Soviet

Editorial Reviews
About the Artist
Crocodile Shop have been making music for over a decade now. Their debut cd, "Celebrate the Enemy," was released in 1994 by Tinman Records. The strength of the release got the attention of burgeoning industrial giant Metropolis Records, who have released three albums by the band: Beneath (1996), Pain (1997) and Everything is Dead and Gone (1999). Soviet contains remixes from all three of the Metropolis albums, as well as an exclusive track.

Album Description
"Soviet" is a limited edition remix album bridging the gap between Crocodile Shop's albums for Metropolis Records. Remixers include Paul Robb (Think Tank, Information Society), Collide, Android Lust, Urania, Battery, Division #9, ISH, SMP, I, Parasite, Ivoux and Croc Shop themselves. the result is an intriguing blend of the entire range of electro stylings, from dance to ambient.

Band Members: Mick Hale, vMarkus, Len 9, RAWerner.

Tracks:

Ode to Divorce
Poor Little Rich Boy
Carbon Monoxide
Flowers
Us
Sailor Song
***
Your Honor
Ghost of Corporate Future
Chemo Limo
Somedays

Customer Reviews:

shut up and play.......2007-07-26

I bought it after seeing cbs sunday morning program highlighting her career. Hopefully it was repeat, her repeated use of profanity is disappointing. The CD needs a label warning about the lyrics. I played it for a week in the car during my daily commute to work, hoping I would find something worth keeping. Her piano playing is very good.

Great CD.......2007-07-19

This is a grat CD for New or existing Regina Spektor fans, the only thing I do recomend that you check is if the cd come in a cd case, or one of those flimsy cardboard sleves, it may or may not cost you more, but if you are an avid CD colector such as myself, I sujest taking the time to make that specification.

The girl can sing!!.......2007-07-05

This is, as far as I know, her first recordings, and the songs deal with many not so pleasant topics, but she has a way of pulling the matter together which is unique and surprising interesting to listen to and not depressing in the least. Also she is not your typical singer songwriter in that the tempo and phrasing of her songs change in ways that could be very distressing but she is able to make it work.

Respekt Her.......2007-07-02

I love Regina Spektor. Her more popular album is the more recent Begin to Hope, but Soviet Kitsch is equal in quality, however I believe it is a little more abstract and random with less synthesized beats. Regina is uniquely her own. It would be lazy to compare her to Tori Amos or Bjork. Okay so Tori and Regina both have pianos and are female. Regina's songs are uncomplicated musically and have a wry humor or wit in songs such as Ghost of a Corporate Future. Her lyrics are out there, but not so filled with metaphor and hidden meanings like Tori. She writes humorous, fun, witty and wisdom filled songs.

Essential Regina........2007-06-18

If you're a fan of Regina Spektor, obviously this CD should be in your collection. Most reviewers on here obviously saw the video for "Fidelity" on VH1, loved it, went out and bought "Begin to Hope", loved it, wanted more Regina, and then went out and bought "Soviet Kitsch" expecting it to sound exactly like "Begin to Hope" and then were disappointed. That's okay...actually, not really. If you were really a Spektor fan, then you would know not to compare any of her albums, seeing as none of them sound alike. That's what I love about Regina. She comes out with a new album which sounds completely different from the one which came before...which is a lesson many musicians could learn.

Soviet Kitsch is by far one of my favorite albums ever. It's a nice little sampler of the wonder which is Regina Spektor.
Standouts on this album are...every damn song.
Only Regina Spektor can take influences from classical, and mix it up with her rock and roll influences, making songs like "Us" and "The Flowers" a genre of their own. But as you listen to every song, you'll realize it's hard to identify her with just one genre, seeing as she doesn't have one.
And anyone who doesn't love "Poor Little Rich Boy" is just stupid. Only Regina can play the piano with her left hand, while banging a chair with a drumstick with her right hand, and still sound more punk rock than the bullshit being called "punk rock" nowadays.

I don't know how much sense my review made, but basically I just love this album because it's unlike anything I've ever heard before. It's eccentric, all over the place, and effing amazing. a masterpiece.

