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Various Artists

A Technicolor Dream DVD

Review by Gary Hill

At least in the States when we think of the 1960’s and the psychedelic movement, much of it centers around San Francisco. It’s interesting to note that there was a thriving movement in London at the same time. This documentary gives a real in-depth look at that scene from many of the people who were part of it.

A lot of this movement was focused around Pink Floyd and the documentary will be of special interest to fans of this band. There is a lot of footage of the group from that time and Roger Waters and Nick Mason are among the people interviewed here. And, of course, this doesn’t touch on the bonus materials – as we’ll get to that shortly.

The Pink Floyd connection is a big part of the story, but it’s sort of the conclusion. The bulk of this documentary builds up to that. It talks about the beat movement in the London scene and how the “underground” got started. It’s about a half hour in before Floyd really make the scene (other than the introductory portion).  All in all, this documentary really gives an interesting view of a scene that many in the States might not be aware of. It seems a safe bet that those in the UK who weren’t directly involved will probably learn a lot, too. Since a lot of the 1960’s were about chemically induced haze perhaps those who were there will find some enlightenment here, too.

So, I mentioned bonus material. For Floyd fans this is perhaps the crowning achievement of this set. First there are full music videos of “Arnold Layne” and “The Scarecrow.” We also get a live (black and white) performance of “Astronomy Domine.” There are extended interviews as bonus features, too and two of those will be of special interest to Floyd fans as they are with Roger Waters and Nick Mason. So, all in all this DVD should be of interest to anyone who would like to know more about the thriving London psychedelic scene, but Pink Floyd fans in particular should add this to their “must have” list.

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2008  Volume 6 at lulu.com/strangesound.

 
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