Jewel DVD: Live at Humphries by the Bay by Annette Warner

After a 2 year self-imposed exile, Jewel returns to seduce her audience with even more of her laid back and warm stage presence with her first ever live concert DVD. The video shot over 2 performances and just in time for her "This Way" tour, includes all of Jewel's signature songs and more new material.

In case you are wondering what she's been up to, Jewel states she's just been having a good time relaxing and allowing her creativity to flourish which is something that she really missed in her previously hectic life of being a "Top Pop" icon across the world. Well, I sort of didn't believe her when she says she didn't miss it. But I can also relate to her even in my 'little ole' world of Indie-Music starvation regarding the fact that a creative mind needs space to create…..or they will not be happy people. It's truly apparent that the rest did her good, but she still filled the stage up with all the warmth and gratefulness of someone glad to be home.

Jewel begins the concert introducing her Hound Dog to the audience complete with a leash and slobber then starts off with an Acapella number showcasing her titillating vocals and almost nasally tone changes which have made Jewel unlike no other. She sticks pretty much to raw acoustics through out the whole show with the exception of a just a few band numbers, but in majority she pulled it off alone as the 'sensitive girl with a guitar' we all know she is and I have to admit, those parts were where I was enthralled the most.

Staying true to her "girl next door' sense of humor and down to earth audience relations, Jewel calls an audience member up on stage at one point to whisper in her ear the lyrics to "Kiss the Flame" that she says she can't remember….but part of me just thinks she enjoys the interaction.

One of the best performances on the entire video was of her tune "Grey Matter", which was delivered very intimately and provocatively with a range dedicated to high end whimpering for the most part, and I couldn't help but realize, that without her facial expressions and body mood, you are really missing out on a great deal of Jewel while listening to a typical CD. "I am flattered and I am bettered, by your Grey Matter" is my favorite catch line and surprisingly…the song actually starts off with emotional conflict of feelings regarding her subject matter which was basically summed up as a 'Love to hate you' kind of story. Hey…we've all been there haven't we? And Jewel battles with the words to describe it, as usual, very well.

The liveliest number performed is a tune called "Everyone needs someone sometime", which strangely enough for being Jewel, started out similar and was familiarized by Jon Mellencamps tune "Everyone needs a hand to hold on to." I dug it!

As we moved into the 'special features" section of the DVD, I was glued to my seat as I watched the interview with Jewel as she speaks a great deal about her "authentic and honest" passion for writing and being the intellectually strong lyricist that she is, I wasn't surprised at all at her articulate and introspective conversational skills. A person needs to really be a word fan and a good listener to appreciate and follow her through her lyrical labyrinths and articulate writing mazes musically, but the passion shown as we bring her to a level of 'one on one', well…sort of, is definitely an added bonus. Jewel stated quite emphatically in so many words that she will always perform live irregardless of where her fame lands in the future or the size of her audience. Whatever the case… We want more videos!

The DVD also includes 4 bonus song videos and the only thing I missed was being able to see the surrounding out door scene. Fantastic video and a must have for any Jewel collector.

Click here for more info!