Various - 1 Giant Leap

Year of Release: 2002
Label: Palm Pictures
Catalog Number: 3043
Format: DVD
Total Time: 155:00:00

Twenty-five different locations in 20 different countries spells eclectic in my book of terms in reference to music. That is where the 1 Giant Leap DVD takes you. There is music and dance with talk of spirituality with Aborigines and many other indigenous peoples, conversations about different interpretations of life and death, God, sex, essentially everything that makes the world go round. All elements of spirituality and expression connected with how we identify with one another and what makes the entire life cycle tick are what encompass this DVD.

I cannot say that I have ever viewed a DVD with so many different images and languages before. I felt I was taking an abbreviated tour of the world and stopping for an occasional interview with a few people in between all of the church scenes, ceremonial dances, and world music.

The most prevalent instruments are the woodwind flutes, various wooden crafted drums and equal amounts of interesting stringed instruments. Although you will not be able to understand what it is the people are singing about, assuming you are not multi-lingual of course, the one common denominator most recognizable is the emotion and feeling that is in every song. People are celebrating their lives with their God and the dance of life; it became obvious to me early on, what I was witnessing. One scene that I felt was most unusual was a group of men smoking something that was getting them high, and one of them rubs something on his body that is a white chalk like substance as he dances with a large heavy-duty padlock that went right through his penis. Very odd indeed, and I imagine very painful without smoking something to kill the pain!

The DVD configuration is in sections and you can either put it on a continuous loop or click through each one separately. There is a method and reasoning to each section and before each one starts, a prolific quote from a legendary figure is there for you to read and reflect upon before you are off on another journey. There is also a good-sized color booklet that accompanies the DVD that gives more detail about the traveling you do while watching. Dennis Hopper, Michael Stipe, Brian Eno, and Ram Dass amongst others, are guests that lend their talents and opinions to the mix.

There can be some truth in that we live in a small world, and we are essentially all the same and want the same things from life. But then again, it is a big world with many different cultures expressing themselves in ways that Western civilization may find odd and alarming, but that works both ways, as I am sure some of the things we do are strange to others that live elsewhere. That is one of the paradoxes of life found in the sameness of our humanness. It does not seem to make a whole lot of sense but it is true. The one thing we all can relate to is spirituality and music, and that is what this DVD focuses on.

Tracklisting:
Dunya Salam (Baaba Maal) (2:55) / My Culture (Robbie Williams, Maxi Jazz) (5:39) / The Way You Dream (Michael Stipe, Asha Bhosle) (8:20) / Ma' Africa (Mahotella Queens / Ulali) (4:48) / Braided Hair (Speech, Neneh Cherry) (4:03) / Ta Moko (Mako Black) (5:09) / Bushes (Baaba Maal) (6:34) / Passion (Michael Franti) (5:46) / Daphne (Eddi Reader, Mahotella Queens, Revetti Sakalar) (7:03) / All Alone (On Eilean Shona) (7:50) / Racing Away (Grant Lee Phillips, Horace Andy) (5:59) / Ghosts (Eddi Reader) (6:36)

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Genre: Other

Origin VA

Added: April 20th 2003
Reviewer: Keith Hanneleck
Score:
Artist website: www.1giantleap.com
Hits: 2232
Language: english