Some Girls: Live in Texas 78 [DVD/CD] [CD & DVD]

The Rolling Stones 1978 tour of the USA in support of that years SOME GIRLS album is considered by fans to be one of their very best. The tour followed immediately on the release of the SOME GIRLS album and by the time the band arrived in Texas in mid-July the album had hit the No. 1 spot on the US charts. The tour took a back to basics approach, with the band and their music very much at the forefront and little or no elaborate staging. Filmed at the Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth, Texas, on July 18th, 1978, this concert is typical of the tour with the Rolling Stones delivering a raw, energetic performance in front of a crowd who are clearly loving the show. Many of the tracks from SOME GIRLS are included in the live set with a sprinkling of Stones classics from earlier albums.

Magnolia was a love-it or hate-it affair upon its cinematic release. On DVD, fans can once again delve into the labyrinth of chance presented by wunderkind Paul Thomas Anderson. The sound and picture are both of a very high quality. The dark hues of the movie translate perfectly in this 2.40:1 widescreen presentation. Colors are bold, from the red frame of William H. Macy's glasses to the swamp green of the, ahem, frogs. The audio is crisp. The dialogue of the ensemble cast sparkles. Aimee Mann's pop songs and Jon Brion's score shine as great ear candy. The supplements are found on disc two. The Frank T.J. Mackey Seminar is a fun, four-minute escapade into the personal life of Tom Cruise's hilarious infomercial guru. A short set of outtakes is available ten or so seconds after selecting the color bars on either disc. The Mackey infomercial is a one-and-a-half-minute dose of fun. The teasers and trailers are illuminating. Those wanting to relive days of television past will enjoy the nine TV spots. Aimee Mann's "Save Me" music video is a fragile, smart way of presenting the movie's themes. "The Magnolia Diary" is a very long (more than an hour) documentary, giving a glimpse at behind-the-scenes footage of the making and marketing of the movie. The DVD is a first-rate packaging of a challenging, interesting movie.