really really [Live]

Editorial Reviews
About the Artist
Minus Ted was founded in 1991 by Skipp Sudduth and Brian O'Neill. The band produced its first album, Hope and Damage (available from Amazon later this Summer), in 1994. The band has toured extensively in the northeast but plays primarily in New York City.

"really really" is the band's first live album.

Band Members: Skipp Sudduth - guitar and vocals
Brian O'Neill - guitar, bass and vocals
Terry Pender - mandolin and electric leads
Tom McGrath - harmonium and percussion
Kohl Sudduth - bass --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Performers
Skipp Sudduth - Guitar, vocals Brian O'Neill - Guitar, Vocals Terry Pender - Mandolin, Electric Leads Tom McGrath - Percussion, Harmonium Kohl Sudduth - Bass

Album Description
The second album from the New York City acoustic rock band, Minus Ted (lead by actor Skipp Sudduth of NBC's Third Watch). Astonishing mandolin leads, strong lyrics, and a warm acoustic vibe. Recorded live in an off-Broadway theatre in New York. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

really really [Live]

really really, Music, Minus Ted, Acoustic rocked out celtic spitting groove tunes recorded live.
Man of La Mancha: A Decca Broadway Original Cast Album (Original 1965 Broadway Cast)
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Check out Other Versions. Don't be swayed by Others' Reviews.
  • beautiful music for a haunting story.....
  • Man of LaMancha As Good As Ever
  • Don Quixote
  • Magnificent voices
Man of La Mancha: A Decca Broadway Original Cast Album (Original 1965 Broadway Cast)
Mitch Leigh , Joe Darion , Richard Kiley , and Joan Diener
Manufacturer: Decca Broadway
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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  1. Camelot (1960 Original Broadway Cast)
  2. Man of La Mancha
  3. Fiddler on the Roof (1964 Original Broadway Cast)
  4. My Fair Lady (1956 Original Broadway Cast)
  5. The Music Man (1957 Original Broadway Cast)

ASIN: B00005A8KE
Release Date: 2001-03-06

Tracks:

  1. Overture
  2. Man Of La Mancha (I, Don Quixote)
  3. It's All The Same
  4. Dulcinea
  5. I'm Only Thinking Of Him
  6. I Really Like Him - Joan Diener
  7. What Do You Want of Me - Joan Diener
  8. Little Bird, Little Bird
  9. Barber's Song/Golden Helmet
  10. To Each His Dulcinea (To Every Man His Dulcinea)
  11. The Impossible Dream
  12. The Combat (Previously Unreleased Reissue Track)
  13. Dubbing (Knight of the Woeful Countenance) - Joan Diener
  14. The Abduction
  15. Aldonza - Joan Diener
  16. A Little Gossip
  17. Dulcinea (Reprise) /The Impossible Dream (Reprise) /Man of Mancha (Repr - Joan Diener
  18. Finale (The Impossible Dream) - Joan Diener

Amazon.com

Man of La Mancha, the show that introduced "The Impossible Dream" to the world (and lounge singers everywhere), was the hit of the 1965 Broadway season. Richard Kiley is magnificent in his career-defining performance as the deluded wannabe knight Don Quixote. His leading lad Joan Diener sings the role of the kitchen wench Aldonza with just the right balance of dignity and vulgarity. Irving Jacobson turns in a fine comic performance as the Don's faithful squire, Sancho Panza. The score, with music by Mitch Leigh and lyrics by Joe Darion, was revolutionary in its time. The orchestra had no violins--just brass, woodwinds, percussion, and flamenco guitars. Man of La Mancha is one of Broadway's most inspiring musicals and it well deserves its high reputation. --Michael Simmons

Customer Reviews:

3 out of 5 stars Check out Other Versions. Don't be swayed by Others' Reviews........2007-06-09

I've never seen this show on stage and my first exposure to the music was the Sony CD Man of La Mancha featuring Placido Domingo, Pandy Patankin, and Julia Migenes-Johnson. Despite lackluster reviews of the disk, I enjoy it, and when I saw this version at a second hand book/music store, I decided check it out too. My initial impression was that the Sony version was the better disk but decided to compare both versions by setting up a playlist in Media Player, playing tracks from both version back-to-back.

After that test, I have to agree with the reviews here that Richard Kiley is the superior Don Quixote. Domingo's voice is, of course wonderful, but Kiley acts the role better on the CD and Domingo's accent is a major distraction.

In the role of Aldonza - no contest. Julia Mingenes-Johnson's singing and performance on the Sony version is far superior to Joan Diener's. I didn't have to hear the tracks back-to-back to realize that. Ms. Diener's performance just grated on my ears from the beginning.

Bucking the crowd, I prefer Mandy Patankin's Sancho (Sony version) to Irving Jacobson's. I may be biased, having had more exposure to the Sony version, but Patankin seemed to be trying to inject a bit more feeling into the character. Jacobson, singing in an annoying, scratchy voice, came across almost like a cartoon trying to fit in among live characters. It seems like most people either like Patankin or hate him. Guess I'm one of the former.

The Orchestration does seem brighter/clearer in this version compared to the Sony version, but, in general, the tempo on most tracks seems slower than the same tracks on the Sony version. I preferred the up-tempo, Sony versions of "The Barber Song", "Little Bird, Little Bird", "The Dubbing" and "A Little Gossip".

In Summary: For Kiley's Don Quixote, you'll probably want this version, but for tracks featuring Aldonza (and maybe Sancho) you'll want to check out the Sony version. Since I have both disks, I will probably come up with a mix of my favorite tracks, in general, favoring the Sony disk but substituting the tracks that feature Richard Kiley's Don Quixote where I can.

5 out of 5 stars beautiful music for a haunting story............2007-06-07

I remember reading excerpts from Cervantes' DON QUIXOTE, as a Spanish student, way back in junior high school. The saga of the madman fighting windmills and pursuing his illusions [and delusions] was very sad, but very romantic at the same time. When the musical adaptation, MAN OF LA MANCHA, was brought to the stage in 1965, Richard Kiley (as the title character, Don Quixote) absolutely transfixed the audience with his sensitively heartfelt portrayal of the tragic madman. The plight of Don Quixote, who travels on horseback, with his faithful companion, Sancho Panza (Irving Jacobson), and absolutely lovestruck by kitched wench Aldonza (Joan Denier), is alternately pathetic and profound. Perhaps one of the best known (and most remade) songs in the repertoire from LA MANCHA, is "The Impossible Dream." Richard Kiley really make it his own, here, and after you hear his version, it's hard to listen to others' versions of it. It's just not the same. Though, this story is anything but joyful, the music will glide through your ears and carry you on a surrealistic journey through attempted triumph and (ultimately) tragedy.

5 out of 5 stars Man of LaMancha As Good As Ever.......2007-05-07

Very pleased with ourchase of this item. Quality is great as was the price. Delivery was timely. Easy transaction! A++++++++

5 out of 5 stars Don Quixote.......2006-09-14

Back in High School my band leader, Mr. DeYoung, decided (agianst much opposition from those of us in the band let me tell you) to have us perform select pieces from this musical

I hated the idea. But when we began to play, he even had us watch the musical, I fell in love with the melody. The many songs of a man who believes the best in the world. YOu find that in Dulcinea, The Impossible Dream, etc.

From one maginificently rendered song to another, you can be lost in its melodic elegance.

My favorite song is the initial rendition of 'Little Bird, Little Bird'. It's a soft song, sung as a love ballad. In the musical you discover it's being sung to a local whore by a bunch of randy men. Despite that, I still like it.

This along with others are among the great works of the stage!

5 out of 5 stars Magnificent voices.......2006-07-05

Voices and music make a revival of this beautiful play. Full of passion.
Really Rosie
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Awesome, awesom, awesome
  • Best Ever
Really Rosie
Carole King
Manufacturer: Sony Japan
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B0001N1OW4
Release Date: 2004-05-22

Tracks:

  1. Really Rosie
  2. One Was Johnny
  3. Alligators All Around
  4. Pierre
  5. Screaming and Yelling
  6. Ballad of Chicken Soup
  7. Chicken Soup with Rice
  8. Avenue P
  9. My Simple Humble Neighborhood
  10. Awful Truth
  11. Such Sufferin'
  12. Really Rosie (Reprise)

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Awesome, awesom, awesome.......2007-06-18

And pair it with the Nutshell Library collection of Maurice Sendak stories so they can follow along. Nutshell Library (Caldecott Collection)

5 out of 5 stars Best Ever.......2007-02-15

I don't know about this as an import item, but this cd is one of the all time greatest kids' albums. I grew up listening to it (and reading the books) and I can't wait to share it with my kids.
Broadway - The American Musical (PBS Series)
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Fabulous for any Broadway-lover
  • Top Shelf
  • TERRIFIC CD'S
  • Great Collection of Broadways greatest Songs
  • Great Compilation!
Broadway - The American Musical (PBS Series)

Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B00064ADMK
Release Date: 2004-10-19

Tracks:

  1. Give My Regards To Broadway- Joel Grey
  2. Swanee- Al Jolson
  3. When The Moon Shines On The Moonshine- Bert Williams
  4. A Pretty Girl Is Like A Melody- John Steel
  5. My Man- Fanny Brice
  6. Fascinating Rhythm- Fred Astaire, Adele Astaire
  7. If You Knew Susie (Like I Know Susie)- 78rpm Version Eddie Cantor
  8. Someone To Watch Over Me- Gertrude Lawrence
  9. Bill- 78 rpm Version Helen Morgan
  10. Ol' Man River- Paul Robeson
  11. Ain't Misbehavin'- Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra
  12. Ten Cents A Dance- Ruth Etting
  13. Body And Soul- Libby Holman
  14. Brother, Can You Spare A Dime- Bing Crosby
  15. Night And Day- Fred Astaire
  16. Heat Wave- Ethel Waters
  17. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes- Tamara
  18. You're The Top- Ethel Merman
  19. Summertime- Anne Brown
  20. September Song- Walter Huston
  21. My Heart Belongs To Daddy- Mary Martin
  22. It Never Entered My Mind- Shirley Ross
  23. Bewitched, Bothered, Bewildered- Vivienne Segal
  24. Oh, How I Hate To Get Up In The Morning- Irving Berlin
  25. Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'- Alfred Drake

Tracks:

  1. New York, New York- Cris Alexander,Adolph Green,John Reardon
  2. If I Loved You- John Raitt,Jan Clayton
  3. Come Rain Or Come Shine- Ruby Hill,Harold Nicholas
  4. There's No Business Like Show Business- Ensemble
  5. How Are Things In Glocca Morra? From "Finian's Rainbow"- Ella Logan
  6. Once In Love With Amy- Ray Bolger
  7. Wunderbar- Alfred Drake,Patricia Morison
  8. Some Enchanted Evening- Ezio Pinza
  9. Lost In The Stars- Todd Duncan
  10. Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend- Carol Channing
  11. Luck Be A Lady- Robert Alda,Guys
  12. Getting To Know You- Gertrude Lawrence
  13. Who Cares?- Jack Carson,Betty Oakes
  14. Stranger In Paradise- from " Kismet" Doretta Morrow,Richard Kiley
  15. Ballad Of Mack The Knife- Gerald Price
  16. Hey There- from "The Pajama Game" John Raitt
  17. Whatever Lola Wants- Gwen Verdon
  18. I Could Have Danced All Night- Julie Andrews
  19. Standing On The Corner- from "The Most Happy Fella, 1956" Shorty Long,John Henson,Alan Gilbert
  20. The Party's Over- Judy Holliday
  21. Glitter And Be Gay- Barbara Cook
  22. Tonight- Larry Kert, Carol Lawrence

