Random I-Tunes Song of The Moment: Never By Heart

Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would enjoy this DVD as much as I did. I'm certainly a huge McBride fan. However, I'm not much of an 'Add sound effects to my magic with a squeaker' fan. I'm now a convert . . . or at least, I can see the value for those who have the personality to do it.

Quick Stuff

The DVD is extremely well shot. Easy navigation. Excellent lighting, sound (though the live performance was a little hard to hear and sometimes distorted) and camera work. The beginning of the DVD sort of had a documentary feel to it for parts of it. The music really added to this feeling. It was oddly comforting.

The Meat

The DVD is broken down into two parts. Part one covers Jeff's Bowl and Ball(s) routine. Part two covers various ideas for the two supplied squeakers. In part one, you will learn everything in extreme detail from which balls to use, what type of wand, where to store the loads, types of cups and/or bowls, how to enhance the magic with the squeaker and so much more.

This section is broken down into several sub sections and is very well presented in a clear manner that truly covers every angle of how to create your own routine. Of course, we are treated to Jeff's routine which hilarious, well scripted, well choreographed, and very magical.

Part 2 is where the squeak stuff comes in. This is the part that I thought was going to be lame. But man was I surprised. This is actually my favorite part of the DVD. I grew up in the 80's. What that means is that I (as with every teenager in that decade) tried my hand at break dancing, 'popping', 'roboting', etc. I've seen some serious moves (not by me) over the years, and I'm telling you that I've never seen a 'robot' better than Jeff McBride's. It was unbelievable. I finished watching it around 4:00 AM. Then I went to bed. But before I did, I woke up my wife just to tell her how awesome Jeff's Robot was.

His pantomime skills are second to none. Add to that the various squeaking effects, and you will be witness to some of the most incredible illusions. I was truly blown away by his talent in this area. I could almost recommend this DVD at the asking price just so that you can see his Robot moves.

Are there any negatives? Yes, but not enough to stop my high recommendation. The main negative was that I wish there was more time spent teaching the actual techniques to get the sounds. With a title like Squeak Technique, you might be expecting much more than you get. Don't get me wrong; Jeff made that squeaker do things I had no idea it could do. Some time was spent on this, but I think a bit more time on the subject would have been helpful, especially considering the title.

There's plenty of information and technique, however, a) to get you started squeaking, b) to get you thinking of ways to enhance the illusions and effects that you perform and c) to get you creating and thinking about how to improve your magic overall . . . and finally, if you've ever considered putting together a cup (or bowl) and ball(s) routine, this is an excellent springboard for that. It's also a great place for people who already have a cups and balls act. It will open your mind.

One final (and extremely valuable) lesson that I took away from this is the power of character and/or a mask. Jeff pulls off a Renaissance era French man character that I would never have believed was him if I hadn't seen it with my own two eyes. It's not the type of character that I thought Jeff McBride's character could ever play, but again I was - gladly - proven wrong. This opened my eyes and got me thinking heavily about my own material. That alone is worth the price.

Final Verdict:
4.5 stars with a Stone Status of Absolute GEM!