Here Is Gone, Pt. 2 [CD-single] [Import]

Editorial Reviews
Album Details
The First Single from the "Gutterflower" Album Coupled with Two Previously Unreleased Tracks that Are Exclusive to this Single!

Tracks:

What Would You Say To Me
Luna's Gone
My Heaven
Goodnight America
Between Here And Gone
One Small Heart
Beautiful Racket
Girls Like Me
River
Grand Central Station
Shelter Of Storms
Elysium

Amazon.com

Mary Chapin Carpenter's first album of new material in three years has been hailed as a fine example of pop music for adults. This is both true and misleading. In changing producers (from John Jennings to celebrated piano man Matt Rollings), the literate singer-songwriter has slightly broadened her sophisticated Americana sound, and although it's less rhythmic as a whole, her acoustic-folkie approach remains at the core of her classic style. And while "Between Here and Gone"--which addresses the theme of travel and transition, the fragility of life, and the ephemeral nature of happiness--might be said to concern itself with grown-up issues, most of Carpenter's writing has always done just that. Yet this stunning album, informed both by her 2002 marriage ("Elysium," "River") and by the events of 9/11, is more introspective than much of her early work. The alto-voiced singer is compelling throughout, but never so much as on "My Heaven," inspired by Alice Sebold's novel, The Lovely Bones, or on "Grand Central Station," in which a New York City ironworker, standing on the bucket brigade at Ground Zero, hears the voices of the dead, desperate to find their way home. In moments such as these, Carpenter reestablishes herself not only as a world-class poet, but as an artist of the first order. --Alanna Nash

Customer Reviews:

Carpenter at her best - finally!.......2007-03-19

If you are the MCC fan of songs such as "A Town" and "10,000 Miles", as I am, then welcome to Carpenter bliss! No rock-a-billy here, thankfully. Carpenter delivers a slew of music on "Between" for rainy, chilly and fog-filled nights. The mournful strings and piano are a perfect accompaniment for her soothing vocals. The opening track is as fast as this chanteuse is willing to go. From there on it's slow motion. She does pick up a bit again with "Beautiful Racket".

"Girls Like Me" is a chilling description of the power of simplicity and how we often overlook the no frills people in our lives for the more flashy. Carpenter seems to be saying she's done with "flash". Brava. Also wonderful are "Grand Central Station" and "The Shelter of Storms" - just Mary, an instrument or two and tons of soul. Simply wonderful.

Once again..........2007-03-10

Once again Mary Chapin Carpenter has amazed me with her beautiful words and music. She's an artist that is very much an individual.

Wonderful CD from Mary Chapin Carpenter.......2006-11-08

The CD "Between Here And Gone" is fantastic. Many wonderful songs and melodies.

Another winner.......2006-10-23

The latest (to date) offering from the cerebral country singer. This is not background music. Chapin's music reads like beautiful poetry and she deliver's it with a captivating voice.

MCC Review.......2006-06-26

If you love the songwriting of Mary Chapin Carpenter you will love the CD. Love the song "in My Heaven". Some of her best work yet.
Vocal quality is as excellent as always. Listen to it over and over one of my favorite CD's.

Average customer rating:

Absolutely peerless
once-in-a-lifetime greatness
We love this album
Simply great
Porgy and Bess

Porgy & Bess
Ella Fitzgerald , and Louis Armstrong
Manufacturer: Polygram Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Porgy and Bess
Gershwin: Porgy & Bess [With Members of the Original Cast]
Porgy & Bess: High Performance
Ella & Louis Again (Dig)
George Gershwin - Porgy & Bess / Trevor Nunn · Sir Simon Rattle · W. White · C. Haymon · Glyndebourne Opera

ASIN: B0000046Z5
Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

Overture
Summertime
I Wants To Stay Here
My Man's Gone Now
I Got Plenty O'Nuttin'
Buzzard Song
Bess, You Is My Woman Now
It Ain't Necessarily So
What You Want Wild Bess?
A Woman Is A Sometime Thing
Oh, Doctor Jesus
Medley: Here Come De Honey Man/Crab Man/Oh, Deh's So Fresh And Fine (Strawberry Woman)
There's A Boat Dat's Leavin' Soon For New York
Bess, Oh Where's My Bess
Oh Lawd, I'm On My Way

Amazon.com

Getting the two most personable voices in jazz to sing an hour's worth of George Gershwin's opera Porgy & Bess (Ella doing all the female parts, Satchmo all the male) was a good idea, but not quite as great as it sounded. Armstrong savors the down-and-dirty Charlestonisms that inspired the cadences of the music and lyrics, and they fit his happy rasp like an old shoe; Fitzgerald, conversely, sounds almost prissy every time she has to sing the word "ain't," though her melodic genius gets Gershwin's bold, supple tunes over. The arrangements are full-throttle Broadway, with a few leaps into Dixieland (including some fine Armstrong trumpet solos), but the disc works best when the vocalists break character and let their jazz side out. --Douglas Wolk

Customer Reviews:

Absolutely peerless.......2006-11-17

"Porgy and Bess" has just opened (with some controversy) in London's West End, though as a musical and not as an opera as it was originally conceived. Reviews have been promising and I aim to go down and see it soon. I decided to listen to this CD to put myself in the mood. I hadn't listened to it for years and I'd completely forgotten how good it actually is. Ella's voice blends with Louis' perfectly and Russell Garcia's orchestration gives them a dreamy landscape to perform against. I have one or two other CDs by Louis and Ella but this one is by far my favourite. The CD opens with "Overture" and its orchestral performance of classics like "Summertime", "I Wants To Stay Here", "I Got Plenty O' Nuttin'" and "It Ain't Neccessarily So" set the tone nicely, leaving one ever so keen for the vocal versions. Louis Armstong has a very rough tone to his voice but the emotion he packs with it is moving, most especially on the mournful "Bess, Oh Where's My Bess?" And we get all this and Louis' wonderful trumpet playing too?

