As promised in the Rising Star editorials, I'm here to review the Barney In Concert video.
Now remember: this was when Barney the Dinosaur was starting to become a household name; and this also spawned a few on-the-road performances. Creators of the shows came up with the idea with having a live-performance... only for it to be recorded and sold on VHSs.
And before we talk about the video, it's best to talk about... the video.
On March 14, 1991, the show taped its first stage show at Majestic Theatre in Dallas, Texas. The video recording was released nearly a year later (February 10, 1992). This special was later followed by the prime-time TV special Barney's Imagination Island...
but (seriously) we're here to talk about Barney In Concert.
but (seriously) we're here to talk about Barney In Concert.
-And besides, I already reviewed Barney's Imagination Island. You can find that in this year's (2014) archives. If you haven't read the review yet, you should. Bring the kids. (sarcasm)
So, here it is. The longly-anticipated... Barney In Concert.
Opening Scene:
So the special starts with people walking into the theatre. We see children in the crowds waiting for Barney's presence.
-Now remember, this was filmed in the 90s, so you may notice the shortage of security. Just keep in the back of your head about that. I'm not gonna say why yet. But just remember that concern.
Start of Show:
We see Barney burst out onto the stage, as his theme song is being played.
-Now tell me if he seems overexcited to see so many people come to see him perform. Not that there's a problem with that...
Barney: "That's right!"
(then spinning around)
-(pause) Yeah, Barney is excited.
After Opening Song:
So Barney addresses the audience to show his appreciation for them coming to see him.
Barney: "Boys and girls, moms and dads, grandmas and grandpas, aunts and uncles! Oh, I'm so glad you're here! (chuckling) Are you ready to have a great time today?"
-(mimicking Barney) Hmm, let's see. Who are we missing? Oh yeah! The teachers and staff! Or the lack of security that's in this building, since this is the early 90s!
"Everyone Is Special"
And of course, Barney sings a song to the audience's delight.
Barney: (singing) "You are special. You're the only one. You're the only one like you!..."
So, as soon as the song is over, Barney introduces the audience to the Backyard Gang.
-(pause) Hold up! Backyard Gang? Yeah, you may notice that the show is entitled, Barney and the Backyard Gang. Yeah, I think this was when the title Barney and Friends sounded too safe for viewers, until someone said, Hey! We don't want Barney to be associated with a "gang"! No! We want him to be associated with friendliness and happiness! So, we're gonna change the title to Barney and Friends, so that we won't be giving people any wrong ideas on...
(pause) Just a thought.
"Backyard Gang Rap"
Anyway, Barney and his friends sing a rap song, introducing themselves one by one.
-This performance was pretty impressive. However, you can't help but laugh at some of these kids' intros.
-Michael looks like he's still rehearsing for the show.
-Luci looks like she could be in a cheer-leading squad.
-Amy kinda almost made her performance a little risky.
-Adam almost looks like he's not even trying. (At least, he's giving us a B- performance.)
-Derek... um, I kinda liked his performance in Barney's Imagination Island better...
-Tina... she's cool.
Anyway, as soon as the song is over, the kids gather to hug Barney...
(quickly cuts to audience clapping)
-Really? Y'all knew that the kids hugging Barney at the same time was deemed too risky to put to video?
"We are Barney and the Backyard Gang"
Michael: "...we've made a song just for you. But we need your help..."
-I believe getting the audience involved works way better in this video, rather than that log scene or that blanket scene from Barney's Great Adventure.
And this leads to...
Backyard Gang: (singing) "We play with Barney everyday. He plays with our friends too..."
-Yep. Another song. So far, they did three songs in a row. Well, to be fair, the video is called Barney In Concert.
"Down on Grandpa's Farm"
After that group song...
Barney: "That was stuuuuuuuuuuuuuupendous!"
-Dang! He nearly kicked that girl in the face!
Barney: "Hey, Tina! I know something special about you! You love animals!
Tina: "I sure do, Barney!"
-Now, before we go any further, I'm just gonna say right now that they wouldn't use live animals... nor animatronics (Sorry, Chuck E. Cheese) for this segment. I don't think they would use people in costumes... THEY DID IT, DID THEY?
Barney and Tina: (singing) "We're on the way, we're on the way, on the way to Grandpa's farm..."
-Those better not be furries! Okay, was animation or large cardboard cut-outs of animals too expensive to have for this show? Hey, just because it's the early 90s, doesn't mean that animation and realistic props isn't possible!
-By the way, clear rip-off of Daisy Duck on the left.
"The Noble Duke of York"
So after that segment of dancing furries, we see the rest of the Backyard Gang dress up as a marching band, prompting Barney to join them into their next song.
