T.A.M.I. Show/Big T.N.T. Show Coming to Blu-ray on December 2

[HeyJude]

It looks like the "TAMI Show" (the pertinent part for BB fans of course) is getting its first HD release on Blu-ray in December. Looks like they're pairing it with the "TNT Show" on a double feature Blu-ray.

[CenturyDeprived]

This is SO awesome. And after years of only being able to have this on a bootleg, it's amazing that we'll have it in hi def.

What other old school BB footage (shot on film) has ever been released, or is available otherwise, in high-definition?

For that matter, what other BB footage *could* be released in high-definition - meaning the original film elements have been located and are known to exist?

[HeyJude]

There’s definitely very little true HD material of the BBs out there. The only actual Blu-ray releases of any sort have been the BD Audio disc in the recent PS anniversary set (and I don’t know what video material is on there in true HD) , Brian’s recent “Soundstage” BD, and then the two BDs released for C50. The only archival footage that appears to be true HD in the “Doin’ It Again” documentary is the “Good Vibrations” sessions footage.

Essentially, the two items that can exist in true HD are items where the original film source can be used, and of course recent stuff shot natively in HD. So there is tons of stuff from the last 5-10 years that is BB related that aired in HD on television of course.

The TAMI show is a weird one, because it was shot using a pretty unique video system (there’s a bunch of info on this over on the Steve Hoffman board archives as I recall), for which the original source materials aren’t available anymore. It’s not exactly like a kinescope, but it’s essentially the same idea: a film transfer of something shot in a video format. So the “TAMI” show isn’t ever going to look as good as that original video source, nor will it look as good as something shot directly onto film. But as it’s a film source being used for current transfers of the film, scanning that film in HD isn’t going to do anything but look better than an SD version. So “TAMI” is somewhat unique in that respect. In any event, the Blu-ray is only going to look at the very least slightly better than the extant DVD.

I don’t think there are many vintage BB concerts captured as professionally *filmed* performances. Most of the existing concerts seem to have been captured on videotape rather than film, so those are locked into SD.

If the 1976 NBC TV special film elements still exist, that (both the special and any raw footage) could be done up in true HD. But that “Good Vibrations Tour” DVD Eagle Vision put out a few years ago looked to me like they sourced it from an old TV videotape master. I don’t know what original film elements still exist.

[CenturyDeprived]

There’s definitely very little true HD material of the BBs out there. The only actual Blu-ray releases of any sort have been the BD Audio disc in the recent PS anniversary set (and I don’t know what video material is on there in true HD) , Brian’s recent “Soundstage” BD, and then the two BDs released for C50. The only archival footage that appears to be true HD in the “Doin’ It Again” documentary is the “Good Vibrations” sessions footage.

Essentially, the two items that can exist in true HD are items where the original film source can be used, and of course recent stuff shot natively in HD. So there is tons of stuff from the last 5-10 years that is BB related that aired in HD on television of course.

The TAMI show is a weird one, because it was shot using a pretty unique video system (there’s a bunch of info on this over on the Steve Hoffman board archives as I recall), for which the original source materials aren’t available anymore. It’s not exactly like a kinescope, but it’s essentially the same idea: a film transfer of something shot in a video format. So the “TAMI” show isn’t ever going to look as good as that original video source, nor will it look as good as something shot directly onto film. But as it’s a film source being used for current transfers of the film, scanning that film in HD isn’t going to do anything but look better than an SD version. So “TAMI” is somewhat unique in that respect. In any event, the Blu-ray is only going to look at the very least slightly better than the extant DVD.

I don’t think there are many vintage BB concerts captured as professionally *filmed* performances. Most of the existing concerts seem to have been captured on videotape rather than film, so those are locked into SD.

If the 1976 NBC TV special film elements still exist, that (both the special and any raw footage) could be done up in true HD. But that “Good Vibrations Tour” DVD Eagle Vision put out a few years ago looked to me like they sourced it from an old TV videotape master. I don’t know what original film elements still exist.

Thanks for the insight, HJ. So it seems that even though I'm stoked on this release, I won't really expect it to be much of an upgrade from the DVD.

