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Bert Jansch is a national treasure. He is one of the most influential musicians of his generation. He has been acknowledged as an influence on many guitarists including Jimmy Page and Jeff Beck. If Clapton is 'God' as his fans declared publicly at the height of Cream's popularity then Jansch transcends deity, in the opinion of the many fans and followers he has and continues to inspire.

I personally have been listening to Bert Jansch, man and boy, for the last 35 years. The first live concert I ever attended at the age of 15 was Pentangle, at the Peoples Palace in Mile End Road, at the height of their fame. Later, when he re-started his solo career, I always went to see Bert Jansch when he played in my locality. Sadly, his career went into decline in the 1980s and although I still collected his sometimes erratic releases on cassette and CD it wasn't until his concert at the QEH in London in December 2004 that I saw him perform live again. I recall being reminded at that time what a phenomenal guitarist his is.

I suppose I am angry at the way that commercialism has won out over taste in this instance. If Jansch is a national treaure, are you telling me this is the best visual record we are likely to get of this guitar genius? Firstly, the video and audio recording is of very poor quality. The video reminds me of a project by Year 10 Media Studies students. Very little effort was put into the stage set which looks thrown together and right from the start sets the wrong tone. In several shots we are reminded of how many empty seats there are in the auditorium, hardly an inspiring sight. In other words, whoever stage managed and edited this should not be working in the visual arts.

I've auditioned the sound track with 3 different sets of headphones and it is lacking in detail and the soundstage is very narrow and lacks the ambience of a live recording. Then there is the issue of Jansch's guitar sound which is tinny and unnatural. It has no depth, it does not sound woody, it sounds like the proverbial plank of Japanese plywood. (Mind you, Bert, it is about time someone bought you a decent guitar).

Finally, there is the performance. The concert is split into two parts. This was clearly an off night for Bert Jansch during the first part. He fluffs notes and forgets his words. When he returns for the second half of the concert things pick up but not enough for the audience to ever contact the land of the living. The only saving grace in this entire concert is the complete absence of the irritatiing and cloying Beth Orton who has been an unecessary guest at Jansch's recent live outtings.

Well, after that introduction, what do you get? Approximately 1hr 40 of solo Jansch in a minor (half-full) concert hall, with a Wednesday night audience who really do need to hold hands and contact the living. All his gems are recorded. There is a particularly stirring rendition of 'Lilly of the West' as well as 'Blues Run The Game'. Yes, there is also Blackwater Side, It Don't Bother Me, Rosemary Lane and others but rarely does the performance of these songs meet the expectation and promise.

And here is the point for Mr Jansch's management. Every musician is entitled to a duff night, especially when they are entitled to a free bus pass (which is a nice way of saying, over 60). The thing is, you don't record it and then publish it to the wide world expecting the make loadsamoney out of it.

Surely, Jansch deserves a signature concert, staged in a high-class setting with a sympathetic audience (including perhaps celebrities like Page who owe him so much) and with guests like Bernard Butler (please NO Beth Orton!) to provide backup? Given Jansch's huge universal appeal, if his management and record company cannot justify the investment in this type of product then they are complete idiots (which sadly, most music management are but let's not get into that here).

Shame on Jansch's management that they have put a fan of my length and loyalty into the position of not recommending this release. Quite simply, this concert does not even come close to the excllence of which Bert Jansch is capable. If you are coming new to Bert Jansch's music then forget this concert and instead buy the superlative 'Riverside Recordings' which is a far better representation of the live experience of Bert Jansch.

Rating: 3 out of 5

This is the first time I've ever reviewed anything but I felt I had to on this instance. I've put off buying this DVD for a long time because I was very worried that I'd be dissapointed, the earlier reviewer does comment on the limitations of the DVD quite accurately.

However, I was very impressed. Yes the audience isn't a large one and it's not a great venue, but Bert's performance is still good. On tracks like Carnival he somehow managed, to my ears at least, to make it sound even more soulful than Jackson C Frank did on his record. The highlights are definitely The Lily of the West and Blues run the game, both of which he plays with a lot of grace, really capturing the essence of the song.

The show is split into two halves as has been mentioned. I question whether he does forget the words, it is hard to notice if he does and it is possibly him just playing the song in a different way. As for what Bert calls 'the frogs' (Bert seeming to have a slight cold) at the start sometimes he does lose the song slightly on the very low notes when he sings, but this doesn't ruin the quality of the set. The second half he seems to be better warmed up for, and is a very good set. The guitar isn't bad, I would have thought that he should be playing a better quality guitar and this would shine through in the music, but maybe he was still sticking to the idea that he has to borrow a guitar. Who knows? He could afford a better one, but he does still pull of the songs very gracefully, showing a lot of skill. It still sounded good to me.

If you're a fan I'd say buy this DVD, it will hopefully surprise you. You have Bert singing a lot of classics and lots of the records from the new albums, and also (a highlight for me) Bert describing little stories about many of the songs. One day hopefully his management will make a DVD worthy of the man, but this DVD is a good place to start.

Rating: 4 out of 5

I endorse Andy's opinion that you should not be put off buying this DVD. I have also been a fan of Bert's for most of my life and have seen him play more times than I can remember. I don't have a problem with this performance, and have to admit to having seem him play worse gigs! I think the camera work is great is you are interested in Bert's finger work and the choice of material is good and representative. The audience is typical of the kind of respectful group of people who go to see Bert and are almost overawed by his presence.

Rating: 4 out of 5