers into the studio where the Crue are meant to have met for interviewing. Forty-five minutes later you know who and what Motley are all about. Singer Vince Neil takes us on a street tour of the Hollywood clubs where they started out, as he shares a spa pool with groupies in the back of his limo (remember he can't drive since the accident in 'B4 which was fatal for Hanoi Rocks’ drummer Razzle). Hilarious TBone Tommy Lee rides about on his Harley, making wisecracks and friends along the way, while Mick Mars is content to cruise and chat in Corvette comfort, and Nikki Sixx is kinda all over the place. The music clips are the real hot stuff though, and they really cook on ‘Live Wire’ and ‘Too Young To Fall in Love.’ ‘Smokin’ in the Boys Room' is more a fun thing, while ‘Home Sweet Home' visually captures the excitement of a Motley performance. Prudish people and parents should receive guidance before attempting to watch this.

Geoff Dunn