I just have a hunch that there's more BB footage (maybe pro-shot on actual film) sitting somewhere unknown, rotting away in a vault or someone's basement/garage. One can hope, like what happened with those session tapes from Shut Down Vol. II.

[HeyJude]

Here's a post that explains very well how the "TAMI Show" was shot and transferred, etc. :

http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/t-a-m-i-video-question.237604/#post-6108890

[The Cincinnati Kid]

Very cool!  I've been hoping this would be released on Blu-ray.  Looks like a perfect item to add to the Christmas list.

[CenturyDeprived]

Here's a post that explains very well how the "TAMI Show" was shot and transferred, etc. :

http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/t-a-m-i-video-question.237604/#post-6108890

Fascinating - thanks again!

[Custom Machine]

Thanks for all the great info, HJ.

Good chance T.A.M.I.  and T.N.T. won't see much improvement, if any, from Blu-ray as opposed to DVD, but there may be some cool extras, as Shout Factory states, "Extras in progress and will be announced at a later date."

Also, if you order directly from Shout Factory (thus paying the 29.98 list price plus shipping) you get "two free theatrical-size posters (27" x 39.5") of the original theatrical poster art for both films (while supplies last)."  https://www.shoutfactory.com/film/film-rock-pop/t-a-m-i-show-the-big-t-n-t-show-collector-s-edition?item_id=585464&subtot=2998&items=1&units=1

[Bicyclerider]

This is the first time the TNT show has been released on DVD, so I'm excited about that - Donovan, Phil Spector, Ike and Tina Turner, the Ronettes, Lovin' Spoonful, the Byrds!

[HeyJude]

Got this as an XMas gift and have enjoyed it. There's obviously not much BB content that we aren't all already familiar with. You can see at least Mike, Dennis, and Al in the huge crowd of artists at the end during the Rolling Stones jam. Al of course just kinda stands in the back and doesn't do much; classic Al.

Mike and Dennis get into the hoopla and Mike helps carry Dennis sideways across the front of the stage as various dancers move back and forth.

Both TAMI and TNT look as good as such things possible could. Plenty of other cool sets of music on these shows. I find it amusing that Billy J. Kramer does a four-song set with three consisting of the Lennon/McCartney originals they kicked down to him.

It is interesting that the Steve Binder commentary posits that at the precise moment the TAMI show was filmed, Lesley Gore was the biggest star, which does probably explain her longer set. She indeed delivers a great vocal performance.

Jan & Dean are pretty cheesy, and neither really do a particularly good job convincing anyone they were great singers. I guess I gotta check out more Jan & Dean stuff; every time I see a TV performance of theirs they have this air of "I don't give a s**t" as far as persona, especially Jan. I presume it's just a weird, dry sense of humor.

I had semi-forgotten that the house band for the show was a bunch of the regulars like Hal Blaine, Lyle Ritz, Leon Russell, etc. Pretty cool.

But it's a pretty impressive, enjoyable show overall. It's a pretty good sing when some decent, still solid Jan & Dean performances are probably the *weakest* parts of a two-hour show.

"TNT" is quite enjoyable as well, though understandably somewhat more eclectic. Petula Clark's "Downtown" is a highlight.

Both shows were shot on videotape, and these HD transfers are made from kinescopes. You can tell the difference because the opening pre-filmed bit on "TAMI" looks *much better* than everything else. Still, the resolution is locked in to what we have, and it looks and sounds as good as it possibly can. "TNT" seems to look and sound a bit worse than "TAMI" despite being filmed over a year later.

[CenturyDeprived]

Got this as an XMas gift and have enjoyed it. There's obviously not much BB content that we aren't all already familiar with. You can see at least Mike, Dennis, and Al in the huge crowd of artists at the end during the Rolling Stones jam. Al of course just kinda stands in the back and doesn't do much; classic Al.

Mike and Dennis get into the hoopla and Mike helps carry Dennis sideways across the front of the stage as various dancers move back and forth.

