Pink Floyd Live at Pompeii

The title suggests another straightforward concert movie, but 1972's PINK FLOYD LIVE AT POMPEII dispenses with the usual formula as there, for starters, is no audience to which to cut.  The quartet plugs in among the ruins of an empty Roman amphitheater in Pompeii, Italy and jams through lengthy pieces such as "One of These Days" and "Careful with That Axe, Eugene", complete with liberal knob twisting and guitar neck sliding, to say nothing of gong banging.  It probably would've been the coolest venue ever (with amazing acoustics) in which to see the boys, though logistics of all stripes might've proved daunting.  For this movie, in order to appropriately power their eight track recorders and touring gear, a cable had to be snaked in from the town hall, maybe not so nearby.

The doc was originally around an hour in length, featuring the on location performance and a few numbers shot in a Paris studio, but made, none too convincingly, to appear as if otherwise.  A few years later, footage of Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Nick Mason, and Richard Wright at Abbey Road was inserted to build the running time.  They're shown during the sessions for Dark Side of the Moon, playing around with equipment and talking about what a record producer's qualifications should be.   Also, ordering apple pie sans crust at the EMI canteen.  There are the expectedly fascinating bits of how tracks are laid down and vocals are tweaked or rethought altogether.  We get very tight shots on the musicians' faces as they speak about the Syd Barrett days, the rough patches of their in-band relationships, and also joke of how they're only in it for the money.  They rave over their oyster dinner.  Gilmour especially looks plenty stoned.  Most entertaining.

In 2002, director Adrian Maben decided to release the dreaded "Director's Cut", and it proved the adage about not fixing something that ain't broke.  His inclusion of computer generated images of Pompeii and its decimation by lava is atrocious, especially when compared to the genuine shots he captured on site.  Clips from NASA are OK but wholly unnecessary.  These elements do not destroy the POMPEII experience, especially when you marvel at the remastering of the good stuff.

The performances, of course.  Mesmerizing is one way to describe them, but adjectives fail.  Fans will be transfixed. Every number was commanding to this viewer; it's hard to single anything out.  The uninitiated might blanch at the experimental first several minutes of "A Saucerful of Secrets" and the goofiness of "Mademoiselle Nobs", complete with the yelps of a dog onstage.  The latter shows these serious guys had some lighter moments in their repertoire, something not at all witnessed on the later albums.   Pink Floyd was at a very interesting point in their timeline during the production of this film, and for that alone LIVE AT POMPEII is invaluable.