Gershwin and Gershwin must be among the top composers of the last century and this opera showcases their talents more than anything I've heard. Ella and Louis are peerless as a vocal duo and though I doubt the West End performance will capture the magic in the same way they did, I still remain very keen to go see it. Is it opera or is it a jazz performance? I don't really know. I just know that I love it. And strongly recommend it.

once-in-a-lifetime greatness.......2006-10-06

Two thousand five hundred musicians have recorded "Summertime" --- it's a classic. (I bet most Americans can name Janis Joplin and no other singer.) As for "Porgy and Bess," the folk opera from which "Summertime" springs, it's such a classic that it's hard to believe anyone ever had a harsh word to say about it.

But after its premiere in 1935, no less than Duke Ellington said, "It has grand music and a swell play, but the two didn't go together. It does not use the Negro musical idiom --- the times are here to debunk Gershwin's lampblack Negroisms."

A quarter of a century later, the producers of the film version had trouble assembling a cast. Harry Belafonte rejected their offer to play Porgy. Sidney Poitier took the part --- and wished he hadn't. Poitier later wrote that the movie insulted black people; when he chose clips of his best performances for his tribute at the American Film Institute, he picked nothing from "Porgy and Bess."

And in 1985, when Grace Bumbry was a sensation as Bess in a Metropolitan Opera production, she slammed the opera: "I thought it beneath me, I felt I had worked far too hard, that we had come far too far to have to retrogress to 1935."

All that may be. All I know is that I have, in a long life, rarely been confronted with more genius than in the Fitzgerald/Armstrong recording of "Porgy & Bess." Set aside the achievement of George and Ira Gershwin in transforming DuBose Heyward's novel into a folk opera. Let's just focus on Armstrong and Fitzgerald, who were at the peak of their popularity when this record was made in 1957.

"Summertime" --- the first song --- sets the tone. A baleful horn figure, then violins. And then Armstrong's trumpet: slow, steady, dignified. But wait --- here comes a slurred note. And a cool little improvisation. Just enough of each. Very tasty.

Fitzgerald sings a verse. She is cool and formal. A lady. Not to be taken lightly. Now it's Armstrong's turn. Tender, but let's not kid ourselves --- this is not singing as others define it. This is melodic speech: rough, gutteral. And thus he is ideally cast: His Porgy may have his charms, but he'll have to stretch to keep Bess.

And so it goes throughout the CD. Trumpet mastery --- Armstrong has dazzling control. His tone is bright, but never shrill; there's a warmth in his playing no one else could produce. And Fitzgerald is just a study in inevitability; to hear her is to wonder how anyone could sing these songs any other way.

"I Got Plenty O' Nuttin'." "Bess, You Is My Woman Now." "A Woman Is a Sometime Thing." "There's a Boat Dat's Leavin' Soon for New York." "Bess, Oh Where's My Bess?" "Oh Lawd, I'm on My Way."

All brilliantly conceived, orchestrated and recorded.

The greatest trumpet player in this history of jazz.

The father of scat singing.

The queen of the jazz vocal.

There are no-brainers, and then there is this Ella Fitzgerald-Louis Armstrong collaboration --- music that imprints on your soul.

We love this album.......2006-08-22

We hope they will someday bring this beautiful story back to the stage

Simply great.......2006-03-04

The fusion between the great two voices and the orchestra is just brilliant. Very good brass and violins that accompany Fitzeralds and Armstrongs magic voices leaves you with your mouth open.

A must have for everyone!

Porgy and Bess.......2005-10-14

Could not find this anyway locally. It is a great recording

The Ultimate Gilbert & Sullivan Collection

Average customer rating:

Well worth the price
Not Exactly "The Ultimate" Collection...
Where's the chicks?!?!
Not quite the ultimate....
Great Music - Questionable Selection

The Ultimate Gilbert & Sullivan Collection
Arthur Sullivan , Isidore Godfrey , Royston Nash , New Symphony Orchestra of London , Royal Philharmonic Orchestra , Colin Wright , Donald Adams , George Cook , Gillian Knight , Jean Hindmarsh , Jeffrey Skitch , John Ayldon , John Reed , Joyce Wright , Kenneth Sandford , Lyndsie Holland , Owen Brannigan , Pauline Wales , Peggy Ann Jones , Thomas Round , Valerie Masterson , and D'Oyly Carte Opera Company
Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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The Best of Gilbert & Sullivan
Gilbert & Sullivan - Highlights from The Mikado, The Pirates of Penzance, H.M.S. Pinafore, The Yeomen of the Guard, Trial of Jury
Topsy-Turvy - The Music of Gilbert & Sullivan: From the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Topsy-Turvy
The Best of Gilbert & Sullivan

ASIN: B000007OU0
Release Date: 1998-06-09

Tracks:

H.M.S. Pinafore: We Shall Sail The Ocean Blue
H.M.S. Pinafore: I'm Called Little Buttercup
H.M.S. Pinafore: My Galant Crew, Good Morning
H.M.S. Pinafore: I'm The Monarch Of The Sea
H.M.S. Pinafore: When I Was A Lad
H.M.S. Pinafore: Nevermind The Why And Wherefore
H.M.S. Pinafore: Kind Captain, I've Important Information
H.M.S. Pinafore: Carefully On Tip - Toe Stealing
H.M.S. Pinafore: For He Is An Englishman
The Pirates Of Penzance: I Am The Very Model Of A Modern Major - General
The Pirates Of Penzance: When A Felon's Not Engaged In His Employment
The Pirates Of Penzance: With Cat Like Tread
The Sorcerer: My Name Is John Wellinton Wells
The Gondoliers: Take A Pair Of Sparkling Eyes
Patience: If You're Anxious To Shine
The Mikado: If You Want To Know Who We Are
The Mikado: A Wand'ring Minstrel I
The Mikado: Behold The Lord High Executioner
The Mikado: As Someday It May Happen
The Mikado: Three Little Maids From School Are We
The Mikado: The Sun Whose Rays Are All Ablaze
The Mikado: Here's A How - De - Do!
The Mikado: From Ev'ry Kind Of Man Obedience I Expect
The Mikado: A More Humane Mikado Never Did In Japan Exist
The Mikado: The Criminal Cried As He Dropp'd Him Down
The Mikado: The Flowers That Bloom In The Spring, Tra La
The Mikado: On A Tree By A River A Little Tom Tit
The Mikado: There Is Beauty In The Bellow Of The Blast
The Mikado: For He's Gone And Married Yum-Yum

Customer Reviews:

Well worth the price.......2006-04-13

I love this CD. No, despite its name it is not the "ultimate" collection, as scarcely could be expected from a single CD. It is heavy on Mikado, as others have stated. It leaves out things I would have included and includes things I would have left out. But the performances are wonderful, traditional and all you expect from G&S. Considering the low price, it is well worth including in your G&S collection ... as PART of your collection. After the disappointment of the godawful Opera World video series (Don't buy it!) this CD is a joy and a relief.

Not Exactly "The Ultimate" Collection..........2004-12-23

It seems that a collection of Gilbert & Sullivan music that has the name "The Ultimate Collection" in its title would boast a wide range of music, but I found the selection disappointing. Half of the tracks are songs from The Mikado, and the other half is divided between five... yes, FIVE other operettas. This means that the representation from each operetta is awfully scant. I would have liked to see less Mikado and more of everything else, and perhaps some highlights from the more obscure operettas (Princess Ida and The Sorcerer, namely).

In addition, while most of the music is very well performed, some of the vocalists either go a bit overboard or, at the very opposite end, seem to lack expression. For example, this Nanki-Poo (in The Mikado) seems to be overly occupied with vibrato. Katisha's voice is annoying, and The Mikado's low voice often seems to lack feeling and humor. The other idiosyncracies, like the very frightening evil laughing during "A More Humane Mikado" and hissing during "Three Little Maids" really bug me.

Then again, I'm new to Gilbert and Sullivan, and was introduced to the music through the Topsy Turvy soundtrack, which has a noticeably less operatic style, and hardly includes "stage noise"... so perhaps all this is the norm. Do listen to the tracks for yourself, though, before you purchase the CD. Personally, I find that the Topsy Turvy soundtrack, while considerably less ecompassing, is much lighthearted and easier listening.

Where's the chicks?!?!.......2003-05-15

It wouldn't be G&S if not for the ladies - so where are they? How could they leave out Mabel's aria - or Josephine's!? The only female aria included on this disc comes from Mikado, which is the least exciting (if G&S could be un-exciting) of the three! Everything else on the recording is great, but I am still quite disappointed.

Not quite the ultimate...........2002-03-25

This is a great collection, but unfortunately it doesn't have songs from all the works of G&S. Most notably, there is nothing from the "Yeoman of the Guard". I still reccommed it however as John Reed is wonderful!!

Great Music - Questionable Selection.......2002-02-05

It's an ongoing challenge to find a recording of Gilbert and Sullivan that combines premium musicality and great theatrical performance. This recording is a true gem on both fronts. My only complaint is that for a "Best of" collection, this compilation is Mikado-heavy and scarcely touches on highlights from other masterpieces, particularly The Pirates of Penzance. This would be my favorite G&S CD of all time, of only it included tracks like "When the Foeman Bares his Steel," "Poor Wand'ring One," and "Dry the Glist'ning Tear," but then again, I guess there's no real consensus as to which are Gilbert and Sullivan's best works, and there are too many to fit on one CD.

Gilbert & Sullivan - Highlights from The Mikado, The Pirates of Penzance, H.M.S. Pinafore, The Yeomen of the Guard, Trial of Jury

Average customer rating:

The Best Of Gilbert And Sullivan
Pure delight
Delicious G&S samplings abound here.
Fine Intro to G&S

Gilbert & Sullivan - Highlights from The Mikado, The Pirates of Penzance, H.M.S. Pinafore, The Yeomen of the Guard, Trial of Jury
Nicholas Folwell , Arthur Sullivan , Marie McLaughlin , Rebecca Evans , Anthony Rolfe Johnson , John Mark Ainsley , Alwyn Mellor , Anne Howells , Barry Banks , Eric Garrett , Felicity Palmer , Gareth Rhys Davies , Janice Watson , Julie Gossage , Neill Archer , Pamela Helen Stephen , Peter Savidge , Richard Stuart , Richard Suart , Richard Van Allan , Sir Thomas Allen [baritone] , Sir Charles Mackerras , and Welsh National Opera
Manufacturer: Telarc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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The Best of Gilbert & Sullivan
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The Gilbert and Sullivan Overtures

ASIN: B000003D1Y
Release Date: 1996-01-23

Tracks:

A Wandering Minstrel I
Behold The Lord High Executioner!
Three Little Maids From School Are We
Braid The Raven Hair
The Flowers That Bloom In The Spring
On A Tree By A River, A Little Tom-tit Sang, 'Willow, Tit-willow'
For He's Gone And Married Yum-Yum
We Sail The Ocean Blue
I'm Called Little Buttercup
My Gallant Crew
When I Was A Lad
Things Are Seldom What They Seem
Never Mind The Why And Wherefore
Climbing Over Rocky Mountain
Poor Wand'ring One
How Beautifully Blue The Sky
I Am The Very Model Of A Modern Major-General
When The Foeman Bares His Steel
Ah, Leave Me Not To Pine
With Cat-Like Tread
Is Life A Boon?
I Have A Song To Sing, O!
Were I Thy Bride
Oh, A Private Buffoon Is A Light-Hearted Loon
When A Wooer Goes A-Wooing
When I, Good Friends, Was Called To The Bar
A Nice Dilemma We Have Here
Oh, Joy Unbounded

