Michael McDonald - A Gathering of Friends (2001)

Great lineup, great band, absolutely horrible production.

I think the idea of many brilliant artists getting together to pay tribute to my favorite male singer is fabulous - many wonders like Mike never get such an honor. That's worth one of the stars right there.

Another star for the band performance - Tim Akers leading up a stage of veteran greats, and I can name almost all of them.

The third star goes to featured artists. Maybe Patti LaBelle is a little over the top. Maybe Wendy Moten forgot a few lyrics - but then again so did Mike; he even sang about forgetting lyrics! Maybe Christopher Cross can't sing well anymore, and maybe Jeff Bridges never could. Of course I could go on all day about little bits and pieces that could have been better about the performance, but all in all, it's great to see everybody having fun. Especially great performances by Sims, the Doobies, Loggins, Ingram, McCain, and Patti Austin (though I wish Mike had sung with her instead of taking a break for a fresh shirt and some extra deodorant :) ).

Alright, now for the harshly disappointing sound and video production.

The horn players might as well not have even been there, except for Koz and Shelby during their solos. Turre's trombone is barely heard, except for his low B during All I Need (I play trombone, so this was quite upsetting). DiMartino and Shew sound like they're playing trumpets with no microphones at all, and their sound is being picked up by a cell phone somewhere out in the audience. Both the surround and stereo mix tracks fade various microphones in and out constantly. The Doobies performance really takes the cake here - Skylark's bass sounds like it was fed directly into a console, Knudsen's trap set can't even be heard, Hossack sounds like he's playing on a practice pad, and both McFee and Simmons sound like they're playing toy guitars through envelope filters. Whoever mixed this should be fired. Immediately.

Video editing was a joke as well. Randomized clips are substituted when (apparently) the camera operators don't get a decent live shot. For example, you see Steve Gadd hitting his cymbals in one clip, but hear no cymbals in the track, and then you see and hear him doing the same lick from a different angle. The cameras catch all the footage and it's mixed later, so why substitute clips?? Very, very disappointing.

All in all, I'm glad I own the DVD, but upset that the engineers had to screw up royally on a performance by and for my favorite white bread soul man, Michael McDonald. February 19, 2008

michael mcdonald a gathering of friends

this cd is really worth adding to your collection if your a michael mcdonald fan and especially good if you like hearing him with kenny loggins. so glad i purchased it, would reccomend it to others. great c.d. September 24, 2007

Fabulous

Are you a Michael fan? This is one you will watch again and again. Patti and Christopher add a special touch. And last but not least...Takin' It To The Street... February 18, 2007

Michael McDonald

I love Michael McDonald and this is a good one. Way to go! January 10, 2007

The soulful blue-eyed wonder!

I originally borrowed this tape from my local library...just for something to do. I was so enchanted that the tape was late getting back to the library-I kept watching it over and over again. I just couldn't get enough of it...so I bought it. I have a home theatre system and now whenever I want to sit in on the concert I fill the whole house with it. It was really great revisiting with Micheal and that creamy baritone voice of his, Christopher Cross, Kenny Loggins and James Ingram (whom by the way was looking gooood-got a new look!) and lest we forget-The Dooby Brothers. They all bought back good good memories. I wish that Micheal and the Doobies would do a concert together-for old times sake. I could go on and on. You won't be disappointed. January 10, 2007

More reviews at Amazon.com ...