Regina's a genius. And if you don't like this album, listen again.

Average customer rating:

Soviet Army Band & Chorus aren't taking any prisoners!
Good music.
Magnificent!
I loved it!
The ultimate collection

Best of the Red Army Choir
Red Army Choir
Manufacturer: Silva America
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Similar Items:

Soviet Army Chorus & Band
Russian Favourites
The Hunt For Red October: Music From The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Best of Communism: Revolutionary Songs
Echoes of a Red Empire

ASIN: B000066RMJ
Release Date: 2002-06-25

Tracks:

Kalinka
Partisan's Song
Souliko
Korobelniki
On The Road (A Soldier's Song)
My Country
The Red Army Is The Strongest
Moscow Nights
Along Peterskaia Street
Smuglianka
Troika Gallop
Ah Nastassia
Echelon's Song
My Army
Civil War Songs
Bella Ciao

Tracks:

National Anthem Of The USSR
Oh Fields, My Fields
The Cliff
The Cossacks
In The Central Steppes
Gandzia
Cossack's Song
The Roads
Song Of The Volga Boatman
Dark Eyes
Let's Go
The Birch Tree
The Road Song
The Samovars
Varchavianka
Slavery And Suffering

Customer Reviews:

Soviet Army Band & Chorus aren't taking any prisoners!.......2007-05-12

If you enjoy a good stiring martial male chorus then spend some time with these guys. They're all graduates of Soviet musical acadamies and any one of them could have graced the top opera houses of the world. You don't have to know any Russian to appreciate this CD. The songs are glorious (just don't translate them -- machine guns, death to foes, etc.), and will make you want to march on Berlin all over again.

Good music........2007-03-09

I had heard a few songs by the Red Army Choir in the past and happened upon this CD set a while back, I found it to be far better than I had hoped and would reccoment it to anyone who enjoys Russian folk music, choir in general, and cultural items from when Russia was still the Soviet Union.

Magnificent!.......2007-02-27

I'm so glad I stumbled onto this.

Spirited, committed, manly singing. Soul-shaking stuff! The ensemble is incisive; soloists are marvelous. The folk melodies are enchanting. The songs--and the singers--are bound up in the cultural fabric of the Cossacks, Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky...on and on.., Chekhov, Trotsky, Nabakov... This music conveys the great romantic, dignified, boistrous soul of the Russian People. (Loosely speaking. Some members of the chorus were presumably of other nationalities once part of the Soviet Union. And some of the songs are not Russian).

I don't speak Russian, but listening to this makes me wish I did. What a beautiful-sounding language it is.

I loved it!.......2007-02-22

Even though I cannot speak Russian, the quality of this choral group is beyond excellent. Many of these pieces are extremely moving and stirring. The rendering of the Soviet anthem and the song "Let's Go" (V'put) come to my mind. "Let's Go" became a huge hit in Russia when it was featured in a movie about the Great Patriotic War, and indeed, hearing it - you can well imagine ranks upon ranks of hard-eyed, grim-faced Soviet soldiers striding into battle against the Wehrmacht.

The ultimate collection.......2004-06-15

Excellent performance by the choir and the orchestra. The grandeur, the charm, and the romance! Great collection of songs, sure to bring back memories!

Average customer rating:

regina is a amazing.
Getting there
Interesting songs
They made a statue of us
Regina is the best!

Soviet Kitsch
Regina Spektor
Manufacturer: Sire / London/Rhino
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Similar Items:

Begin to Hope
Mary Ann Meets the Gravediggers and Other Short Stories (CD & Region 2 DVD)
Begin to Hope
Live At Bull Moose
Songs

ASIN: B0007NBAMW
Release Date: 2005-03-01

Tracks:

Ode to Divorce
Poor Little Rich Boy
Carbon Monoxide
Flowers
Us
Sailor Song
Your Honor
Ghost of Corporate Future
Chemo Limo
Somedays

Album Description

Imagine a female singer-songwriter pianist for The Strokes generation. Imagine Regina Spektor, who has not only opened for The Strokes but whose major label debut album, Soviet Kitsch, was co-produced by one of that band's producers. Imagine a driven, complex and endearing new artist with a sense of pop melody and clever songwriting, and with charisma to spare. Imagine no more.