Tracks:

  1. Seventy-Six Trombones- Robert Preston
  2. I Enjoy Being A Girl- from "Flower Drum Song, 1958" Pat Suzuki
  3. Everything's Coming Up Roses- Ethel Merman
  4. My Favorite Things- from "The Sound Of Music" Mary Martin
  5. Put On A Happy Face- from "Bye Bye Birdie" Dick Van Dyke
  6. Try To Remember- Jerry Orbach
  7. Camelot- from "Camelot" Richard Burton
  8. Love Makes The World Go 'Round- Anna Maria Alberghetti
  9. I Believe In You- Robert Morse And Co.
  10. The Sweetest Sounds- Diahann Carroll,Richard Kiley
  11. Comedy Tonight- Zero Mostel
  12. What Kind Of Fool Am I?- Anthony Newley
  13. As Long As He Needs Me- Georgia Brown
  14. Hello, Dolly!- Carol Channing,Cast
  15. People- Barbra Streisand
  16. Anyone Can Whistle- from "Anyone Can Whistle" Lee Remick
  17. If I Were A Rich Man- Zero Mostel
  18. Night Song- Sammy Davis, Jr.
  19. The Impossible Dream- Richard Kiley
  20. If My Friends Could See Me Now- Gwen Verdon
  21. Open a New Window- from Mame Voice

Tracks:

  1. Willkommen- from "Cabaret" Joel Grey
  2. Let The Sunshine In- James Rado,Lynn Kellogg,Melba Moore,Cast
  3. I'll Never Fall In Love Again- Jill O'Hara,Jerry Orbach
  4. The Ladies Who Lunch- from "Company" Elaine Stritch
  5. Tea For Two- Roger Rathburn,Susan Watson
  6. I'm Still Here- Yvonne De Carlo
  7. I Don't Know How To Love Him- Yvonne Elliman
  8. We Go Together- Adrienne Barbeau,Barry Bostwick,Walter Bobbie,Cast
  9. Corner Of The Sky- John Rubinstein
  10. Send In The Clowns- Glynis Johns
  11. Ease On Down The Road- Stephanie Mills,Tiger Haynes,Ted Ross,Hinton
  12. One- from "A Chorus Line" Cast
  13. All That Jazz- Chita Rivera,Ensemble
  14. Tomorrow- Andrea Mcardle
  15. Don't Cry For Me Argentina- Patti Lupone
  16. Come Follow The Band
  17. Lullaby Of Broadway- Jerry Orbach
  18. And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going- Jennifer Holliday
  19. The Bells Of St. Sebastian- Raul Julia

Tracks:

  1. Memory- Betty Buckley
  2. I Am What I Am- George Hearn
  3. Move On- Bernadette Peters,Mandy Patinkin
  4. Do You Hear The People Sing?- Michael Maguire,Cast
  5. The Music Of The Night- Michael Crawford
  6. You're Nothing Without Me- James Naughton,Gregg Edelman
  7. The American Dream- Jonathan Pryce,Cast
  8. Doctor Jazz- Gregory Hines,Company
  9. With One Look- Glenn Close
  10. On Broadway- Adrian Bailey,Frederick B. Owens,Ken Ard,Victor Trent Cook
  11. Le Jazz Hot- Julie Andrews,Ensemble
  12. Seasons Of Love-
  13. Hakuna Matata- Max Casella,Tom Alan Robbins,Scott Irby-Ranniar,Jason Raize
  14. I Wanna Be A Producer- Matthew Broderick,Ensemble
  15. Dancing Queen- Louise Plowright,Jenny Galloway
  16. Good Morning Baltimore- Marissa Jaret Winokur
  17. Movin' Out- Michael Cavanaugh,Band
  18. I Go To Rio- Hugh Jackman,Company
  19. Defying Gravity- Kristin Chenoweth,Idina Menzel

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Fabulous for any Broadway-lover.......2007-01-30

Packs into 5 CD's a sampling of Broadway tunes from the 20's thru (almost) today, mostly from original cast recordings. Includes not just well-known hits, but also some lesser-known gems. Sound quality is first rate, booklet is informative too. Have given this as a gift to several friends with rave reviews.

5 out of 5 stars Top Shelf.......2007-01-04

This is THE definitive collection of Broadway hits. I have other collections, and none of them measure up. A great deal of care was obviously taken in compiling and presenting this box set. It covers a lot of ground, starting with some long-forgotten but still very enjoyable hits from the days of yore, and finishing with present-day favorites. To the best of my knowledge, the recordings are by those who made them famous. You won't be disappointed.

5 out of 5 stars TERRIFIC CD'S.......2006-03-23

THESE BROADWAY MUSICALS CD'S ARE A BROADWAY LOVERS DREAM. WITH EACH SONG, MEMORIES COME FLOODING BACK. BOTH THE FAMILIAR AND THE FORGOTTEN SONGS ARE A TRUE LISTENING PLEASURE. IF YOU LIKE BROADWAY, YOU'LL LOVE THIS SET.

5 out of 5 stars Great Collection of Broadways greatest Songs .......2005-06-14

This Collection was perfectly made it has almost all the most famous Broadway songs on this 5 cd set. The Music is great and has Broadways greatest treasures like "Memory""People""With One Look""Give my regards Too Broadway" just to name a few of this numerous cd set with over 100 songs. This is a great buy if you like musicals or The music of Broadway

5 out of 5 stars Great Compilation!.......2005-01-17

If you are a fan of the Broadway Musicals, this is a collection that you should purchase. Since I got the 5 disc set I've enjoyed listening to it. The majority of the songs are done by the original singers. The collection is priceless considering that you will have over 100 songs from popular musicals since the beginning of Broadway
Instruments of the Orchestra
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Instruments of the Orchestra - Great Reference Material!
  • Beginner or Expert
  • Very Informative and Enjoyable
  • Frank's view
  • Excellent Intro for Those Not Familiar with the Orchestra
Instruments of the Orchestra
Various Artists
Manufacturer: Naxos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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  4. What to Listen for in Music
  5. Study of Orchestration, Third Edition

ASIN: B00006O0NT
Release Date: 2002-12-03

Tracks:

  1. Overture To 'Tannhauser'
  2. Domna, Pos Vos Ay Chausida
  3. We Don't Merely Use Instruments, We Play On Them. And They Play On Us.
  4. Hungarian Dance No.7
  5. The Violin Is One Of The Most Tender And Beautiful Instruments Ever Invented.
  6. Violin Concerto In D Major (Adagio)
  7. But For A Long Time It Was Seen As The Instrument Of The Devil.
  8. The Soldier's Tale: Triumphal March Of The Devil
  9. The Manipulative Seductiveness Of The Gypsy Violin.
  10. Csardas Music
  11. The Violin And The Initiation Of Nature
  12. The Four Seasons (Spring, Mvt 1)
  13. Birds Are Again Evoked In The Second Concerto, Especially Music's Natural Favourite.
  14. The Four Seasons (Summer, Mvt 1)
  15. Like The Devil, The Violin Is A Master Of Disguise.
  16. Old Viennese Dance No.3 'Schon Rosmarin'
  17. The Menacing Sensuality Of Ravel's Tzigane: A Very Different Side Of The Violin:
  18. Tzigane
  19. Do We Now Have The True Measure Of This Instrument? Not Just Yet.
  20. Caprice No.24
  21. The Many Effects Of The String Tremolando: Brandenburg Concerto No.4 (Last Mvt)/From Joy To Fright/Quartettsatz In C Minor/The String Tremolo Practically Spells The World Agitato.
  22. Variations On A Theme Of Frank Bridge (No.7)
  23. Prokofiev's Tremolo In Romeo And Juliet Should Not Be Heard Just Before Bedtime.
  24. Romeo And Juliet: Act IV
  25. Vivaldi Use It To Illustrate The Shivering Of Travellers Crossing The Ice.
  26. The Four Seasons (Winter, Mvt 1)
  27. The Violin Muted
  28. Clair De Lune
  29. The Gentleness Of Muted Strings Persists Even When A Whole Orchestra Plays.
  30. Piano Concerto No.21 In C Major, K.467 (Slow Mvt)
  31. The Pizzicato Violin
  32. Pizzicato Polka
  33. In Prokofiev's Second Violin Concerto, The Accompaniment Is Pizzicato.
  34. Violin Concerto No.2 In G Minor (Slow Mvt)
  35. Varieties Of Pizzicato: Colas Breugnon (The People's Feast)/Now A Drier, Leaner, Hungrier Pizzicato. There's Not A Lot Of Comfort Here./Capriol Suite (Tordion)/The Use Of Pizzicato As 'Percussion'/Romeo And Juliet (Act I)/Mahler Used Pizzicato...
  36. The Planets (Mars - The Bringer Of War)
  37. The Technique Of Double-Stopping Enables The Violin To Play Duets With Itself./Sonata No.3 In C Major For Unaccompanied Violin (Fugue)/Now A Later Example Of The Same Technique
  38. Hungarian Dance No.4
  39. Double-Stopping Is A Standard Feature Of A Lot Of Folk Music.
  40. The Four Seasons (Autumn, Mvt 1)
  41. Now The Same Technique, But The Sound Might Have Come From Another World.
  42. Bolero
  43. Double-Stopping Can Only Approximate The Sound Of A Real Violin Duet.
  44. Cadenza To The Violin Concerto By Brahms
  45. Now Compare That With A Real Violin Duet.
  46. Forty-Four Duos (No. 1: Teasing Song)
  47. Another Duo By Bartok, Demonstrating The Violin's Rich Lower Register
  48. Forty-Four Duos (No.2: Maypole Dance)
  49. And Now What May Be The Most Beautiful Accompanied Violin Duet In History
  50. Concerto In D Minor For Two Violins (Largo)
  51. The Soul Of The Violin Is In Song; But What About This Weird Passage?
  52. Violin Concerto No.1 In D Major (Mvt 2)
  53. The Use Of Harmonies In The Orchestra Can Be Both Magical And Unsettling.
  54. Symphony No.1 'Titan' (Mvt 1, Opening)
  55. Tchaikovsky's Use Of Harmonics In The Sleeping Beauty Is Both Strange And Darling.
  56. The Sleeping Beauty (Act II, No.15: Entr'Acte)
  57. Ravel's Harmonics In Mother Goose Effect A Magical Transformation.
  58. Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Beauty And The Beast)
  59. Stravinsky's Harmonics In The Firebird Transport Us Almost Into Another World./The Firebird (Introduction)
  60. The Natural Upper Notes Of The Violins Have A Unique Emotional 'Grab'.
  61. Also Sprach Zarathustra (Of The Afterworldsmen)
  62. Still In Their Upper Register, The Violins Unleash The Energy Of A Young Colt.
  63. Variations On A Theme Of Frank Bridge (No. 4)
  64. Elsewhere, Britten Uses The Same High Register To Create A Very Different Mood.
  65. Four Sea Interludes (Dawn) From 'Peter Grimes'
  66. To End This Outing With The Violins, A Charming Little Elfin Dance
  67. Elfenreigen

Tracks:

