Pink Floyd - Pulse (2006)

At long last Pink Floyd: Pulse has arrived on DVD, and Floyd fans already know it's a major cause to celebrate. The original VHS release was a milestone bestseller, but it seemed to take forever for the DVD to arrive, with numerous delays while Floyd guitarist David Gilmour and long-time Floyd producer James Guthrie labored to restore, re-edit, and remix this legendary concert video in 5.1-channel Dolby Surround Sound. The resulting two-disc set was well worth the wait: While the limitations of the original video source are still evident in the sometimes-hazy image quality (Gilmour would later admit the concert should have been captured on film), Floyd fans will unanimously agree that Pulse has never looked or sounded better, and only the absence of group co-founder Roger Waters prevents this from being the ultimate document of Pink Floyd in performance. (Even without Waters, it's easily one of the group's most impressive stage productions.) Gracefully directed with minimal intrusion by veteran music video and concert director David Mallet, and shot on video during Pink Floyd's two-week stint at London's Earls Court Exhibition Centre in October 1994, this 145-minute performance (from Floyd's Division Bell tour) is a sonic marvel to behold. Under a massive arch festooned with then-state-of-the-art laser, lighting, and projection systems, the 1987 incarnation of Pink Floyd (Gilmour, keyboardist Richard Wright, and drummer Nick Mason) and their stellar supporting band kicks off with "Shine on You Crazy Diamond" (a loving tribute to Floyd co-founder Syd Barrett), followed by four tracks from The Division Bell, two from 1987's A Momentary Lapse of Reason, "Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" from 1979's magnum opus The Wall, and leading into intermission with an absolutely stunning performance of "One of These Days," the timeless opening track from 1971's Meddle.

The centerpiece of Disc 2 is a near-perfect performance of 1974's Dark Side of the Moon in its entirety--reason enough to make this a must-have DVD for even the most casual Floyd admirers. And while no one will ever re-create the sheer magnificence of Clare Torry's original tour de force vocals on "The Great Gig in the Sky," it's safe to say that backup singers Sam Brown, Claudia Fontaine, and Durga McBroom deliver the next best thing, in addition to seamless contributions throughout the concert. After the closing heartbeat of "Eclipse," the concert ends with encore performances of "Wish You Were Here," "Comfortably Numb," and a no-holds-barred, pyrotechnically explosive rendition of The Wall's "Run Like Hell," all showcasing Gilmour's guitar mastery with frequent close-ups of his picking and fret-work as seen throughout the concert. (Like Gilmour, Mason and Wright were never dynamic onstage, and that's true here as well, but their technical precision is fully evident, and while guitarist Tim Renwick and saxophonist Dick Parry are each given moments to shine, bassist Guy Pratt is a worthy substitution for Waters, especially when vocally sparring with Gilmour on "Run Like Hell.")

With beautiful packaging, an 8-page booklet, and menu designs by long-time Floyd associate Storm Thorgerson, the DVDs offer an abundance of bonus features including "Bootlegging the Bootleggers," featuring surprisingly good-quality "boot" video performances of "What Do You Want From Me?," "On the Turning Away," "Poles Apart," and "Marooned." The surreal round-ratio screen films seen throughout the concert can all be viewed independently (still in round format, and several offered in both original and alternate versions). Music videos for "Learning to Fly" and "Take It Back" are included on Disc 1, along with "Tour Stuff" including maps, itineraries, and stage plans for the 1994 tour. "Say Goodbye to Life as We Know It" is a playful backstage video (mostly involving the production staff's ongoing quest for a good pint of beer), and after delivering a heartfelt introduction to Pink Floyd's 1996 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (with Roger Waters and Syd Barrett acknowledged by Gilmour), Smashing Pumpkins leader Billy Corgan joins Gilmour and Wright for a moving acoustic performance of "Wish You Were Here" (directed at Waters, perhaps?). Additional features include album cover art, a photo gallery, and the concert-only audio choice between a 448kbps audio bitstream or a higher-quality 640kbps stream for higher-quality DVD players. The system set-up feature ensures that audiophiles will achieve optimum speaker performance in keeping with Pink Floyd's exacting technical standards. In tandem with the superior concert presentation, these features make Pulse one of the best--if not the best--music DVDs of 2006, guaranteed to satisfy Floyd fans for many years to come. --Jeff Shannon

