John Barry - The Collection - 40 Years of Film Music
John Barry - The Collection - 40 Years of Film Music
John Barry is one of the best represented film composers on CD, but this four-disc collection outdoes everything that’s come before with tracks from more than 50 film and TV projects. Of course there are the biggest names you’d expect. James Bond is acknowledged by 10 of the infamous themes and a couple of suites. There’s the Western romance of Dances with Wolves, the sultriness of Body Heat, the jazzy highs at The Cotton Club and the encapsulation of the 1960s by The Ipcress File. But this collection’s strength is in not just concentrating on well-known classics such as Born Free or The Lion in Winter. There’s also smaller fare that rarely gets heard, such as The Dove, High Road to China, The Deep and also his “Romance for Guitar and Orchestra” from Deadfall. After four hours of listening to Barry’s laid-back romantic style, you’ll be in no uncertainty that all those other collections were justified. It’s just a shame this didn’t come first. –Paul Tonks
Customer Review: An Amazing Collection of Movie Music
This was never intended to replace the actual movie soundtracks for which John Barry wrote the music. On the other hand, by creating an orchestrial arrangement, the CDs emphasise the extraordinarily high quality of the melodies Barry has written over the eyears, and are superb pieces of music in their own right. A truly remarkable and very large music collection.
Customer Review: What a disappointment!
When you think of film and television theme music, you think of the music which was actually played in the film or television programme, not a shallow copy of it like that on this compilation of John Barry’s superb music. The City of Prague Orchestra hasn’t just lost the plot, they don’t have a clue as to the DRIVE and breadth of sound which the theme music originally envisioned. The music is played well enough, but because it isn’t the ORIGINAL orchestra, or the original conductor, or even the original sound of the music, somehow the music seems shallow and completely lacking in feeling. I was VERY disappointed with this four-disc set and I don’t even bother playing the music. I can’t give the boxed set a rating of more than one star, and even then I feel I’m being generous.
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Peterson, Richard A.: Creating Country Music
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Essential Elvis Vol.5: Rhythm and Country
Essential Elvis Vol.5: Rhythm and Country
Not so much an essential Elvis disc, as the series name suggests, but one for the completists or the curious. These alternate takes, recorded at Memphis’ Stax Studios in 1973, saw Presley attempt to fuse southern soul with hard-edged country in a way that would appeal commercially. With many Stax musicians on board there is certainly rhythm, but Elvis’s lounge-style crooning disguises much of the country element–even though Tony Joe White supplied two tunes in “I’ve Got A Thing About You Baby” and “For Ol’ Times Sake”. He turns on the romantic charm on a good version of “She Wears My Ring” and lets the band rip out on Chuck Berry’s “Promised Land”. The compilers have also thoughtfully included lots of inter-song chat, which generally serves as a warning about what eating too many cheeseburgers does to the brain. –Tim Perry
Customer Review: Funky Blues & Cool Country!
There are several things that make this cd special.
1.Sound is simply amazing, I would rate it higher then ‘30 No1 Hits’, when it comes down to 70’s material.
Just like it’s recorded yesterday. You can hear clearly every single instrument in studio. It Rocks!
2.Atmosfere from the studio.
Elvis is giving ‘hard time’ to everyone present, with his choice of Hillbilly & Opera favourites in between takes and his humour.
Elvis is obviously in good mood and his voice is great.
3.Songs are recorded in famous Stax studio.
Only James Burton participated in recordings from standard band, with musicians from Stax & American Studios present.
No overdubs here.
New production makes great funky numbers like
‘ I Got A Feelin’ In My Body ‘, ‘Find Out What’s Happening ‘, ‘If You Don’t Come Back ‘ and ‘Promised Land ‘
sound enormously better then on original releases.
Slower numbers like ‘I’ve Got A Thing About You Baby’, ‘Girl Of Mine ‘ are more pleasant to hear in such a superb sound.
Acoustic spanish guitar on ‘Spanish Eyes’ sounds tremendous!
3 Design and booklet are done by ‘Peacock, London’ and are great, with very cool photos.
This is rare moment when it comes down to Elvis cd’s.
You can even read how Elvis brought in large TV sets to watch footbal, then ordered for 300 hamburgers to be put in empty boxes
and finaly give leftovers to the kids hanging around the studio.
I would also recomend all cd’s in Essential Elvis series, with great alternate performances & lovely designe,
but this is one of the best produced Elvis cd’s ever.