-Blah, blah, blah. March is fun.
"Pop Goes the Weasel"
-It's "Pop Goes The Weasel" with Derek. Next!
"The Alphabet Song" (in English, Hebrew, and French)
-In case you haven't figured it out yet, we see that the songs in this video come and go. And it wouldn't be until Barney Live! In New York City (1994), a mere few years later, to get it right,
by having some kind of plot in a stage show.
-Also, you may notice that in the background of the stage are piles of wrapped gifts big and small.
What was the point of that? Was Barney celebrating a birthday or something? (Well, we'll see how that turns out (refer to Barney's Big Surprise).)
-Take this scene where Barney has the kids from the audience come up on stage to sing the Alphabet song in English, Hebrew, and French. What, are they going to wish somebody a happy birthday at some point? No! They just sing and then go back to their seats. So, there was no purpose for the background to have any wrapped presents in it. If there was a purpose, then it would be brief and out of the way in a heartbeat. (Not to get into a spoiler alert.)
"Where Is Thumbkin?"
We then see Luci perform the "Where Is Thumbkin?" song, and...
-It was pretty good. Well... not to be a downer here, but the part where the middle finger is used was risky.
I guess the director didn't want to give the audience the wrong message. (No, she not's flicking off the audience. Stop it!)
"Sally the Camel"
So, as soon as the kids surprise Barney with a camel...
-Hey, I could've surprised him with something else like a talking snowman.
Sorry, Frosty, but Olaf is all the raves right now...
-Now, some of the instructions that Luci gives to the audience is... Okay, how many more times do I have to say the word "risky" in this review? Because this video is pointing them out one by one.
Luci: "Now, put your hands on the person's waist in front of you like this to make a big camel!"
-For the safety of our viewers, I'm not gonna show who actually did that in the audience, because some people did this with strangers.
Well, either way, they sing yet another song.
Luci: "Sally the camel has... 5 humps. So ride, Sally, ride. Boom boom boom boom!"
"Mr. Knickerbocker"
Seeing that his friends gave him a camel, Barney wants to surprise them back by creating something in one of the big birthday gifts behind him, using his Barney magic (of the "Barney Shake").
-By the way, point for using animation... for the video.
Barney: "First I wiggle my tail. Then I roll my eyes. And zap!"
(Baby Bop appears)
-Wait a minute! He just showed you what the surprise was, before giving it to the kids! Now the surprise is ruined!
Barney: "Shh! Don't tell the Backyard Gang about our special surprise. They'll find out about it during our next song..."
-Oh, well, fair enough.
So the kids come back out to sing the song, and the new character comes out from the big gift box, prompting the friends to give her the name Baby Bop.
While that's going on, Baby Bop is dancing to the Knickerbocker song...
-Yeah, you wouldn't expect a kids' character to dance like this, would you?
"Baby Bop Street Dance"
Anyway, seeing that Baby Bop is shy, the Backyard Gang encourages her to dance for the audience.
-And so she did.
"Itsy Bitsy Spider"
Then, as an encore presentation for Baby Bop, they have her sing "Itsy Bitsy Spider"... with the most goofy spider puppet that seemed like Jim Henson's rejected Muppets.
"Bubble Bath Song"
-They're singing in a bathtub? Hopefully, when they get to the "body-washing" lyric, they don't actually do it... THEY DID IT, DID THEY?
-Um, next!
"Hurry, Hurry, Drive The Firetruck"
As we've already seen, the songs are literally drive-by musicals, as the bathtub makes way for a firetruck, which leads to our next song, sung by Baby Bop and three other kids.
-When you hear this song, is it me or did they speed up near the end?
I think they may have rushed to the point where they would stumble over words. Look, I know you're totally aware of show time, guys. But at least sound like you're trying here.
"Pufferbillies"
-A song about trains... with an animated train at some point for the video. Next!
"You're A Grand Old Flag"
Then everyone gets their American flags out to sing "You're A Grand Old Flag"... which sounds kinda like what Chuck E. Cheese's did in one of their segments in their 1989 performance at Show Biz Pizza Time.
-Seriously, look up Chuck E. Cheese 1989 performance on Youtube.
"I Love You"
And then, we reach the end of the show, where Barney signs off by singing the "I Love You" song, and then thanking the audience for coming. And hey, he doesn't leave without blowing a kiss to the audience on his way out.
And that's Barney In Concert. Folks, I like Barney, but for the most part, this video was silly.
Between the creative performances mashed up into drive-by musicals, this had to be a work-in-progress for the show itself. I think as far as the editing and all that, it was, by far, a work-in-progress.