Customer Reviews:

regina is a amazing........2007-07-16

i absolutely love this album. definitely not for everyone, but if you appreciate her offbeat style and lyrics, this is maybe her best album.

Getting there.......2006-07-31

Every time a decent female singer-songwriter appears on the scene, she *has* to be compared to a score of old ones. As for Regina Spektor, I have heard the names of Joni Michell, Tori Amos, Bjork, Fiona Apple (as in "Mary Ann's a bitch" in "Sailor Song") but then also Nellie McKay, Pj Harvey (who could have sun the chorus "c'mon, daddy" in "Carbon Monoxide"), and then even Ani diFranco, and for a grand finale, echoes of the Beatles and the Smiths. For sure, Spektor has heard and digested them all, but she is her own singer. This album features far better songs than the previous ones. the songwriting is much tighter, and is unoriginal only in rare places ("somedays"). Her style is much better defined than before. What can be said about it? It would most often be filed under the condescending and limiting label of "quirky", which is unfair, as the woman is honest, with a knack for catchy melodies, and with original lyrics; and she does not limit herself to celebrations of love, or curses of failed lovers. She can sing about anyone and anything, with tones ranging from cabaret to punk. She is ironic, but not detached. In the near future, she might become a real innovator, or just a half-sellout trite and self-referential singer-songwriter, a la Tori Amos. For the time being,my main criticism is with the production values of the album, which I found to be underproduced; her voice is kept a bit too flat and distant from the piano.

Interesting songs.......2006-05-19

Some interesting songs and lyrics, but not enough of that to make it a really good album. I like the piano and the violins arrangements, but the singing is often plain irritating, nasal and forced. Not quite Brittney Spears, but not good.
I would like to hear Regina when she is singing something that does not sound so "quirky" vocally- she can write good or even great songs. But this album is an aquired taste.

They made a statue of us.......2006-05-16

Singer-songwriters are a dime a dozen. And even among the good ones, it takes something special to stand out.

And Regina Spektor stands far above your typical singer/musician, with her quirky antifolk and her eccentric songwriting. In her third album, "Soviet Kitsch," Spektor does it all her own way, as if there had never been music before, and she's just inventing her own styles.

Unlike a lot of albums, it doesn't start off with the catchiest song. Instead, it's the melancholy violin and piano of "Ode to Divorce," with Spektor singing meditatively, "So break me to small parts/Let go in small doses/But spare some for spare parts/You might make a dollar..." She sounds like the indie cousin of Fiona Apple in such songs, as well as in the cancer-themed "Chemo Limo."

But it doesn't stay bittersweet all the time. She dabbles in punk rock in the colourful "Your Honour," commiserates with a literate "poor little rich boy" who doesn't love his mom or his girlfriend, and finishes with a quiet little song about love, loneliness and sorrow. The highlight of it all is "Us," a fast-paced, rippling piano tune that is just catchy enough to catch your notice, but not enough to be annoying or poppy.

Listening to Regina Spektor is a bit like listening to a kaleidoscope -- every time you hear her, her music sounds a little different. That's not something that can be said of many artists, and it only underscores the oddball, quirky sound. You definitely won't be able to forget this, once you've got "Us" stuck in your head.

Spektor is often compared to Tori Amos and Fiona Apple, for her use of piano and some violins. Honestly, she sounds too weird to be either. But she puts that piano and those violins to good use, creating everything from jagged folksongs to shimmering ballads. The piano tinkles along unpredictably, in a manner that simply follows the song, rather than the other way around.

And Spektor's singing is even better, since she uses her voice the same way she does her music. She even changes tempo in mid-line: "You don't love your giiiirlfriend/And you think... that you should... but shethinksthatshe'sfat/Butsheisn'tbutyoudon'tloveheranyway!" She does little jabbers, snarls, trills and squawks, as well as the more typical soaring and crooning.

