BrianBennettDVDComment

Brian and Warren Bennett's responses to the comments on the Shadows MSN Message board made by people who purport to call themselves 'fans' regarding the newly released Shadows 2004 DVD and CD.

Brian Bennett (Drummer) - Message posted on the 18/11/04

A note to all the people who read this stuff - Greetings! I am a drummer and I was both privileged and fortunate enough to attend every one of The Shadows thirty-seven concerts Sadly, during the last few days it has been brought to my attention that of the other 79,999 lucky people who attended the same shows that I did, a very small number have been complaining and whinging about the sound quality.

Well, you may have observed that each venue is totally different in size, shape and acoustics and despite having the benefit of modern technology, coupled with the expertise of brilliant engineers - who work long and hard to achieve the best sound they can - each venue will, inevitably, deliver its own unique sound experience.

The recently released DVD was filmed and recorded at the Cardiff Indoor Arena, a very large room not suitably designed for music. That said, when I saw and heard the DVD for the first time I was pleasantly surprised by the high sound quality and just how relaxed the band appeared, considering all the additional production elements that surrounded them. It's not easy to play and perform whilst submerged in cameras, lights and cables, knowing all the time that your every move is being filmed.

As to the negative comments made about Hanks guitar sound; what we were fortunate enough to witness was nothing other than a master craftsman at work. He played every show with both passion and feeling, never once giving us anything less than his very best. I believe he is playing better now than he ever did. It was a pleasure to see and hear a man at the peak of his career.

I know just how hard The Shadows, and everyone connected with the band, worked throughout this recent tour to ensure that each concert performance looked and sounded the best it possibly could, so that everyone who came to witness The Final Tour would see the band at its very best, for one last time.

So, to all you people who don't like the rich bass sound of the brilliant Mark Griffiths and the way Hank cranked his guitar up to get that great edgy (not distorted) sound, I will offer to buy from you your copy of the DVD, 'cos if you don't want it any longer, I know lots of people who would simply love to own a copy.

I do hope the concerts will be well received in Europe next year and that the band will ultimately get a better response than that which it is currently getting from thirty or so whingers who just don't get it, and without a doubt, probably never will.

I look forward to attending each and every one of The Shadows concerts in 2005 and hope to again experience the affection and warmth that the audience gave the band during its UK tour, an experience that will stay with me forever. All the best....