Both TAMI and TNT look as good as such things possible could. Plenty of other cool sets of music on these shows. I find it amusing that Billy J. Kramer does a four-song set with three consisting of the Lennon/McCartney originals they kicked down to him.

It is interesting that the Steve Binder commentary posits that at the precise moment the TAMI show was filmed, Lesley Gore was the biggest star, which does probably explain her longer set. She indeed delivers a great vocal performance.

Jan & Dean are pretty cheesy, and neither really do a particularly good job convincing anyone they were great singers. I guess I gotta check out more Jan & Dean stuff; every time I see a TV performance of theirs they have this air of "I don't give a s**t" as far as persona, especially Jan. I presume it's just a weird, dry sense of humor.

I had semi-forgotten that the house band for the show was a bunch of the regulars like Hal Blaine, Lyle Ritz, Leon Russell, etc. Pretty cool.

But it's a pretty impressive, enjoyable show overall. It's a pretty good sing when some decent, still solid Jan & Dean performances are probably the *weakest* parts of a two-hour show.

"TNT" is quite enjoyable as well, though understandably somewhat more eclectic. Petula Clark's "Downtown" is a highlight.

Both shows were shot on videotape, and these HD transfers are made from kinescopes. You can tell the difference because the opening pre-filmed bit on "TAMI" looks *much better* than everything else. Still, the resolution is locked in to what we have, and it looks and sounds as good as it possibly can. "TNT" seems to look and sound a bit worse than "TAMI" despite being filmed over a year later.

Thanks for the review. I gave a copy to my mom as a gift, which I hope to watch together with her soon.

[Steve Latshaw]

<<Both shows were shot on videotape, and these HD transfers are made from kinescopes. You can tell the difference because the opening pre-filmed bit on "TAMI" looks *much better* than everything else. Still, the resolution is locked in to what we have, and it looks and sounds as good as it possibly can. "TNT" seems to look and sound a bit worse than "TAMI" despite being filmed over a year later.>>

Not precisely true.  Electronovision was a direct line feed to 35mm film cameras... similar to what film scanning is today, but in real time.  The process was considerably cleaner than kinescope, which also distorted the image.  The opening sequences were shot directly on 35mm film, which accounts for the better image quality.

As far as TNT looking worse than the earlier TAMI show, this comes down to available elements.  The only film element available was a 93 minute cut, which, according to the liner notes, was considerably shorter than the full cut.  American International Pictures released TNT.  They were later acquired by Orion, who in turn, was gobbled up by MGM.  This particular film element was, no doubt, the best available.   

[HeyJude]

There has been some excellent and interesting discussion over the years concerning "Electronovision" over at the Steve Hoffman forums, with some suggestion that it was mostly a marketing gimmick to disguise that it was basically shot on 2-inch videotape using SECAM format. Here's one interesting post on the subject:

http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/t-a-m-i-video-question.237604/#post-6108890

Both the above post and Wiki page on "Electronovision" ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronovision ) suggest that a normal kinescope process was used to capture the image to film.

I've always been led to believe the *slightly-better-than-a-typical-kinescope* look of the TAMI show was due to the higher-resolution SECAM process being used to capture the performance to videotape.

Some pertinent bits from the Wiki page:

While the press releases on Electronovision were deliberately vague, perhaps to add more mystique to the process, it used conventional analog Image Orthicon video camera tube units, shooting in the B&W 819-line interlaced 25fps French SECAM video standard, using modified high-band quadruplex VTRs to record the signal.

The promoters of Electronovision gave the impression that this was a new system created from scratch, using a high-tech name (and avoiding the word kinescope) to distinguish the process from conventional film photography. Nonetheless the advances in tape-to-reel time were, at the time, a major step ahead. By capturing more than 800 lines of resolution at 25 frame/s, raw tape could be converted to film via kinescope recording with sufficient enhanced resolution to allow big-screen enlargement.

[Custom Machine]

... kinescope, which also distorted the image ...

That kinescopes would distort the image had never occurred to me, but since there were no flat screen TVs back then, it totally makes sense.

[Sam_BFC]

I got the original restored DVD of TAMI a few years back and *still* haven't watched it, I am ashamed to say