  1. Introduction To The Viola
  2. Viola Concerto (Mvt 1)
  3. Khatchaturian Gets A Very Different Sound From It: Fuller, Fruitier, More Exotic.
  4. Gayane Suite No.1 (Armen's Solo)
  5. Very Nearly The Whole Of The Violin's Upper Register Is Also Available To The Viola.
  6. Passacaglia, Op.33b From 'Peter Grimes'
  7. The Viola Can Bring A Special, Rich Twanginess To Pizzicato That The Violins Lack./Don Quixote/Berlioz Drew Sounds From It That Retain Their Metallic Strangeness Even Today.
  8. Harold In Italy (Mvt 4)
  9. The Muted Viola: Intimate, Gentle, Poignant In Dvork
  10. Cypresses (No.9)
  11. The Massed Violas Of The Modern Symphony Orchestra In Mahler
  12. Symphony No.4 (Mvt 3)
  13. The 'Period' Viola In Bach
  14. Brandenburg Concerto No.6 (Last Mvt)
  15. The Cello: A Voice Of Unique Nobility
  16. Suite No.1 For Unaccompanied Cello (Prelude)
  17. Brahms And The 'Soul' Of The Cello
  18. Piano Concerto No.2 In B Flat Major (Mvt 3)
  19. Most Orchestral Composers Tend To Emphasize The Cello's Lower Register.
  20. Cantata 'Herz Und Mund Und Tat Und Leben', BWV 147 (Soprana Aria: Bereite Dir, Jesu)
  21. In The Time Of Beethoven The Cello Remained As Fundamental As Ever.
  22. Symphony No.3 'Eroica' (Finale)
  23. But The Cello Is Not Condemned To Spend Its Life In The Basement.
  24. Elfentanz, Op.39
  25. Not Only In Recital Showpieces Like That Is The Cello Is Used In Its Highest Register.
  26. The Protecting Veil (Opening)
  27. A Cello With An Identity-Crisis: The Pizzicato Flamencan
  28. Flamenco
  29. Double-Stopping In The Lower Reaches Of The Cello's Range
  30. Solo Suiet For Cello And Piano (Sardana)
  31. It's In The Middle Register That The Cello Really Comes Into Its Own.
  32. Oriental Dance, Op.2 No.2
  33. It Was To The Cellos That Beethoven Gave Two Of His Most Famous Themes./Symphony No.5 (Mvt 2)/Still More Famous Than That Theme Is This One From The Ninth Symphony.
  34. Symphony No.9 (Finale)
  35. Introduction To The Double-Bass
  36. The Carnival Of The Animals (The Elephant)
  37. But The Double-Bass Can Be Intensely Expressive And Graceful.
  38. Elegy No.1 In D Major
  39. The Range Of The Double-Bass Is The Greatest Of All The String Instruments/Allegro Di Concerto, 'Alla Mendelssohn'/And It's Also Capable Of Very Considerable Virtuosity.
  40. Capriccio Di Bravura
  41. Double-Bass Solos In Orchestral Scores Are Rare But Often Memorable./Symphony No.1 'Titan' (Mvt 3)/In His Third Symphony Mahler Makes A Very Different Use Of The Instrument./Symphony No.3 (Mvt 1)
  42. The Double-Bass Muted In Prokofiev/Lieutenant Kije Suite (Kije's Wedding)/In Another Work Prokofiev Uses The Double-Bass To Enhance The Winds./Romeo And Juliet (Act III)/And He Combines The Bass Clarinet With A Shivering Tremolo From The Double-Basses....
  43. Symphony No.5 (Mvt 3)/So Much For The Strings/On Now To The Winds

Tracks:

  1. The Antiquity And Magic Of The Flute
  2. Prelude A L'Apres-Midi D'Un Faune
  3. The Versatility And Agility Of The Flute
  4. Orchestral Suite No.2 In B Minor (Badinerie)
  5. The Flute In Fifteenth-Century Spain
  6. Sa'Dawi
  7. Other Flutes: The Bass And Alto
  8. Chamber Music No.II
  9. The Piccolo - Aptly Named
  10. La Naissance D'Osiris (Mvt 6)
  11. From A Piccolo Of The Eighteenth Century To One Of Its Descendants In The Twentieth
  12. Suite No.1 For Small Orchestra (Valse)
  13. A Variety Of Techniques
  14. Chamber Music No.II
  15. Flutter-Tonguing. But Tchaikovsky Got There Eighty Years Before.
  16. The Nutcracker (Act II, No.2: Scene)
  17. From The Transverse To The Vertical: The Baroque Recorder
  18. Recorded Suite In A Minor (Menuet II)
  19. An Unfamiliar, Early Vision Of The Instrument
  20. Naelden, Naelden
  21. The Bachian Oboe
  22. Cantata 'Ein Feste Burg Ist Unser Gott', BWV 80 (No.7: Duetto)
  23. Introduction To The Cor Anglais Or 'English Born'
  24. Symphony No.9 'From The New World' (Mvt 2)
  25. The Loneliness Of The Cor Anglais
  26. The Swan Of Tuonela
  27. The Cor Anglais Joins The French Horn In Haydn.
  28. Symphony No.22 'The Philosopher' (Opening)
  29. Introduction To The Oboe D'Amore, Beloved Of Bach - But Also Of Ravel
  30. Bolero
  31. The Clarinet Family: Boxing The Compass, From The Depths Of The Bass Clarinet.../The Egyptian (Violence)/...To The Raucous And Squealy.../Taras Bulba (The Death Of Ostap)/...To The Shrill And Complaining...
  32. Petrushka (No.8: Peasant With Bear)/...To The High Sprits Of A Playful Puppy./Symphonie Fantastique (Last Mvt)/And To The Downright Jazzy/Romeo And Juliet (Act II)
  33. As The High Clarinets Tend To Be Loud, So The Bass Tends To Be Soft:
  34. Gayane Suite No. 1 (Mvt 5)
  35. The Bass Clarinet Is Used By Most Composers Mainly As A Colouring Agent.../Petrushka (No.4: The Blackamoor)/...But It Does Occasionally Get A Whole Tune To Itself./Iberia (Almeria).
  36. The Range Of The Normal Clarinet Parts Goes Quite High...
  37. The Snow Maiden (Scene 5: Melodrama)
  38. ...And Quite Low.
  39. Peter And The Wolf (The Cat)
  40. The Clarinet As Concerto Soloist
  41. Clarinet Concerto In A Major (Rondo)
  42. But That's Not The Instrument Mozart Wrote It For; This Is:
  43. Clarinet Concerto In A Major (Rondo)
  44. Introduction To The Saxophone
  45. Hary Janos Suite (Mvt 4)
  46. The Soprano Saxophone Has Quite A Different Feel To It.
  47. L'Arlesienne Suite No.1 (Minuet)
  48. The Little Sopranino Sax Goes Even Higher.
  49. Bolero
  50. The Most Famous Use Of The Saxophone Is In An Orchestration By Ravel.
  51. Pictures At An Exhibition (The Old Castle)
  52. The Saxophone Can Be Quite Contagiously Good-Humoured.
  53. Sax-O-Phun
  54. The Puffa-Puffa Image Of The Bassoon
  55. Peter And The Wolf (Grandfather)
  56. The Bachian Bassoon, In Accompanimental Mode
  57. Cantata 'Weichet Nur, Betrubte Schatten' ('Wedding Cantata'), BWV 202 (Aria No.1)
  58. Bizet Leaves The Puffa-Puffa Image Out, Allowing The Bassoon To Sing./Carmen Suite No.1 (Les Dragons D'Alcala)
  59. And Ravel, Also In Spanish Mode, Does Likewise.
  60. Bolero
  61. The Bassoon As A Voice Of High Seriousness, Indeed Desolate Loneliness
  62. Symphony No.3 (Opening)
  63. The Eerie Bassoon In Its Highest Register
  64. The Rite Of Spring (Opening)
  65. Stravinsky Now Draws On Its Lowest Register, Lonely And Melancholy.
  66. The Firebird Suite (1919, Berceuse)
  67. The Bassoon As Concerto Soloist, Avoiding All Exaggeration
  68. Bassoon Concerto In G Minor (Finale)
  69. The Deep-Voiced Contra-Bassoon, As A Fairy-Tale Beast
  70. Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Beauty And The Beast)
  71. The French Horn Under Its Woodwind Hat
  72. Wind Quintet, Op.43 (Last Mvt)
  73. Now A More Prominent Role, In A Woodwind Quintet From An Earlier Era
  74. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Op.100 No.5 (Mvt 2)
  75. The Horn In Harmonious Blend With Strings In Another Quintet
  76. Horn Quintet, K.407 (Finale)

Tracks:

  1. The Trumpet As Virtuoso Soloist
  2. Brandenburg Concerto No.2 (Last Mvt)
  3. The Special Brillance Of Paired Trumpets
  4. Concerto In C For Two Trumpets, RV537 (Mvt 1)
  5. The Ceremonial Trumpet
  6. Fanfare For The Common Man
  7. Trumpets And Drums - An Incomparable Alliance
  8. Messiah (The Trumpet Shall Sound)
  9. The Versatility Of The Trumpet, From The Most Public To The Most Lonely
  10. Piano Concerto In F (Slow Mvt)
  11. The Trumpet As The Voice Of The City/An American In Paris/The Trumpet As Recruitment Officer/The Soldier's Tale (The March)/The Trumpet As Swaggerer
  12. Carmen Suite No.2 (Habanera)
  13. The Trumpet As The Voice Of Strength And Courage
  14. Carmet Suite No.2 (Toreador's Song)
  15. The Trumpet Muted/Petrushka (No.4: The Blackamoor)/Lieutenant Kije Suite (Opening)/The Trumpet As The Voice Of Weariness
  16. Billy The Kid
  17. The Trumpet As Character Actor
  18. Pictures At An Exhibition (No.6)
  19. The Trumpet As The Voice Of God
  20. Mass In B Minor ('Et Exspecto')
  21. The Birth Of The Trombone
  22. Aenmerckt Nu Hier
  23. The Birth Of The Brass As A Family
  24. Canzon 12 In Double Echo
  25. The Trombone In The Eighteenth Century
  26. Trombone Concerto In B Flat Major (Finale)
  27. The Tone Of The Tenor Trombone/Romance For Trombone And Organ/The Memorable Voice Of The Bass Trombone/Requiem (Mvt 2)/But The Bass Trombone Is More Than An Instrumental Bullfrog.
  28. Hosannah
  29. The Trombones Become Part Of The Orchestra.
  30. Symphony No.5 (Finale)
  31. The Wagnerian Trombone:/Overture To 'Tannhauser'
  32. The Trombone As Caricaturist
  33. Pulcinella (No.19: Vivo)
  34. The Trombone As Raspberry/Concerto For Orchestra (Intermezzo)
  35. The Horn And The Hunt
  36. Horn Concerto No.4 In E Flat, K.495 (Finale)
  37. The Challenging Horn Of The Baroque
  38. Abaris Ou Les Boreades (Menuet)
  39. The Scarcity Of First-Rate Players In Handel's Time
  40. Walter Music (Minuet 1)
  41. The Horn As Magician/The Firebird Suite (1919, Finale)
  42. Horns And The Sound Of Nobility
  43. Overture To 'Tannhauser' (Opening)
  44. The Special Sound Of The Horn In Its Higher Register
  45. Mass In B Minor ('Quoniam Tu Solus Sanctus')
  46. The Trumpet-Like Sound Of Massed Horns
  47. Symphony No.3 (Mvt 1, Opening)
  48. The Tuba - Unfairly Maligned?
  49. Symphony No.6 (Mvt 3)
  50. The Tuba Perfectly Cast By Ravel
  51. Pictures At An Exhibition (Bydlo)

Tracks:

  1. Introduction. And We Begin With A Bang.
  2. Fanfare For The Common Man/The Bass Drum On The Battlefields/Wellington's Victory, Op.91 (Opening)
  3. At The Opposite Extreme Is The Triangle.
  4. Piano Concerto No.1 In E Flat (Scherzo)
  5. Categories Of Percussion: Tuned And Untuned. The Side Drum
  6. Overture To 'La Gazza Ladra' - The Thieving Magpie (Opening)
  7. The Side Drum In An Effective But Unexpected Role/Clarinet Concerto (Mvt 1)
  8. The Tambourine. One Of The Oldest Instruments In The World
  9. Den Hoboecken Dans
  10. Even Older Is The Originally Oriental Gong.
  11. Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Laideronette)
  12. No Single Instrument Can Match The Gong In Evoking The Breaking Of Waves./Passacaglia, Op.33b From 'Peter Grimes'/But Gongs Don't Have To Be Struck To Be Effective.
  13. Gymnopedie No.2
  14. The Cymbals Are Generally Discovered Early In Life./The Sanguine Fan/And They Do More Than Clash Together Loudly. They Can Be Clashed Together Softly./Studio Example: But They Needn't Be Clashed Together At All/Studio Example: They Can Be Lightly...
  15. Other Untuned Percussion Instruments Include The Whip.: Piano Concerto In G Major (Opening)/And Here Are No Fewer Than Twenty, Cracked By Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker (Act I, Scene 5)
  16. More Versatile Than The Whip Are The Wood Blocks.../Studio Example/...Which Crop Up All Over The Place In Twentieth-Century American Music.
  17. Rodeo (Hoe-Down)
  18. Related To The Wood Blocks, By Sound, Are The Castanets./Jota Aragonesa/But The Castanets Were Also Used By Monteverdi Back In The Seventeenth Century.
  19. Scherzi Musicali (Damigella Tutta Belle)
  20. A Still Earlier Example From Fifteenth-Century Spain
  21. Yo M'Enamori D'Un Aire
  22. The Birth Of The Bongo
  23. Symphonic Dances From 'West Side Story'
  24. From The Streets Of New York To The Blacksmith's Shop/Il Trovatore ('Anvil Chorus')
  25. Desert-Island Decibels: Grand Canyon Suite (On The Trail)/Arcana
  26. From One Vegetable To Another: The Humble Squash, Or Marrow/Huapango
  27. Onwards To The Tuned Percussion. First, The Timpani
  28. Also Sprach Zarathustra (Introduction)
  29. But The Drum Roll Can Be More Effectively Frightening Than The Big Bang.: Symphony No.2 'Resurrection' (Mvt 3)
  30. Not One Drum Roll, But Many/Grand Canyon Suite (Sunrise)/Symphonie Fantastique (Last Mvt)
  31. Taking Advantage Of Tunability
  32. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celeste (Mvt 2)
  33. The Russian Composer Rodion Shchedrin Takes A Downward Turn./Carmen Suite (Changing Of The Guard)/Tuned, Yes; But For The Truly Melodic We Must Look Elsewhere.
  34. Introducing The Glockenspiel/Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)
  35. Saint-Saens And The Xylophone
  36. The Carnival Of The Animals (Fossils)
  37. Ravel And The Xylophone
  38. Ma Mere L'Oye - Mother Goose (Laideronette)
  39. Introducing The Marimba/Carmen Suite (First Intermezzo)
  40. Introducing The Vibraphone
  41. The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (Narange Dolce)
  42. The Vibraphone Goes Russian.../Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)/...And Is Joined By The Marimba./Carmen Suite (Carmen's Entrance And Habanera)
  43. Introducing The Hungarian Cimbalom
  44. Folk Dances
  45. The Cimbalom And The Symphony Orchestra
  46. Hary Janos Suite (Mvt 3)
  47. Introducing The Tubular Bells
  48. Hary Janos Suite (Viennese Musical Clock)
  49. A More 'Up-Front' Approach From Rodion Shchedrin
  50. Carmen Suite (Introduction)
  51. But The Bells Can Also Make The Sinister Even More Sinister./Symphony No.7 'Sinfonia Antartica' (Mvt 1)
  52. Introducing The Celeste
  53. The Nutcracker (Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy)
  54. Magic, In The Use Of Collective Percussion
  55. Miroirs (La Vallee Des Cloches)
  56. Plucked Instruments: The 'Undercover Percussion'/Carmen Suite (Scene)
  57. A Prime Case In Point Is The Harp, Irresistible To The Romantics./The Nutcracker (Act II, No.1: Scene)/The Non-Solo Harp As An Integral Part Of The Orchestra/Hungarian Rhapsody No.1
  58. The Traditionally Subservient Role Of The Harpsichord In The Baroque Orchestra
  59. Brandenburg Concerto No.2 (Slow Mvt)
  60. The Piano: King Of The Tuned Percussion/Symphony No.3 'Organ' (Mvt 3)/And A Quarter Of A Century After That:
  61. Petrushka (Russian Dance)
  62. The Anti-Romantic Piano As An Integral Part Of The Orchestra
  63. Music For Strings, Percussion And Celeste (Last Mvt)

Tracks:

  1. Keyboard Instruments In The Orchestra - The Most Powerful Of Them All:
  2. Symphony No.3 'Organ' (Finale)
  3. But Things In Handel's Day Were Very Different.
  4. Organ Concerto In B Flat, Op.4 No.3 (Last Mvt)
  5. The Organ Is Difficult To Classify.
  6. An Unexpected, Organ-related Guest
  7. Concerto Pour Zampogna (Last Mvt)
  8. Peasant-Fancying... And A Touch Of The Roaming Cowboy
  9. Les Miserables (Drink With Me)
  10. Outside Artefacts And The Power Of Association
  11. Mahler's Sleighbells
  12. Symphony No.4 (Opening)
  13. A Roll-Call Of Some Unusual Guests/The Typewriter/Parade
  14. Chains, And More/Integrales/An American In Paris/Sandpaper Ballet
  15. Purpose-Built Oddities: Wind Machines/Symphony No.7 'Sinfonia Antartica' (Opening)
  16. Don Quixote (Variation VIII)
  17. National Calling Cards: The Guitar For Spain/Concierto De Aranjuez (Finale)
  18. And The Guitar's Poor American Relative, The Banjo/Washington Breakdown
  19. And Poorer Still, The Mouth Organ/The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (Packing Up)
  20. The Balalaika For Russia/Romeo And Juliet (Act II: No.14)
  21. The Maracas For Mexico/The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (El Desayuno)
  22. The Bongos And Congas And A Whole Wealth Of Other Drums For Africa And Central America/Studio Example
  23. The Sitar Of India/Evening Raga: Bhapoli
  24. The Accordion For France (Especially Paris)/Paris Canaille
  25. The Zither For Vienna/The Third Man (Theme)
  26. The Cimbalom For Hungary/Folk Dances
  27. The Guitar As An Integral Part Of The Orchestra/Rondena
  28. There Are Whole Orchestras Of Balalaikas./Sveit Mesiats
  29. The Effect Of The Wordless Human Voice, Used Purely As An Instrument/Symphony No.7 'Sinfonia Antartica' (Mvt 1)
  30. Nocturnes
  31. Instruments And the Imitation Of Nature. The Clarinet As Cuckoo
  32. The Carnival Of The Animals (The Cuckoo)
  33. The Flute As An All-purpose Aviary
  34. The Carnival Of The Animals (The Aviary)
  35. The Oboe As Duck
  36. Peter And The Wolf (The Duck)
  37. The Recording Of Reality. Does It Work As Well?
  38. The Pines Of Rome (The Pines Of The Janiculum)
  39. The Recording Of Reality Electronically Reborn In New Guises
  40. Cantus Articus - Concerto For Birds And Orchesra (Mvt 2)
  41. Beethoven Turns Avian: Cuckoo, Nightingale, And Quail
  42. Symphony No.6 'Pastoral' (Andante Molto Mosso)
  43. Some Improbable Casting: The Violin As Braying Donkey
  44. The Carnival Of The Animals (Persons With Long Ears)
  45. A Truly Orchestral Hee-haw To Be Reckoned With
  46. Overture To 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'
  47. A Thunderstorm In A Million
  48. Symphony No.6 'Pastoral (Allegro-Allegretto)
  49. the Instrumental Depiction Of A Silent World
  50. The Carnival Of The Animals (The Aquarium)
  51. Saint-Saens' Menagerie Takes A Curtain Call.
  52. The Carnival Of The Animals (Finale)

Tracks:

  1. The Grouping Of Instrumental Families. An Additive Approach. First, Two Violins
  2. Forty-Four Duos (No.4)
  3. A Great Contrast, Of Both Pitch And Character: Violin And Viola
  4. Duo For Violin And Viola In B Flat Major, K.424 (Finale, Vars 1 & 2)/Studio Example
  5. Arrival Of The Standard String Trio: Violin, Viola, And Cello
  6. String Trio In B Flat (Menuetto)
  7. The String Quartet: Two Violins, Viola, And Cello
  8. String Quartet In F, Op.18 No.1 (Mvt 3)
  9. The String Quintet - When The Extra Instrument Is A Second Viola
  10. String Quartet No.5 In D, K.593 (Adagio)
  11. The String Quintet - When The Extra Instrument Is A Second Cello
  12. String Quintet In C (Mvt 3)
  13. The String Sextet: Two Violins, Two Violas, And Two Cellos
  14. String Sextet In B Flat (Mvt 2)
  15. The String Octet: The Standard String Quaret Times Two
  16. Octet In E Flat, Op.20 (Mvt 1)
  17. Double The String Octet: A Fully Fledged String Orchestra
  18. String Symphony No.2 (Finale)
  19. The Massed Strings Of A Symphony Orchestra
  20. Fantasia On A Theme Of Thomas Tallis
  21. Contrasts Of Pitch And Instrumental 'Colour' In The Woodwind Section
  22. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Op.100 No.5 (Theme)
  23. In The First Variation It's The Horn That Gets The Lion's Share.
  24. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 1
  25. In Variation Two The Torch Is Handed To The Bassoon.
  26. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 2
  27. In Variation Three The Oboe Leads.
  28. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 3
  29. Variation Four: Conversation Before Returning To A Solo-dominated Texture
  30. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 4
  31. And Variation Five is Dominated By The Clarinet.
  32. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 5
  33. The Next To Be Featured Is The Virtuoso Flute.
  34. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 6
  35. Individual Farewells And A Closing Chorus
  36. Wind Quintet In A Minor, Variation 7
  37. A Mixed Group: Clarinet, Bassoon, Horn, String Quartet, And Double-Bass
  38. Octet In F (Mvt 3)
  39. The Early Classical Symphony Orchestra Of Haydn And Mozart
  40. Symphony No.29 In A, K.201 (Finale)
  41. Strings, Wind, But No Brass. What Haydn And Mozart Never Knew
  42. Canzon 28
  43. Beethoven's Fifth: Two Horns, Two Trumpets, And Three Trombones Join The Team.
  44. Symphony No.5 (Finale)
  45. From Beethoven To The Massive Orchestras Of Berlioz, Wagner, And Mahler
  46. Beethoven Changed The Face Of The Symphony And The Orchestra Forever
  47. Symphoy No.6 'Tragic' (Mvt 1)
  48. The Cult Of Orchestral Elephantiasis Reaches Its Peak.
  49. Symphony No.1 'Gothic' (VI: Te Ergo Quaesumus)
  50. When Large Doesn't Necessarily Mean Loud: Debussy
  51. Images (Gigues)
  52. A Crisis Of Confidence; The Orchestra's Survival Hangs In The Balance, But It Still Develops. The Ondes Martenot:
  53. Turangalila Symphony (Chant D'amour 1)
  54. The Advent Of The 'Early Music' Movement Brings A New Vitality And Freshness.
  55. Balle De Xerxes (Gavotte En Rondeau)
  56. Computer And Synthesiser: Friends Or Foes?
  57. Concerto In D Minor For Two Violins (Largo)
  58. A Speculative Look Ahead/Mass In B Minor ('Dona Nobis Pacem')

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Instruments of the Orchestra - Great Reference Material!.......2007-04-04

This set lends itself to greatly enhancing one's knowledge of the orchestra, instruments in it, and their usage. I am a huge music buff, and I still picked up a great deal I previously did not know. I highly recommend this for all who wish to understand the origin of music, as well as the processes that are employed to create music!

