Good Girl Gone Bad Live
Good Girl Gone Bad Live is the first live long-form video by Barbadian singer Rihanna. It was first released on June 9, 2008 by Def Jam Recordings. The DVD and Blu-ray release features Rihanna's concert at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, United Kingdom held on December 6, 2007, as part of her Good Girl Gone Bad Tour (2007—2009) which supported singer's third studio album Good Girl Gone Bad (2007). Most of the concert's set list originates from Good Girl Gone Bad, however, Rihanna also performed songs from her previous albums Music of the Sun (2005) and A Girl like Me (2006). It also contains a special Documentary Feature that presents Rihanna discussing her experiences during the tour.
Good Girl Gone Bad Live
Critics were divided on Good Girl Gone Bad Live; they praised the show, dancers, Rihanna's vocals and contrast levels of the video, however, there was criticism towards some technicalities including the close-up frames. At the 2009 Grammy Awards, the video album received a Grammy nomination for Best Long Form Music Video. Commercially, Good Girl Gone Bad Live peaked within the top-ten in nine countries, including at number one in Austria and Switzerland. On the US Billboard Music DVD Chart it peaked at number six and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), denoting shipments of over 25,000 copies.
Critical response[edit]
Azeem Ahmad of MusicOMH positively reviewed Good Girl Gone Bad Live giving it four stars and wrote that "it isn't going to win over any new fans, but buying it won't disappoint the many that already exist".[5] According to him the songs are different from their recorded versions and sound "infectiously upbeat but in a more grown-up way than the album". Ahmad concluded that even the "cringey" American pronunciation of "Manchester" and associated drivel can't take away the vocal strength of "Rehab".[5] He further praised the interlude "Scratch" calling it "impressive". Ahmad concluded that "If anyone was still wondering, Rihanna isn't miming during this show but the DVD's audio might be little bit out of sync with the video."[5] A reviewer of Blu-ray.com was more critical stating that even though the transfer does not have serious technical flaws, the video can not pair to Live from the Royal Albert Hall (2009) by American rock band The Killers.[25] According to the reviewer there are few close-ups that look soft and also a lot of motion-judder that ranges from mild to strong. He stated that the camera positioning during a lot of acts in not "overly convincing" and some close-ups are too dark.[25] However, according to him contrast levels are good. The reviewer concluded that "all in all, consistency is definitely an issue with Good Girl Gone Bad; parts of the show look great in high-definition, but there are also certain parts of it that are far from convincing."[25] At the 51st Annual Grammy Awards, Good Girl Gone Bad Live received a nomination for Best Long Form Music Video, but lost to Runnin' Down a Dream (2007).[27]
Commercial performance[edit]
Good Girl Gone Bad Live debuted at its peak of number six on the US Billboard Music DVD chart for the issue dated August 2, 2008.[28] The next week it dropped to number 12,[29] before falling to number 19 for the week dated August 16, 2008.[30] The next week it fell off the chart, but re-entered on November 22, 2008 at number 11, as a result of its DVD release in the United States.[31] Good Girl Gone Bad Live stayed on the chart for total of 23 weeks.[32] In Australia, Good Girl Gone Bad Live entered the Australian Music DVD Chart at its peak of number six for the issue dated June 30, 2008.[33] The next week it fell to number 11 and stayed on the position for three weeks.[34][35] The following week the video album dropped two places to number 13.[36] Good Girl Gone Bad Live was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA)
Good Girl Gone Bad Live debuted at number one on the Austrian Music DVD Chart on July 4, 2008.[37] However, the next week it fell seven places to number eight and stayed on the position for two weeks.[38] On July 25, 2008 it started climbing the chart again and eventually reached number five on August 8, 2008.[39] Good Girl Gone Bad Live entered the Swiss Music DVD Chart at number three on July 6, 2008,[40] however, it rose to number one the following week.[41] On July 13, 2008 it fell to number five, but climbed to number two the following week.[42] The video album reached a peak of number two on the Belgium Music DVD Chart in both Flanders and Wallonia.[43][44] Good Girl Gone Bad Live also peaked at number seven on the Dutch Music DVD Chart[45] and Spanish Music DVD Chart[46] and at number nine on the Italian Music DVD Chart.[47]