Customer Reviews:

The Best Of Gilbert And Sullivan.......2004-03-15

At the end of the 19th century (1870's, 80's and 90's) the compatible duo of librettist and composer Gilbert and Sullivan popularized the pre-Broadway entertainment of Savoy opera. These were light operas or operettas whose content was satire and comedy, full of bouncy melodies and beautiful singing, highly entertaining theatrical works staged at London's Savoy theatre. Gilbert and Sullivan did not always get along and in fact there was a time when they ended their professional relationship because personal conflicts surfaced. But they managed to create the world's most beloved light operas, over 40 of them. Their most famous are what I call the Big Three- The H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates Of Penzance and The Mikado. Other works include their first hit Trial By Jury, The Yeomen Of The Guard, Princess Ida, The Gondoliers, Patience and several others. A standard signature of Gilbert and Sullivan was in the colorful cast- a comic actor with a special kind of baritone voice, a canary-like and sweet-voiced coloratura or lyric diva, a mezzo soprano with strong chest register and a lyric tenor as the romantic hero. On this album, English conductor Sir Charles Mackerras, a popular figure in the classical music scene and opera, guides the Chorus and Orchestra Of the Welsh National Opera in generally well-delivered performances of excerpts from the operas The Mikado, The H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates Of Penzance, Yeomen Of The Guard and Trial By Jury. Although I feel that the recordings made by the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, with Isodore Godfrey conducting and starring the best cast of the Gilbert and Sullivan repertoire- the singers of the 60's and 70's- tenor Phillip Potter, soprano Valerie Masterson, baritone John Reed, Donald Adams and mezzo soprano Christine Palmer. Their version of the Pirates Of Penzance and the Mikado far outshine the Welsh National Opera in technical mastery and vibrant tone color.

But these are fine excerpts. Especially appealing is the famous and cheerful "Three Little Maids From School Are We", a trio that imitates Japanese style melody. Most of the Mikado does this, for it was inspired by Japanisme or the new fashion in Victorian England- everything Japanese, from prints to paintings to poetry. Gilbert and Sullivan simply "Japanized" their English operettas. The Finale "For He's Gone To Marry Yum Yum" is an ebullient and pleasant finale. Not featured here is the domineering and powerful Katisha, a figure who stands out in the Mikado.

The H.M.S. Pinafore is Gilbert and Sullivan's most popular work. The sea chanty "We Sail The Ocean Blue" opens the opera with appropriate atmosphere and it seems to fit perfectly with the other scene in which the Captain greets his crew and they sing his praises "My Gallant Crew..I am the Captain Of The Pinafore". A beautiful melody that seems to come out of a romantic Offenbach tune is "I"m Called Little Buttercup". The finale, not featured here, is also very engaging "For He Is An Englishman" which can almost resemble a British national anthem. The Yeomen Of The Guard was Gilbert and Sullivan's "serious opera" eventhough it remains very Savoyard. The plot deals with Tudor England and takes place at the London Tower. "I have a song to sing" makes use of what can be taken for an English ballad of the Renaissance. Trial By Jury, about the eccentric and hilarious activity of a court trial, has a sextet that although different in composition, has the sextet "Che Mi Frena" from Donizetti's Lucia Di Lammermoor in mind. All in all, an excellent recording sure to delight young and old.

Pure delight.......2003-08-02

--Gilbert & Sullivan--
William Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan were a match made in heaven, yet on earth their pairing seems even with hindsight a most unlikely coupling. Both were destined for other things, Gilbert in fact for decidedly non-musical careers. Introduced by a mutual friend, Fred Clay, the fledgling lyricist Gilbert met the military-band-leader's son Sullivan and together continued to conspire to inspire the delights of audiences from high Victorian times down to the present, as their work in musical theatre comedy continues to provide merriment throughout the English-speaking world and beyond.

--The Music--
This collection includes highlights from five of the most popular Gilbert & Sullivan operettas: The Mikado, HMS Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance, The Yeoman of the Guard, and Trial by Jury. The arrangements and orchestrations are delightfully energetic and clear; the characterisation and vocal qualities of the leads are perfect for their roles. The haughty if misplaced Lord of the Admiralty has the perfect combination of insecurity and pompous officiousness. The Plaintiff and the Defendant in the Trial are perfectly cast. This is a collection of highlights - at least three but no more than seven songs each, but this gives a good flavour of the music. The recordings on this collection come from complete performances by Mackerras and the WNO.

--Sir Charles Mackerras--
Mackerras is one of the geniuses of the twentieth century musical scene. Having a conducting career that includes the Hamburg Opera, the English National Opera (formerly Sadlers Wells Opera), and the Welsh National Opera (the performers for this piece), he has also conducted major orchestras on the continent of Europe and in the United States. The holder of many major awards and honourary doctorates, he has devoted much time and energy to the preservation and performance of eighteenth and nineteenth century music, as well the restoration of historical musical venues, such as the Estates Theatre in Prague, scene of the original production of Don Giovanni (Mackerras conducted the opera there to commemorate the bicentenary of the death of Mozart).

--Welsh National Opera Orchestra and Chorus--
The seeds of the WNO were planted in Cardiff during World War II by music lovers; the first performances occurred a year after the war's end, with Cavalleria rusticana and Pagliacci on the bill, with Faust the next night. Popular appeal was so great that the WNO was established, later adding choruses in both Cardiff and Swansea. The professional chorus was established in 1973, with a strength that matches the orchestra. They continue an ambitious performance schedule for recording and live events; Mackerras remains the Conductor Emeritus, as the WNO continues under the direction of Carlo Rizzi. The list of awards the WNO has won over the years is staggering - they are a world class institution by any measure.