Regina Spektor's "Soviet Kitsch" breaks all the pop rules, and makes beautiful little songs that are as alluring as they are disturbing. It's contagious!

Regina is the best!.......2006-02-01

I first heard Regina Spektor a few months ago while I was browsing through the iTunes music video section. I came across the "Us" video. I dug the song and checked out her Soviet Kitsch album. I dug every song on the album - something I've not done in a while. It's so full of life and talent. I bought the album there. Then I checked out her 11:11 album. Dug every song on that album too. Bought that one on the spot as well. I've never come across ANY artist that I've enjoyed EVERY song on EVERY album. Not even the Beatles. I did want the "Us" video - so I bought the physical CD/DVD from Amazon. I also found her "Songs" and "Live at Bullmoose" excellent as well. You can hunt down some of her bootlegs online, too. I am going to watch out if/when she comes into town. Regina is awesome. Support talented artists!

Average customer rating:

Unique historical icon
Memories of the past
Outstanding!
A True Classic
It was ok

Soviet Army Chorus & Band

Manufacturer: EMI Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

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Russia | Far East & Asia | International | Styles | Music

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Best of the Red Army Choir
Russian Favourites
Echoes of a Red Empire
Best of Communism: Revolutionary Songs
Balalaika: Russia's Most Beautiful Songs

ASIN: B000002ROZ
Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

Song Of Youth
A Birch-Tree In A Field Did Stand
Far Away
Volga Boat Song
You Are Always Beautiful
Along Peter's Street
Tipperary
Ah! Lovely Night
Kamarinskaya
Annie Laurie
Song Of The Plains (Meadowland)
Kalinka
Bandura
Oh No! John!
Snow Flakes
Ukranian Poem
The Decembrists: Soldier's Chorus

Customer Reviews:

Unique historical icon.......2007-04-11

Wonderfully atmospheric choral singing in the distinctive style of these cultural ambassadors for the Soviet regime. In their day they had a worldwide and appreciative audience as the Soviet Authorities sought to attach an attractive "human" persona to their mighty military machine.The power, precision and technical proficiancy of these (and other) performers served, whether justifiably or not, to enhance the Soviet military image.Wonderful Russian bass and tenor voices gave western ears fresh insights into 'music of the people' from both sides of the Iron Curtain. The propaganda effect was priceless and we are left today with a nostalgic example of the effective political use of music.

Memories of the past.......2007-02-13

My parents bought the vinyl recording of the Album when it first came out and I used to listen to it a lot. It is wonderful to have it available on CD without the scratches that go along with records. They sound as brilliant and stirring as the first day I heard them. I especially love The Soldiers Chorus from the play The Decembrists.

Outstanding!.......2005-08-27

I first discovered this album as a LP in the late 1960s. Granted, the recording techniques then are not as sophisticated as they are now, but the quality of the voices on this CD is excellent, and the music will send chills down your spine.

There are subsequent albums of the "Red Army" (whom I've seen in person) -- while good, the original "Soviet" is still the best.

If you love great soloists, outstanding choral work, and stirring music, you will appreciate this album.

A True Classic.......2004-12-17

Rich and often powerful music. Much magnificent singing and orchestration. The effort of the chorus to sing "Tipperary" in english is, alone, well worth the price of purchase.

It was ok.......2004-08-15

It's an ok album. The songs are nice but I bet half of the tracks are in mono, which was disappointing. I would recommend "Best of The Red Army Choir" instead.

Red Army Chorus: The Best of the Original Ensemble

Average customer rating:

Red Army Chorus: The Best of the Original Ensemble

Manufacturer: Analekta
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Similar Items:

Best of the Red Army Choir
Soviet Army Chorus & Band
Alexandrovci
Echoes of a Red Empire
Kalinka

ASIN: B00005UCGV
Release Date: 2002-04-30

Tracks:

Rider's March
Troika
Little Field
When The Soldiers Sing
Nightingales
Dark Eyes
Kossack's Song
Let's Drink!
Song Of The Volga Boat Men
Russian Song
Kalinka
Farewell Song
Escamillo Couplets
Dear Soul
Ukrainian Folk Song
Moscow Nights
May Nights
I Got Plenty Of Nothing
Granada
National Anthem Of The USSR