Sure, there could've been some improvements; sure, there could've been less risks. But hey, I was one or two years old when I was first shown this video; I didn't know any better back then. I pointed out some risky parts about this movie; but when I was little, I didn't know that they were risky to begin with; and it's not this video's fault in playing all innocent to kids back in the 90s, because we weren't smart enough to get the full picture yet.
Anyway, for what it is, it's still not bad. I thought it was a great idea for the show to reach out to its viewers by having its stage shows; and I hope that Barney makes another comeback on stage soon!
Whatsoever Critic
Sources:
Barney In Concert
Barney's Great Adventure
Nintendo DSi
Barney Live! In New York City (that one pic)
Barney's Big Surprise (that one pic)
Frozen (that one pic)
Chuck E. Cheese Live Show Training 1989 video (Youtube)
Courtesy: The Lyons Group; Lyrick Studios; Nintendo; Disney; and CEC Entertainment, Inc.
"Everyone Is Special"
And of course, Barney sings a song to the audience's delight.
Barney: (singing) "You are special. You're the only one. You're the only one like you!..."
So, as soon as the song is over, Barney introduces the audience to the Backyard Gang.
-(pause) Hold up! Backyard Gang? Yeah, you may notice that the show is entitled, Barney and the Backyard Gang. Yeah, I think this was when the title Barney and Friends sounded too safe for viewers, until someone said, Hey! We don't want Barney to be associated with a "gang"! No! We want him to be associated with friendliness and happiness! So, we're gonna change the title to Barney and Friends, so that we won't be giving people any wrong ideas on...
(pause) Just a thought.
"Backyard Gang Rap"
Anyway, Barney and his friends sing a rap song, introducing themselves one by one.
-This performance was pretty impressive. However, you can't help but laugh at some of these kids' intros.
-Michael looks like he's still rehearsing for the show.
-Luci looks like she could be in a cheer-leading squad.
-Amy kinda almost made her performance a little risky.
-Adam almost looks like he's not even trying. (At least, he's giving us a B- performance.)
-Derek... um, I kinda liked his performance in Barney's Imagination Island better...
-Tina... she's cool.
Anyway, as soon as the song is over, the kids gather to hug Barney...
(quickly cuts to audience clapping)
-Really? Y'all knew that the kids hugging Barney at the same time was deemed too risky to put to video?
"We are Barney and the Backyard Gang"
Michael: "...we've made a song just for you. But we need your help..."
-I believe getting the audience involved works way better in this video, rather than that log scene or that blanket scene from Barney's Great Adventure.
And this leads to...
Backyard Gang: (singing) "We play with Barney everyday. He plays with our friends too..."
-Yep. Another song. So far, they did three songs in a row. Well, to be fair, the video is called Barney In Concert.
"Down on Grandpa's Farm"
After that group song...
Barney: "That was stuuuuuuuuuuuuuupendous!"
-Dang! He nearly kicked that girl in the face!
Barney: "Hey, Tina! I know something special about you! You love animals!
Tina: "I sure do, Barney!"
-Now, before we go any further, I'm just gonna say right now that they wouldn't use live animals... nor animatronics (Sorry, Chuck E. Cheese) for this segment. I don't think they would use people in costumes... THEY DID IT, DID THEY?
Barney and Tina: (singing) "We're on the way, we're on the way, on the way to Grandpa's farm..."
-Those better not be furries! Okay, was animation or large cardboard cut-outs of animals too expensive to have for this show? Hey, just because it's the early 90s, doesn't mean that animation and realistic props isn't possible!
-By the way, clear rip-off of Daisy Duck on the left.
"The Noble Duke of York"
So after that segment of dancing furries, we see the rest of the Backyard Gang dress up as a marching band, prompting Barney to join them into their next song.
-Blah, blah, blah. March is fun.
"Pop Goes the Weasel"
-It's "Pop Goes The Weasel" with Derek. Next!
"The Alphabet Song" (in English, Hebrew, and French)
-In case you haven't figured it out yet, we see that the songs in this video come and go. And it wouldn't be until Barney Live! In New York City (1994), a mere few years later, to get it right,
by having some kind of plot in a stage show.
-Also, you may notice that in the background of the stage are piles of wrapped gifts big and small.
What was the point of that? Was Barney celebrating a birthday or something? (Well, we'll see how that turns out (refer to Barney's Big Surprise).)
-Take this scene where Barney has the kids from the audience come up on stage to sing the Alphabet song in English, Hebrew, and French. What, are they going to wish somebody a happy birthday at some point? No! They just sing and then go back to their seats. So, there was no purpose for the background to have any wrapped presents in it. If there was a purpose, then it would be brief and out of the way in a heartbeat. (Not to get into a spoiler alert.)
