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| The Passing Show - The Life & Music of Ronnie Lane | 
 enlarge | Actor: Ronnie Lane
Studio: Eagle Rock Ent
Category: DVD
List Price: $11.98
Buy New: $7.49
You Save: $4.49 (37%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  (13 reviews)
Sales Rank: 35033
Format: Color, Dvd-video, Import, Ntsc
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: DVD
Running Time: 107 minutes
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: EV30185-9
UPC: 801213018598
EAN: 0801213018598
ASIN: B000ION7CG
Release Date: November 7, 2006
Theatrical Release Date: October 31, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
Little Known Story April 19, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Not many listeners know the music of Ronnie Lane. In his heyday you had to dig a little to find his records, and now his heyday is about thirty years passed. He died in 1997 of MS. There was never much flash about the guy, but his music was excellent and unique. The niche he occupied was a very particular one and, sadly, no one before or since has come close to filling it. His personal misfortune notwithstanding, Ronnie Lane wrote largely acoustic, glad-to-be-alive songs in which accordians, tin whistles and the like featured. This DVD tells his story pretty well and serves to give the viewer a sense of the music he made, though, as one reviewer noted, there isn't the first complete performance to be had. Given the dearth of material on Ronnie Lane, that can be forgiven. It's high time someone cut an inroad into this largely ignored territory, and I'm more than pleased to have it.
 Sorry To Be A Stick In The Mud January 26, 2007
10 out of 15 found this review helpful
I must admit to being somewhat disappointed with this DVD.
The greatest disappointment I have is that there is not a single musical Ronnie Lane performance on this DVD that is even close to complete. In fact almost all of them are only very short snippets. Now I realize that this DVD is designed mainly to tell the life story of the wonderful Mr Lane, I still dont understand why a couple of the live performances could not have been shown in their complete form. If the concern was upsetting the flow of the story of Ronnies life, then why not add some original complete performances as DVD extras ? Perhaps another DVD is in the works of live Lane material ?
Secondly, while there were indeed some interesting interviews ( like with his wives ), I must admit that all in all I learned very little from this DVD that I didnt already know. The DVD also seemed to slight the " Faces " portion of his career. ( possibly due to a Mr Rod Stewart )
All that being said, I am still glad I purchased this DVD, as ANY documentary of Ronnie Lane is welcome, and long overdue.There are some nice still photos of Ronnie during his career, and the brief bits of his interview from the 80's is certainly worth viewing and hearing.
Here's hoping that there is a " Ronnie Lane Part 2 " DVD in the works featuring only live performances.
Unsung Rock N Roll Hero Finally Sung! January 12, 2007
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
This is not just a typical story of rock and roll excess, nor is it a pious homage to yet another dead musician. This an inspiring exploration of a very complex individual struggling to balance his starring role as an amazing songwriter/musician in two of the most famous, and influential bands of our time, The Small Faces and The Faces, with his deeply felt spiritual aspirations (as a follower of Avatar Meher Baba).In the film, Ronnie Lane is portrayed first and foremost as a human being who courageously (foolishly) commits commercial careericide by following his heart to leave fame and fortune to travel around the countryside in a caravan playing the music he heard in his head... only to wind up in a valiant battle with multiple schlerosis. Throughout, Lane's talent, sincerity, humanity, courage, and importance prove as moving as the music itself.Perhaps a video compilation of some complete musical performances will follow? I hope...
Somebody's Listening - now January 10, 2007
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Ronnie Lane is a national treasure. His influence on the music and culture of the sixties and seventies is greater than we have yet acknowledged - his philosophy could have spared us stadium rock if anyone had been listening.
This documentary tells his story well. There is sympathy without nostalgia. It is very well researched and well directed so that the viewer comes away with a sense of what Ronnie achieved and knowing the quality of the legacy he left. Most importantly it renews enthusiasm for Ronnie's music, it takes you straight to the songs and the attitude that they should be sung forever, wherever people get together to sing.
The tragedy of Ronnie's illness is that it denied us the chance to bump into a great old bloke sitting in the corner of a country pub telling stories about the band he was in that shook the world and playing us a tune or two on his twelve string guitar. If he's not here, we'll just have to play those tunes ourselves.!
Ronnie deserves to be better known January 10, 2007
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
This excellent DVD tells the fascinating story of Ronnie Lane, bassist for the Small Faces and the Faces, as well as a wonderful solo artist in his own right, from his birth to his unfortunate death related to MS.
Fans of classic rock will most likely have heard of Ronnie through his association with the first two bands--the Small Faces produced the hit, "Itchycoo Park," and the Faces were Rod Stewart's original group, becoming wildly popular in America and having a few hits (many penned and sung by Ronnie). The story charts his pivotal role in both bands as the spirit of both groups and a talented songwriter as well. Excellent montages of photos and video clips illustrate the narrative, which includes interviews with bandmates, road crews, his ex-wife, and Ronnie himself.
The story gets really interesting when Ronnie leaves the Faces to pursue his own solo career, releasing albums recorded in his mobile home recording studio that have a home-grown feel (much like The Band). Lane moved to a rural farm and had some mixed success at living an agrarian life while at the same time taking his band on a circus-like live tour called "The Passing Show," which produced some unforgettable music but also ran his finances into the ground. He also collaborated with Pete Townshend on the classic album Rough Mix in the later 70's. Finally, the DVD charts Ronnie's life from the time he first became diagnosed with MS and quit working as hard and finally moved to the USA to live a quieter life raising money and awareness about MS and playing music (when he could) until he passed away.
Ronnie's story is told candidly and lovingly by his friends and musical cohorts, and it's not possible to watch the film without gaining a great appreciation for his character and his contribution to music in the 60's and 70's. I was already a fan before I watched The Passing Show, but now I'm more inspired to dig deeper into Ronnie's catalog. Hardcore fans will really enjoy the show, and you might even get interested in Ronnie without having heard his music just by watching this great documentary!
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