--Other performers--
Notable singers such as Richard Stuart, Rebecca Evans, Felicity Palmer, John Mark Ainsley and Anne Howells lead the chorus with stunning vocals and clever characterisations of the parts they play. Many (such as Stuart and Evans) play the leading roles across several of the pieces of the disc.

--Liner Notes--
The liner notes give a good introduction and biographical information about Gilbert and Sullivan, as well as synopses of the five pieces presented here. It does not, unfortunately, include any information about Mackerras, the WNO Orchestra and Chorus, or the other special performers. It also does not include the lyrics to the songs. Were the quality of the CD not so great, this might cost it a star in rating.

--Overall Impressions--
I play this CD in my car, in my home and in my office frequently. It is a great sing-along work and a great comedic relief from the stresses of the day. The music is bubbly and clear; the recording quality is excellent and crisp. I recommend this to any Gilbert & Sullivan lover, any fan of musical comedy, opera and operettas, and anyone who delights in good music.

Delicious G&S samplings abound here........2003-05-06

The first thing I should be saying is "What an infectuous G&S CD." Indeed this is, with this fine sampling of the peppy and bright Mackerras series. I know I have praised its "Mercedes-Benz quality" elsewhere on these pages, but that doesn't stop me from saying that everyone is in fine voice. This generously filled CD may only focus on five operas, but at least you can savour a reasonable choice sampling of delights from each one. Of particular interest is Richard Suart's patter-baritone parts and the soaring lyric soprano of Rebecca Evans. The selection on this disc is filled with a mixture of familiar favourites and lesser-known gems such as the female choruses in Mikado and Pirates. Mackerras is a true G&S conductor, but one who always springs rhythms crisply, and adopts peppy tempo for the fast bits. The one drawback is that this selection is far too infectuous that you'll want to shell out money to buy the full 5-CD Mackerras cycle - an incredible bargain with most of the operas fitted onto one disc each. But still, this is at least a decent G&S sampling for beginners, capped with Steven Ledbetter's copious liner notes. It will leave you wanting to say "dammit I'm going to play it again."

Fine Intro to G&S.......2000-12-30

This is the perfect CD for those who may not be familiar with G&S, or for the initiated who want a smattering but don't have the mother of all CD changers. The difficulty with any G&S Greatest Hits CD is determining which pieces to leave off; while one could easily point to any number equally good bits, it would be difficult to argue about the quality of the choices included. The only problem, such as it is, is that after listening to it I am usually induced to go back and listen to the whole opera anyway. The Mackerras recordings are uniformly excellent. I have read elsewhere the criticism that they are too 'operatic' for light opera. If by this it is meant that the singers are too good, then I leave it to the discretion of the listener when the singing becomes too good to be enjoyable.

Average customer rating:

Handel: The Masterworks (Box Set)

Manufacturer: Brilliant Classics
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ASIN: B00062FLI8
Release Date: 2004-11-30

Average customer rating:

Painless and Pleasant

Opera for People Who Hate Opera

Manufacturer: Intersound Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Classical Music for People Who Hate Classical Music
Beethoven: Triple Concerto; Brahms: Double Concerto

ASIN: B000003QWI
Release Date: 1994-06-09

Tracks:

Ride Of The Valkyries - San Diego Symphony Orchestra
Vesti La Giubba - Jose Perez
Intermezzo - London Festival Orchestra
Overture - London Festival Orchestra
Prelude - Philharmonia Orchestra Of London
Aragonaise - Philharmonia Orchestra Of London
Seguedille - Philharmonia Orchestra Of London
Bohemian Dance - Philharmonia Orchestra Of London
The Toreador Song - Philharmonia Orchestra Of London
Polovstian Dances 8 And 17 - Ljubljana Radio Symphony Orchestra
Pace, Pace Mio Dio - Leontyne Price
Overture - London Philharmonic Orchestra
Barcarolle - Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Gypsy Chorus - Bavarian Festival Orchestra And Chorus
Royal Hunt And Storm - Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
O Mio Babbino Caro - Ljiljan Molnar-Talajic

Tracks:

Overture - Utah Symphony Orchestra
Questo A Quella - Jose Perez
Un Bei Di - Vanda Gerlovic
Che Gelida Manina - Jose Perez
Overture - Utah Symphony Orchestra
Ach, So Fromm - Jose Perez
Overture And Prelude - Ljubljana Radio Symphony Orchestra
Visi D'arte - Leontyne Price
Celeste, Aida - Jose Perez
Triumphal March - Jose Perez
Ballet Music - Jose Perez
The Viennese Musical Clock - Dallas Symphony Orchestra
Overture - London Symphony Orchestra
We Sail The Ocean - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus
I'm Called Little Buttercup - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus
When I Was A Lad - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus
Never Mind The Why And Wherefore - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus

Tracks:

La Donna E Mobile - Jose Perez
Prelude - Slavonic Philharmonic Orchestra
Servantsd Chorus - Ljubljana Radio Chorus
Mon Coer S' Ouvre A Ta Voix - Marijana Radev
Waltz - Vienna Folk Opera Orchestra
A Wand'ring Minstrel, I - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus
Three Little Maids - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus
Here's A How-De-Do - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus
Beauty In The Bellow - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus
He's Gone And Married Yum-Yum - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus
Overture - Philharmonia Orchestra Of London
Waltz - Houston Symphony Orchestra
Peasants' Chorus - Nuremberg Symphony Chorus
Overture - Philharmonia Orchestra Of London
E Strano E Strano - Biserka Cvejic
Overture - Philharmonia Orchestra Of London

