Jan Akkerman at Oosterpoort 16-02-2008 Focus II

[blackbirdtwigg]

an absolute genius at work !!! Bravo Jan.

[couch63]

that drummer is like fingernails on a chalk board. It's not your camera my friend.

[hjrvideo]

@couch63 ??? Drummer is ok! sound of MY small camera is no HIFI!! Waht do you mean with: "....not your camera"?

[couch63]

@hjrvideo Hi there,

The drummer is a talented drummer but not in the context of this group. For playing Focus music, he is heavy handed and not subtle at all. He plays hard though everything. When he hits his snare it is always loud and hard. He never plays lightly. The thing about Pierre Van Der Linden and the reason the original Focus sounds so much better is Pierre rolled up and down with the music as necessary. That is not the fault of your camera but the fault of the drummer

[titan57nl]

die drummer kan er beter gelijk mee stoppen.....luistert hij eigenlijk wel?

[jazzernauts]

Great example of metric modulation.  But the drum sound is precisely duplicated as from the original in the 70s, I would blame the FOH, but you are hearing mostly a single camera mic - there's your bad "crack" if you ask me.

[hjrvideo]

@jazzernauts Yes, sorry, dont blame Jan and his drummer, I only have a simple Canon Ixus-75 camera. I am not allowed to make vids with proffesional equipment ;-)

[jazzernauts]

Great example of metric modulation.

[hubiex]

Drummer is a butcher by trade! thats too bad.....Other wise great great song!

[hjrvideo]

@hubiex , Drummer is NO BUTCHER, My camera is a butcher, its only a simple IXUS-75.

[janballast]

wat een mooi nummer is dit toch, wat een gevoel spreekt er uit die gitaar. jan ballast

[andzwe]

Don't underestimate how much harm bad acoustics and the wrong sound mixer can do, which seems to be the problem here (partly).

[Esperite]

We have a saying in my band, "if you don't know the music, play softly".

Jan Akkerman deserved better than this. He actually played the song straight...great rendition if you could mix out the drums.

[Camuze]

Kan iemand die drummer afschieten?

[jacquesguitars]

Nou, ik denk beter de geluidsman en bovendien zal dit geheel wel met een videocameraatje zijn geschoten, dus dat geeft volstrekt niet weer hoe een en ander heeft geklonken.

[hjrvideo]

@jacquesguitars

Je hebt helemaal gelijk. Het is geschoten met een Canon Ixus-75, Artiesten niet beoordelen op deze geluidskwaliteit. In de zaal was het perfect!!

[BadPsyTron]

Altijd Fan van Jan Akkerman geweest..

Dit klinkt als UK (< yep the band.

Totallly awesome.

[dirtyflute]

Shocking drums, completely inappropriate. All the finesse of someone hammering in nails. Has Jan gone deaf? How could he put up with that? Why doesn't he just join up with his other Focus chums and be done with it?

[eamonosu]

yeah i agree about the dodgy drums, i think hes playing in a different band

[charleyccc]

why is eric clapton still considered a great? He's ok ...todays players Richie kotzen can tear him apart .

[neagrigore]

it's okay if you did not listen to some old records of cream, derek and the dominos, but if you had, than you have no excuse, you fail.

[GaryNull]

>> why is eric clapton still considered a great?

I never did.

[KingofShred]

Akkerman always came up with some of the best melodies in prog rock :) great video. Thanks for uploading!

[chrisart7]

He didn't come up with this melody. "Focus II" was written by Thijs van Leer. The drummer on this live version seems to have no regard for the DYNAMICS of the original song---use some rim shots where appropriate, lad, instead of pounding the snare, and try a bit of SYNCOPATION (which original drummer Pierre van der Linden masterfully utilised).

[KingofShred]

Ah I see , thank you for the information. Yes I have to agree the drummer really needs to move away from the stiff and rigid basic drum rudiments and start letting the beat groove more.. I had the pleasure of seeing Focus live this year (only the vocalist and drummer were original though) wonderful band.

[kimbuttress]

very poor drumming, no where near as good as Pierre Ven Der Linden, g reat guitar though

[johnvanderbijl]

Last sunday I watched them playing in Rotterdam .This melody was very moving ...

[xCrumblingMirth]

just fucking PERFECT...thanks for posting this

[GuitarEbb]

ik was hier ook bij !

ik zat helemaal vooraan samen met mn pa !

super gruwlijk was het...bedankt voor et uploaden..

[gerrysterre]

Vond je het een slecht concert?

[GuitarEbb]

nee man ik vond het geweldig!.:D

[KILIMANJARO9]

best guitarist? what are you talking about?

[mostlyanthony]

True, Jan Akkerman was voted "Best guitarist" in the Melody Maker Poll of 1973. Finally after ten years someone beated Eric Clapton.

[norwayfinland]

dude make your homework than you now what he means wit best guitarist;-)greets

[JustusFriedolin]

there are a lot of good guitarists out there, hes not on top of them all i guess but hes a virtuoso anways

[coeji]

he was pronounced best in the world!

[MediaControl101]

Akkerman, the best guitarist.

[hjrvideo]

Thanks for your comments, I updated the Title!

[plimeira]

focus II, I saw his show in Cambridge, the day before.. It made me broke into tears man!

[tallboyrelaxed]

Focus 2 ;)

super! thanx for uploading