Average customer rating:

Music for meditation and movement

Trans Ukraine
BODHI
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD
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Sadhana
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Nuages du Monde

ASIN: B000NE7LP0

Product Description

1 Crimea I 2 Crimea II 3 Crimea III 4 Kiev I 5 Kiev II 6 Kiev III 7 Odessa I 8 Odessa II 9 Odessa III

Customer Reviews:

Music for meditation and movement.......2007-07-21

Beautifully composed...highly expressive...this music is good for many settings...quiet evenings, massage rooms, meditation groups and meditative dance. Enjoy the tones and sounds of Bodhi

Average customer rating:

Memorable performance
from the dawn of human culture
Unique folk songs performed by the best group!
Enjoy the Georgian Music!
Buy it!!!

Georgian Voices
Rustavi Choir
Manufacturer: Nonesuch
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Similar Items:

Music From Georgia, Vol. 1
Table Songs of Georgia
Oath at Khidistavi: Heroic Songs & Hymns From
O Morning Breeze: Traditional Songs from Georgia
The Georgian Feast: The Vibrant Culture and Savory Food of the Republic of Georgia

ASIN: B000005IZV
Release Date: 1991-07-01

Tracks:

Holy God: Chorale
Tshkenosnuri (Riding Song)
Going To Guria
Ali-Pasha (Historical Song)
Orovela (Plowing Song)
Langvash (March)
Odoya (Work Song)
Hasanbegura (Historical Song)
Mirangula (Lament For A Lost Son)
Chakrulo (Table Song)
Sabodisho (Healing Song)
Lechkhmuri Makruli (Wedding Song)
Kebadi (Sacred Chorale)
Guruli Naduri (Work Song)

Customer Reviews:

Memorable performance.......2006-03-10

We first heard this CD in a Georgian Restaurant in Moscow. Having rediscovered it through Amazon.com, we are not disappointed with the excellent performance of the Rustavi Singers and their distinctive style. It lives up to all expectations.

from the dawn of human culture.......2001-11-20

it will "make a man" out of anyone---definitely not for those afraid of themselves...

Unique folk songs performed by the best group!.......2001-06-26

The Rustavi Choir remains the best Georgian male choir over the past decades. And if I'm not mistaken the song Orovela was performed by late Hamlet Gonashvili, the best folk singer that probably ever been born in Georgia. As for the suggestion above of placing Georgian songs in the Russian group, I'd disagree with that. Georgians are not Slavs. The fact that Russia was a colonial power in Georgia over 200 years does not mean that linguistically, ethnically or culturally these two nations are somewhere close to each other.

Enjoy the Georgian Music!.......2001-04-21

I am a bit surpised that a lot of people compare Georgian Folklore to Bulgarian and consider them as something very similar to each other. I want to admit that Georgian culture is way too different from Bulgarian. The thing that both(Georgian and Bulgarian) folklore adhere to musical principle of polyphony does not mean that they have the same musical roots. ... .

Buy it!!!.......2000-09-27

Incredible singing, astonishing harmonies, some pieces so unearthly beautiful they will bring tears to your eyes.

Soundtrack/Charles Lloyd in the Soviet Union

Average customer rating:

Worth every penny
An often overlooked master

Soundtrack/Charles Lloyd in the Soviet Union
Charles Lloyd
Manufacturer: Collectables
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Bebop General | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music

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Journey Within/Charles Lloyd in Europe
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Forest Flower: Live in Monterey
Dream Weaver
Notes From Big Sur

ASIN: B00000IIWS
Release Date: 1999-05-25

Tracks:

Sombrero Sam
Pre-Dawn
Forest Flower '69
Days And Nights Waiting
Sweet Georgia Bright
Love Song To A Baby
Tribal Dance

Customer Reviews:

Worth every penny.......2004-03-03

I bought this CD a couple of weeks ago and it hasn't left my discman. I heard it maybe 20 times now and I can't get enough of this wonderful music. If you like the music Charles Lloyd made in the last 15 years, if you are a fan of the Keith Jarrett trio, or if you just like some good swinging jazz, don't hesitate: this CD is definately worth the price.
Of the seven tracks 5 are longer than 10 minutes. Forest Flower and Sweet Georgia Bright even longer than 15 minutes. Not one of them a minute too long. Keith and Jack get ample room to show, even this early in their career, their musical genius. Pre-Dawn is the shortest track and a humorous solo by Charles himself.