Tracks:

Overture - Utah Symphony Orchestra
Bridal Chorus - Ljubljana Radio Symphony Chorus
Overture - London Festival Orchestra
Pour, O Pour The Pirate Sherry - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus
Oh, Better Far To Live And Die - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus
I Am The Very Model Of A Modern Major General - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus
When The Foeman Bares His Steel - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus
With Cat-Like Tread - Rochester Philharmonic Chorus
Summertime - Leontyne Price
Overture - London Festival Orchestra
Contro Un Cor - Rita Noel
Overture - Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Customer Reviews:

Painless and Pleasant.......2000-08-19

It's not that I hate opera, it's rather that I cannot handle and entire opera without nodding off. This 4 disc CD provides highlights from the most famous and recognizable arias, i.e., Pagliacci, Carmen, Rigoletto, Madame Butterfly, La Boheme, The Mikado, and H.M.S. Pinafore -- just to mention a few. I appreciate the ability to enjoy select arias from some of the most beautiful and and exceptional operas in the world, and played by first class orchestras, without having to sit through the entire opera.

Average customer rating:

better than expected
Perfect for people who like the pixies and string quartets

The String Quartet Tribute to Pixies

Manufacturer: Vitamin Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Last Splash
Loudquietloud - A Film About the Pixies

ASIN: B0002Y4TRY
Release Date: 2004-10-05

Tracks:

Monkey Gone To Heaven
Where Is My Mind?
Gigantic
Cactus
Debaser
Here Comes Your Man
Wave Of Mutilation
Bird Dream Of The Olympus Mons
Caribou
Velouria
Gouge Away
Burned For Good

Product Description

1. Monkey Gone To Heaven
2. Where Is My Mind
3. Gigantic
4. Cactus
5. Debaser
6. Here Comes Your Man
7. Wave Of Mutilation
8. Bird Dream Of The Olympus Mons
9. Caribou
10. Velouria

Format: CD

Customer Reviews:

better than expected .......2005-02-20

Before this album, I had never bought a String Quartet tribute album and tended to overlook them as I normally do with tribute albums. I had been familiar with them through their full album tribute of Radiohead's OK Computer which I've heard and was very impressed by. However I still never bought anything by them as from observation they seemed to pay tribute to both some of the best artists in this generation (The Smiths, The Cure, Radiohead, Sonic Youth, and Elliott Smith for example), yet also some of the worst (Simple Plan, Godsmack, P.O.D., Linkin Park, etc. etc. etc.) and that made me feel less able to judge them as a whole.

However when I saw this album in a store how the Pixies being my favorite band, I bought it without giving it a second's thought and I listened to it immeditely when I got home. After my initial listen I found the album to be very interesting and enjoyable. The songs they selected (mostly from Surfer Rosa and Doolittle) are for the majority all are the best known Pixies songs that you'd find on either on of the best of compilations or hear at one of the reunion shows. The only expection to that is the presence of "Bird Dream of the Olympus Mons" from Trompe le Monde which will stick out jarringly in the track listing to any non casual listener of the Pixies. However, it transforms very well into a classical piece and I would include it along with "Debaser", "Where is My Mind?", and "Velouria" as the best covers on the album.

On the opposite, this album does have it's share of negatives, and it's unfortunate that most of them are from sloppy errors not within the music, but on the packaging. First off the track listing displayed on the back cover and 2 times in the booklet is wrong. I assume this has to do with a last minute change to the track listing after the packaging has been printed. Whatever the case may be (being too cheap to reprint it?), this error is very unprofessional. Also on the back cover the album description states "as virtuous string players cut to the edgy essence of 'Bone Machine'" when Bone Machine isn't even on the album. Besides those frusturating unforgivable errors, my only complaint musically is that the original track by the quartet on this album "Burned for Good" while good in it's own right simply doesn't fit in here and lessens the feeling of the album as a whole. These "original compositions" appear to be on every quartet release, so I guess it's just something that the band enjoys to do regardless of the result. Another semi-complaint is that there isn't more songs from albums besides Surfer Rosa and Doolittle or songs that are lesser known but favorites of devoted fans. "Levitate Me" would have been great in my opinion in this classical form. As well as "Is She Weird?", "No. 13 Baby", and "Into the White". So in summary I say that no matter if you're a new or casual Pixies fan whom the Wave of Mutilation compilation was your first Pixies release, or a hardcore Pixies fan and you don't completely hate classical music, I think you will enjoy this album.

Here's the correct track listing...
1. Here Comes Your Man [Doolittle]
2. Gigantic [Surfer Rosa]
3. Caribou [Come on Pilgrim]
4. Debaser [Doolittle]
5. Cactus [Surfer Rosa]
6. Velouria [Bossanova]
7. Gouge Away [Doolittle]
8. Bird Dream of the Olympus Mons [Trompe le Monde]
9. Wave of Mutilation [Doolittle]
10. Monkey Gone to Heaven [Doolittle]
11. Where is my Mind? [Surfer Rosa]
12. Burned for Good (original composition)

Perfect for people who like the pixies and string quartets.......2005-01-25

I heard this on KCRW the other day - it was the arrangement for 'Here comes you man' and it was great fun. This album has lots of swell possibilities.

