The Place You're In [Enhanced]

Product Description
The Place You're In, Kenny Wayne Shepherd's long-awaited fourth album, marks a stunning stylistic shift for an artist who almost single-handedly introduced blues-rock to a new audience. One of the most acclaimed guitarists of his generation not only leans more heavily toward rock,but also releases his first album featuring his vocals. Says Shepherd, whose first three albums went gold or platinum and who has earned seven Top 10 Mainstream Rock cuts and three Grammy® nominations: "We're all growing and changing....We might as well get behind it and enjoy the ride." And enjoy The Place You're In.

The Place You're In,Kenny Wayne Shepherd,Reprise / Wea,Album Rock,Bass (Electric),Blues-Rock,Contemporary Blues,Drums,Fender Rhodes,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric),Hard Rock,Modern Electric Blues,Organ (Hammond),Piano,Pop,Rock,Rock/Pop,Vocals,Vocals (Background)

The Place You're In [Enhanced]

Average customer rating:

Not his style but great
RICK SHAQ GOLDSTEIN SAYS: "THE PLACE THIS BELONGS IN, IS THE TRASH!"
not blues all rock
Give the guy a break!
Horribly Disappointing

The Place You're In
Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Manufacturer: Reprise / Wea
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Contemporary Blues | Blues | Styles | Music

Electric Blues Guitar | Blues | Styles | Music

Acoustic Blues | Blues | Styles | Music

Modern Blues | Blues | Styles | Music

Blues Rock | Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

General | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Hard Rock | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Album-Oriented Rock (AOR) | Classic Rock | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Ledbetter Heights
Trouble Is...
Live On
10 Days Out (Blues from the Backroads)/ (CD/DVD)
Long Time Coming

ASIN: B0002VKZPM
Release Date: 2004-10-05

Tracks:

Alive
Be Mine
Spank
Let Go
Ain't Selling Out
Believe
The Place You're In
Hey, What Do You Say
Get It Together
Burdens
A Little Bit More

Album Description

The Place You're In, Kenny Wayne Shepherd's long-awaited fourth album, marks a stunning stylistic shift for an artist who almost single-handedly introduced blues-rock to a new audience. One of the most acclaimed guitarists of his generation not only leans more heavily toward rock,but also releases his first album featuring his vocals. Says Shepherd, whose first three albums went gold or platinum and who has earned seven Top 10 Mainstream Rock cuts and three Grammy® nominations: "We're all growing and changing....We might as well get behind it and enjoy the ride." And enjoy The Place You're In.

Customer Reviews:

Not his style but great.......2007-06-13

If you buys this cd expecting the blues style on Kenny you will not be pleased, but if you also like pure rock you will be pleased. People are rateing this cd based on the fact that it is not a blues rock cd rather than rating the quality of the songs. It rocks!! If you like rock you will like it, if you will only except his origianl blues rock style don't buy it.

RICK SHAQ GOLDSTEIN SAYS: "THE PLACE THIS BELONGS IN, IS THE TRASH!".......2007-05-26

Your Mother told you to never talk to strangers, and your Father told you to heed good advice! Well, other than "Shaq's, The King Of The World Blues Reviewer's" loyal fans, I may be a stranger to you, but if you value your time and money, and love the blues, you better take my advice! This CD stinks. Before you tune me out, you'd be smart to listen to me. I own Kenny's previous 3 CD's "Ledbetter Heights", "Trouble Is", and "Live On". Those were all really good, blues/rock, and Kenny was so young, that I thought wow! There is someone on the very close horizon, who had the "potential", (potential is the key word here!) to fill the large electric blues void left by Stevie Ray Vaughan, etc. (As the legendary Buddy Guy and a few others get older.) Well, we all come to a crossroads in our life, and if this CD was Kenny's crossroad, he surely took the wrong turn. Some people may not like this review, because the truth hurts! If you like the blues, don't buy this CD, it's awful. For the sake of the future of electric blues, I can only pray, that Kenny asks for directions on how to get back on the road to the electric blues. You, yes you! The person reading this review, can help by not buying this CD, or Kenny may falsely believe he isn't on a dead-end street, and that, my friends, would give me the blues!

not blues all rock.......2007-02-27

this is a great powerful roc album with great vocals....if you want blues dont buy this, as a blues album it would suck, but as a rnr album....yahooooo its hot ... now i like all of kws cd's and this one is my favorite by far. noah only sings 2 songs he has a gr8 blues voice, the rest is kenny and kid rock i think helps out on a song. i think this is more along the lines of old aerosmith with a touch of skynyrd...what ever it is i love it as a rock album.