5 out of 5 stars Beginner or Expert.......2007-03-12

This CD is excellent for the beginner or expert! To be able to haear the instrumets separately and then together really provides a good education. and/or refresher. The book thaty comes with the CD is alomost worth the price by itself!

5 out of 5 stars Very Informative and Enjoyable.......2006-11-20

Whether you're a music novice or pro, "The instruments of the Orchestra" is a very worthwhile purchase. The 7 CDs, with a total of 8 hours, are expertly narrated by Jeremy Siepmann. He's a great speaker, very much like the late Leonard Bernstein was. Mr. Siepmann takes you on an unforgetable musical journey covering the origins and use of the various orchestral instruments throughout musical history. The balance between his narration and a wealth of musical examples, which range from snippets to entire movements, is superb. The comprehensive enclosed booklet is excellent and faithfully follows the 7 CDs in content. Even with my 40+ years of music training I still learned new things from this wonderful collection. Considering the excellence of the content, and a cost that translates to about $5 per disc, this collection is a great value. Grab it, you won't regret that you did. Five solid stars!

3 out of 5 stars Frank's view.......2006-08-19

This boxed set of CD's with booklet achieved all I had hoped that it would. There are good samples of individual instruments and well done commentary on each. The only drawback was that some of the samples were too brief and could have been longer, hoiwever I guess this fits in with time constraints of the medium. It has given me a lot of clues as to future purchases of CD's for listening to individual instruments. Altogeth a satisfactory purchase and a welcome addition to my collection.

5 out of 5 stars Excellent Intro for Those Not Familiar with the Orchestra.......2003-11-08

I've listened to classical music for years and am interested in composition. I bought this CD set to learn how an orchestra and its instruments work. I thought the CDs would be a nice but boring lecture. They aren't! Not only are they FUN but they are informative as well. I learned a huge amount from each CD and couldn't wait to listen to the next one.

The narrator and writer is a great speaker and holds your attention well. He is definitely knowledgeable. He provides musical examples for each point he makes, so you get to "hear" what he just talked about. I'd say the CDs are about 65% music and 35% narration. You'll learn about the range of instruments, some history, different ways to play them, how they sound, and how they are used in the orchestra. This CD set was a great learning experience and is sold at such a low price!

I recommend this CD for those who want to learn about classical music and those who know about it but are interested in learning more about the inner workings of an orchestra. You'll learn much useful information. For instance, the Rite of Spring (with that eerie start) is written for bassoon! I never knew a bassoon could sound like that but now I do.

The one complaint I have is the last CD. This deals with the orchestra. I wanted more of a tour of how the orchestra has been used through history up to the present. Instead, it was a tour of how different groups of instruments sound. I thought it could have been better. The other 6 CDs are excellent.
Allure of Sanctuary
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Allure of Sanctuary
  • Allure of Sanctuary
  • A Brilliant Piano Album (reviewed by Stephen Cairns at [...])
  • Allure of Sanctuary
  • from Solo Piano Publications
Allure of Sanctuary
Karen Marie Garrett
Manufacturer: Karen Marie Garrett Publishing, Waterstreet Records and Publishing Inc.
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000BGQXKE
Release Date: 2005-09-20

Tracks:

  1. Tip Toe Dancer (Kathryn's Song)
  2. Lake EWOK Muse (Piano & Cello)
  3. Simple Things
  4. Allure of Sanctuary
  5. Welcome B.
  6. The Green Hills
  7. Gnossienne No 1
  8. Gnossienne No 2
  9. Gnossienne No 3
  10. Will's Song
  11. Toll of War
  12. Lake EWOK Muse Reprise (Piano Solo)

Album Description

A STUNNING CD RELEASE BY KAREN MARIE GARRETT AND LEGENDARY PRODUCER WILL ACKERMAN, creator of Windham Hill Records, gold and platinum record producer, and Grammy Award-Winning recording artist.

Recorded between George Lucas' Skywalker Sound Studios in Marin County, California and Mr. Ackerman's Imaginary Road Studio in Windham County, Vermont.

VICTORY REVIEW; ACOUSTIC MUSIC RESOURCE OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST; TOM PETERSEN
"Karen Marie Garrett is a top-drawer pianist headed for bigger things. Allure of Sanctuary is the Olympia artist's third release, following a straight classical disc and another in this New Age vein. This new release is as soothing as it's intended, but it's also energizing. Where a lot of New Age is so light it begins to drift and grow unidentifiable, Garrett's compositions are distinct, with melodies for the listener to hook into. It's billed as New Age, but several cuts qualify as Light Jazz - very mellow Vince Guaraldi, perhaps. Thus, Garrett is a distinctive new artist in this field and could, with the right promotion, see herself at the top of the New Age charts (Allure is already getting significant airplay on Easy Listening stations). It won't hurt a bit that she is a pupil of the founder of the New Age genre, Will Ackerman; nor do dead-enders get invited to record their albums at Skywalker ranch, using Lucas's Bluthner grand! Get this album, neighbors - you can say you "knew her when."

Reaches #8 on Top 100 New Age Radio Charts in just FIVE weeks!

TOP 20 ALBUM LIST OF THE YEAR FOR 2005
Kathy Parsons, Solo Piano Publications, New York

Recipient of ENGLAND'S PIANO HEAVEN "GOLD AWARD"
Stephen Cairns, Piano Heaven, England

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Allure of Sanctuary.......2007-06-13

Allure of Sanctuary is an outstanding album. The music seems to draw you in and want to play it over again

5 out of 5 stars Allure of Sanctuary.......2007-05-13

I received this as an Easter present and it is one of the best CD's I have heard in a long time. The music is wonderful.

5 out of 5 stars A Brilliant Piano Album (reviewed by Stephen Cairns at [...]).......2006-12-09

What an amazing album! This is Karen Marie Garrett's third album, and it is a real find. I am immensely impressed with the delightful melodies which run consistently throughout this album. Tip-Toe Dancer has to be heard to be believed. It is such a beautiful piece of music, and makes the listener want to stand up and start dancing. This track is just one of an album full of highlights. Welcome B and Simple Things are so delicate. This album is produced by Windham Hill founder Will Ackerman. Consequently, the production is first-class. A joy from beginning to end. Bravo!!

4 out of 5 stars Allure of Sanctuary.......2006-07-19

Soothing, relaxing music to release tension and smooth out those tight muscles.

5 out of 5 stars from Solo Piano Publications.......2005-11-14

"Allure of Sanctuary" is the second CD released by Karen Marie Garrett. It is astounding how much this artist has grown since her 2002 debut, "Pensare Piano." Will Ackerman's gifts as producer certainly helped to make this CD as breathtaking as it is, but if the quality of music isn't there, no producer in the world can give it soul and depth - and this CD has mega-doses of both. A classically-trained pianist from the age of five, Ms. Garrett plays with the strength and emotional clarity that come from years of expressing oneself at the piano, sharing the joys and sorrows of life with the beloved 88's. The twelve pieces include eight original compositions, a lovely arrangement of "The Green Hills" by Brian Gibson, and Erik Satie's "Trois Gnossiennes," performed as originally composed. Most of the pieces are piano solo, but Garrett is joined on two by award-winning cellist Eugene Friesen (I LOVE cello and piano together!). Some of the other tracks have English horn, light percussion, and wordless vocals, but this is truly an incredible piano album.

The CD begins with "Tip-Toe Dancer (Kathryn's Song)," one of the lighter pieces in this collection. It was inspired by a story told by a close friend about a childhood dance performed for friends and family. Graceful yet playful, it is easy to imagine the seriousness of the young dancer and the warm reception of the adults. "Lake EWOK Muse" is an improvisational duet for piano and cello that followed a sunrise meditation beside Lake EWOK at Skywalker Ranch, where the album was recorded. The feeling of serenity envelops you as you listen to the two artists interact seamlessly, creating a perfect sense of peace. "Simple Things" is a celebration that begins in a classical style reminiscent of a children's piano study and evolves, retaining the sweet melody and simplicity of the message but becoming a full and graceful solo. The title track is fascinating. It begins with a mournful piano prelude and becomes a rhythmic dance with a seductive Spanish flavor. Susan Whittle's vocals and percussion provided by Will Ackerman and Derrick Jordan add to the enchantment. "Will's Song" is an improvisational piece that is so deeply felt that it almost sends a chill - what a beauty! "Toll of War (Adagio)" is a wrenching duet for piano and cello. A profound statement of humanity rather than of politics, the sense of loss and pain reach to the depths of the soul. This is a piece that needs to be heard. The gentle, pensive closing track is a solo piano reprise of "Lake EWOK Muse."

"Allure of Sanctuary" is a must-have CD!
Really
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • From Bach to Doo Wop & Beyond
  • Best of J.J.Cale (FJB/O!-music 2006)
  • Laid back and in the groove
  • The Super Sleeper!
  • the white Jimmy Reed
Really
J.J. Cale
Manufacturer: Island / Mercury
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000001F2Y
Release Date: 2003-02-24

Tracks:

  1. Lies
  2. Everything Will Be Alright
  3. I'll Kiss The World Goodbye
  4. Changes
  5. Right Down Here
  6. If You're Ever In Oklahoma
  7. Ridin' Home
  8. Going Down
  9. Soulin'
  10. Playing In The Street
  11. Mo Jo
  12. Louisiana Women

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars From Bach to Doo Wop & Beyond.......2005-10-07

Of all the artists in my large and eclectic music collection, J.J. holds a unique position: I never tire of him and he has the most tunes by any one artist on my iPod. (I only load my favorite tunes onto my 'Pod--hardly ever an entire album.)

J.J. Cale's music is timeless. It enters the ears and mind like a caress from someone you love and who loves you. Picture some musicians sitting on a porch in the country South. They're all playing to the same groove, black and white together, known each other forever, and we're talking the blues. Now you get the idea.

If you're reading this, you're probably already a fan and you know what I'm talking about. If you're not that familar with J.J., I'm going to recommend you buy the double album "Anyway the Wind Blows."

I think it is useful to know any particular reviewer's musical tastes; it lets you know if he or she is in sync with your own preferences.

OK, here goes with an abbreviated list: Bach, Vivaldi, Mozart, Glen Gould, John Cage etc., Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Armstrong, Miles Davis, Pat Metheny, Dizzy, Ellington, Coltrane, Nina Simone, The Chieftans, etc., Doo Wop, early Elvis, Chuck Berry, Dylan, Stones, Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Mark Knophler/Dire Straits, Bob Marley, Bonnie Raitt, Radiohead, Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, A3, Lucinda Williams, Sheryl Crow, Aimee Mann, Willie, Tom Petty, Talking Heads, Roy Buchanan---I should stop here because I'm leaving too much out. I have an extensive selection of "World," whatever that means, music. And, I have a goodly number of selections, usually a song or two, of stuff from the 'nineties to present day.

If I had to, was forced to choose, say, my absolute favorites, they'd be: Dylan, Hendrix, J.J., Miles Davis, and Bach. And "Sun Sessions" Elvis.