Average customer rating:

Patti Austin and Gregory Hines Are Brilliant

Greatest Hits

Manufacturer: Philips
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Rodgers & Hammerstein - The Complete Overtures ~ Opening Night / Hollywood Bowl Orchestra · Mauceri
Hollywood Dreams
Betcha Bottom Dollar

ASIN: B00005J712
Release Date: 2001-05-22

Tracks:

Let Yourself Go - Steppin' Out With My Baby - Patti LuPone
Slap That Bass - Gregory Hines
Love Is Here To Stay - Patti Austin
Mood Indigo - Dee Dee Bridgewater
A Foggy Day - Gregory Hines
Let's Call The Whole Thing Off - Patti Austin/Gregory Hines
Heatwave - Patti LuPone
Something Wonderful - Marilyn Horne
O Mio Babbino Caro - Puccini's Gianni Schicchi
Prelude To A Kiss - Dee Dee Bridgewater
I'm Beginning To See The Light - Dee Dee Bridgewater
Nice Work If You Can Get It - Gregory Hines
The All Laughed - Patti Austin
I've Got Beginner's Luck - Gregory Hines/Patti Austin
Doin' What Comes Natur-lly - Patti LuPone
I Have Dreamed - Peabo Bryson/Lea Salonga
For You, For Me, For Evermore - Patti Austin/Gregory Hines

Tracks:

Gone With The Wind: Main Title - John Mauceri/Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
An American In Paris - John Mauceri/Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
Carousel: Heaven Effect And Carousel Waltz - John Mauceri/Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
Peyton Place - John Mauceri/Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
The Wizard Of Oz Concert Suite - John Mauceri/Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
Morning Mood - John Mauceri/Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
Cinema Paradiso - John Mauceri/Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
Somewhere In Time - John Mauceri/Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
Eternal Love - John Mauceri/Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
John Dunbar Theme - John Mauceri/Hollywood Bowl Orchestra
Throne Room And Finale - John Mauceri/Hollywood Bowl Orchestra

Customer Reviews:

Patti Austin and Gregory Hines Are Brilliant.......2007-07-07

I own the Hollywood Bowl Gershwin CD and I love it. I was surprised by it. Play the samples if you can but the singing and sound are clear and crisp and you can understand every word.

Sing, My Soul: Choral Music of Ned Rorem

Average customer rating:

Impeccably Performed, Stunning Sound

Sing, My Soul: Choral Music of Ned Rorem

Manufacturer: Albany Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Sacred & Religious | Classical | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B00000FDBJ
Release Date: 1998-11-24

Tracks:

'Thee, God..'
Seven Motets For The Church Year: 'While All Things Were In Quiet Silence'
Seven Motets For The Church Year: 'Before The Morning Star Begotten'
Seven Motets For The Church Year: 'Lay Up For Yourselves'
Seven Motets For The Church Year: 'Praise Him Who Was Crucified'
Seven Motets For The Church Year: 'God Is Gone Up'
Seven Motets For The Church Year: 'Today The Holy Spirit Appeared'
Seven Motets For The Church Year: 'Rejoice We All In The Lord'
'Phos Hilaron'
'Canticle Of The Lamb'
'Little Lamb, Who Made Thee?'
'Come, Pure Hearts, In Sweetest Measure'
'Mercy And Truth Are Met'
Love Alone: 'Here'
Little Prayers: Three Prayers: 'Creator Spirit, Who Dost Lightly Hover'
Little Prayers: Three Prayers: 'Father, Guide And Lead Me'
Little Prayers: Three Prayers: 'Creator Spirit, Please...'
What Is Pink?: 'What Is Pink?'
What Is Pink?: 'The Mysterious Cat'
What Is Pink?: 'Who Has Seen The Wind?'
What Is Pink?: 'A Pavane For The Nursery'
What Is Pink?: 'Counting-Out Rhyme'
What Is Pink?: 'The House On The Hill'
'All Glorious God'
'Breathe On Me, Breath Of God'
'Lead, Kindly Light'
'Love Divine, All Loves Excelling'
'Sing, My Soul, His Wondrous Love'
'Surge, Illuminare'

Customer Reviews:

Impeccably Performed, Stunning Sound.......1998-11-20

The beautifully captured reverberant sound of the acoustic space is matched by gorgeous choral balance, precise diction, and definitive interpretation. In spite of the contemporary style of the compositions - Rorem doesn't shy away from crunchy dissonances - this is a very enjoyable collection of Choral music with many beautfiul moments.

Average customer rating:

A shambling funeral procession. Sensual and sombre.
Not Convinced
An Affair to Remember
Beautiful - haunting - brilliant
No Passion Without Gravity

Been Here and Gone
Thalia Zedek
Manufacturer: Matador Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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You're a Big Girl Now
Don't Ask Don't Tell
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Era Vulgaris

ASIN: B00005M0CE
Release Date: 2001-07-31

Tracks:

Excommunications (Everybody Knows)
Back To School
Strong
Temporary Guest
Treacherous Thing
Dance Me To The End Of Love
1926
Desanctified (Full Circle)
Somebody Else
10th Lament
Manha De Carnival

Amazon.com's Best of 2001

Thalia Zedek has charted a singular course through rock history virtually unnoticed by critics and listeners alike. Whereas each new Nick Cave release has the critics feverishly reaching for the Vaseline, Zedek's band through the '90s, Come, released a string of classic albums that were almost universally ignored. Her work in the '80s--with Dangerous Birds, Uzi, and later fronting Live Skull fared even worse. Been Here and Gone is Zedek's first solo effort, and it delivers. Her vision of what is the blues is perfectly presented on songs such as "Excommunications" and "Temporary Guest," but this is the blues like Leonard Cohen (whom Zedek covers here) and Bob Dylan are the blues--the feeling not the form. On "Strong," Zedek opens with "You're going to hell / you're gonna be living with yourself." Strong stuff indeed, but delivered in a tone more measured than maniacal and the effect is sharper for it. Zedek doesn't go in for posturing, this is the real deal and not for the weak of heart, yet those who make this journey with her are greatly rewarded by the music. Without a doubt, Been Here and Gone is among the best albums released in 2001. --Mike Johnson

Customer Reviews:

A shambling funeral procession. Sensual and sombre........2004-04-20

If Bob Dylan were murdered in some horrible, edward Gorey-like fashion and then his spirit made love to Leonard Cohen in a dream by PJ Harvey- this album might be the result of such sanguine, acrobatic copulations...

