Last Stand is a documentary film of the final concert appearances by Australian rock band, Cold Chisel, prior to their first disbandment.[2] It was filmed on 13 and 15 December 1983 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre and released to cinemas in July 1984. It featured the group performing two of the four final concerts of their national Last Stand Tour, from 12 to 15 December 1983.[3] It is interspersed with short interviews from members of the band, their managers, audience members and Midnight Oil front man, Peter Garrett. A DVD version featuring extra footage was issued in October 2005.
Reception
Anna-Maria Delvoso of The Sydney Morning Herald observed, "This is not just another film-of-the-concert-of-the-album rock & roll picture. If this is commercial exploitation, it's worth every cent of it. Last Stand has an intelligent construction. Eschewing self-indulgence, the film displays high production values, excellent sound, camera and editing. There are no cinema verite shots of the band in the back rooms, twanging guitar strings and cracking jokes no-one can hear."[4]
In October 1992, The Last Stand's soundtrack album was released by Cold Chisel on compact disc and music cassette via East West Records.[2][5][6] It peaked at number 8 on the Australian ARIA Albums Chart.[7]
Adrian Zupp of AllMusic rated the album as four-out-of-five stars, and explained, "The highlights are numerous, but the most memorable moments are the band's timeless signature song 'Khe Sanh', the rock landslide 'Goodbye (Astrid Goodbye)', and the singalong favorite 'Choir Girl'. The recording job is crystal clear, though inevitably can't fully capture the experience of being at the gig amidst the sweat and swagger. But as next best things go, this is the ticket."[8]
The album was remixed and re sequenced with three additional tracks in 1999; some versions included a DVD version of the film with bonus footage. This version was remastered and reissued in 2011. Neither version of the soundtrack has the same tracklist order as the film.
