The Houston Summit, 11/20/75:  1. Substitute, 2. I Can't Explain, 3. Squeeze Box, 4. Baba O'Riley, 5. Boris The Spider, 6. Drowned, 7. However Much I Booze, 8. Dreaming From The Waist, 9. Behind Blue Eyes, 10. Amazing Journey, 11. Sparks, 12. Acid Queen, 13. Fiddle About, 14. Pinball Wizard, 15. I'm Free, 16. Tommy's Holiday Camp, 17. We're Not Gonna Take It, 18. Summertime Blues, 19. My Generation, 20. Join Together, 21. Naked Eye, 22. Roadrunner, 23. Won't Get Fooled Again, 24. Magic Bus, 25. My Generation Blues

Bonus Features:

Pontiac Stadium, Pontiac, Michigan - 12/6/75:  1. Pinball Wizard, 2. I'm Free, 3. Tommy's Holiday Camp, 4. We're Not Gonna Take It, 5. Summertime Blues, 6. My Generation, 7. Join Together Blues, 8. Roadrunner, 9. Won't Get Fooled Again, 10. Magic Bus, 11. My Generation Blues

Old Grey Whistle Test:  "Long Live Rock" Live Vocals over pre-recorded backing track.  Recorded January 29th, 1973 - Originally broadcast on January 30th, 1973.

Fete De L'Humanite' - Paris France, September 9th, 1972:  Roger Daltrey Interview plus entrance to stage and clip of "Summertime Blues".

Old Grey Whistle Test - Keith Moon Interview:  Interview by "Whispering" Bob Harris for BBC2, recorded May 16, 1975.

Roadies Documentary Clips:  Recorded August 23rd, 1972 for Sverige Television and Broadcast April 22nd, 1973 - Live clips from Kungliga Tennshallen, Stockholm, Sweden.

These days, it is really saying something when a release lives up to its' promotional billing.  Who fans and general Rock and Roll collectors, step right up and emerse yourself in one of the finest documents of the Keith Moon-era Who that can possibly be issued on the bootleg DVD format.  I will stand by my early assessment of this title and predict that it will be vying for one of the top bootleg releases of 2005.  That's right...and we're only half-way through February!

This 30th Anniversary Edition of The Who's 1975 Tour Opener at The Summit in Houston boasts it's source as the original 3/4" Master Reel.  Just a minute into the show and you are sold.  It is evident that there is no VHS intervention along the way and it is indeed, a film transfer and without question makes any version previously circulated, garbage.  The fluidity of our subjects and the rich color support the cause.  It is essentially a 2-camera in-house production with camera #1 from stage-right and seeing primary duty.  We really don't get that 2-camera effect until "Baba O'Riley", a few songs into the set.  Even then, the transition between the 2 is used sparingly...but when our director changes the perspective, it is appreciated!  The audio is a well-balanced soundboard but there is an 8-second gap of silence about a minute into "Squeeze Box".  4Reel displays a visual message in reference to this gap, indicating it is a flaw in the master and that they "profusely apologize".  Just a reminder to viewers that this is still a bootleg!

As with any tour opener, the performance is somewhat ragged around the edges but you know, point me to a Who show that wasn't.  This band has been everything but polished.  "Boris The Spider" is marginal at best and by the "Tommy" segment, the band borders on uninspired but clearly having a good time.  It should be noted that the sequence of "My Generation/Join Together/Naked Eye/Roadrunner" is really an extended medley - as they were known to do throughout this period.

For all practical purposes, this is a complete video document of The Summit show, with the only a brief edit during the transition from "Behind Blue Eyes" into "Amazing Journey".  As if having this concert alone on the disc isn't enough for you...on to the incredible array of bonus features.

To supplement our main feature, 4Reel tracked down the lowest generation of the common Pontiac Silverdome '75 footage, which provides another rocking 42 minutes for your enjoyment.  I recommend pausing in-between this and the Houston show to fully appreciate what you are viewing.  The material is so similar it can lose it's effect due to the repetition of the like performances.  But that's a good thing!  We have it all on one acquisition and what a treat.  Again, the Pontiac Pro-shot segment is a 2-camera effort, with emphasis on that familiar stage-right position.  The Old Grey Whistle Test performance of "Long Live Rock" is really a gem simply because the band look so confined in their small quarters, if forces interesting interplay between the members.  The clip is cut on the front-end which is too bad and the generation of this segment is a little higher than the other sources put into this title.  I assure you, it's still a fabulous inclusion.  The Paris '72 footage is particularly interesting and simply leaves you wanting much more of that show!  The French Reporter who interviews Roger tries to extract some sort of Political statement from him on whatever this occaision is - but to no avail.  Rog holds his ground and insists they are simply supplying the musical entertainment for the day and keep their political views personal.  It's been a long time since I have seen the '75 Keith Moon interview with Bob Harris and this version is right from a master source.  Beautiful and interesting to watch as Keith squirms through the 12 minute conversation with warmth and honesty.  It is great.  Finally, we have some random documentary footage, supposedly shot by some roadies with cameras for a Swedish Television show.  It's simply a bonus and while it's always cool to see stuff you haven't come across before, this stuff isn't anything special.

The whole package comes in a professionally designed and printed DVD DigiPack that looks great but the grade of cardboard utilized could have been of higher quality to match its' contents.  Just a tad flimsy.  The inner sleeve has the essential tracklisting and sources while the trayside portion replicates a couple of reviews of the primary shows; the Houston Review from Record World and published in the Houston Post...and...from the Detroit Free Press, we get a review of the Pontiac concert.  Nice touch. The disc itself is again the DVD-9  Dual-layer medium that offers the high capacity to compile so much content in one shot.  And the disc is professionally screen-printed with "The Who The Summit 1975" and 4Reel Productions Logo, just like you see in the middle of the front cover.

Folks - this is a must-have.  The Dolby Digital Audio and 5.1 Surround Sound will have any location you choose to experience this shaking off the foundations.  Are you sold yet?