Indeed it opens up with an homage to L. Cohen- 'Eveybody Knows,' but only the single guitar line that kicks off the album is Cohen's... the rest is entirely Ms. Zedek's (though, truth be told, it sounds like Concrete Blonde's cover from the pump of the volume sndtrk.). Her voice is kin to Dylan (weary and monotone), so much so you'd think she's his little sister that someone hid away in a dark (very dark) closet for many years.

Whew... It's a mess. No arguing with that, but a sprawling, gorgeous, weary, anguish-laden mess. The kind of mess that takes your breath away, like staring out over a city late at night and having it hit you in the chest that you'll never really be able to loose yourself in someone, that love fades, honor rusts, visions curdle, dreams evaporate... Entropy has the last laugh... It's the kind of album that reminds you that we are ultimately finite and useless creatures... at least, that's what I take from it.

It's not the kind of album I can write to- to demanding, the music forces you to listen. Nor can I run or work out to it. It just sucks out your energy like some demonic sci-fi machine... I don't like `Strong,' so much... and `treacherous thing,' seemed a tad out of place too... this is a definitely a less is more scenario. Especially as most of these songs are long and lustrous (most over 5 minutes). There's much piano, tons of eerie violin and sad, sombre clean-tone guitar. The mood is a bit uneven, bit that works well to the album's advantage.

Oh, don't expect this to sound like a 'Come,' album- it just don't. There are many standout tracks and great moments. I really dig the hell out of the L. Cohen cover (Dance Me to the End of Love)- a sweet piano opening and the way it just boils away into some gypsy dance of pure lush abandonment at the end, wow. `10th Lament,' is a gorgeous instrumental piece. The cover of Luiz Bonfa's 'Manha de Carnaval,' is spellbinding and made me track down the original, it's a phenomenal closer, it calls to mind the song "masquerade,' from the 50's or 60's film of the same name. The centerpiece and the album's strongest song- a cover of Gary Gogel's (who the hell is Gary Gogel?!?!?!! I googled him awhile back and didn't come up with anything substantial- if this song is any indication, he's got some great music!) 1926- A song that just slays me ever time I hear it. The end, portion, the "God hates me, he can't feel my flesh..." Fantastic. You don't hear sentiments like that expressed so economically and poetically in this world we have inherited...

Now, I'm inclined to agree with Mr. Carragher (below), but only up to a point. This album does drain you. But in a good way. It's a great; lying on your bed, staring at your ceiling music. Maybe I'm getting old, but I don't have it in me to do that so much anymore. All in all, I'm glad I picked this up, always dug Come. It's good to hear Ms. Zedek putting out the good ish. Can't wait for more.

Not Convinced.......2002-09-05

First of all, hide the quaaludes before you play this CD. It is close to four stars and maybe, as with Giant Sand's CD Chore of Enchantment, I'll pull it out of the rack in a year's time and be blown away by it. For now, however, and after repeated listenings, it is frequently haunting and powerful (three consecutive cuts, Treacherous Thing, Dance Me to the End of Love, 1926, leave me drained each time I listen to them), but falls short of greatness. A big problem is that Zedek doesn't know when to end a song and two or three cuts in the last half of the CD run a good couple of minutes longer than they need to. The instrumental 10th Lament is particularly pointless. Also her own songs do not match the covers she's chosen, no surprise when you record the likes of Leonard Cohen. Still, if in her future she has an album full of songs like Excommunications and Treacherous Thing, that will be something to anticipate. Here and now, though, On Been Here and Gone, the three covers -- Dance Me to the End of Love, Manha de Carnaval, and most especially 1926 -- are what kept the CD on my personal playlist for a long time. The final refrain of 1926 "your God hates me/he can't feel my flesh/he leaves me panting like a dog/at the edge of your bed" is as stunning a lyric of obsessed love as I've heard in a long, long time.

An Affair to Remember.......2002-02-26

A friend of mine bought me this CD for my birthday. He knew I like Leonard Cohen a lot, so he ended up picking Been Here and Gone because it happened to include a cover of Dance Me to the End of Love.
Been Here and Gone is nothing short of amazing - I went from never even having heard of Thalia Zedek and firmly believeing no one could really do a Leonard Cohen song justice except Cohen himself, to being mesmerized by Zedek's voice and wishing she would record an entire album of Cohen covers. (I could see her doing almost any song of his, like, say, Ain't No Cure for Love, Bird on a Wire or Coming Back to You. But I digress.)
The songs she wrote herself are stunning as well, as are 1926 and Manha de Carnaval.
My only complaint is that on track 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8 and 9, I feel the vocals are often obscured by the instruments. Don't get me wrong; I love the arrangements, and the musicians all sound great, but I think I would have liked the end result even better if the tracks had been mixed so that the instruments complement Zedek's voice rather than compete with (and sometimes overpower) it.
Other than that, I can't say enough good things about this album. I don't think I'll grow tired of listening to it any time soon, if ever.

Beautiful - haunting - brilliant.......2001-11-17

I'm stunned. This is an amazing album.

No Passion Without Gravity.......2001-11-05

If nothing else, Thalia Zedek's career will serve to remind the world that The Blues is more than just a foundation for Rock & Roll, but that it is primarily The Music Of Pain with its own lexicon of harmonies and rhythmic twists. "Been Here And Gone" is a superb collection of pared-down and passionate songs, organic and spacious but with an overriding sense of claustrophobia that will almost preclude it from mainstream acceptance. Zedek has an uncanny ability for conveying very specific moods in her songs, many of which tend towards the manic. This is not the most comfortable listening, but given that most works of substance require some effort on the part of the listener, it is ultimately (and perversely) extremely rewarding.

Music: