Kenny Wayne Shepherd – 10 Days Out: Blues From The
Backroads (DVD)
Picture:
C Sound: B- Extras: D Music: B
Kenny
Wayne Shepherd (along with Johnny Lang) represent a new generation of Blues
musicians keeping the genre alive beyond tradition. Though there has been a boost (and even glut)
of DVD Blues material, there are still some pleasant surprises and Kenny Wayne Shepherd – 10 Days Out: Blues
From The Backroads (also on CD) directed by Noble Jones and narrated by
Shepherd.
It is one
of the livelier and more naturalistic looks at Blues we have seen in a while
and Shepherd definitely shows great love and enthusiasm for it. Beginning with reuniting the remaining Muddy
Waters Band members in a church to record them, it is culturally historic and
an engrossing watch. Musicians and
aficionados interviewed and playing include Bryan Lee, Jerry Harrison, Chris
Layton, Tommy Shannon, Clarence “Gatemouth” brown, Buddy Flett, B.B. King,
Jerry “Boogie” McCain, Neil “Big Daddy” Pattman, Cootie Stark, John Dee
Holeman, Noah Hunt, Etta Baker, Henry Townsend, David “Honey Boy” Edwards,
Hubert Sumlin, Henry Gray, Calvin “Fuzz” Jones, Willie “Big Eyes” Smith, Lazy
Lester, George “Wild Child” Butler, Bob Margolin and Pinetop Perkins.
Fans will
love this, but those who want to limit their Blues to a few DVDs should put
this one at the top of the list.
The 1.78
X 1 image is letterboxed and suffers in detail and depth, though color is
consistent. The material and editing are
good, helping to make this limit not as bad, but an anamorphically enhanced DVD
would have been a better idea. The PCM
2.0 16-bit/48kHz Stereo is a little rough and shrill at the high end, but it is
not too bad and the content is served well enough. There are no extras, but the main program
packs plenty.
- Nicholas Sheffo
