Ah, the blues, either you love it or you don't. Whether you do or you don't depends on whether you 'get it' or you don't. The blues is something that makes you tingle, and takes you away, or it is something that sounds boring and crap. If you don't 'get it' then nothing I have to say is going to make a dime's worth of difference (I hope you'll excuse the Americanism - but after all, the blues is one of the few great things America has given the world).

Basically, the blues is something that you feel, something that appeals to you down deep, and it's something that you can't explain, you just feel it. By now you've worked out that I 'get it', and it is with some anticipation that I slipped this disc in the ol' player to enjoy this historical event.

The premise was simple. In 1966, CBS Television invited some of North America's greatest blues performers to gather in a studio in Toronto, and over three days they were recorded in various combinations and as solo performers. It was the first and only time that these artists were recorded in the same place, and the result was originally broadcast as part of the CBS Festival series. The line-up is quite impressive and includes Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, Otis Spann, Sonny Terry, and Brownie McGhee. These guys (and one gal - it's a shame there weren't a few more) are some of the finest examples of Chicago blues performers the world has ever seen.

Sadly, all of these performers are dead now, but we have recordings such as this to remind us just how raw and passionate music once was, based on real experiences. There were no pretty boys, or fluffy, navel-exposing pop tarts. The blues has no time for such things. If you need some sort of visual experience with your music, look elsewhere. If you want to hear firsthand just how stripped and raw music should be, then get into the blues. At 42:30, this is short enough to let you know if it's not for you, or for those that 'get it', it's just way too short, full stop.

The disc is introduced by obvious blues fan Colin James, the only white guy on the DVD, and while I will confess to not knowing who he is, he does a fair job. He gives the sketchiest of details about each artist, and even plays a duet with Willie Dixon thanks to modern technology. The film of the show was dragged out in 1996, 30 years after it was first aired, and is a great way to end a Friday evening, with the lights down low, and maybe a scotch or two to complete the mood.

There are no prizes for guessing that this is in black and white or that it is a full frame presentation. After all, this was filmed for television and everything about it has that television look. The black and white has that typical '60s look, where a 'halo' effect tends to occur when stark white meets deep black. There are not as many shades of grey as in more modern black and white filming, and the black levels especially vary quite a lot. Of course this is attributed to the age of the source film and cannot be blamed on the transfer. Shadow detail is acceptable without being great. There is a fair amount of grain, but the actual image, though a little on the soft side, is as sharp as you could expect.

Audiowise there are two options, though to be honest, there is not a lot of difference between the Dolby Digital 5.1 and the Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo mixes. The 2.0 mix is the default, and it was the 5.1 mix that was used to watch the disc. It is a very subtle 5.1 mix and this is a good thing. It's safe to assume that the original source tape was probably stereo and there is no noticeable separation, and even though the surround speakers are constantly busy, they are very subtle and you have to actually listen out for them to be sure it really is a 5.1 mix. They are really just used to fill up the room, and the subwoofer is rarely called upon, but that's the nature of blues music. It is stripped and raw.

Neither the technology, nor the playing style, are the same as today's low-level sound producing instruments and reproduction. In fact, most blues music focuses on guitar and piano, and this DVD does justice to both. The clarity is fine, and while the audio synch appeared good, there are a few occasions when I began to suspect that some of the audio might have been overdubbed later. The artists often move in and out from the microphone stands, yet there is no drop in the volume of the vocals. This is a small quibble, as the music is very good, and only close inspection will reveal that there may have been some studio trickery employed.

There is no layer change and neither should there be in a 42:30 minute performance.

The only extras are Juke Box which allows selection of featured tracks, and Review which at 40 seconds appears to be a piece of the Colin James hosting that for some reason was not needed in the final editing. At 40 seconds, what can one possibly hope to achieve in a review anyway?

Overall this is not a bad disc for blues lovers. It sounds and looks about as good as anything of this era, especially filmed for television, is ever going to look. The artists and songs presented are a nice representation of the Chicago blues sound, but with a suggested retail price of $34.95 and clocking in at just 42 minutes in length, its value for money could be questioned. It's a shame, as it is a disc that deserves to be seen, but lasting as long as your average vinyl album did, the price tag may prove to be a little steep.