Customer Review: Rhythm, Country, Funk & Soul
Before reviewing this CD I must first say that this is the very best sounding Elvis CD on the market. I own over 200 Elvis CD, and yes this sounds amazingly full and beefy with every part of the band heard crystal clear.
Ok, the music. Stax studios, Memphis 1973; and Elvis was recording some stunnning new material. The first Stax session, a few months previous were a disaster. Elvis, unwell and uninterested, technical problems and about 75% rubbish songs.
No matter, as this glimpse of the King in the studio finds him back at his very best.
Definately some of these alternate takes are rough around the edges and not as good as the originals; but thats the whole point of the CD. It’s a look at a specific session and showing off the alternate takes and what evolved into being the master takes.
This is a fabulous release, and although they are alternate there will be some takes that are preferable to the master takes e.g. in this case; “She Wears My Ring” and “If You Don’t Come Back.” The latter, is stunning, funky soul and sounding 100% better than the original, simply because of the afforementioned superior sound.
Also listen out for the between take banter, including Elvis with an operatic “la la la” version of “Surrender” plus singing parts of other songs that he has never recorded….hopefully takes of these will be found.
Elvis also cut a few takes of Waylon Jenning’s excellent “We Had It All”, and it’s a pity that this has never surfaced.
The Stax sessions produced some of the very very best music of his career. Check out the “Promised Land” album for further proof of this.
The Essential Elvis series has been a treasure trove for fans, especially this plus volumes 4 & 6.
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The Big Country (Moross, the Philharmonia Orchestra)
The Big Country (Moross, the Philharmonia Orchestra)
Customer Review: A superlative recording
I bought this on its first release about four years ago. Brilliant. There are more tracks than on previous vinyl releases, and accompanying notes about the composer, Jerome Moross. Some of the performances are faithful renditions of Moross’ original score for the movie, subtly different in places to those that appeared in the released movie, yet not enough to detract from the familiarity of one of the most famous works of film music ever produced. It’s a great piece of work and thoroughly enjoyable. And a ridiculously low price too!
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Kenneth McKellar - The Decca Years (1955-1975) [BOX SET]
Kenneth McKellar - The Decca Years (1955-1975) [BOX SET]
Customer Review: Listen and Swoon
Many think of Kenneth McKellar as only performing traditional Scottish ballads. This box set shows the amazing range of what has to be one of the foremost tenors of his generation worldwide. His tone, range and clarity mark stand him shoulder to shoulder with the best.
Listen and swoon.
Customer Review: Kenneth McKellar, the great lyric Scottish tenor at his peak
Kenneth McKellar, the great lyric Scottish tenor at his peak,
Reviewer: Ricardo Munro from San Joaquin Valley, California, USA
Kenneth McKellar, who is still pleasant to listen to for his wit, artistry and excellent diction was at his peak in his Decca years. He was best known for his Scottish songs in a classical “John Mccormack Style” but he crossed over very successfully into popular music, light classics and operatic arias. He sang in Italian, German, French and Welsh as well as Scots and English. Until recently these recordings from 1955-1975 have been unavailable(when his voice was at its peak of power and charm). Fiddler on the Roof SUNRISE SUNSET is superb and West Side Story’s MARIA is the best and most tasteful recording I have ever heard. Of course, the majority of the recordings are traditional Scottish songs of the lowlands and Highlands (with a good number of Kennedy-Fraser , Kenneth MacLeod adaptations). My only disappointment really is that some of his best Irish recordings are not here nor his foray into Welsh.
McKellar of course came from another generation when Scots tried to out English the English so his Gaelic is very small. Late in her career he sang a few Gaelic choruses but mostly he sang late 19th century and early 20th century translations of the Big Songs.
But as an interpreter of the Songs of Burns and the Scots Musical Museum (the Lowland Scots tradition) McKellar was without peer. If you can get his KISMET recording. It is just great. I don’t think he ever made a bad album although SOMETIMES his pop material is thin. His classical performances are ALWAYS first class. I just wish he had made more classical recordings in his prime.
I hope this is just the beginning of the reissuing the great recordings of one of the great tenors that 20th century Britain has produced. Any lover of the art songs or the “big songs” of the Celtic Fringe will find a movable feast in the artistry of Kenneth McKellar the man known for many years as “Scotland’s First tenor” .
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