"Where Is Thumbkin?"
We then see Luci perform the "Where Is Thumbkin?" song, and...
-It was pretty good. Well... not to be a downer here, but the part where the middle finger is used was risky.
I guess the director didn't want to give the audience the wrong message. (No, she not's flicking off the audience. Stop it!)
"Sally the Camel"
So, as soon as the kids surprise Barney with a camel...
-Hey, I could've surprised him with something else like a talking snowman.
Sorry, Frosty, but Olaf is all the raves right now...
-Now, some of the instructions that Luci gives to the audience is... Okay, how many more times do I have to say the word "risky" in this review? Because this video is pointing them out one by one.
Luci: "Now, put your hands on the person's waist in front of you like this to make a big camel!"
-For the safety of our viewers, I'm not gonna show who actually did that in the audience, because some people did this with strangers.
Well, either way, they sing yet another song.
Luci: "Sally the camel has... 5 humps. So ride, Sally, ride. Boom boom boom boom!"
"Mr. Knickerbocker"
Seeing that his friends gave him a camel, Barney wants to surprise them back by creating something in one of the big birthday gifts behind him, using his Barney magic (of the "Barney Shake").
-By the way, point for using animation... for the video.
Barney: "First I wiggle my tail. Then I roll my eyes. And zap!"
(Baby Bop appears)
-Wait a minute! He just showed you what the surprise was, before giving it to the kids! Now the surprise is ruined!
Barney: "Shh! Don't tell the Backyard Gang about our special surprise. They'll find out about it during our next song..."
-Oh, well, fair enough.
So the kids come back out to sing the song, and the new character comes out from the big gift box, prompting the friends to give her the name Baby Bop.
While that's going on, Baby Bop is dancing to the Knickerbocker song...
-Yeah, you wouldn't expect a kids' character to dance like this, would you?
"Baby Bop Street Dance"
Anyway, seeing that Baby Bop is shy, the Backyard Gang encourages her to dance for the audience.
-And so she did.
"Itsy Bitsy Spider"
Then, as an encore presentation for Baby Bop, they have her sing "Itsy Bitsy Spider"... with the most goofy spider puppet that seemed like Jim Henson's rejected Muppets.
"Bubble Bath Song"
-They're singing in a bathtub? Hopefully, when they get to the "body-washing" lyric, they don't actually do it... THEY DID IT, DID THEY?
-Um, next!
"Hurry, Hurry, Drive The Firetruck"
As we've already seen, the songs are literally drive-by musicals, as the bathtub makes way for a firetruck, which leads to our next song, sung by Baby Bop and three other kids.
-When you hear this song, is it me or did they speed up near the end?
I think they may have rushed to the point where they would stumble over words. Look, I know you're totally aware of show time, guys. But at least sound like you're trying here.
"Pufferbillies"
-A song about trains... with an animated train at some point for the video. Next!
"You're A Grand Old Flag"
Then everyone gets their American flags out to sing "You're A Grand Old Flag"... which sounds kinda like what Chuck E. Cheese's did in one of their segments in their 1989 performance at Show Biz Pizza Time.
-Seriously, look up Chuck E. Cheese 1989 performance on Youtube.
"I Love You"
And then, we reach the end of the show, where Barney signs off by singing the "I Love You" song, and then thanking the audience for coming. And hey, he doesn't leave without blowing a kiss to the audience on his way out.
And that's Barney In Concert. Folks, I like Barney, but for the most part, this video was silly.
Between the creative performances mashed up into drive-by musicals, this had to be a work-in-progress for the show itself. I think as far as the editing and all that, it was, by far, a work-in-progress.
Sure, there could've been some improvements; sure, there could've been less risks. But hey, I was one or two years old when I was first shown this video; I didn't know any better back then. I pointed out some risky parts about this movie; but when I was little, I didn't know that they were risky to begin with; and it's not this video's fault in playing all innocent to kids back in the 90s, because we weren't smart enough to get the full picture yet.
Anyway, for what it is, it's still not bad. I thought it was a great idea for the show to reach out to its viewers by having its stage shows; and I hope that Barney makes another comeback on stage soon!
Whatsoever Critic
Sources:
Barney In Concert
Barney's Great Adventure
Nintendo DSi
Barney Live! In New York City (that one pic)
Barney's Big Surprise (that one pic)
Frozen (that one pic)
Chuck E. Cheese Live Show Training 1989 video (Youtube)
Courtesy: The Lyons Group; Lyrick Studios; Nintendo; Disney; and CEC Entertainment, Inc.
