Sheryl shines on new DVD
By Carol Simmons
csimmons@DaytonDailyNews.com

KETTERING | The setting of a live concert recording can be a relatively 
anonymous component of the final product, unless there is a compelling 
cultural or artistic reason to spotlight the venue — Yanni at the 
Acropolis, Dave Matthews at Central Park, Social Distortion at the 
Roxy, Sheryl Crow at Fraze Pavilion.

That's right, Grammy-winning roots rocker Crow's first live DVD, 
C'mon America 2003, to be released Tuesday, leaves no question as 
to its locale — here.

Recorded this summer during two back-to-back, sold-out concerts 
at the 4,300-seat outdoor amphitheater in the heart of Kettering, 
the new DVD turns its multiple cameras not only on local ticketholders 
lucky enough to have seats near the concert stage, but also on the 
facility, its grounds and staff.

“It is so cool,” Fraze General Manager Karen Durham said of the 
two-hour disc's affectionate attention to the pavilion.

While concert footage dominates the 21-song DVD, the video's 
third track takes a break from the stage performance and flashes 
back to pre-concert setup earlier in the day. There are images 
of Crow with her dog, Scout, relaxing on the Fraze lawn; roadies 
stringing electric cables along the pavement; overhead storm 
clouds threatening the Ohio summer skies — nothing at first, 
though, to identify the location to anyone who didn't already 
know the place.

But then Crow speaks, in a documentary-style vignette, about the 
appeal of playing a medium-size venue in Kettering, in Dayton, “the 
heartland” of America. As a Midwest native who grew up near Columbia,
 Mo., Crow says she feels comfortable with the setting and the 
crowd. These are her people.

What's more, she includes several references throughout the 
concert performance about her enjoyment of spending time in 
the Dayton area.

Durham, who makes an uncredited appearance backstage near 
the video's end, said the taping project evolved after Fraze booked 
Crow for a single night in July. When the Thursday show sold
 out in less than 24 hours, Crow and her management team agreed 
to offer a second show the following night. The DVD idea, including 
talk at one point about turning the show into a television special, 
developed from there, Durham said. She and her staff didn't know 
until about a week before the concerts that the taping “was a 
positive 100-percent go.”

They had to bring some additional power into the building to 
accommodate the 26-person crew from the California-based company
 Parallel 28 Equipe, which filmed the shows, but Durham said any 
extra work was well worth the results.

“It was a totally positive experience. And it clearly speaks
 to what a lot of other artists have said about the venue. They 
love the audience, and they love the neighborhood feel.”

Crow, who kicks off a European tour this weekend, wasn't available
 for comment about the DVD release, but Durham said she had word
 that the singer-songwriter — who previously played Fraze in 1996
 on the strength of her 1994 debut album Tuesday Night Music Club
 — had personally given a thumbs up to Fraze hosting a DVD-release 
party Monday night.

The performer won't be attending the event — from 6 to 9 p.m. 
at Damon's Grill in the Town & Country Shopping Center — but 
representatives from A&M Records are scheduled to be on hand for
 prize giveaways. MIX 107.7 Program Director Jeff Stevens will 
emcee the event that includes a large-screen viewing of the DVD.

“What a great thing for the venue and the city,” Durham said, of
 the DVD, which she previewed early last week. “I want more copies
 to send out to agents who won't return my phone calls.”


Contact Carol Simmons at 225-7309.

[From the Dayton Daily News: 12.07.2003]