Give the guy a break!.......2007-02-23

Grant it, this is a departure from the blues, BUT how can you not like this recording (assuming you like RnR) Give him credit, he always has made leaps (not always as big) but be honest, he has been going in this direction since the first release.
As far as copying Lenny, again, give the guy a break, his voice is what it is. It's not his fault he sounds a little like Lenny. BUT CLEARLY, Kenny's out put on this recording is a TON better than what Lenny can crank out.
Come on, all the good ones make changes and move on. Be thankful he is a "good one"

Horribly Disappointing.......2006-10-14

Like many others I had eagerly awaited the release of this album. KWS's first three albums were so fantastic and I expected this one to be at least as good, if not better. Unfortunately, it falls far short of my expectations.

There are only two songs on this album that aren't absolute disasters - the two featuring vocals by Noah Hunt. Kenny's vocal talent is mediocre at best and is totally unsuited for the type of music he is trying out on this album. It seems that KWS is searching for himself with this effort. Unfortunately, it seems he has lost himself in the process.

Average customer rating:

Relive you movie experiences

The Ultimate Movie Music Collection
Erich Kunzel
Manufacturer: Telarc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Symphonies | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Compilations | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music

Orchestral Pop | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music

Star Wars | Soundtracks | Styles | Music

General | Soundtracks | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

The Incredible Film Music Box
Hollywood's Greatest Hits, Vol. 2
Paramount 90th Anniversary Collection: Scores
Simply the Best Movie Themes
Hollywood's Greatest Hits, Vol. 1

ASIN: B000BFH26Y
Release Date: 2005-10-25

Tracks:

The Imperial March: The Empire Strikes Back
Main Theme: Jurassic Park
Main Title: Shakespeare In Love
Themes: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Main Title: The Last Of The Mohicans
Theme: The Godfather
Unchained Melody: Ghost
Theme: Goldfinger
We're Losing Him: Somewhere In Time
Space Camp
Opening And Closing Titles: Henry V
Theme: The Thorn Birds
Suite: Moonwalker
The Time Of Your Life: A Bugs Life

Tracks:

Batman Theme: Batman
Bicycle Chase: E.T. The Extra Terrestrial
Suite: Independance Day
Love Theme: Romeo & Juliet
Theme: Back To The Future
End Credits: Contact
Theme: Breakfast At Tiffany's
Main Theme: Star Trek
May It Be And Themes: Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Ring
Love Theme: Cousins
Sean's Theme: Minority Report
I Will Wait From You: The Umbrellas Of Cherbourg
Theme: Rocky
The Sand Volcano: The Mummy
The Raider's March: Raiders Of The Lost Ark

Tracks:

Theme: Mission Impossible
Casablanca Suite
Book Of Days: Far And Away
Love Theme: Superman
Tara's Theme: Gone With The Wind
Don't Mess With: Z
Main Title: The Mask Of Zorro
Finale: Victor / Victoria
Carol Ann's Theme: Poltergeist
Love Theme: Star Wars: Episode ll: Attack Of The Clones
Main Theme: Willow
Main Title: Star Trek ll: The Wrath Of Kahn
MAin Theme: On Golden Pond
Theme: A Summer Place
Theme: Chariots Of Fire

Tracks:

Iceberg!
Back To Titanic
Main Themes: Hook
Theme: Pink Panther
Lara's: Doctor Zhivago
Theme: Love Story
Right Stuff
Theme: Jaws
When You Believe: The Prince Of Egypt
Smile: Modern Times
The Apollo 13 Mission
Re-Entry And Splashdown: Apollo 13
Main Title: Beetlejuice
War: Pearl Harbor
Cavatina: The Deer Hunter
Throne Room And End Title: Star Wars: Episode lV: A New Hope

Customer Reviews:

Relive you movie experiences.......2006-01-24

This collection of movie themes, will allow you to relive the chilling experiences from practically all (4 CDs)of the great movies. Great movies would not be great without great music. The Cincinnati Pop with Eric Kunzel are unbeatable recordings. Every minute is more beautiful and inspiring to the next. If you love Pops music, this is the begin all, end all.