More from Pink Floyd and David Gilmour

Pulse (CD)	Is There Anybody Out There?/The Wall Live Pink Floyd 1980-81	Pink Floyd--The Wall 25th Anniversary (DVD)
The Division Bell, Pink Floyd	Delicate Sound of Thunder, Pink Floyd	A Momentary Lapse of Reason, Pink Floyd
Live 8 on DVD--Featuring Pink Floyd	Pink Floyd--Live at Pompeii (Director's Cut) (DVD), Pink Floyd	On an Island, David Gilmour

Amazon.com

 Video quality is very poor!
I owned this when it initially came out on VHS, back then I had a 27" tube TV and a basic 4 speaker dolby surround sound receiver. Give the 10 years since, I have lost my copy of the tape and have upgraded to a nice 5.1 setup with a 100" DLP high def projector.

I was very excited to hear the DVD was finally out and I can re-visit one of my favorite live videos of the 90's!

The very first thing I noticed was how pixilated the image looked, I fiddled with the settings on my projector thinking that was the problem.

i then tried watching it on a smaller 42" widescreen and it looked just as bad! The darker scenes, I saw a lot of digital artifacts, for 2004 this was just bad! I felt like I was watching a you tube video blown up on a screen!

That is basically my biggest beef with the DVD, well that and the 4:3 aspect ratio! The footage screams to have a 16:9 presentation.

I understand that the source material wasn't the best to work with, but given the fact that they spred the concert over two disks should have given them more room to work with.

I do love however the 5.1 treatment it got! James Guthrie is an engineering wizard, and the sound does not disappoint.

Granted, this is Pink Floyd Lite and the absence of Roger Waters is felt throughout, and Guy Pratt and his headless bass always annoyed me! But oh well.

Hopefully they will re-release this on Blu-Ray and correct the video quality, this is meant to be seen as clear as possible!
May 8, 2008

 Pink is best
This was the first PINK FLOYD video that i have ever bought after
being a PINK FLOYD fan for a lot of years and i AM glad that i did.
I love the production both with the music and the visuals.
Dave has the ever popular back up girls, lasers and screaming strat
sound as he always had.
It is refreshing to see a great musician that has never lost it with his talent.
This dvd is packed with great songs and extra footage with New-
5.1 surround. The songs on this are.......
crazy diamond- learning to fly- high hopes- take it back- coming back to life- sorrow- keep talking- another brick in the wall part 2-
one of these days- speak to me- breathe in the air- on the run-
time- the great gig in the sky- money- us and them- any colour you like
brain dammage- eclipse- wish you were here- comfortably numb-
and run like hell.
The extra's are pretty cool too. There is an area that is called
bootlegging the bootleggers where they use bootleg footage
in sort of a collage.
In this dvd is a couple of the original pink floyd vids as well.
They would be.... say goodbye to life as we know it and wish you
were here with BILLY CORGAN! April 15, 2008

 Awesome!
I watched this concert several times during the several past years and having it on DVD format displayed on a 48" LCD screen with a 1,200 watts 5.1 sound system is what I have been waiting for sooooooo long.

This is a must have for Pink Floyd fans.

The presentation, extra features and quality of video and sound is great.

I wanted to rate it 10 stars but 5 was the highest... very well deserved. April 9, 2008

 Awesome DVD
Amazing concert footage. Every Floyd fan should own this DVD. I wish there was more commentary/interview stuff, though. March 31, 2008

 Freaking great!!!!
There's nothing to say about it, it's just GREAT... one of the greatest concerts/productions/art-monument in history!!!! March 26, 2008

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