I can't agree with another reviewer who claims that some J.J. tunes are "boring." And, I hope that I haven't bored you too much with this little essay.

5 out of 5 stars Best of J.J.Cale (FJB/O!-music 2006).......2005-09-20

There are about 5 essential Cale-albums. This is the one without songs like After Midnight and Cocaine. Still it's the best one. Cale is as laid-back as always, but also funky and jazzy with a unique sound only to be heard on this album. I like the piano and of course the guitar is allright. Together with Naturally it's the best of the Cale-albums you can get.

5 out of 5 stars Laid back and in the groove.......2004-01-30

Goin' Down was getting the radio play back when FM stations were kind of operating in the underground mode. FM used to be subversive, so the programming was anything but pop and top 40.

This is a great release, showcasing the style of J.J. as only J.J. could do it. A number of his songs have been recorded by other artists. Clapton has done two that I know of (Cocaine and Tulsa Time), Merle Haggard... I'm sure there's more. J.J. used to play at the Inn of the Beginning in Cotati California (Marin County) back in the mid-70's, I saw him there a couple of times. Very down to earth music and vastly underappreciated or virtually unknown by the mainstream masses. Pick this one up, Natually was good too. These were early releases yet they displayed a developed musician who was totally into his own thing. Not many musicians were the real deal. I think J.J. was and is the embodiment of J.J. Cale, no false pretenses here. What you see is what you get. You just gotta' love honesty, it comes out in the music.

5 out of 5 stars The Super Sleeper!.......2003-02-26

If you know the sound.If you know you like the sound.This is the ultimate sleeper album(as many other seem) released by J. J. Cale.Hell of a songwriter,hell of a muscian,hell of a performer.Several of the tunes could have easily been on "Anyway the Wind Blow",the greatest hits anthology.While that is a nice collection(I own it),you definately wonder where some of the VERY BEST is."Everythings Will be ALRIGHT,If you're ever in oklahoma,I'll kiss this world goodbye,Right down Here,Soulin, Ridin ,THERE ALL GREAT.mY ONLY GUESS IS THAT THE cALE ANTHOLOGY WAS TO BE A 3 DISC SET AND SOMEBODY REALLY [messed] UP.In all seriousness, its great,a must have.That is if you want the sound.The J.J. Cale sound at its best.

5 out of 5 stars the white Jimmy Reed.......2003-02-04

Perhaps if Cale wasn't so eclectic, he'd be better known as one of only white guys to perform truly natural,relaxed blues. Question: how come nobody seems to know the right words to the second verse of "Goin' Down",(including Cale),?
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (Deluxe Edition) (1961 Original Broadway Cast)
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Still an electrifying album
  • DEAR READER
  • There's never been a show like "How to Succeed"
  • A real life fairy tale...
  • It Succeeds!
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (Deluxe Edition) (1961 Original Broadway Cast)
Frank Loesser , Robert Morse , and Bonnie Scott
Manufacturer: RCA Victor Broadway
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B0000DZ3ID
Release Date: 2003-11-04

Tracks:

  1. Overture
  2. How To
  3. Happy To Keep His Dinner Warm
  4. Coffee Break
  5. The Company Way
  6. The Company Way (Reprise)
  7. A Secretary Is Not A Toy
  8. Been A Long Day
  9. Grand Old Ivy
  10. Paris Original
  11. Rosemary
  12. Finaletto Act One
  13. Cinderella, Darling
  14. Love From A Heart Of Gold
  15. I Believe In You
  16. Brotherhood Of Man
  17. Finale
  18. Dear Reader - Walter Cronkite
  19. You Have Alertly Seized Your Opportunities - Walter Cronkite
  20. Been A Long Day (Reprise) - Luba Mason
  21. How To (Reprise) - Women
  22. So You Are Now A Vice-President - Walter Cronkite
  23. How To Handle A Disaster... - Walter Cronkite
  24. By This Time, You Are A Seasoned Executive... - Walter Cronkite
  25. Organization Man
  26. A Secretary Is Not A Toy
  27. I Believe In You - J.J. Johnson
  28. Brotherhood Of Man - Woody Herman And His New Thundering Herd
  29. Getting The Part - Robert Morse
  30. 'I Believe In You' - Robert Morse
  31. 'The Company Way' - Robert Morse
  32. The Audition - Charles Nelson Reilly
  33. 'Finaletto' - Charles Nelson Reilly
  34. 'Coffee Break' - Charles Nelson Reilly

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Still an electrifying album.......2007-05-29

What the world needs now and then -- what it used to get now and then -- is a true smash Broadway hit. We got an idea when "The Producers" opened, when reviewers raved and people rushed for tickets and The New York Times predicted it would run fifteen years. And then...Nate and Matt left, with Nate's place taken by some fellow who'd done Shylock on the West End, and he got fired, and the whole premium-priced house of cards crumbled in slow motion -- no more sellouts (at least none without the boys), no one acclaiming the "genius" of the newest Max Bialystock or of Susan Stroman, no one willing to overlook the indifferent songs or the "hoary" jokes (so Ben Brantley called them -- on opening night!), and the show closed nine years before the Times said it would, and now it's a relic, just another overrated -- vastly overrated -- memento of its day, a "Black Crook" of over-the-top "comedy."

"How to Succeed in Business" was the "Producers" of 1961 -- a highly-buzzed-about show that became a smash hit and earned tons of awards, including the Pulitzer. JFK came to see it, the ultimate stamp of approval. The difference, of course, is where Mel's show had an amanuensis, this one had the real thing in Frank Loesser. As the theatrical historian Gerald Bordman has noted, Loesser's strong suit was satire, yet somehow he got sidetracked into several big romantic shows, square pegs in round holes given his snappy up-to-the-minute style; he'd bombed the year before with the idyllic whimsy of "Greenwillow." Here he returned to the brassy form of "Guys and Dolls", and if it wasn't at that rarefied level (what could be?) his score was still one of the best -- and like most of the era's hits it was expertly and excellently cast, and thankfully for us superbly recorded. Whether the show itself is so excellent is another matter; it derives from a paper-thin in-joke parody of how-to manuals, and Abe Burrows's book pulls its punches from the get-go, content with easy set pieces. But the satirical prospects for "How to Succeed" have since increased exponentially. One could wrench "A Secretary is Not a Toy" from the weak orbit of Bob Fosse's finger snaps (the clever use of the typewriter here was evidently just for the album and most likely never made the show) and plunge it straight into an office machinery maelstrom of beeping computers and grinding copiers and ring-tone-playing cellphones. Of course J. Pierrepont Finch wouldn't be the only one with executive ambitions -- why not his beloved Rosemary? One or both could sell his (or her, or their) brilliant promotional scheme with a PowerPoint to end all PowerPoints. And Wall Street has outdone itself with imaginative crookery; merely hiding stock for a televised treasure hunt won't do -- unless of course Money Honey® emceed it on CNBC. Maybe she could be the femme fatale. Alas come the 1995 revival the producers' idea of humor was to emblazon their every poster (and the album art too) with a big fat "H2$" -- unfortunately H2S is the chemical symbol for hydrogen sulfide, sewer gas (yes, I know, it's a dollar sign, but it's also an S) -- and to get A&P's Eight O'Clock Coffee in for a willfully ignorant product placement.

Perhaps it can't be done. Perhaps this brilliant cast album is a deceptive siren song to a revival's possibilities -- like "On a Clear Day You Can See Forever", a first-rank score next to a rank book. But "Pal Joey" became a stage treasure thanks to Goddard Lieberson's studio album, and the stage is nothing if not for dreaming.

5 out of 5 stars DEAR READER.......2007-01-28

DEAR READER

You naughty Frank Loesser, tk, tk, tk, tk, tk, tk, tk, tk, tk (vintage typewriter clicks in the orchestra here): with your Jewish, Mid-European blood, wouldn't you have known --immersed deep in Rumyonland all your life-- before having Rosemary Pilkington say:
"Happy to keep his dinner warm till he comes wearily home"
then:
"I'm pregnant; what's new with you from downtown?"
...that these lyrics are so politically incorrect today? Executive suites, three button suits, doing things "The Company Way" are quite OK though: as (the then) Reagan Corps., later Bush Sr., now Cheney's Halliburton plus their henchmen in Eurobond Inc. all reign worldwide supreme; a dead solid Brotherhood of Man! Wait a minute, let's not try getting sincere! (Gotta stop that Frank Loesser cold or he'll still manage to stop the big rocket of political correctness!) It may embarrass Lloyd-Weberites, specially bric-a-brac-bazar-musicals suckers, to hear me say it, but say it I must: "How To Succeed in Business..." was the wondrous follow-up to the Rodgers & Hammerstein musical theatre revolution in the 40s/50s.... and more!

After his "Guys & Dolls" earlier masterpiece, through "Most Lucky Fella" (more 'a show with lots of music' than a Gerwhinesque Folk Opera') Loesser, a great among the finest composer/lyricists, produced his most distilled, hilarious and incisive work, teamed with Abe Burrows and the 'succeeding' choreographer of the day: Bob Fosse. To incarnate lead Pierpont Finch they groomed ex US Navy & Korean War fighter Robert Morse, with his quaint split teeth smirk, not much of a singer (listen to his breathing, the odd out of tune notes) yet, if we watch the movie version of "How To" (among the finest Hollywood Broadway adaptations) --and as a bonus, Tony Richardson's film "The Loved One"-- one can imagine Morse's charisma as the impetuous youth, the cheeky, happy go-lucky, unstoppable crawler from mailroom to the Tony Awards. And there was the awesome casting of vintage silver crooner Rudy Vallee as Biggley, supported by a bunch of fine female belting secretaries led by Bonnie Scott (and boy, belt they did! Just listen to Victoria Martin's high note in "Heart of Gold" if you can bear it.)

In the Deluxe Edition some of the bonus tracks are interesting, others less, like Charles Nelson Reilly's goings on about operatic Finalettos and such, although how right he was in his depiction of the problems he had pitching Coffee Break, then goes into a ridiculously rampant PAPAMPAMPAM!!! confessing: "I had A BAD EAR but I had a lot of spirit"... (good, honest ole' pro!) Loesser singing his demo sketch for "A Secretary is Not A Toy" at the piano is a real treat to listen to and ponder --knowing the final version-- on how any successful show depended on the interaction (and squabbles!) of its various creative collaborators. Also we get a tip of marvelous Walter Conkrite 'Book Reader's voice', which one can find, plus other missing bits, in the 1995 'H2$' New Broadway Cast Album with Mathew Broderick, a great Jeff Blumenkrantz as Frump et al; but, alas, this Clinton-era revival, with pointless new orchestrations and a ridiculous, Gospel-like arrangement of 'Brotherhood of Man' doesn't live up to the real macoy, for... Gentlemen, gentlemen! a good Broadway Masterpiece is NOT a toy, and you find nothing like it in F.A.O Shwartz! (For a real Xtra bonus, have a listen to Bobby Darin's "I Believe In You", LOL! the veritable Narcissus-swing-hit-song rendered by the very one!)

So, dear reader, you have alertly seized your opportunity to revisit or get to know this Original Cast Album of one of the best shows of the early 1960s just before its grand sloping period. Let's have a coffee on it, for it's been a long day; decades... I should say, of devastation. What? No COFFEE? No tunes? No wit? No art? No stars? Nothing remotely original? Why weren't Sondheim's greats rightly produced?

Ooooooh.... something within me dies!

