£16 in premium fund, thanks Ciao :-). You can also read my reviews at http://lou-reviews.blogspot.co...
£16 in premium fund, thanks Ciao :-). You can also read my reviews at http://lou-reviews.blogspot.co m/
Member since:25.11.2008
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After reviewing the Tom Cruise film yesterday I thought I should review what I think is the best version of War of the Worlds (bar the original novel of course).
***Be aware that this review may well contain spoilers for the story, however even if you know the story from front to back, it would not spoil the enjoyment of this album.***
~The Album~
Released in 1978 this album (if you don't know what an album is, ask your parents lol) tells the tale of a Martian invasion as told in H. G. Wells novel of the same name.
The album consists of two discs and came in its own plastic sleeve, complete with a book/booklet which details the story as it unfolds and full lyrics for all the songs. The booklet also includes some marvellous paintings by Peter Goodfellow, Geoff Taylor and Michael Trim, my opinion is that The Birds by Geoff Taylor is by far the best painting in the book.
~The Soundtrack~
The album is narrated throughout by Richard Burton, who plays the role of a journalist
describing the events as they unfold.
It begins with the description of green flares coming to earth from space, astronomers insist there is nothing to worry about they are just falling stars.
Then one of the stars which has fallen on Horsham Common begins to open, Martians have landed, and with their warcry 'Ulla', begin killing everything round them.
*Forever Autumn* This is the first full song on the album and is performed by Justin Heywood (of The Moody Blues fame), it is a haunting song about the journalist's realisation that the love of his life Carrie has gone when he finally reaches her house.
*Thunderchild* This song is performed by Chris Thompson (The Earth Band) and tells the story of the Thunderchild, a warship dispatched to destroy the Martian war machines. The destruction of the Thunderchild signals the end of man's hopes. The earth now belongs to the Martians.
The journalist battles against the Red Weed, another plague courtesy of the Martians. He then discovers the body of a parson in a churchyard, as he begins to bury him, the Paron's wife shouts and the parson wakes.
*The Spirit of Man* Performed by Phil Lynott (Thin Lizzy) and Julie Covington (Rocky Horror Picture Show), this song is a verbal battle between the Parson and Beth. Parson Nathaniel want to cast out the Martians from earth by exorcising them through the world of God. Beth of course doesn't want him to confront them. Eventually the Martians attack and Beth is killed. Nathaniel and the journalist hide in the ruins of the house until Nathaniel is eventually taken by the Martians.
*Brave New World* Performed by David Essex. The journalist head to London and on the way meets an artilleryman. The artilleryman has a plan to build a brave new world underground away from the Martians. The journalist realises its just a pipe dream and continues on his way to London.
When he reaches London the city is deserted, the cry of Ulla from the Martian sounds strange. The Martians are dying, killed not by man and their technology, but by invisible bacteria.
Finally the album ends in the present day, NASA have landed on Mars. Suddenly the communications begin to fail, and a green streak is seen heading from Mars to Earth......then suddenly there is silence.
~My Thoughts~
Needless to say I love this album. It is the only vinyl record I have left from my collection, although I cannot play it now as I don't have anything to play it on. But I have downloaded an mp3 version of the album so I don't miss out completely. As a slight aside, the mp3 version for me just doesn't have the same qualities as the vinyl, the scratchiness of vinyl just adds that little something that digital will never have.
Back to the album itself. Casting Richard Burton as the journalist was pure genius, his voice is iconic, and absolutely perfect for the gravity of the situation. Yet still easy on the ear and not at all condescending. The fact that all the performers on the album were huge names in music or theatre (at the time it was created) speaks volumes in itself. The songs are a great mix of the haunting Forever Autumn, the uplifting Thunderchild which half way through turns to despair. You can hear the madness in the parson's thinking through the Spirit of Man and again the pure desperation of the situation comes across with abundance in the Brave New World.
But its not just the album itself that needs praise, the artwork in the book is just fantastic, the detail in the pictures is amazing, and really add to the overall experience, because it gives you a visual representation of the story. I'm not sure that links are allowed on Dooyoo, but a quick Google will bring up plenty of sites that have the images available to view.
I know there is a remix of this album, but I haven't heard it at all, to be honest I don't believe the original could be improved upon.
I know musicals are not everyone's cup of tea, but I highly recommend this album to all.
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