Average customer rating:

Worst Little Tour of Whorehouse
Simply the Best
Ann-Margret in a lively performance
Star Power in the House - -The Whorehouse, that is.
Ann Margret Disappointing

Best Little Whorehouse in Texas

Manufacturer: Varese Sarabande
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Musicals | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music

General | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music

General | Soundtracks | Styles | Music
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The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas: Original Cast
The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas
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God Is Love: The Gospel Sessions
Altar Boyz (2005 Original Off-Broadway Cast)

ASIN: B00005LZSJ
Release Date: 2001-07-10

Tracks:

20 Fans
A Lil' Ole Bitty Pissant Country Place
Girl, You're a Woman
Texas Has a Whorehouse in It
Twenty-Four Hours of Lovin'
Doatsy Mae
The Aggie Song
The Bus from Amarillo
Entr'ace
The Sidestep
No Lies
Good Old Girl
Hard Candy Christmas
A Friend to Me
Finale
A Friend to Me (bonus track performed by Carol Hall)

Customer Reviews:

Worst Little Tour of Whorehouse.......2006-06-06

Roxie Lucas saves this review from having a single star. Her performance was the shining star in a rather lifeless, dusty, and uninspired revival of the original production which thankfully avoided Broadway. Compare with the rollicking original recording and you will easily notice the lack of life, spirit and vibrancy in the new recording. The addition of A Friend to Me added nothing to the score but sluggish redundancy.

Simply the Best.......2005-10-24

I saw this production . . . it was a fantastic tour. I love this CD and highly reccomend it! This is by far the best recording of the show. If you are a fan of Ann Margret or of this musical I am sure you will love it. Now some people have complained about Ann Margret's voice not being what it was . . . I think it's better. Her voice is smokey, breathy and sexy . . . and perfect for this Las Vegas meets honky tonk score. She is the perfect Miss Mona aside from Dolly Parton. The supporting cast is very strong here as well. Flashy costumes and scantily clothed men and women . . . how can anyone not love this musical.

Ann-Margret in a lively performance.......2003-10-18

THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS is always a delight, and in this new cast album of the recent national touring production starring Ann-Margret, it's even better than ever.

Ann-Margret takes on the role of the Chicken Ranch owner Miss Mona with aplomb, offering up a lively performance. She sings lovely renditions of "Girl, You're a Woman", "A Lil' Ole Bitty Pissant Country Place", and a brand-new song written especially for this production, "A Friend to Me".

Gary Sandy does well by the character of Mona's old flame Ed Earl Dodd, with fine support from Rob Donohoe as Melvin P. Thorpe and Hal Davis as Edsel Mackay.

Avery Sommers adds a soulful voice to the character of the sassy bordello maid Jewel, and offers up a show-stopping "Twenty-Four Hours of Lovin'". Roxie Lucas plays the role of the thankless Doatsy Mae, and sings her self-titled number quite affectingly.

Terri Dixon and Jen Celene Little do well by the featured roles of Angel and Shy, with the Chicken Ranch girls offering up a superb rendition of the heartbreakingly-lovely "Hard Candy Christmas".

All-in-all, if you love this delightful musical, you'll adore this brand-new cast album!

Star Power in the House - -The Whorehouse, that is........2002-03-06

Ann Margret`s singing voice is quite different from what you`d expect if you heard the previous cast album; however, she purrs her way through them while infusing a great deal of charm and personality to her renditions. Her numbers are not musically beautiful, yet they manage to be touching, sexy, rawnchy and pleasing. You can feel her elgant, strong, glamorous presence which, incidentally, are the character requirements for Miss Mona. The musical arrangements are superb, the energetic entr' acte is a welcome addition to the already familiar musical program. The ensemble is superband Watchdog, the Governor and Jewel all stand out in their solo numbers.

The sad note is, the "Doatsy Mae" number does no justice to the original. Although acceptably sung, it fails to covey the furstration, hope and dreams of the character. Overall, this CD is surely worth the price: with its good vocals, wonderful score and general sense of innocent mischief, you'll have a great time listening to this all-out for fun musical.