5 out of 5 stars There's never been a show like "How to Succeed".......2006-06-13

This is a fantastic soundtrack of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Great musical numbers include "The Company Way", "Grand Old Ivy", "A Secretary is Not a Toy!", "Coffee Break", and "Happy to Keep His Dinner Warm". There is also familiar musical numbers like "I Believe in You", "Paris Original", "Rosemary", "How To", and the show stopping number "Brotherhood of Man". This show has a strong singing cast and that's what a hit Broadway musical needs. The cast includes the hilarious ROBERT MORSE as J. Pierpont Finch, the famous RUDY VALLEE as Mr. J.B. Biggley, the talented BONNIE SCOTT as Rosemary, the beautiful VIRGINIA MARTIN as Hedy LaRue, and the extremely goofy CHARLES NELSON REILLY as Bud Frump. Other cast members are RUTH KOBART, SAMMY SMITH, DONNA McKECHNIE, and PAUL REED. This musical is about a window washer, J. Pierpont Finch (MORSE), who wishes to "succeed in business" and while his knowledge of business increases after learning a thing or two by his boss, Mr. Biggley (VALLE), he falls in love with his very attractive secretary, Rosemary (SCOTT) and tries to overcome his evil enemy, Bud Frump (REILLY), Biggley's dimwitted nephew. Music and Lyrics written by FRANK LOESSER (Guys and Dolls, Where's Charley, The Most Happy Fella). Book written and Directed by ABE BURROWS (Guys and Dolls). Based on the book "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying" by Shephard Mead. Choreography by BOB FOSSE (Chicago, Pippin, Sweet Charity, The Pajama Game). I recomend this sountrack to anyone who loves classic Broadway musicals.

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5 out of 5 stars A real life fairy tale..........2004-07-09

Many people have come into contact with and grown to love Frank Loesser's work through his most famous musical, the wonderful Guys and Dolls, but in my opinion this is infinitly superior and no broadway collection can be said to be complete without it. I immediately fell in love with this musical, but at first I was unable to see wherein the charm actually lay. The music, while catchy and fun to listen to, is not extraordinary, and, while Loesser's lyrics are clever and creative, he is certainly not my favorite lyricsist. The cast is excellent and perfectly suited to the piece, but that is the case in many of the original cast recordings of the best broadway musicals. And yet, despite not being overwhelmed by it, I could not stop listening to it. At length, I concluded that it is the story and the nonchalant, carefree feeling of the piece that captivates me. Each character is somehow endearing, in every song it is possible to relate to their emotions and desires, and yet, at the same time, it is so light and funny; at times it is as if nothing could shatter the playful frolicing world Loesser has created. Musicals are usually built around unusual events or are set in unusual places; it is the very simplicity that makes this recording so endearing, the idea is such a basic one, a young man trying to make his way in the world, and yet he goes about it in such an unorthadox fashion that the audience is instantly charmed and sucked into the story. From the first moment that he appears on stage we want him to succeed. That is the mark of a good musical. This down to earth, innocent style is especially well embodied by Robert Morse and his Rosemary, Bonnie Scott. It is impossible to listen to Happy to Keep His Dinner Warm or I Believe in You without a smile coming to your lips. And there are many other wonderful moments on this CD. M personal favorite is The Company Way, but I cannot resist the charming Been a Long Day, the electricfying Paris Original, the lovely Rosemary or the wonderful climatic moment that is Brotherhood of Man. Buy this recording, dont even think abut buying the revival cast first, (i mean, come on, how could they leave out Cinderella, Darling? It's one of the catchiest moments on the whole CD) or better still buy the Deluxe Edition if you can. But whatever you do, dont hesitate to buy it at the earliest oppurtunity. Even if you dont believe me, take a look at the facts, 1,417 performances, every possible award for best musical in its season, a Pulitzer Prize, (if nothing else sways you that should, I mean, only two other musical won one) productions all over the world, a successful revival, a reasonably successful film...I could go on and on. Please, just do me a favour and invest in something that you will enjoy for the rest of your life.

5 out of 5 stars It Succeeds!.......2001-11-05

Whether you saw the film or not, get the CD and nod your head, stamp your feet, pucker up and smile. Great Music!
You Really Got Me-Best of the Kinks
Average customer rating: 3 out of 5 stars
  • Dollars and (common) cents
  • Listing has problems
  • The absolute best of the kinks
  • Beware! Don't buy this CD!
You Really Got Me-Best of the Kinks

ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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  5. The Zombies - Greatest Hits

ASIN: B0000276PD
Release Date: 1999-08-20

Tracks:

  1. You Really Got Me
  2. All Day And All Of The Night
  3. Tired Of Waiting For You
  4. Everybody's Gonna Be Happy
  5. Set Me Free
  6. See My Friend
  7. Till The End Of The Day
  8. Dedicated Follower Of Fashion
  9. Sunny Afternoon
  10. Dead End Street
  11. Waterloo Sunset
  12. Autumn Almanac
  13. Wonderboy
  14. Days
  15. Plastic Man
  16. Victoria
  17. Lola
  18. Apeman
  19. You Do Something To Me
  20. Where Have All The Good Times Gone

Album Description

20 original singles, including all of their classic hits for the Pye label. Contains 'You Really Got Me', 'All Day And All Of The Night', 'Tired Of Waiting For You', 'Till The End Of The Day', 'Dedicated Follower Of Fashion', 'Lola', 'Victoria' and 'Where Have All The Good Times Gone'. 1999 release.

Album Details

20 Tracks Including 'all Day and all of the Night', 'dedicated Follower of Fashion', 'sunny Afternoon' and 'waterloo Sunset'

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Dollars and (common) cents.......2007-07-20

I'm going to rate this CD based on a $1 per song cost to total cost for the entire CD (Apple and Rhapsody charge $1 per song). Unfortunately, iTunes doesn't currently carry any older Kinks' tunes. I have to agree that the sound quality on here is 'dated', but you have to keep in mind the recording technology of the time, or lack thereof. You Really Got Me and All Day And All Of The Night were recorded in 1964!! Maybe the more expensive Kink imports have been remastered (hence better sound quality and higher price??)
Anyway, Amazon is charging $12.50, but I think the CD's worth $9. The songs: You Really Got Me, All Day And All Of The Night, Lola, Tired Of Waiting For You, Sunny Afternoon, Waterloo Sunset, Victoria, Apeman, and Where Have All The Good Times Gone (another song by The Kinks that Van Halen covered).
Hope this helps.
Darium

3 out of 5 stars Listing has problems.......2006-06-28

As of this writing (6-28-06) the Amazon listing shows a double disc set with 18 + 18 tracks. I ordered the disc and the one I received is a single disc with 20 tracks. The track listing of the one I received matches the description on CD Universe. Amazon should either fix the listing or ship the right disc(s). I have not opened the disc (awaiting resolution) so my rating of 3 stars is neutral (meaningless).

5 out of 5 stars The absolute best of the kinks.......2006-02-23

I was very surprised reading about the previous review which talks about the bad sound quality on this cd.I have this great album by the kinks and I can confidently say that the sound quality is superb.This compilation contains all their big hits like you really got me,all day and all of the night and lola.Very highly recommended.

1 out of 5 stars Beware! Don't buy this CD!.......2002-05-09

The material on this collection is just awesome of course, and would usually be deserving of 5 stars. However, the sound quality here is just horrendous on all songs and I still can't believe I was stupid enough to buy this because it had an inexpensive price tag on it ; also because this was the first time that I saw Lola on a CD with all the 60's material too.

Many of the other imports here are outstanding ... do yourself a favor and stick with those. Too bad that this was such a big waste ...
Matthew Broderick in "How to Succeed in Business WIthout Really Trying!"
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Megan Mullally+Victoria Clark+Jeff Blumenkrantz... amazing...
  • I liked the musical and this C.D.!!
  • a good revival, Megan Mullally is luminous
  • Bigger is not always better... but also not always worse
  • Wonderful energy in this recording!
Matthew Broderick in "How to Succeed in Business WIthout Really Trying!"
Frank Loesser
Manufacturer: RCA Victor Broadway
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Similar Items:
  1. How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
  2. How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (Deluxe Edition) (1961 Original Broadway Cast)
  3. A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1996 Broadway Revival Cast)
  4. Kiss Me, Kate (1999 Broadway Revival Cast)
  5. The Drowsy Chaperone (2006 Original Broadway Cast)

ASIN: B000003FXA
Release Date: 1995-07-18

Tracks:

  1. Ov - Orch
  2. Dear Reader - Walter Cronkite
  3. How To Succeed - Mathew Broderick, Company
  4. Happy To Keep His Dinner Warm - Meagan Mullally, Victoria Clark
  5. Coffee Break - Jeff Blumenkrantz, Victoria Clark, Ensemble
  6. You Have Alertly Seized Your Opportunities - Walter Cronkite
  7. The Company Way - Gerry Vichi, Matthew Broderick
  8. The Company Way (Reprise) - Jeff Blu menkrantz, Company
  9. Entrance Of Hedy LaRue - Orch
  10. A Secretary Is Not A Toy - Jonathan Freeman, Company
  11. Been A Long Day - Victoria Clark, Mullally, Mathew Broderick, Ensemble
  12. Been A Long Day (Reprise) - Jeff Blumenkrantz, Ronn Carroll, Luba Mason
  13. Saturday Morning Ballet - Orch
  14. Grand Old Ivy - Ronn Carroll, Luba Mason
  15. Paris Original - Megan Mullally, Kristi Lynes, Victoria Clark, Lillas White, Company
  16. Rosemary - Mathew Brodick, Magan Mullally
  17. Act One Finale - Mathew Broderick
  18. Entr'acte - Orch
  19. How To Succeed - Victoria Clark, Kristi Lynes, Women
  20. So You Are Now A Vice-President - Walter Cronkie
  21. Happy To Keep His Dinner Warm - Megan Mullally
  22. Love From A Heart Of Gold - Ronn Carroll, Luba Mason
  23. I Believe In You - Matthew Broderick, Men
  24. The Pirate Dance - Ensample
  25. How To Handle A Disaster - Walter Cronkite
  26. I Believe In You - Megan Mullally
  27. By This Time, You Are A Seasoned Executive - Walter Cronkite
  28. Brotherhood Of Man - Matthew Broderick/Garry Vichi, Lillias White, Company
  29. Finale - Company

Amazon.com

Just as new producers had done to Broadway's 1992 revival of Frank Loesser's Guys and Dolls, this Tony-winning revival of Loesser & Burrows's 1961 Pulitzer Prize winner has been transformed into a cartoon-like fantasy, featuring even more satire than was originally intended. Which, after all, is the only way numbers like "Happy to Keep His Dinner Warm" or "A Secretary Is Not a Toy" can be played in the post-feminist late '90s. And yet, the original 1961 period piece still remains the better musical recording--because it had both Robert Morse (who, with all due respect to Matthew Broderick, owns the role of Finch) and Rudy Vallee; and because some aficionados are mighty unhappy with the changes made in the orchestration of the vehicle's much beloved showstopper, "Brotherhood of Man." --Bill Holdship

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Megan Mullally+Victoria Clark+Jeff Blumenkrantz... amazing..........2007-03-12

Megan Mullally, who plays Rosemary Pilkington, is fantastic in everything she does... this is an incredible performance. I love her!!! Paris Original is fantastic!
Victoria Clark, who plays Smitty, is hilarious and is an incredible singer... I love this woman!
Jeff Blumenkrantz is the perfect slimy nerd who you love to hate. His vocals are amazing... Love him!

Three of my favorite actors... My favorite show... AMAZING CD!!!!

(Been a Long Day is the best song in life!)

