Take 6-Doo Be Doo Wop Bop! (DVD-Audio) (1988) (NTSC)

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General		Extras
Category	Music	Booklet Notes-About Take 6 (DVD-Audio only) Discography-(DVD-Audio only) Credits-(DVD-Audio only)
Rating
Year Of Production	1988
Running Time	44:26
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Programme
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	None Given
Studio Distributor	Reprise Records Warner Vision	Starring	Mark Kibble Claude V. McKnight Cedric Dent David Thomas Mervyn E. Warren Alvin Chea
Case	DVD-Audio Jewel
RPI	$32.95	Music	Take 6

    Not being familiar with the music of Take 6, this review session began with some minor research regarding the band. It turns out that this is basically their debut album with the addition of a couple of bonus tracks from later albums. So what, you might well say. Well, the album did win a couple of Grammys, if that is of any great importance to you. It has to be said that a cappella signing is not to everyone's tastes, mine especially, but quality singing of any style surely is. Let it be said from the outset that this is quality singing. The big problem with quality singing is that lousy recording can soon destroy the effect.

    A lovely blend of jazz and gospel, the result is something rather unusual for music of the last twenty years - something that actually has some merit.

    Whether time will be kind to both the album and Take 6 in general we shall have to await. However, in comparison to some of the utter tripe that has come subsequently from many artists, this is well worth indulging in. The album itself has been treated with respect and the soundtracks here do everything possible to support the a cappella style of singing. Unless the style is not at all to your taste, this is well worth checking out.

Video

    There is no video on the disc, as everything comprises NTSC menus and stills. There are no issues with these at all.

Audio

    Like a few of the earlier releases in the format, the slick gives the impression that there are three soundtracks on the disc. In fact there are only two, being a DVD-Audio only MLP 96 kHz/24 bit 5.1 soundtrack and a DVD-Video compatible Dolby Digital 5.1 448 kb/s soundtrack. I listened to both of the soundtracks in their entirety.

    One thing that immediately stands out is how the surround sound format really brings life to this a cappella style of signing. Whilst I have not heard this particular album on CD, I have heard other albums of similar style of material and they never really captured the gorgeous nature of a cappella singing. Finally, we have a format that does the style the justice that it deserves.

    The DVD-Video compatible Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack is a really nice effort indeed. Immediately noticeable are the great harmonies out of the rear surround channels, and then you start to take in the rest of the excellent qualities in the soundtrack. The bass is very nicely handled, with this being one of the really rare occasions where the bass actually sounds like the contribution a double bass makes to music. Not overstated, very noticeable but with a natural reverb that requires no excessive artificial enhancement. Were bass handled this way on more DVDs, audio or video, I would be much happier. Then you notice the excellent handling of the vocals themselves, most notably the lack of any clipping of the sound at the higher notes. The overall feel of the soundtrack is very intimate, very natural and extremely clear and detailed. Really nice stuff indeed. About the only down side is that the disc does not automatically end at the end of the soundtrack and seems to repeat without any manual intervention.

    The DVD-Audio compatible MLP 5.1 soundtrack was very similar in style in every way, at least barring two. One of those is that the soundtrack seems to be a little lacking in the bass that is nicely obvious in the Dolby Digital soundtrack. Now that would usually be cause for rejoicing from me, but in this instance it is not. The lack of that modest bass seems to rob the overall soundscape of some of its impact. The other way that the soundtrack differs is in that it seems to be less well defined than the Dolby Digital soundtrack. I would certainly not describe it as muddy, but it certainly seems to sound a little less clear to my ears. Maybe it is just me, but the overall result is to make the sound a little flatter and not quite as dynamic. Perhaps your mileage will vary, but I found the MLP soundtrack to be a little underwhelming overall.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

    Not exactly an inspiring contribution to the format in any real way.

Booklet

    A barely acceptable eight page effort, providing only lyrics to the songs and the credits for the original album and DVD.

Notes - About Take 6 (DVD-Audio only)

    Considering that the band has won a few Grammys, three pages of notes that more or less talk about the album rather than the band hardly seems to be a great asset to the disc. Surely something way better than this could have been compiled?

Discography (DVD-Audio only)

    Just a photo of each album cover - not even quoting track listings or date of release - hardly makes this an inviting extra either.

Credits (DVD-Audio only)

    Basically repeating those included in the booklet.

    This DVD-Audio is identical in content and format around the world.

    Whilst dimly aware of the band, I had never really taken any notice of their music. Therefore, I approached this review with some degree of trepidation, especially as winning Grammys is certainly no guarantee of quality. Whilst I cannot say that I really enjoy this style of singing, although I can appreciate when it is well done as it is here, there is little doubt that it has been presented in the best possible manner on this disc. If the music style is to your taste, there is absolutely no reason to deny yourself the pleasure to be had here.

Video
Audio
Extras
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Overall