An often overlooked master.......2002-05-20

Charles Lloyd is THE man that helped me understand what the Tenor sax is all about. Of course, I apprecieated Coltrane, Rollins, and the like, but, I never really HEARD the voice of the tenor (or the sax in general) until I heard "Dream Weaver". Likewise, I had tried to listen to Keith Jarrett's later work, but could never really enjoy him until I heard him play with the "classic" Lloyd quartet. It's a real shame that, despite the success this band achieved in the 60's, most people aren't familliar with Mr. Lloyd. His recent offerings (of the last 10-15 yrs.) for Manfred Eicher and ECM have been really superb, (after a long retirement brought about by too many drugs and such during the 60's/70's) but to really appreciate the man you have to go back to his earlier works (his work with the Cannonball Adderley band of the mid 60's is also very good) and this album looks like a great deal. The picture of him playing on the cover should give you an Idea of what's in store. The USSR gig is very energetic (it gets pretty "out" at times, thanks largely to My main man Jack D. and the ever warbling Keith Jarrett) but, also has some very beautiful moments as well. I haven't yet heard the "soundtrack album" (I've got a vinyl copy of the USSR gig) but I'm familiar with several other of this band's live albums (there were quite a few: "Love In", "Forest Flower", "In Europe" etc.) and all I have heard so far have been high quality, and diverse enough in material that I can justify owning all I can get my hands on. That being said, I've found the Soviet Union album to be one of my all time favourites and highly recomend it to anyone who is into any kind of modern jazz, (Coltrane, Coleman, Hard or Post Be-Bop etc.) Mr. Lloyd is one of the few living masters left from these eras, and I'm glad he has made such an impression on me.

Average customer rating:

Haunting and beautiful
Latvian Women's choir
Beautifully sung but badly produced
Absolutely Gorgeous
I still love this cd!

Dzintars: Songs Of Amber
The Latvian Women's Choir
Manufacturer: Rykodisc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Russia | Far East & Asia | International | Styles | Music

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Music Form Latvia
International Music Series: Music from Latvia
The Bagpipes of Latvia
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The Rings of My Tree: A Latvian Woman's Journey

ASIN: B0000009NE
Release Date: 1990-02-27

Tracks:

Blow, Wind, Blow
Breaking Flax
The Sun Moves Quickly
Sleep My Child
Song Of The Wind
So Silent Is The Ukranian Night
The Forest Shook From Dancing
Where Have You Been, Brother?
Orphan Girl In White
Di Raike
Christmas Masquerade (Mummery Song)
Oi Hanuke
Autumn Landscape
The Tomtit's Message

Customer Reviews:

Haunting and beautiful.......2007-06-26

While I do agree that the booklet which comes with this CD could be better (a whole paragraph seems to be missing after the description is cut off mid-sentence!), the music contained within is otherworldly in its beauty. If you like your choral music very simple and pure (accompanied by either only one understated instrument, or acapella) you'd find this very enjoyable. Lovely bright-toned tracks with a few hauntingly dissonant gems by Vasks thrown in will give you goosebumps.