5 out of 5 stars I liked the musical and this C.D.!!.......2005-11-06

In 1995, I had the opportunity to see this show on Broadway however John Stamos was playing the role Matthew Broderick played in H2$. Stamos gave a super performance. Anyway Broderick and the rest of the cast delivered in this recording of this revival. My personal favorite is the upbeat, "Brotherhood of Man"! The music still stands the test of time after all these years!

4 out of 5 stars a good revival, Megan Mullally is luminous.......2004-08-13

Frank Loesser's HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING (or `H2$' as it came to be known thanks to this revival), is one of the top Broadway musicals, winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 1961 with the original production, and immortalised on screen with its original star Robert Morse. In 1995, H2$ came back to Broadway in a snappy new revival, starring Matthew Broderck in a Tony-nominated turn as J. Pierrepont Finch, the window-washer with dreams of making it in the world of big business. Megan Mullally (pre-'Will and Grace') makes for a thrilling and endearing Rosemary Pilkington, while Victoria Clark (TITANIC) plays Smitty and Luba Mason is Hedy La Rue, the office bombshell. Matthew Broderick is a warm and winning `Ponty', and his performance alone is worth the investment of this cast album.

Megan Mullally can belt it with the best of them, as evidenced in her numbers "Happy to Keep His Dinner Warm" and "Paris Original". Victoria Clark is a lovely Smitty (too bad they dropped "Cinderella Darling" which Clark would have turned into a showstopper). Jeff Blumenkrantz is a campy and suitably-slimy Bud Frump, and Ronn Carroll is fantastic as the pompous J.B. Biggley. Lillias White makes the most out of the role of Miss Jones (commanding center-stage during her "Brotherhood of Man" solo). As an added delight for this revival, every time Ponty opened his `How to Succeed..' book, the voice of Walter Cronkite would be heard as the Narrator! Later on in the run, Matthew Broderick's wife Sarah Jessica Parker would replace Mullally as Rosemary. If you've already purchased the original cast album (w. Robert Morse) I would recommend you also buy this version.

4 out of 5 stars Bigger is not always better... but also not always worse.......2004-05-02

The transformation of HTSIBWRT (the acronym by which the original was known) to H2$ (the acronym for this major revival) was not a simple one, even though (surprisingly) the show proved so timely when revived its book didn't need to be greatly rewritten. Its orchestrations, however, were enormously revamped and expanded, sometimes to the show's detriment (the reworking of the big finale, "the Brotherhood of Man," doesn't have the same kind of impact the original did, for example). And despite the fineness of Matthew Broderick in the lead role, he doesn't project the kind of ingratiating sexiness that made such a star out of Robert Morse. But everyone else in this re-do is superb, from Ronn Carroll as Mr. Biggley to Megan Mullaly playing the ingenue very charmingly years before she would stumble across the TV studio set as Karen Walker. (She's very charming in the great "Paris Original" number.) Best of all is Victoria Clark as Smitty, the heroine's best friend: her singing and speaking voice are so perfectly clear and memorable that you may never be able to get her pronunciation of the name "Rosemary" in the beginning of the show's second act completely out of your head.

5 out of 5 stars Wonderful energy in this recording!.......2003-02-22

I recently purchased this recording to fill out my Broadway collection even more and I absolutely fell in love with the performances.

When this cast recording first came out, I was skeptical-thinking that it could never supercede the 1961 original. I was intrigued when The New York Times had Broderick on its front page with an in depth article on how an actor can infuse a popular song into something meaningful and how the current crop of opera singers could learn a thing or two from listening to MB's way with a lyric. Well...that article provoked quite a reaction from opera fans. Listening to this recording years later, I cannot help but agree with The New York Times. Broderick sings each song in a lilting voice, delivering the lyrics with intent. He sings the characterization and presents a guileful, cunning rogue.

Megan Mullally is a wonderful Rosemary who sings with just the right touch of irony to keep one from gagging on the sexist perception of women. Love Walter Cronkite's contributions and the additional dialogue added to the intro. and exit of songs aids the the characterizations as well. The sound production is top-notch and the whole cast performs on high octane. Recommended highly.
What I Really Mean
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • REK Bounces Back
  • I Did It All For Love
  • A great return to form...
  • A Texas Icon is What I Mean
  • good new stuff
What I Really Mean
Jr. Robert Earl Keen
Manufacturer: Koch Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Alt-Country & AmericanaAlt-Country & Americana | Country | Styles | Music
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  1. The Party Never Ends
  2. Live from Austin TX
  3. A Bigger Piece of Sky
  4. Fair & Square
  5. Gringo Honeymoon

ASIN: B0007Y8A74
Release Date: 2005-05-10

Tracks:

  1. for love
  2. mr. wolf and mamabear
  3. what I really mean
  4. the great hank
  5. the wild ones
  6. long chain
  7. broken end of love
  8. the dark side of the world
  9. the traveling storm
  10. a border tragedy
  11. ride

Amazon.com

Few songwriters are as cinematic as Robert Earl Keen. In the tradition of Keen's classic "The Road Goes on Forever" and "Merry Christmas from the Family," his eleventh album finds the Texas troubadour transforming indelible characters, vivid description, and narrative drive into movies for the ear. He delves into the surreal with "The Great Hank," a spoken-word barroom vignette that features Hank Williams in a time warp (and in drag). He turns a fable about animals into a tale as dark and twisted as film noir in "Mr. Wolf and Mama Bear," and enlists a vocal cameo from Ray Price and a serenade from Mariachi Estrella to provide the soundtrack for the droll story of cantina overindulgence in "A Border Tragedy." Even the tender title song, about the touring musician missing his wife, shows his eye for evocative detail, with one of Keen's warmest vocals to date. Produced by his bandleader/guitarist Rich Brotherton, the album's musically expansive arrangements match the ambition of the storytelling, with guest banjo from the Bad Livers' Danny Barnes, a lovely soprano sax by John Mills on the title cut, and Celtic pipes from E.J. Jones on "The Traveling Storm." Keen may well expand his audience along with his musical range, as the uptempo "The Wild Ones" could pass as a John Hiatt cut, while "Broken End of Love" has an echo of Tom Petty. --Don McLeese

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars REK Bounces Back.......2006-08-13

I would agree with a few others that his newest studio offering is a comeback of sorts after lesser CDs Gravitational Forces and Farm Fresh Onions. For me the quality songs are "For Love", "What I Really Mean", "The Great Hank" and "Ride". I still haven't gotten into Mr. Wold and Mamabear, but to each his own I guess. Broken end of love is also a dark screamer,but I guess he had something to say with that one. Overall not near the quality of his earlier work (West Textures, Gringo Honeymoon). If I was starting a REK collection, I would buy those two and the Austin City Limits DVD.

4 out of 5 stars I Did It All For Love.......2006-05-04

This sterling album of Texas music is an excellent purchase for newbies to the field, a lingering listen for long-term fans, and a good way to get your stodgy old aunt to realize that the best real country music isn't being played on the country radio. Robert Earl Keen's sound is stirring and refuses to be nailed down, venturing far and wide to capture the mood the artist wants to create. And the lyrics are well-written, yoking together the down-home accessibility of Hank Williams with the emotional resonance of William Wordsworth.

If you listen to radio or podcasts focused on alt.country or Americana, you've probably heard several songs off this disk. "The Great Hank" is a shambling, playful spoken-word in which the narrator remembers a very distinctive honky-tonk concert. "For Love" is a good modern take on the traditional murder ballad, while "The Traveling Storm," though its diction tries a little too hard to be Shakespearean, is an excellent story of existential revenge. And the title track, a love song in which a touring artist misses his loved one at home, is one of the few songs you're likely to hear anytime soon with close harmony between a banjo and an alto saxophone.

The album lags a little in the middle. The artist has used his strongest story songs and ballads to bookend the album, not thinking too much about the center of the playlist. Specifically, "The Wild Ones" and "Dark Side of the World" aren't very strong. These songs could have been recorded by a stereotypical Nashville hat act. Robert Earl Keen is capable of better than this. If he wants to make a little extra by selling songs like these to Garth Brooks, he's more than welcome, but his fans have higher expectations than this from the material he releases under his own name.

But these are just two tracks out of eleven really stirring songs. It's easy to let them slide, because the strong songs are so strong that you want to like the whole album. This is a CD that you will want to play at home, at work, in your car, or wherever you can find a CD player waiting to be played. See if, after you hear it once, it doesn't have a permanent treasured place right next to your best stereo.

5 out of 5 stars A great return to form..........2006-04-29

When I first bought this, a few songs leapt out (Wild Ones most notably). After a few listenings, it grew to the point that the only song that doesn't fit for me is the Mama Bear song. I must be in the minority because it gets a great reaction at the live shows. If you already have a REK cd, I don't have to tell you to buy this because once you buy one, you buy them all. If you're new to REK, this is as good a place to start as any.

5 out of 5 stars A Texas Icon is What I Mean.......2006-03-25

As I get ready to up and pack my family back to Texas after being displaced for nearly on twenty years, I had to get some essential Texas to get me in the mood...to move that is. So out I went and got Robert Earl Keen and the Old 97's latest. "What I Really Mean," is yet another peak in a much unexplained just under the radar career of Robert Earl Keen. This is just what the Texas MD ordered...a true slice of a place I once called home and will call home again soon. It's hard to leave a wonderful place like Boise, Idaho but REK's tunes help.

Keen never ceases to surprise. His music seems to become more layered. Though he has strayed in some songs to the semi-experimental, always at the core has been a down home country hippie cross between Willie Nelson, classic blue-grass, folk, and Americana rock. Now he is doing this number, "I Wish You Were Here," that blends banjo and smooth jazz soprano sax. It's a cool laid back breeze of summer Texas wind through a breezeway porch of a West Texas ranch home...let's say Ranger, Texas just for the grins of it. REK's backing band is quite a fine collection of musicians and it shows in the musician-ship throughout.

I can envision my family driving over the border from New Mexico through the panhandle streaming towards Amarillo with the sounds of "The Wild Ones," blowing through open windows. "We were the Wild Ones / The young guns / Restless as the wind / We were the Wild ones now I run / And when I'm done / The Wild Ones will run again." The steel guitar lonely whines high and high, while the drum pounds along the rhythm of the road. Keen is a prolific songwriter and has rarely ever issued any missteps upon the musical world. With "What I Really Mean," he is at top form.

Great guitar picking by Rich Brotherton (REK's best friend since the third grade) in "Long Chain," a smoking dark drifter haunting jailbreak of a song. There's even some North Umbrian Small Pipes of all things appearing on rambling smooth "The Traveling Storm." Boozy drunken swing of Mariachi Cajun, "A Border Tragedy," and finally the album's capstone the whimsical, "Ride," has Keen returning to what brought him there with countrified Texas hill country story-telling. Texas what do you hold for me these days?

I don't know but REK's music will make it all seem right. Go get this one. It's a keeper ya'll.
--MMW

5 out of 5 stars good new stuff.......2006-03-15

i love his song writting skills. really one of a kind, this is the real keen i been waiting for. border song good and funny.

Music:

  1. Rhythm Spectrum
  2. Sagittarius
  3. Seeing Things
  4. SHELL IS SWELL
  5. Sleepwalkers
  6. Sometimes I Feel
  7. Soon To Fail
  8. Steps
  9. Still Yourself
  10. Storm [CD-single] [EP]

Music

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Complete Destinn

Blazing the West

Cherry Pink & Apple Blossom White [Import]

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South Central Madness

Blade Runner: Orchestral Adaptation Of Music Composed For The Motion Picture By Vangelis