Paul McCartney broke box-office records on his US tour of last year. Now comes a three-hour souvenir, Back In The US 
, from which even the painful memory of "Mull Of Kintyre" can't take away the thrill of seeing a Beatle singing "All My Loving" and "Can't Buy Me Love". Lots of behind-the-scenes footage, too, including the most exclusive after-show party ever aboard his chartered jet. It's one way of deterring the gate-crashers, anyway. The cover of Tupac Versus bears the legend "icon, philosopher, martyr", rather than "gangsta, thug, woman-beater". But we're all a mass of contradictions, aren't we? The centrepiece of this revisionist portrait is a lengthy never-before-seen interview, recorded a year before Tupac's death, in which he talks with eloquence about his life and the relationship between violence, music and society. Here's a new concept, and not a welcome one?The Byrds Special Edition EP 
and The Moody Blues Special Edition EP both start well, with evocative TV performances from the early '70s. But when the material by the two headliners runs out (inside 20 minutes in both cases), the discs are padded out with unrelated performances by Leon Russell, Rick Wakeman and other has-beens. Best avoided. Roger Waters?The Wall Live in Berlin , recorded in 1989, is strictly for fans only, with high-calibre guest stars like The Band and Van Morrison let down by the presence of Cyndi Lauper and the Scorpions. UK/DK documents the early punk scene with interviews and contemporary performances by the likes of The Exploited and Vice Squad. The footage is coupled with film of a 1996 'punk reunion', from which only the Buzzcocks emerge with credit. If you prefer a more contemporary thud to your head-banging, try Kerrang!?Most Requested , with Nickelback, Slipknot, Blink 182 et al.
(AS)
Paul McCartney broke box-office records on his US tour of last year. Now comes a three-hour souvenir, Back In The US , from which even the painful memory of “Mull Of Kintyre” can’t take away the thrill of seeing a Beatle singing “All My Loving” and “Can’t Buy Me Love”. Lots of behind-the-scenes footage, too, including the most exclusive after-show party ever aboard his chartered jet. It’s one way of deterring the gate-crashers, anyway. The cover of Tupac Versus bears the legend “icon, philosopher, martyr”, rather than “gangsta, thug, woman-beater”. But we’re all a mass of contradictions, aren’t we? The centrepiece of this revisionist portrait is a lengthy never-before-seen interview, recorded a year before Tupac’s death, in which he talks with eloquence about his life and the relationship between violence, music and society. Here’s a new concept, and not a welcome one?The Byrds Special Edition EP and The Moody Blues Special Edition EP both start well, with evocative TV performances from the early ’70s. But when the material by the two headliners runs out (inside 20 minutes in both cases), the discs are padded out with unrelated performances by Leon Russell, Rick Wakeman and other has-beens. Best avoided. Roger Waters?The Wall Live in Berlin , recorded in 1989, is strictly for fans only, with high-calibre guest stars like The Band and Van Morrison let down by the presence of Cyndi Lauper and the Scorpions. UK/DK documents the early punk scene with interviews and contemporary performances by the likes of The Exploited and Vice Squad. The footage is coupled with film of a 1996 ‘punk reunion’, from which only the Buzzcocks emerge with credit. If you prefer a more contemporary thud to your head-banging, try Kerrang!?Most Requested , with Nickelback, Slipknot, Blink 182 et al.
(AS)