Latvian Women's choir.......2005-10-05

listening to Dzintars is an interesting and surprising experience. i'm not too versed on chorale cd's; but this is one that demands your attention. the voices are absolutely gorgeous. so beautiful at times that it seems unearthly. i first heard this group of singers on a label sampler cassette tape many years ago. i had found the tape in a used bin for one dollar and i thought it would be fun to listen to some international music in my old car. well, Dzintars was the first performer on the tape. and it was the song "Blow, Wind, Blow" (the first track on this cd). when i first heard it, i almost had to pull my car off the road. it is such a blindingly beautiful sound that it sent chills throughout my entire body. i listened to that song about 10 times in a row and i could never get enough. the next day, i bought their full length release. this cd is a mixture of the women performing traditional Latvian songs and some more modern material. i think that the folk songs have a much stronger impact than the modern songs (which seem to have alot of strange avant-garde sounding shrill dissonance at times...which can be cool). but the beauty contained in songs like "The Sun Moves Quickly", "Where have You Been, Brother?", and "Blow, Wind, Blow" are worth the price of this cd alone.

Beautifully sung but badly produced.......2004-01-12

I have nothing but praise for the performance of Dzintars, a Latvian women's chorus, but I am disappointed in how badly this project has been put together. First of all, it is unclear beforehand exactly what is on this CD. I was hoping for a program of traditional folk songs from this corner of the world (which has an amazing wealth of folk music). It turns out to be a mixture of traditional and modern, which is fine - but not what I really wanted. The titles are all given in English, but the chorus sings (thankfully) in Latvian. There is an acoompanying booklet, but it has little useful information and there are no texts and translations. What were the producers thinking??? A program of sung music in a foreign language MUST have texts and translations. The music is lovely, but who knows what they are singing about? The listener has no access to anything beyond pretty sounds. The producers of this CD, Rykodisc, deserve the blame for this botched release.

Absolutely Gorgeous.......2003-03-12

I heard one of the tracks from this album on a sampler CD that I have since lost , and I was so completely enchanted I hunted down this CD. I wasn't disappointed. This is some of the most heartbreakingly beautiful choral music I have ever encountered-- and after six years it still hasn't gone stale on me. If you like choral music at all (maybe even if you don't), buy this album.

I still love this cd!.......1999-07-21

I have had this album for a year now, and I am still just as amazed at it as I was when I peeled it out of its plastic wrap and set it in my cd player the first time. I can't put this music on and go wash dishes or sort laundry... I must sit and close my eyes and listen. It makes me want to go and buy a set of expensive headphones. This is a wonderful album, which I will force all of my friends to listen to, and which I strongly recommend to anyone who likes to listen to music.

Average customer rating:

A Rich Feast
Central Asian tradition goes high-voltage electric
Great mix of folk and pop--done excellently.

Alma Alma
Yulduz Usmanova
Manufacturer: Miramar
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Yol Bolsin

ASIN: B000003IO9
Release Date: 1995-05-09

Tracks:

Jeli Jeli
Maida
Uchir Uchir
Schoch Va Gado (Die Reichen Und Die Armen)
Turkmen Kizge
Yor-yor
Tsche Mischod
Kunglim Guli
Otayon
Hamroz
Kisil Alma (Red Apple)

Customer Reviews:

A Rich Feast.......1999-08-07

Each time I listen to Alma Alma I am amazed at the richness and wonder of this collection of songs by Yulduz Usmanova. The vocal and instrumental skill of the singer and her co-performers are evident throughout the album, as they deliver a rich musical feast for us all to revel in.

Central Asian tradition goes high-voltage electric.......1998-11-19

Yulduz Usmanova is incredible. This album inspired me to "do my homework" by listening to some folk and classical music from Uzbekistan. She has been faithful to that tradition, while at the same time creating powerful rock. ("Schoch va Gado" reminds me vividly of Grace Slick and the Jefferson Airplane circa 1968, though there couldn't be a connection.)

This is passionate music, but not gentle. "Tsche Mischod" might be a forlorn love ballad (wish I could understand the words!) but it radiates toughness, even fierceness. That quality is even more evident in fast-paced songs like "Jeli Jeli" or "Kisil Alma". Overall, a superb CD.

Great mix of folk and pop--done excellently........1998-10-02

I listen to this cd nearly every day! And still have never gotten tired of it. It is very catching & every tune on the cd has a great "hook." It is heaped with passion and emotion. Highly recommend it! She is very unique--not really like anyone else--but great rock! WOW!

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