​In the multi-fractured musical landscape of time, even "the world's greatest rock and roll band" found themselves in a precarious position in 1978.

Joe Strummer and the Clash had declared "No Elvis, Beatles or Rolling Stones in 1977," and subgenres like punk, funk, disco, new wave, reggae, and even early rap threatened and questioned the very existence of the '60s classic rock warhorses, now seen as bloated and out of step (though - let's be honest - none of those style would ever be dominant). And with Keith Richards adrift in a sea of drug charges and addiction and the band inactive, many thought it was just the right time for the Stones to sink.

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"Show me your teeth!": Jagger On Ed Sullivan

​The Rolling Stones are literally our favorite band of all-time. Yeah, the title of this here music blog should have already given that away, but watching a decade or so of vital Stones history fly by over six episodes on the new The Ed Sullivan Show Starring The Rolling Stones DVD set cemented it yet again.

Over the course of watching these installments of the star-making variety show -- shew? -- you can watch the band go from these proper -- but still dangerous -- blues students into a beautiful and demonic rock juggernaut.

The story begins on October 25, 1964, in glorious, stark black and white with screaming girls hearing "The Last Time" and ends with their last appearance in 1969 performing "Gimme Shelter," closing out the '60s in vivid, violent color. By this time, even Ed Sullivan has sideburns, Brian Jones is dead and replaced with Mick Taylor, and Keith Richards has morphed into Keef, with a thatch of black hair and a pirate's grin.

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Yes. We are very excited for this one.

​It's no secret that Rocks Off loves musical documentaries. We buy as many as we can from Amazon while we are supposed to be working, and it's rare for us to fall asleep at night without one rolling on our TV at home. The last one we really got into was Metallica's Some Kind of Monster, which we revisited after a few years away from it because we are going through a short Metallica phase right about now.

This year has some great rock docs in store for fans, from a film chronicling the personal struggles of the late garage icon Jay Reatard, to looks into scenes that you may not know anything about, beatboxing and the Electric Daisy Carnival. We are probably most excited for Martin Scorsese's George Harrison feature, which has long been in the works.

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​Deep Purple
Phoenix Rising
Eagle Vision, $14.98 DVD, $19.98 DVD/CD, 142 mins.

Deep Purple has been through so many different lineups that fans and hard-rock historians often measure then in "marks," abbreviated "Mk." While Purple's Mk II incarnation is the one casual fans remember most and had the majority of recognizable hits, the short-lived Mk IV lineup - Jon Lord, Ian Paice, David Coverdale, Glenn Hughes and Tommy Bolin - has its own diehard advocates.

Though these five men only produced one studio effort (1975's Come Taste the Band) bookended by international tours, this was DP's most combustible amalgamation, proffering a more groove-based sound before internal and chemical issues ultimately - if temporarily - killed the group.

Phoenix Rising details the "untold story" of DP Mk IV, first with Deep Purple Rises Over Japan. The 30-minute concert film, originally shot for movie theaters but not released until 1985 - this was before MTV and YouTube, kiddies - has the band blasting through "Burn," "Love Child," "You Keep on Moving" as well as earlier lineup hits "Highway Star" and (of course), "Smoke on the Water."

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​Bad Company
Live at Wembley
Eagle Vision, 110 mins., $14.98.

Though they were originally thought of as Led Zeppelin's "little brother band," sharing both a label and manager, Bad Company forged their own mark with a string of powerful records in the '70s and a bunch of hits that have become FM-radio and cover-band staples.

Changing lineups, breakups, and sporadic reunions marked the '80s to recent times, but the remaining original members - Paul Rodgers (vocals), Mick Ralphs (guitar), and Simon Kirke (drums) - got back together for this 2010 run of dates - including this gig at England's Wembley Stadium, augmented by bassist Lynn Sorensen and second guitarist Howard Leese. Original bassist Boz Burrell died in 2006.

The result? Classic Rock Power!

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​The Doobie Brothers
1982 Farewell Tour, Live at the Greek Theatre
Eagle Rock Entertainment, $14.98

As most classic-rock fans know, in hindsight, this title is a bit misleading. That's because the band enjoyed a reunion tour five years later before reforming for good in 1987, playing Houston as recently as last month.

But at the time of this show, this octet version of the Doobies assumed it was the last hurrah, and they blast through 16 numbers in front of an enthusiastic audience, many of them classic-rock-radio warhorses like "Listen to the Music," "Rockin' Down the Highway," "Long Train Runnin'" "Black Water," "Minute by Minute," "Takin' It To the Streets," and "What a Fool Believes."

And while husky-voiced Michael McDonald is ostensibly the front man and lead vocalist, he almost blends into the ensemble behind his keyboards, allowing saxman Cornelius Bumpus and Keith Knudsen (both of whom have since died) vocal spotlight time.

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​Jimi Hendrix & Band of Gypsys
Live at Fillmore East (Experience Hendrix/Columbia Legacy)
140 minutes, $13.98.

The latest release in a busy year for the Hendrix estate is this 1999 documentary, pumped up with extra footage, that explores Jimi's short-lived but influential Band of Gypsys lineup.

Born out of the dissolution of his previous backing group, the Experience (bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell), as well as a legal recording issue that needed to be fulfilled, Hendrix recruited ex-Army pal Billy Cox on bass and the powerful drummer/singer/songwriter Buddy Miles, formerly of the Electric Flag, for the venture.

And while the Experience broke incredible ground with psychedelic music, the Gypsys were a far funkier, earthier, and more soulful trio on songs like "Who Knows," "Message to Love," "Stepping Stone," "Power of Soul" and the Flag's "Them Changes."

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​Billy Joel
Live at Shea Stadium: The Concert
Sony Legacy, $13.98

While not a Queens-bred boy, what better choice for a musical performer to close out Shea before its demolition than Billy Joel? Filmed over two nights in July 2008, this 2-CD/1-DVD package offers a great overview of Joel's career, and the Piano Man sings and plays with a gusto fitting for the occasion.

But while many highlights include some of his best-known songs ("She's Always a Woman," "You May Be Right," "Captain Jack"), it's the many lesser-known numbers - "Summer, Highland Falls," "Zanzibar," "The Ballad of Billy the Kid" - that really make an impression. Ultimately, the generous 25-song set list is wisely balanced to appeal to all levels of fans.

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​The Bee Gees
In Our Own Time
Eagle Vision, 116 minutes, $14.98.

When you think of musical "comebacks," perhaps the greatest one belongs to the Bee Gees. Think about it: In their mid-20s, the Manchester, England-born Brothers Gibb had already had success as children/teens in Australia (whence the family had emigrated), a string of international pop, storytelling and psychedelia-tinged hits, and had even already broken up and gotten back together.

But by the mid-'70s, the band was floundering - hitless, listless, and directionless until two things occurred: They collaborated with producer Arif Mardin in an attempt to move into a more R&B sound, and then Barry heard an odd "chukka-chuka-chuka" rhythm while in a car crossing a bridge. The rhythm became the basis for the hit "Jive Talkin'."

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Faith Silva

10. Adam Lambert at Hobby Center

​Rocks Off will be pulling together a collection of our favorite concert shots from the past year shortly, including some pics of you all in the audience. But right now we've decided to take a look at your favorite music slideshows of 2010 -- that is, the ones that have been viewed the most by our readers.

So without further ado, relive the memories and the magic below:

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