By John Corrado

Last week, the excellent music documentary The Wrecking Crew was released on Blu-ray.   Told through interviews and archival footage, the film recounts the story of The Wrecking Crew, a group of California studio musicians who anonymously played on some of the most famous albums of all time, helping develop the West Coast Sound and also ushering in producer Phil Spector’s Wall of Sound.

Directed by Denny Tedesco, whose late father Tommy played with the band, there are a lot of wonderful stories here.  This includes the realization that the album Pet Sounds was pretty much just Brian Wilson and these studio musicians, with The Beach Boys largely relegated to the background, and how The Wrecking Crew was responsible for everything heard during The Monkees early years.

A must see for all classic rock and pop fans, The Wrecking Crew is a lively, engaging and also poignant music documentary, filled with great stories and an excellent soundtrack.  Some of your favourite songs from throughout the 1960s and early ’70s will take on even deeper meaning afterwards.

The Blu-ray also boasts having over six hours of bonus content, including multiple deleted scenes.

The Wrecking Crew is 102 minutes and rated PG.