Ann Margret Disappointing.......2002-02-25

After listening to this cast album I was horrified and disappointed at the way Ann Margret sounds. Her voice is not in good form and on more than one occasion she fails to stay on key. It is very sad to hear because she has always been one of my favorite performers. The show is coming to Portland in 2 weeks but I think I will bypass this particular production.
Bruce Kimmel always does excellent work. His CDs are flawless. However, everything seems horribly over miked, in particular Ann Margret. You can hear every breath she takes and it sounds like they were trying to compensate her voice. The orchestra sounds thin as though they are not using a lot of instruments. The chorus does not sound as rich and full as they do on the original Broadway cast CD. This might be due, in part, to the recording studio. It was recorded on their day off during a three week run in Dallas, Texas.
There are some excellent supporting performances (hence the two star rating)that are enjoyable. Roxie Lucas, as Doatsie Mae, has a nice solo as well as Avery Sommers singing "24 Hours of Lovin':.
Gary Sandy and Rob Donohue are also fine in less flashy roles.
Perhaps it is a production that is better seen than heard.

Average customer rating:

Bravos belong to beloved baritone Howard Keel

Bless Yore Beautiful Hide

Manufacturer: Asv Living Era
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Operettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Movie Scores | Soundtracks | Styles | Music

Movie Soundtracks | Soundtracks | Styles | Music

General | Soundtracks | Styles | Music

General | Musicals | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music

Traditional Vocal Pop | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music

General | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music

General | Easy Listening | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music
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Howard Keel
And I Love You So
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Lovely to Look at

ASIN: B0007KTBH6
Release Date: 2005-03-08

Tracks:

My Defences Are Down - Adolph Deutsch, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
Girl That I Marry [From Annie, Get Your Gun] - Adolph Deutsch, Betty Hutton, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
They Say It's Wonderful [From Annie, Get Your Gun] - Adolph Deutsch, Betty Hutton, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
Anything You Can Do [From Annie, Get Your Gun] - Adolph Deutsch, Betty Hutton, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
Pagan Love Song [From Pagan Love Song] - Adolph Deutsch, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
House of the Singing Bamboo [From Pagan Love Song] - Adolph Deutsch, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
Tahiti [From Pagan Love Song] - Adolph Deutsch, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
Make Believe [From Show Boat] - Adolph Deutsch, Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
You Are Love [From Show Boat] - Adolph Deutsch, Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
Why Do I Love You? [From Show Boat] - Adolph Deutsch, Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
Young Folks Should Get Married [From Texas Carnival] - Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra,
Lovely to Look At [From Lovely to Look At] - Carmen Dragon, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
You're Devastating [From Lovely to Look At] - Carmen Dragon, Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
Touch of Your Hand [From Lovely to Look At] - Carmen Dragon, Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
Higher Than a Hawk [From Calamity Jane] - Ray Heindorf, Howard Keel,
I Can Do Without You [From Calamity Jane] - Doris Day, Ray Heindorf, Howard Keel,
So in Love [From Kiss Me, Kate] - Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra, Andrrevin,
Were Thine That Special Face [From Kiss Me, Kate] - Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra, Andrrevin,
Wunderbar - Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra, Andrrevin,
I've Come to Wive It Wealthily in Padua [From Kiss Me, Kate] - Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra, Andrrevin,
Where Is the Life That Late I Led? [From Kiss Me, Kate] - Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra, Andrrevin,
Right Place for a Girl [From Rose Marie] - Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra, Georgie Stoll's Trio
Rose Marie [From Rose Marie] - Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra, Georgie Stoll's Trio
Bless Yore Beautiful Hide [From Seven Brides for Seven Brothers] - Adolph Deutsch, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
Sobbin' Women [From Seven Brides for Seven Brothers] - Adolph Deutsch, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra
When You're in Love [From Seven Brides for Seven Bothers] - Adolph Deutsch, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra, Jane Powell
Your Land and My Land [From Deep in My Heart] - Adolph Deutsch, Howard Keel, MGM Studio Orchestra

Customer Reviews:

Bravos belong to beloved baritone Howard Keel.......2005-08-30

Travel back in time to an era when songs were created to enjoy like a rich desert that your mom would make. Howard Keel and his various duet partners have done just this! This CD has a wonderful selection from the great musicals of the 1950's and makes you smile....sigh....and seek to hear them again and again. I would encourage you to add this to your collection as I have. I've even shared it with many of my friends who have come back with the same remarks of great music from one of the great singers of our recent past.

