Eno, Brian - 1971-1977: The Man Who Fell To Earth

[BRIAN ENO (1971-1976) THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH - Screen Format 4:3] An incredible in-depth documentary chronicling Eno's most prolific and experimental years and output, from pre-Roxy Music artschool days to collaborations with Robert Fripp, Phil Manzanera, John Cale, Nico, Cluster, Portsmouth Symphonia, 801,Gavin Bryars, David Toop, Harold Budd, Ambient music and of course, David Bowie. No musical stone is left unturned during this remarkable period of productivity in Eno's continuing career and, though this may be an unsanctioned chronicle (something I'm usually adverse to and highly skeptical of), it could only have been better if the man himself was involved. It's a collection of photos, videos, and interviews with writers Eric Tamm (who wrote bios on both Fripp and Eno), Mark Prendergast (The Ambient Century), Geeta Gayal (Another Green World), David Sheppard (On Some Faraway Beach - The Life and Times of Brian Eno), Johnny Rogan (an eccentric, notable biographer of many works), as well as prominent music critics Robert Christgau and Simon Reynolds, musicians Lloyd Watson, David Toop, Percy Jones, John Hassell, Bryan Turrington, Chris Spedding , David O'List and Rodelius. These are people who have been close to the 'nerve net' of focus here and not hangers-on, former-but-now-irate bedmates and rumor propagators. It's a fairly meticulous examination that clocks in at well over 2 ½ hours, and never gets boring, bland, too analytical or critical. It's thoroughly entertaining on all counts.Several reviewers here have taken issue that Eno has no involvement and that there's no newly unearthed music to be found, even that some of the details are incorrect (which is entirely untrue) - didn't they know this was an unauthorized biography? As Robert Fripp used to say at his small, improvised Frippertronic shows during the 70's, "Leave your elevated expectations at the door and you're more likely to enjoy this for what it is" (I'm paraphrasing). Ignore the naysayers. All followers of Roxy Music, Eno and those mentioned above need to add this one to their music libraries immediately, if not yesterday. It's enlightening, engaging, informative and essential to all who claim to love and know about important music. As reclusive as Eno is these days, we're not likely to get better than this. Don't pass this one up - you'll be sorry you did.

This is a 3 hour movie discussing 6 years of Eno's life. Now to some that may sound really boring, but I was stoked! This documentary talks to multiple Eno collaborators and paints the full story of his music, production, label and personal life over his most fertile years. Essential for all Eno-philes

Eno fans will rejoice

I've long been a fan of Brian Eno's varied work. From his early song albums made in the 1970s, through his ambient compositions, to his more recent experimental work and collaborations with other musicians. There is a stark difference between the sound of, say, the first two Roxy Music albums, which featured Brian Eno (Roxy Music and For Your Pleasure, and his ambient works, such as Music for Airports; and that's only looking at recordings from the 1970s.This recent DVD is a documentary about Eno's career during that period, beginning in 1971 when he started working with Roxy Music, and ending in 1977, around the time that he had finished his fourth "song" album, Before and After Science, one of the four classic song albums of the period, and the last album of songs he would release for some three decades.This documentary is long, at just over 2 1/2 hours, and resembles a "director's cut" of a 52-minute documentary. It has interviews with a number of journalists and authors, but only a handful of musicians and composers, and Eno himself only appears for about 30 seconds, in a clip from a BBC interview. The back cover of the DVD clearly states that, "This film is not authorized or sanctioned by Brian Eno, or bay any party representing him," so there were obviously some issues that prevented the filmmakers from not only interviewing Eno, but also getting any footage other than the above-mentioned BBC interview, and some early Roxy Music clips, again, from BBC performances. (One criticism is the use of cheesy stock footage every time a musical excerpt is played; these videos have nothing to do with the music, and are, at best, filler.)This is an interesting documentary, and perhaps more so for someone who, like myself, is very familiar with Eno's music. It covers the Roxy Music period, the four song albums, with a special focus on Another Green World, which is arguably the best of the lot. It looks at Eno's collaboration with the German duo Cluster, his creation of Obscure Records (which released 10 LPs, with music notably by Michael Nyman, Gavin Bryars, John Adams, John Cage, The Penguin Café Orchestra, and Eno himself), and the earliest forays into ambient music.It's fair to say that the length of this documentary will be off-putting for those with just a passing interest in Brian Eno's music, but I suspect that such people wouldn't want to buy it anyway. So if you're a fan of Eno, this long, flawed documentary is worth buying to see a close look at Eno's earliest works.

If you follow Eno (Roxy/Ambient series) this documentary is a must see. (even if he doesn't endorse it) Amazing what he accomplished in just 5 years - a true innovator.

Diese DVD läßt keine Wünsche offen. Vielleicht nur den, auf die schnelle Veröffentlichung eines zweiten Teils !Brian Eno selbst kommt zwar nur kurz zu Wort und auch die ganz großen Namen wie "Robert Fripp" oder "John Cale"sind nicht im Interview zu sehen, aber jede Menge Experten, hier seien beispielhaft "David Sheppard", der eine tolle Biographie über Eno verfasst hat, und "Geeta Dayal", die in der Reihe 331/3 ein Taschenbuch über das Album "Another Green World" geschreiben hat, erwähnt.Es gibt jede Menge eindruckvolle Videoausschnitte etwa zu "Taking Tiger Moutain" "Third Uncle" und "Sky Saw" und unzählige Hintergrundinfos etc. Diese "visuellen Highlights" machen diese DVD zu einem "Dauerbrenner" in meinem DVD Player.Sehr sehenwert !!

excellent documentary about the man who has produced for u2, bowie, coldplay and talking heads!! this moving doc traces him in the 70s with his ambient albums and his rock albums and doesn't dissapoint!!

I ordered this under the assumption that this was an authorized Documentary based on the fact that .ca have Brian Eno listed as Director. Well this is not an authorized film and usually that is the kiss of doom. Well what a pleasant surprise when I saw how well researched the documentary was. It only covers 71 to 77 but it's 154 minutes long. Normally this is the sign of a film that needs a better editor but again not the case here. Great interveiws with people who know their facts. I know you would think all documentaries would interveiw people who specialized in the subject matter but I actually have an unauthorized John Lennon DVD where they interview his pharmacist! This film is good for beginners just discovering Eno's work and for us that have been fans for years. The other reviewer here has done a very good job breaking down the film so I won't bother but if you have been on the fence about this hopefully this and the other reveiw will help you out.

Als Fan der erste Stunde braucht man diese Doku in der alte Berichte gesammelt sind - früher gabs halt noch kein Youtube ...

A rare, informative and interesting piece on one of the most influential men in the music and art scene! Eno has been an inspiration to me since my early teens, 30 years on and he still delivers.