The Rolling Stones: Welcome to Shepherd's Bush Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		4.0

The Rolling Stones: Welcome to Shepherd's Bush Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 10, 2024

A very special set of fans did in fact get to "party like it's 1999", at least in part due to the salient reason that it was 1999, June 8 of that year in fact, when The Rolling Stones may have slightly shocked jubilant followers by announcing a surprise show at a relatively small venue (by Stones standards), shortly before their appearances at a much larger concert "hall", Wembley Stadium. The Shepherd's Bush performance was special not just for its supposedly more "intimate" confines, but for the fact that it offered what might be called a "deep cuts" set list, as evidenced by the song titles I've included after the jump. This is yet another incredibly high energy concert by the band, and it's kind of fun to hear them more or less maraud through an assortment of at least somewhat less expected tunes, though of course a couple of war horses and/or evergreens do turn up. This does seem to offer the Stones a somewhat more "personal" chance to connect with their audience, and you can feel the crowd's excitement throughout the concert.

Mercury Studios is releasing this concert in a gobsmacking variety of formats, including this 1080 version, but there's also a 4K UHD release , albeit without the two CDs offered with this release, as well as several others that can be found on various online emporia, including Mercury Studios' own site. Mercury still doesn't seem to have made its dual 1080 / 4K UHD releases consistent, not only in, for example, no CDs offered with this release's 4K version, but also other dual releases like their recent dual releases of Chicago & Friends: Live at 55, where the 1080 release once again offered CDs, but in that case where the 4K UHD release did not have HDR but did have an Atmos track. This time out, both the 1080 and 4K UHD discs sport Atmos audio options, and in this case the 4K UHD disc does offer HDR.

The set list for the concert is:

1. Shattered
2. It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll (But I Like It)
3. Respectable
4. All Down The Line
5. Some Girls
6. Melody
7. I Got The Blues
8. Brand New Car
9. Moon Is Up
10. Saint Of Me
11. Honky Tonk Women (with Sheryl Crow)
12. Band Introductions
13. You Got The Silver
14. Before They Make Me Run
15. Route 66
16. You Got Me Rocking
17. Tumbling Dice
18. Brown Sugar
19. Jumpin’ Jack Flash

The Rolling Stones: Welcome to Shepherd's Bush Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Rolling Stones: Welcome to Shepherd's Bush is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Mercury Studios with an AVC encoded 1080i transfer (often) in 1.78:1 (as can be seen in screenshots I've uploaded to both this review and our The Rolling Stones: Welcome to Shepherd's Bush 4K Blu-ray review , some "split screen" moments are presented closer to 2.09:1, according to our pixel measuring tool. Unfortunately, there's really no technical information included with this release, and I would have loved to have known some background, because while there's kind of hilariously an Arri rental van seen in the very opening shot outside the theater, I'm still not entirely certain what kind of cameras were used, though my hunch is based on an incredibly thick grain field and often kind of fuzzy image in wider framings that this was shot on 16mm (if anyone has authoritative information to the contrary, private message me and I'll happily update things here). That smaller millimeter format may actually redound to the benefit of this 1080 presentation, at least when stacked up against Mercury Studios' 4K UHD version, since any detail improvements in the 4K UHD version may be at least partially masked by an at times incredibly thick, and at least occasionally splotchy, grain field. This is still a major step up quality wise from some of those "SD Blu-rays" of Rolling Stones material Mercury Studios' precursor Eagle Rock Entertainment was so fond of putting out, and in some of the more stationary moments (there are a few), detail levels on things like outfits and even instruments tends to be very good. Detail levels probably aren't completely supported by sometimes very dark stage lighting choices, and the prevalence of some blue lighting tends to probably highlight almost swarming grain even more. The interlaced presentation can show occasional combing artifacts on things like drumsticks.

The Rolling Stones: Welcome to Shepherd's Bush Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The good news with this set of releases is that both the 1080 and 4K UHD discs get the same audio options, Dolby Atmos, DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and LPCM 2.0. The two surround tracks significantly open up the proceedings, though I have to say some of the most noticeable immersion, especially in the Atmos track, tends to be the overwhelming roar of the audience responding not to just the music but some of the kind of funny banter Mick in particular provides along the way. Both surround options offer nicely spacious accountings of the music, and both offer solid fidelity across all frequency ranges. Vocals are well mixed though can very occasionally be slightly buried in the onslaught of the instrumentation.

The Rolling Stones: Welcome to Shepherd's Bush Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Unlike the 4K UHD release put out by Mercury Studios, this release also includes two CDs which offer the complete concert. The track list mimics the one listed above. An insert booklet is included which offers some fun reminiscences from Paul Sexton, who was actually in the audience the night of the performance.

The Rolling Stones: Welcome to Shepherd's Bush Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Both Mercury Studios under its current branding but especially under its former name of Eagle Rock Entertainment has made something of a cottage industry of releasing Rolling Stones material. This particular concert is a bit unusual both in terms of its venue but perhaps especially in terms of its setlist. I'm not sure the 4K UHD release really provides a huge uptick in video quality which may make this 1080 version all the more appealing. Both the Atmos and DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 tracks offer nicely immersive listening experiences. Recommended.