Average customer rating:

English is an asset and a drawback
You Will Love Opera After Hearing Carmen In English
A wholly credible "Carmen" -- finally!
I love Carmen!

Carmen (Sung in English)
Bizet , Bardon , Gavin , Plazas , Magee , and Parry
Manufacturer: Chandos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Operettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B00007JGRN
Release Date: 2003-03-11

Tracks:

Prelude
In The Plaza
Just Look At That Delicious Morsel
Here Come Our New Soldier Boys
Jose! There Was A Girl Here Looking For You Just Now
Off With You Old Soldier Boys
Corporal! Sir!
We Have Heard The Bell Summon Us To Meet Here
Ah, Just Look!
But Why Hasn't She Come, Our Carmencita?
Love's A Bird Wild As Any Rebel
Carmen! We Will Follow You High And Low!
The Cheek Of It!
Give Me News Of My Mother!
Your Dear Mother And I Were Leaving Church This Morning
I See My Mother's Face!
Wait A Moment - I'm Going To Read The Letter
Come And Help
So, Corporal: Tell Me What Happened
Well, Carmencita: What Do You Have To Say For Yourself?
Where Are You Taking Me?
There's An Old Bar In The City
Careful - It's Lieutenant!
Entr'acte
From Far Away Mysterious Sounds
Bravo, Bravo! More! Keep Dancing!
Hurrah! Hurrah! The Torero!
Who's That? It's Escamillo, The Bullfighter From Granada
Hurrah! Hurrah! The Torero!
You're Most Kind
We'll Come With You, Senor Torero
Toreador, Be Ready!
At Last! We Got Rid Of Them As Quickly As We Could
There's A Little Job That We're Starting!
Being In Love Is Not A Reason

Tracks:

To Bid You Welcome To Our Bar
La La La La La La La La...
Back To Camp!... Go At Once!
That Flow'r You Threw To Me I Treasured
No, It's Not Love At All!
Hello! Carmen!
Lieutenant Fair, It's True
The Sky Above The Open Road
Entr'acte
Keep Going, Dear Old Friend, Kep Going!
Right! Let's Stop For A While
Shuffle! Cut Them!
In Vain You Would Avoid The Bitter Things They're Saying
You're Back!
As For That Man, It Should Be Easy!
Is This The Place?
I Say That There's Nothing To Fear
It's Him! I'm Sure It's Him Over There!
Escamillo Is My Name, And I Come From Granada
She Had A Lover Here
Hola! Hola! Jose!
You Should Take Care, Carmen
Alas! Jose, Your Mother Is Ill
Entr'acte
A Few Cuartos! A Few Cuartos!
Here They Come! Here They Come!
If You Love Me, Carmen
It's You! It's Me!
Viva! Viva! What A Corrida!

Customer Reviews:

English is an asset and a drawback.......2004-07-20

The best thing about this recording of Carmen is the libretto. Conductor David Parry penned this facile and dramatic English translation. He avoids the pitfalls of literal translation to achieve an idiomatic flow that matches the rhythm of the original lyrics. I use this as a reference libretto for any of the French Carmens.

Unfortunately, the performance suffers from being sung in English. The singers declaim their parts with such proper British diction that Carmen comes across as a school marm. The spoken dialog is delivered beat for deliberate beat and is dripping with reverb. It makes the plaza, tavern and mountain pass all sound like a sewer pipe.

This is a good first Carmen for someone trying to understand the work. The libretto itself is a good investment for further listening. For an enjoyable performance with an emphasis on character and action, I recommend Regina Resnik on the London Double Decker set.

You Will Love Opera After Hearing Carmen In English.......2004-02-09

What a perfect introduction to opera. This newly released recording will surely get you hooked into opera. Carmen, a French opera by Georges Bizet, is the most recognizable and most popular in the opera world. It's famous melodies- the overture, the Habanera, The Toreador Song have all been featured in everything from cellular phone ring tones to Superbowl Commercial (last year's Superbowl with The "Opera In English" label has been making Italian operas into English for a number of years now. Also on the market are Verdi's La Traviata in English (with soprano Valerie Masterson as Violetta) Handel's Julius Caesar with Janet Baker and even Wagner's epic Ring Of The Nibeling sung in English. This is a terrific recording and I highly recommend it if you want to get into opera. Listen to this version first and then try the real, original French version Bizet had written. Patricia Bardon is sensational, sexy and dramatic as Carmen.

The real strength of this version is the dynamic drama. With the advantage of being sung in English, we get better insight on characters' emotions and motives, and we understand the drama a lot better. Carmen is all about great drama. Bizet drew the plot from the French writer Prosper Merimee's dark short story. Carmen is the ultimate femme fatale- a devil-may-care, sexy Gypsy living in Spain, seduces the conservatively raised soldier Don Jose, stealing him away from his fiancee, the passive Micaela, living a life of underground smuggling and rowdy taverns. "Habanera" and "The Gypsy Song and Dance" are very expressive of Carmen's extraordinarily liberal lifestyle. Don Jose, however, has fallen deeply in love- as he shows us in his song/aria "The Flower Song". But Carmen soon becomes tired of his constancy. Don Jose wants a committed, monogamous relationship with Carmen. But Carmen will not submit to love, since she is first and foremost a carnal creature. Eventually, she falls for the handsome Toreador Escamillo. Don Jose, consumed by jealousy, stabs Carmen at a bullfight after Carmen declares her love for Escamillo and rejects Don Jose's love. Don Jose's crazed, obscessive personality shines through in the English version as well. This tragedy has been done in English before so don't think this is the first time. Back in the 50's, there was a film, starring black actors "Carmen Jones" which was treated the same way as this opera- more like an English Broadway musical and with the dubbed singing voice of Marilyn Horne as Carmen. All in all, this recording is excellent.

A wholly credible "Carmen" -- finally!.......2003-09-17

This recording really sells "Carmen" as a drama. Although I have two other recordings of this opera and have seen it performed several times, it never quite worked for me dramatically. But thanks to the fine performances, conducting, and translation here, I've become a "Carmen" convert. Producing a good English-language performance of a foreign opera, especially a warhorse like "Carmen," is much more difficult than it might appear. You need performers who not only can sing the parts (of course) but also can sing *English* and make it halfway intelligible and make it sound like English and make it dramatically convincing to English-speakers. The singers on this recording do an excellent job all around. Don't be put off if you don't recognize their names -- they are up to the task musically and (especially) in their acting. Admittedly, as with *all* English-language recordings, some passages are very hard to understand without reading along, but most of the time the words are clear and effective. I would recommend this recording to any opera beginner or opera lover, even those who normally turn up their noses at performances in translation.

I love Carmen!.......2003-08-15

I do. I can think of no other opera with more melodic inventiveness, and few others with so sure a dramatic pulse. Carmen is popular and it thrills me to say that it is also a very good opera - not always true of popular things.

And what of this recording? Carmen sits well in English, so it is good to hear in translation, although some of the detais in the text jar. Escamillo refers to Jose as "my dear", which sounds rather peculiar, and the guide's line to Micaela: "it's not exactly inviting, is it?" sounds distinctly Middle England rather than Rural Spain. Some of the performers, not least Carmen herself, make the words work, although there are long tracts, especially with the chorus, where the language is distinctly indistinct.

The soloists are, by and large, strong. Patricia Bardon's deep, Handel-friendly voice adapts well to Carmen and she colours the music with phenomenal detail, sounding sexy and provocative from the start with an edge of pride and anger that emerges as the show goes on. She is out of her depth above the stave, though, and some extra top notes in the second act don't show her off to her best advantage. I have previously said that Julian Gavin is poorly served by recordings, though here he sounds much more even and gives a thrilling and musical performance (but his wooden spoken lines let him down). Mary Plazas is a lovely Micaela, rich-voiced and sincere (and word-perfect), but Garry Magee sounds miscast as Escamillo, lacking the ballast at the bottom of the voice to do justice to this tricky role.

The supporting cast is good (Mary Hegarty seems to do nothing but Frasquita these days!) but the really treasurable thing is the conducting. Stepping out of Italian Ottocento, David Parry turns his hand to this French Comedie with an appropriate lightness of touch. His pacing and handling of the set pieces is exemplary and the enrtractes go with a real swing.