Bobby Blue Bland: "Live" on Beale Street

Manufacturer: Kultur Video Brand: Kulter

This razor-sharp and still outrageous comedy portrays God as an overworked steambath attendant who doles out "wrath" and "blessed events" in between assignments of scrubbing floors and walls. Bill Bixby and Valerie Perrine star. This unique play presents the afterlife as a steam bath, in which dead souls continue to obsess about the same petty concerns that obsessed them in their lives, until they are cast into a dark void by God, the Puerto Rican attendant (José Pérez). But new arrival Tandy (Bill Bixby) at first refuses to accept what's happened, and when he finally does, he pleads to be allowed to return to his life. Steambath was controversial in its day for its obscene language (which was softened for this filmed version, originally presented on PBS), its satirical take on religion, and some brief nudity by bombshell Valerie Perrine. Today it's still very entertaining, but mostly as a core sampling of the surprisingly uncensored male attitudes from the dawn of the 1970s. Everyone gives a solid performance and Bixby's easy charm makes his self-centered character sympathetic. --Bret Fetzer

Manufacturer: Kultur Video Brand: Kulter

Gilbert and Sullivan's raucous operatic tale is captured in all it's fun and glory in this production. Kevin Kline ( A Fish Called Wanda) sparkles as the swashbuckling and libidinous Pirate King while Linda Ronstandt plays the lovely and virginal Mabel. This Pirates of Penzance is primarily a historical document, part of the Broadway Theater Archive television series. It presents, with some inevitable, tiny technical shortcomings, a live 1980 performance in Central Park, not the 1983 movie of the same name that also starred Linda Ronstadt and Kevin Kline. Those who remember that film, which had the benefit of retakes and editing, a lavish production budget, and the spaciousness of a Hollywood studio, may find this video less polished. On its own terms, it is nonetheless thoroughly enjoyable. Advantages of this live performance include a sense of spontaneity, and the feeling of being part of a theatrical audience that is visibly and audibly having a very good time. The (reduced and partly electronic) orchestra is also visible; scenery is minimal; the onstage pirate boat, excellent for a live production, is no match for what a movie can offer. The voices are uneven, and some of them evoke Broadway more than London. But the performance is well styled, lively, and energetic. Gilbert and Sullivan's witty sparkle comes through clearly. --Joe McLellan

Manufacturer: Mpi Home Video Brand: MPI HOME VIDEO Model: 2222731

Manufacturer: Kultur Video Brand: Kulter

Choreographed by Mikhail Baryshnikov after Petipa and Gorsky's original staging, this sparkling full-length production captures all the excitement, Spanish flair, and humor of Cervantes' masterpiece. It is one of the most popular and joyful ballets.

Manufacturer: Polydor / Umgd Brand: UNIVERSAL MUSIC VIDEO DIST.

Abba ~ Abba Gold - Greatest Hits For those who love Abba (and if you're reading this, chances are you do, even if you don't know it yet), ABBA Gold: Greatest Hits represents a happy, joyous compilation of 19 of the Swedish supergroup's numerous videos (it omits 13 that were on Abba: The Definitive Collection but adds "Lay All Your Love on Me" and "I Have a Dream"). Granted, they all seem to have been filmed on the same soundstage (even the firelit "Fernando"), but they retain their appeal and infectious charm. Fans can thrill to these vintage clips, which provide an opportunity to rediscover who was the most natural in front of the camera (Agnetha), who was the best dancer (Anna-Frid, a.k.a. Frida), who was the most demure (Benny), and who was the worst lip-syncher (Bjorn--always Bjorn). Lassé Hallstrom, later an Oscar®-nominated filmmaker, directed most of the early videos, and it shows in their natural, no-fuss style; it wasn't until Abba tried to make the jump to '80s-style electronica that they faltered in both style and content. In addition to old standbys like "Waterloo" and "Take a Chance on Me," there's a 25-minute historical documentary and a 1992 version of the "Dancing Queen" video. To this we say: Thank you for the music--and the videos! --Mark Englehart

Manufacturer: Eagle Eye Media / Eagle Rock Entertainment Model: 2263531

Frank Zappa's highly acclaimed film from 1979 includes over three hours of outrageous Zappa musical performances and unique & bizarre Claymation from Bruce Bickford. This is the full-length version of the film as it premiered at the Victoria Theatre in T Touted as "a movie about people who do stuff that is not normal," Frank Zappa's Baby Snakes chronicles a late-'70s Halloween stand in New York City (a zany enough proceeding in its own right) with digressions throughout the first half for backstage antics, band interviews, and some outlandish clay animation from Bruce Bickford, with whose work Zappa was obviously smitten. Onstage, Zappa is a live wire, the audience is appropriately rambunctious, and the band--an especially potent incarnation of the famous Mothers of Invention--is tight as could be. The film amounts to a three-hour musical carnival whose participants lack any trace of artistic or personal inhibition. Zappa, who died in 1993, always worked with consummate musicians, and Baby Snakes showcases the cream of the crop: Terry Bozzio (one of the greatest drummers ever to command a kit), bassist Patrick O'Hearn, keyboard wizard Tommy Mars, and even pop chameleon Adrian Belew. The DVD packaging, with its deluxe miniature dossier on Zappa and the film, is fabulous, and the sound and picture seem about as good as they could be, under the influence--that is, the circumstances. Undeniable are Zappa's intelligence and charisma, which flicker and blaze eve...

Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon Model: 2227921

The Metropolitan Opera's 1995 production features Placido Domingo, Renee Fleming, James Morris, Richard Croft and Charles Anthony. James Levine conducts the Metropolitan Opera Chorus and Orchestra.

Manufacturer: Sony Legacy Brand: SPRINGSTEEN,BRUCE & E STREET BAND Model: 2230878

A recording of Bruce Springsteen and his E Street band performing in Spain on October 16, 2002.

Manufacturer: Capitol Brand: EMD

The Maysles' Brothers' groundbreaking 1964 documentary! The Maysles got access to the Beatles off-guard and off-duty, from hotel rooms to nightclubs to press conferences, documenting the most explosive pop culture phenomenon in history; this DVD adds a 50-minute Making of the Beatles First U.S. Visit featurette that includes unseen footage and a new interview with Albert Maysles, who provides audio commentary for the original feature. Also here are the Beatles' three appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show and excerpts from their Washington Coliseum concert.