By Numbers [Original recording remastered] [Extra tracks]

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
This 1975 collection excels in large part due to its modest goal. It's the Who's singer-songwriter record. Without the ostensible shield his "rock operas" provided, Pete Townshend's personal demons strut about nakedly. Not a pretty sight, but an involving spectacle nevertheless. "They Are All in Love" and "How Many Friends" are forgotten Who songs, but they've aged beautifully. John Entwistle's "Success Story" sequences nicely with the rest of the album. And "However Much I Booze," "Dreaming from the Waist," and "In a Hand or a Face" are great decade-early exercises in mid-life self-pity. There are only three bonus tracks here--live versions of "Squeeze Box," "Dreaming from the Waist," and the earlier "Behind Blue Eyes"--but By Numbers is such a cohesive collection that they're less welcome extras than annoying distractions. Still, By Numbers now stands as one of the linchpins in a great band's catalog. --Steven Stolder

Tracks:

Slip Kid
However Much I Booze
Squeeze Box
Dreaming From The Waist
Imagine A Man
Success Story
They Are All In Love
Blue, Red, And Grey
How Many Friends
In A Hand Or A Face
Squeeze Box (Live)
Behind Blue Eyes (Live)
Dreaming From The Waist (Live)

Amazon.com

This 1975 collection excels in large part due to its modest goal. It's the Who's singer-songwriter record. Without the ostensible shield his "rock operas" provided, Pete Townshend's personal demons strut about nakedly. Not a pretty sight, but an involving spectacle nevertheless. "They Are All in Love" and "How Many Friends" are forgotten Who songs, but they've aged beautifully. John Entwistle's "Success Story" sequences nicely with the rest of the album. And "However Much I Booze," "Dreaming from the Waist," and "In a Hand or a Face" are great decade-early exercises in mid-life self-pity. There are only three bonus tracks here--live versions of "Squeeze Box," "Dreaming from the Waist," and the earlier "Behind Blue Eyes"--but By Numbers is such a cohesive collection that they're less welcome extras than annoying distractions. Still, By Numbers now stands as one of the linchpins in a great band's catalog. --Steven Stolder

Customer Reviews:

Could we "Imagine A Man" that hasn't upgraded to the CD version with 3 bonus tracks?.......2007-07-12

Amazon Reviews

As the author of the Jefferson Airplane book "Take Me To A Circus Tent" and a former radio disc-jockey, I am often asked to write and or discuss various music supplies and recordings from the 60's and 70's.

It may seem bizarre or even irrational that a band with the magnitude of the Who could have a record that is underrated on all accounts. "By Numbers" is raw in your face rock and roll without any apologies needed. Townshend not only has ripped his heart out but each of us feels his incision. The lyrics are stunning for their brutal honesty. Townshend asks how many friends do I really got? Between the demons of alcohol and the self-doubt of those that latch on to his fame, Townshend has painted a masterpiece that gets better with age.

Without stretching the limit here, it is possible the most played tune from the album "Squeeze Box" could be the weakest. That should tell you about the plethora of material. The opening track "Slip Kid" should leave no fan wondering how superlative the music will be. When Roger tells us "There's no easy way to be free" and Pete chimes in "It's a hard world" you have been hit with a ton of bricks and the festivities are first beginning.

"However Much I Booze" keeps the freight train of pain rolling. "There aint no way out." "Squeeze Box" gives us time to recover from the onslaught. Don't get too comfortable because the opening notes of "Dreaming From The Waist" hits you between the eyes with a sledgehammer. "I feel like I'm heading up to a cardiac arrest." The following track "Imagine A Man" delivers the haunting message "And you'll see the end." "Success Story" (Written by Entwhistle) shows the fear of aging with a subtle line "The big break better happen soon because I'm pushing twenty-one." Roger could sing "They Are All In Love" another thousand times and the message would never be more resident than the version on the LP. A fair question is posed, were do we fit in? "Blue, Red, And Grey" is a work of beauty. Townshend's phrasing of the vocals puts you in his current mind set. When Roger tells us "You could count them on one hand", it is obvious what Pete was conveying. The rock star could have hundreds of hangers on but the question is always how many friends do I really got? The final track "In A Hand Or A Face" continues Townshend's spiral of self-doubt. "I am going round and round."

It's been over thirty years since "By Numbers" hit the record shops. It never fails to leave the same impact as it did on the first listen. Lately if you have been listening to the brilliant "Live At Leeds", "Tommy", "Who's Next", or "Quadrophenia" rediscover the genius contained here. If you look for the remastered edition with the three live bonus tracks, the numbers are even greater in your favor.

Keith and John we miss you greatly!

Enjoy the music and be well,
Craig Fenton
Author of the Jefferson Airplane book "Take Me To A Circus Tent"

A Respectable Close to 10 Years of Brilliance (* * * 1/2).......2007-07-06

The casual fan who scans the tracklist for The Who By Numbers will recognize only "Squeeze Box". To most such listeners, this is a singable, harmless ditty. To this Who fan, it is the lamest single that they ever released. Even if we forgive the inclusion of this song, The Who By Numbers is still the band's weakest album since A Quick One. This isn't a harsh criticism, since the nine intervening years between those two albums were stuffed with five of the best albums of the era, including one of the greatest live recordings in rock. At worst, By Numbers is a mediocre album by Who standards. At best, it is a refreshing return to a more modest, song-based approach, and a fine capstone for a magnificent decade-long streak for The Who.

By Numbers is invariably described as a confessional, singer/songwriter album, and several of the titles are indicative of the plaintive nature of many of the songs. These songs account for the album's finer moments, especially "They Are All In Love" and "How Many Friends?". "However Much I Booze" and "Blue, Red, and Grey" find Pete Townshend in fine voice, but neither are among the better songs on the album. By Numbers does have some harder-rocking tracks, including "Slip Kid" and the John Entwistle-penned "Success Story", both of which are okay but unremarkable. The album's closer, "In A Hand or A Face", is the best rocker on the album, and "Dreaming From the Waist" is another highlight, showcasing Roger Daltrey's voice in powerful but less testosterone-fueled form.

It is easy to write off The Who By Numbers as for completists only. After all, it lacks the reputation and number of well-known songs that its predecessors have. To do so would sell the record short. While I don't expect casual fans to eagerly seek it out, interested fans would be remiss to assume that The Who's creative well ran dry with Quadrophenia. There are some excellent songs on By Numbers, a few of which could easily become personal favorites of anyone willing to give them a listen. (That said, I should mention that I am not particularly interested in anything after this album that isn't included on compilations or live albums.)

Stunning Powerful and Underrated. Buy This CD.......2007-05-27

Nothing to say but Townshend at his most troubled and powerful. Perhaps it doesn't have the epic quality of Quadrophenia or the sonic marvels of Who's next, but the appeal here lies in the lyrics and the conviction in the vocals. Daltrey is at his most powerful on tracks like How many Friends where he is interpeting Petes lyrics magically. This is a must own. The weakest track is Squeeze Box but even that has an innocence that is refreshing. Great Great Stuff!!

The First Song About The Internet.......2007-03-26

Squeeze Box was their number one hit from the album. Little did anyone know at the time it was about the internet, and right on the money I might add. Come back in 37 years time to find out which song on their latest CD is about the far far away future that has got Pete bugged.

Empty Glass part. 1.......2007-01-29

Pete was a mess, the Who were a mess. This album works though, it reads like Pete's autobiography in 1975 "However much I booze, their ain't no way out" He would put out a solo album in 1980 called Empty Glass and it seems like these songs are the embryo of that album.

Average customer rating:

The Definitive Culture Club Album!!
Their Best Album Ever! Great Remastered Sound plus Extra Tracks!
Colour by Numbers
A perfect pop album - the BEST album of the 80s?! BRILLIANT
what a difference a year makes

Colour by Numbers
Culture Club
Manufacturer: Virgin Records Us
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

New Wave | New Wave & Post-Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Pop | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

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General | Dance Pop | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B0000C83YJ
Release Date: 2003-10-07

Tracks:

Karma Chameleon
It's A Miracle
Black Money
Changing Every Day
That's The Way (I'm Only Trying To Help You)
Church Of The Poison Mind
Miss Me Blind
Mister Man
Stormkeeper
Victims
Man-Shake
Mystery Boy (Suntori Hot Whiskey Song)
Melting Pot
Colour By Numbers
Romance Revisited

Album Description

2003 remastered reissue of 1983 album features 15 tracks including 5 bonus tracks, 'Man- Shake', 'Mystery Boy (Suntori Hot Whiskey Song)', 'Melting Pot', 'Colour By Numbers', & 'Romance Revisited', as well as the hit single 'Karma Chameleon'. Virgin.

Album Details

Digitally Remastered Edition of the Glam 4's Most Popular Album with the Hits "Miss Me Blind", "Victims", "it's a Miracle", "Church of the Poisoned Mind" and of Course,"Karma Chameleon". The Bonus Tracks Are B-sides from the Singles Issued in Conjunction with the Album.

Customer Reviews:

The Definitive Culture Club Album!!.......2006-01-04

Though they had scored nicely with the preceeding
album, 1982's "Kissing To Be Clever" containing
"Do You Really Want To Hurt Me",
"Time (Clock Of The Heart)" and "I'll Tumble For Ya",
it was this album which will go down as their "Sgt. Pepper"
in terms of what they were about and capable of!
Every song on here is bangin'!
Along with CC doing their thing and Boy George handling the
lead vocals in his "Smokey Robinson meets Sylvester" way,
there was the excellent and soulful wailings of Helen Terry
throughout (why she never got offered a deal is beyond me!)
and the late Jermaine Stewart in the background!
As I said, all of this album is still the bomb,
but one in particular, "Victims", still melts my heart
to this day!

Their Best Album Ever! Great Remastered Sound plus Extra Tracks!.......2005-09-24

This was the cd that I was waiting for. After my cassette version disintegrated years ago, I decided to wait for a proper remastered version to become available before getting a replacement. The wait was very long but finally the wait was worth it.

The remastering quality is brilliant and the album has never sounded better. The extra tracks are good too and unlike in other albums do not detract from or otherwise demean the main album material.

Boy George's antics may sometime detract from Culture Club as musicians and make it difficult to take them seriously but Boy is this album a good one (pun intended). All the tracks are wonderful and showcase the band as the great singer/songwriter/musicians that they are.

Great tracks, great sound quality, what more could you ask for? Go get this already!

Colour by Numbers.......2005-08-12

OK CD.
Brings back A LOT of memories (like when I had this ON TAPE!!).
There's so many songs by Culture Club I wanted, I got their Best Of/Greatest Hits as well.
Good CD though.

A perfect pop album - the BEST album of the 80s?! BRILLIANT.......2005-07-16

Out of all of CC's amazing CDs in their catalog, and out of all the LP's from the 80s, THIS is the one that means the most to me and the one I return to again & again. It NEVER sounds tired, it NEVER sounds dated, it ALWAYS hits the spot. It takes me back to my early teen years circa 1982/83 and defined that era when MTV really came into its own to transform the pop-music landscape forever. How can anyone who loves quality pop music deny the brilliant songwriting chops and production of sterling songs like BLACK MONEY, THAT'S THE WAY, IT'S A MIRACLE, MISS ME BLIND, CHURCH OF THE POISON MIND, and of course, VICTIMS, I think CC's most beautiful, mature, and poignant ballad ever! And I haven't even mentioned HELEN TERRY, quite possibly the best back-singer ever? Terry's fierce vocal interplay between BOY on almost every cut is staggering. Bottom line, this is GREAT music that defies genres & could please toddlers to grandparents and everyone in between - maybe that explains why (even though it outstays its welcome) KARMA CHAMELEON is STILL the biggest UK single of all time? CC isn't about 80s tired nostalgia, COLOUR BY NUMBERS is timeless, tuneful pop that demands to be in your CD collection. Every home should have one.

what a difference a year makes.......2005-05-21

From the spotty debut Kissing to Be Clever to this in a little over a year is simply amazing. Colour By Numbers is an embarresment of riches. The only song here I do not like is the monster hit single Kharma Chameleon, it grates on my nerves in a way I cannot describe. From pure pop, to dance, to gospel styled ballads, to reggae. All the bases are covered, in a way that only a band like Culture Club could pull off. They were the Kings of Pop Radio for a brief time in the early 80's, and could do no wrong. And Colour By Numbers is the apex of their reign.

Average customer rating:

We love this CD
One of the best CD's in our child's collection
Kids learn with every song!
Hap Palmer has done it again!
Can A Cherry Pie Wave Good-bye?

Can a Cherry Pie Wave Goodbye?

Manufacturer: Hap-Pal Music
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Children's Music | Styles | Music

Educational | Children's Music | Styles | Music

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Children's Educational | Children's Music | Indie Music | Stores | Music

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Product Features:

GRADES K-2

ASIN: B00000HZ8S
Release Date: 1993-10-10

Tracks:

Let's All Clap Our Hands
Put A Little Color On You
Can A Cherry Pie Wave Goodbye?
Weekly Rap
Bean Bag Alphabet Rag
Animal Quiz Part One
Animal Quiz Part Two
Parade Of Colors
Pocket Full Of B's
Following You
Everyone Can Be A Helper
Say The Opposite
Stepping Out On The Town
Put A Little Color On You (Extended Response Time)
Can A Cherry Pie Wave Goodbye? Instrumental)
Pocket Full Of B's (Instrumental)
Say The Opposite (Extended Response Time)

Product Description

This fun-filled sprightly album helps primary grade children and ESL students acquire essential vocabulary and make it their own through singing and total movement participation. This new recording features call and response songs, listening, opposites, counting, and color reinforcement. Includes these songs: Let's All Clap Our Hands, Put a Little Color on You, Can a Cherry Pie Wave Goodbye?, Weekly Rap, Bean Bag Alphabet Rag, Animal Quiz Part One, Animal Quiz Part Two, Parade of Colors, Pocket Full of B's, Following You, Everyone Can Be a Helper, Say the Opposite, Stepping Out on the Town, Put a Little Color on You (Extended Response Time), Can a Cherry Pie Wave Goodbye? (Instrumental), Pocket Full of B's (Instrumental), Say the Opposite (Extended Response Time). By Hap Palmer.

Amazon.com

With a grandfatherly voice reminiscent of Burl Ives, Hap Palmer delivers another musical collection of healthful lessons geared toward the preschool set. The title song in this case refers lightheartedly to a question posed to the child participant in a lesson in distinguishing between fantasy and reality. Other songs focus on such topics as the recognition of colors, learning the days of the week, and understanding the concept of opposites. Engaging the child in participatory song and movement, Palmer's tranquil collection strives to teach, entertain, and occupy simultaneously. The liner notes include the lyrics and activity objectives for each song, which is helpful for a parent or preschool teacher when guiding children through the music. --Bryony Angell

Customer Reviews:

We love this CD.......2007-03-08

My children dance and love this CD. We listen to it in the car and I love it. Hap Palmer CDs were introduced to us at a Music class for my children and he really has cute songs. There is only one song on the entire CD that I don't like (MONDAY MONDAY..)

One of the best CD's in our child's collection.......2002-03-13

Hap is really a marvalous musician and lyricist. His word play is very fun for the kids and very singable for the adults. I recommend him highly for any children under 5 or 6 but especially for those who are looking stretch from the nursery rhymes and first songs style collections.
Simple, yet very powerful learning is going on here . . .my daughter really, really tunes in to this CD . . .I'm sure yours will too.
Stand out for my daughter are the Weekly Rap . .she likes it when they go really fast at the end . ..Can a Cherry Pie Wave Goodbye? and the Animal Quizes .. and her latest fav is the Opposites song. My fav is Pocketful of B's . .which I find myself sometime playing when the kids are not in the car! Egads!

Kids learn with every song!.......2000-03-19

I came across this tape in my school's resource room and my 1st graders love it! Some of the songs are more for kindergarten or even pre-K, but my kids LOVE the title song and have made up their own using rhyming words, which has been great!

They also LOVE the Weekly Rap...they literally (eek!) go nuts over it! Kudos to Hap, I will have to check out his others!

Hap Palmer has done it again!.......2000-03-13

I teach a Kinder-Gym class for preschoolers and "Cherry Pie" is the cornerstone of my whole program! We use the parachute for "Put a little color on You", and we use the beanbags for warmup activities with the "Beanbag Alphabet Rag"... Then the fun REALLY begins! The children love the friendly, lively tone of the music, and I enjoy singing and moving along with Hap. Best of all, Many of the songs, once memorized can turn a long wait on an errand into a fun, educational break! This one's a hit with me!

Can A Cherry Pie Wave Good-bye?.......2000-01-23

The music is delightful for young children with lots of movement

Average customer rating:

Looking for "different." Look no further!
disappointed
These aren't your run-of-the-mill songs!
Highly Awarded Early Childhood Music Pioneer
Can A Jumbo Jet Sing the Alphabet?

Can A Jumbo Jet Sing The Alphabet?
Hap Palmer
Manufacturer: Hap-Pal Music
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Children's Music | Styles | Music

Educational | Children's Music | Styles | Music

General | Children's Music | Indie Music | Stores | Music

Children's Educational | Children's Music | Indie Music | Stores | Music

Radio & CD Players | Electronics for Kids | Categories | Toys & Games

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Product Features:

GRADES K-2

ASIN: B00000I6UA
Release Date: 1998-10-15

Tracks:

'Round the World With Ways To Say Hello
Alphabet in Motion
What Could You Use?
Can a Jumbo Jet Sing the Alphabet?
Shapes That Surround You
Jig Along Shapes
Everybody Dance?
Take Me Out to the Ball Game
Letters in the Blender
Boogie Down and Cruise
The Bean Bag
Tug-A-Tug to Twenty-Two
Fun With the Rhyme Time Band
Action Fraction
Motion Memory Good-Bye Game
Good-Bye My Friends

Product Description

This lively mix of musical styles and original lyrics teach a variety of concepts from initial consonant sounds and word blends to counting patterns and fraction awareness.A good follow-up to Hap's ever popular "Basic Skills Series"; includes complete guide with song lyrics and activities. Includes these songs: 'Round The World With Ways To Say Hello, Alphabet In Motion, What Could You Use?, Can A Jumbo Jet Sing The Alphabet?, The Shapes that Surround You, Jig Along Shapes, Everybody Dance, Take Me Out To The Ball Game, Letters In The Blender, Boogie Down And Cruise, The Bean Bag, Tug-A-Tug To Twenty-Two, Fun With The Rhyme Time Band, Action Fraction, Motion Memory Good-Bye Game, Good-Bye My Friends. By Hap Palmer.

Amazon.com

Hap Palmer is a master of entertaining and teaching children with music. Can a Jumbo Jet Sing the Alphabet? overflows with fun songs that will have your child dancing along while he or she encounters themes such as vocabulary, shape recognition, problem solving, spatial awareness, numbers, and cultural diversity. Included in the liner notes is an extensive teaching guide, which lists skills and concepts, vocabulary, lyrics, suggested activities, variations, and follow-up questions for each song. These notes are a great resource for daycare or school instructors as well as parents, and, when implemented in moderation, can add another dimension to the listening experience. Palmer's original songs are diverse in style and are accompanied by strings, percussion, woodwinds, keyboard, vocalists, and even a children's chorus. --Tami Horiuchi

Customer Reviews:

Looking for "different." Look no further!.......2006-01-14

I have this CD and Can a Cherry Pie wave goodbye for my 3 1/2 and 15 month old and we LOVE it. The instructions are clear and gives the children enough time to move to the action. They have learned so much and are having so much fun while learning. Sometimes, I will pause the cd to give them time to answer. We do not listen to the cd from front to back, but I select 2-4 songs to listen to a program them into the cd player so that the kids don't get bored of it. The music is great (no rock or rap that preschoolers and toddlers cannot understand), but not your average Toddler CD.
We Love the title song as it teaches early phonics and recognizing that words start with a letter. I don't turn to the CD to teach my kids everything, but use it as a supplement to my teaching.

disappointed.......2005-08-28

I was looking for music that will help my students learn the sounds of the alphabet but to my disappointment there was none included in the album. Anyway, I said it was ok cause because it teaches about other things too like shapes, letters etc. But I was just not inspired by the music. It was not as lively as I expected and it sounded like country music to me. I know the type of songs that will really get my kids excited and this is just not it.

These aren't your run-of-the-mill songs!.......2005-04-12

I am always looking for innovative Childrens Music CD's and I was excited to fall upon this real gem. As you can tell from the title, Hap Palmer has a great sense of humor and imagination. I like music CDs that don't have the same ol' kid songs that we all know and have heard again and again. Instead, I like exposing my children to a lot of fun new songs. Not only are they more interesting to listen to, but I love to see how fast their great little memories can learn these new songs. You get everything in this CD! Part of the songs are pure fun and the other part mix fun with learning.

Some of the great fun songs include the title song "Can a Jumbo Jet Sing the Alphabet," "What Could a Bean Bag Be," and "The Compost Bin." His learning songs teach shapes, sound blends, and rhyming. I love "Letters in the Blender" and "Fun with The Rhyme Time Band" as well as "Jig Along Shapes" and "Action Fraction."

As you can see from reading the titles, these aren't your run-of-the-mill songs. Hap Palmer has a great talent at creating songs that are interesting to listen to and fun to dance with. This hour long CD is definitely worth it and will quickly become your family's favorite tunes! --Denise Steele-Darnell

Highly Awarded Early Childhood Music Pioneer.......2004-01-11

Hap Palmer has been honored with many awards for his music for young children. He is a pioneer of pairing movement and music, and integrating basic educational ideas into music. His music interests me as a parent.

So my family and I have made a point of listening to his music, mostly by loan through our local library. Unfortunately, we do not like his musical style or voice very much. Most of his albums are not singable or melodic. I praise Palmer for making music that is good for childen and not like most commercial "junk food" children's music products that are on the market, but we just don't like most of his songs.

"Can a Jumbo Jet Sing the Alphabet" is one of the exceptions. The songs are interesting and fun to listen to. We like this CD. Plus, the messages are good for children, like most Hap Palmer albums. Thumbs up!

RECOMMENDATION: I suggest that parents start with CD's by Raffi. Then consider this CD. Hap Palmer's music is especially valuable if you use it to interact with your child, such as moving and thinking. Palmer's music is quality.

Can A Jumbo Jet Sing the Alphabet?.......2001-01-25

I am a volunteer storyteller for two year olds at the local library. After story time we danced to "Everybody Dance" and "The Bean Bag". The children and the parents were so excited when we finished that they broke out in cheers! I'm ordering my own copy of this CD today and so are a half dozen other parents and caregivers!

Average customer rating:

An Excellent Sampler, and the Best Place to Start
Michael Nyman RULES !
Sensations mosaic
Good start to meet Nyman
The Emperor's New Music

The Essential Michael Nyman Band
Michael Nyman , Sarah Leonard , Linda Hirst , Clare Conners , and David Roach
Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Movie Soundtracks | Soundtracks | Styles | Music

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A Zed And Two Noughts: Original Music From The Film By Peter Greenaway
Wonderland 1999 Film Score
String Quartets 2 3 & 4

ASIN: B000004CVW
Release Date: 1993-01-19

Tracks:

The Draughtsman's Contract: Chasing Sheep Is Best Left To Shepherds
The Draghtsman's Contract: An Eye For Optical Theory
The Draughtsman's Contract: The Garden Is Becoming A Robe Room
A Zed And Two Noughts: Prawn - watching
A Zed And Two Noughts: Time Lapse
Drowning By Numbers: Fish Beach
Drowning By Numbers: Wheelbarrow Walk
Drowning By Numbers: Knowing The Ropes
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife And Her Lover: Miserere Paraphrase
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife And Her Lover: Memorial
Water Dances: Stroking - Synchronising
Prospero's Books: Miranda

Customer Reviews:

An Excellent Sampler, and the Best Place to Start.......2006-01-24

If you're unfamiliar with Nyman and want a broad overview of his best work, I'd start here. I actually WORE OUT a copy of this and recently bought another. When it arrived, I played it over and over-- Nyman's almost creepily insistent and precise compositions will appeal to those who appreciate minimalism and repetition in the music of other composers such as John Adams, Steve Reich, Michael Torke, and Philip Glass.

Michael Nyman RULES !.......2004-07-22

I thought there was nothing beyond Philip Glass, Steve Reich or John Adams. Suddenly, for some strange reason I bought this CD. It far exceeded my expectations.

Nyman is a excelent composer, his music is fast-paced, joyful and delicious.

I recomend this CD for anyone who is looking for a great minimalist composer.

Sensations mosaic.......2004-03-31

Today I was talking with a friend about the rainbow of feelings "Memorial" awakes in my mind. I consider this song like the exact opposite of easy-listening music, a feeling catalyst, a vehicle that can raise you to the sky and gradually take you to the deepest level in hell. As derrotista said, it is perfect to describe the meaning of a word like "death", but more than that, with an inevitability emphasis.

The rest of the compilation also honors the meaning of intensity. No one song in this disc will let your attention go away from the sensations mosaic this record constructs. Highly recommended.

Good start to meet Nyman.......2004-03-05

I was a great enthusiast of new age and minimalist music in the early 90's, when I was still a teenager. I had this as one of my favourite albums and today I consider it one of my best purchases.

Ten years later, Nyman is recognised as one of the biggest composers of late XXth century. In part with the astonishing soundtrack of "The Piano". But I think this "Essential" album has more to offer to you.

Of course, my favourite is "Memorial". It is the most tragic music I have ever listened. It's a perfect track to describe what a word like "death" can mean. "Miserere Paraphrase" is the definition of another simple word: "pain".

Some other tracks are the purity of minimalism: "Knowing the Ropes", "Chasing Sheep is best left to Shepherds", "Wheelbarrow Walk" and "The Garden is Becoming a Robe Room" are of my favourites.

Why am I not giving it five stars? The reason: "Prospero's Books: Miranda". It is a bad way to end this album. Almost the whole album is devoted to Greenaway films: "The Draughtsman Contract", "The Cook, the Thief, his Wife and her Lover", "A Zed and Two Noughts" and "Drowning by Numbers" and the referred "Prospero's Books". The only track not belonging to a film is Stroking-Synchronising, from "Water Dances" album. This is a tremendous composition and should be the great finale for this album. "Miranda" is a dull and not creative composition, which Nyman doesn't have to be proud of it: it is too complex, too changing and breaks with the minimalist spirit. I also think the soprano and the mezzo don't play a "serious" part.

But of course, it has an honour place in my discography.

The Emperor's New Music.......2002-04-11

A lot of people seem to love this guy and I just don't see why. I find it dull, intellectual (in the most pejorative sense) and defines what's wrong with a lot of "post-modernism" in music today. This guy doesn't write tunes as much as he writes concepts of tunes. The music fails to connect on an emotional level and fails to be interesting enough in purely intellectual terms to compensate for it's emotional hollowness. His craft seems a bit lacking too- filled with the trappings of minimalism without the basic musical values such as memorable melodies, logical harmony and innovative form that make a composer such as John Adams worth listening to. His often odd choices of orchestration tend to strike one as merely grotesque rather than imaginative. I'm afraid that Michael Nyman is a musical poseur and it's a shame that so many people have bought into his brand of soulless artifice.
Not recommended.

The One and Only/Heartaches by the Numbers

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The One and Only/Heartaches by the Numbers
Waylon Jennings
Manufacturer: Collectables
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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The Eagle
Ol' Waylon
Take It to the Limit
Music Man/Black on Black
Too Dumb for New York City, Too Ugly for L.A.

ASIN: B0002199IG
Release Date: 2004-08-31

Tracks:

Yes, Virginia
Dream Baby (How Long Must I Dream)
You Beat All I Ever Saw
She Loves Me (She Don't Love You)
I's All Over Now
Born to Love You
Down Came the World
Dark Side of Fame
John's Back in Town
Listen, They're Playing My Song
Heartaches by the Number
Tiger by the Tail
Foolin' Around
(That's What You Get) For Lovin' Me
You're Gonna Wonder About Me
Folsom Prison Blues
Busted
Time to Bum Again
Leavin' Town

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recording of ligfhter music by Shos the heavy composer
yep, i'd agree
A Unique Collection of Works
Track 25 is the best

Shostakovich: The Film Album

Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

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Shostakovich: Cheryomushki, The Bolt, The Gadfly (The Dance Album)
Shostakovich: The Jazz Album
Shostakovich: Waltzes
Shostakovich: Theatre Music
Shostakovich: The Gadfly; Five Days - Five Nights (Suites)

ASIN: B00000I08B
Release Date: 1999-02-09

Tracks:

The Counterplan, op. 33: Presto
The Counterplan, op. 33: Andante
The Counterplan, op. 33: The Song Of The Counterplan
Alone, Op.26: March. The Street
Alone, Op. 26: Galop
Alone, Op.26: Barrel Organ
Alone, Op.26: March
Alone, Op.26: Altai
Alone, Op.26: In Kuzmina's Hut
Alone, Op.26: School Children
Alone, Op.26: Storm Scene: Storm Breaks
Alone, Op.26: Storm Scene: Snow Storm
Alone, Op.26: Storm Scene: Calm After The Storm
The Tale Of The Silly Little Mouse, Op. 56: The Tale Of The Silly Little Mouse
Hamlet, Op.116: Introduction
Hamlet, Op.116: Palace Music
Hamlet, Op.116: Ball At The Castle
Hamlet, Op.116: Ball
Hamlet, Op.116: In The Garden
Hamlet, Op.116: Military Music
Hamlet, Op.116: Scene Of The Poisoning
The Great Citizen, Op.55: Funeral March
Sofia Perovskaya, Op.132: Waltz
Pirogov, Op.76A: Scherzo
The Gadfly, Op.97: Romance
Pirogov, Op.76A: Finale

Amazon.com essential recording

Continuing Riccardo Chailly's topical Shostakovich recordings (he's already visited the composer's jazz-inflected and dance pieces), this collection of music for film offers the series greater heft. The music here is as entangled in politics and pop culture as the jazzy and dancy material, but here the emotions are more complex and the execution more exciting.

The films Shostakovich was scoring somehow sought legitimacy or outright approval from Soviet power regimes, but as in all his music, Shostakovich enacted subtle subversions. The parade-step march cadences of The Counterplan are exaggerated just enough to integrate all kinds of conflicting dark undertows, emphasized coyly by Chailly and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. The excerpts from Alone are all over the map, spooky and turbulent and bleak in equal measures, in answer to so many mandated bright, blasting musical ventures elsewhere in the Soviet cultural regime. The works continue until 1967, with a twisty waltz from Sofia Perovskaya, which seems more like a distant comment on the notion of a dance piece than music scripted for dance. For its mix of big, lit sweeps and minute, shadowy motions, this is one of the best single-CD Shostakovich sets--themed or not--in print. --Andrew Bartlett

Customer Reviews:

recording of ligfhter music by Shos the heavy composer .......2005-11-24

This recording is excellent. The works are rather light so one does not notice at first that the recording is that good. After some listebning I notice and i Am sure you will do too. Pirogorov and Sofia Petrovskaja i like best. Great recording.

yep, i'd agree.......2004-12-29

This is the perfect album for anyone who believes Shostakovich was only capable of writing music that expressed his inner turmoil.
Here is an album of the composer just doing his job (writing soundtracks for propaganda films) and showing he's capable of playing the field like a consummate pro.
Many of the melodies may sound vaguely familiar, and it's no wonder; they were often pilfered by other assembly line arrangers for Hollywood musicals and other upbeat entertainment.
I'd have to agree with the previous reviewer, who thinks track 25 is the best. It's the Romance from "The Gadfly", which is arguably Shostakovich's greatest melody, played here with perfection; the "lazy" pizzicato and slightly staggered fourth beat in the measure is something I haven't heard before on this piece, and it works very nicely for these ears.

A Unique Collection of Works.......2000-11-25

The film scores of Dmitri Shostakovich are certainly not his best works, but they are definetly worth a look. There is a great range of music on this CD, from the joyful 'Tale of the Silly Little Mouse' to the harshness of 'Hamlet', and Chailly and his players give solid performances throughout. I wouldn't really recommend this as an introduction to Shostakovich's works, but if you're a fan, then it would make a great addition to your collection.

Track 25 is the best.......1999-06-17

Shostakivich wrote some 'heavy' music, but in his better moments he wrote some beautiful melodies (e.g. The Jazz Suite) and film themes including The Tale of the silly little mouse'. What a pity that you have to wait until track 25 for the best piece - the Romance from the 'Gadfly' (Theme music from the BBC series 'Reilly, ace of spies'). The definitive recording of this piece was the version by the USSR Cinema Symphony Orchestra, with Khatchaturian conducting, but the version on this recording is also excellent.

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They are from my hometown

Our New Earth
Gryn
Manufacturer: Orchard
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000050NOZ
Release Date: 2000-08-18

Tracks:

O.N.E.
Tabula Rasa
Inside of Me
Shyne
Human Warfare
Piece of the Puzzle
Mentality
Veto II
The Blood
G.R.Y.N.

Album Description

Our New Earth is a weight-soaked, steeltoe kick in the pants that thrives on everything but fashionable pretense and by-the-numbers, trend-of-the-moment impersonation. Fueled by defiantly caustic verbal backbone, cohesively astringent guitarscour, and a piston-firing rhythm section punch that's equal parts destructive and dynamic, the album's ten tracks are rigorously infectious anthems just itching to wear out anyone within earshot.

Customer Reviews:

They are from my hometown.......2001-06-15

I bought their first album and this is just as good! I am from Hays Kansas, which is the same town that these guys grew up in. I only know, or know of about three of those guys. One is about my age and the others are anywhere from 3-5 years older.

Tracks:

Trysting Fields
Sheep And Tides
Great Death Game
Drowning By Number 3
Wheelbarrow Walk
Dead Man's Catch
Drowning By Number 2
Bees In Trees
Fish Beach
Wedding Tango
Crematorium Conspiracy
Knowing The Ropes
Endgame

Customer Reviews:

Drowning by numbers.......2007-01-06

Goregeous, gorgeous music. Will make you want to see the film.

The Best Soundtrack of All Time.......2003-03-06

I enjoy many genres of music including film music. In the film genre I like the classics from Bernard Hermann and Miklos Rozsa to the contemporary sountracks from Phillip Glass, Patrick Doyle and Michael Nyman. I must first say that I think Michael Nyman is the most incredible composer of this era, and I think "Drowning By Numbers" is his best film score. I also love his other scores particularly the scores from "Carrington", "Gatacca", "Wonderland" and his scores from the other Greenaway films (oh, and the score from "The Piano" isn't bad either!). However, I believe this one is his greatest achievement. He took a few bars from Mozart as his source and created this soundtrack that flows seamlessly from track to track on the CD (and from scene to scene in the film). The entire soundtrack has a beautiful melancholy to it that is relaxing and powerful. The layers are so wonderfully crafted that I believe this is the most incredible moment in the minimalist era, and is the best film score ever written. I know that many would not agree with ranking it that high, but I think most people who give it a chance would agree that this album does belong in the collection of any soundtrack fan.

Drowning in a sea of music.......2002-07-06

"Drowning By Numbers", the film: Directed by Peter Greenaway in 1987 and released in the U.S. four years later on the heels of the release of "The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover". The audience follow three generations of women from the same family who murder their husbands by drowning. In return for promised sexual favors, which the women ultimately withhold, the local coroner agrees to certify the deaths as accidental.
"Drowning By Numbers", the soundtrack: Michael Nyman's compositions main appeal rely on paleness and subtlety, and most melodies guide the listener to subterfuges only to be revealed after quietness can't hold its breath anymore. The music has an undisturbed poetic quality, reminiscent of baroque but never being intrusive. Strongly recommended.

Drowning by nyman.......2000-06-20

I first heard this when I first saw the film (go see!) and wanted to know who wrote such beautiful music, which was so in sync with the counting games and cut of the film. It's a great score: musically it carries on where Zed and Two Noughts left off, rather than take 4 bars of the Mozart piece, Nyman decided to 'rewrite' and rework the whole piece for inspiration...it turned me onto the darkness in mozart's work (the opera Don Giovanni for example) which I hadn't previously realised. Drowning by Numbers #3 is as haunting as say, 'The Garden is becoming a robe room' and very morbid, like the film...the opening up of the music and score definitely works wonders, where a lot of Z.O.O. left me cold as some academic exercise (apart from the last track, the amazing Angelfish Decay: is that a REAL human voice or a theremin? :-) whereas this is cold in a human, dark way and much more lyrical and flowing.

The only thing is now I've heard Philip Glass's 'Einstein on the Beach.' I now realise what a big influence Glass was on Nyman (rather than the other way round as I'd supposed?), the fast arpegiating chords and vocal lines, even down to the use of counting in the film (although that might not have been Nyman's doing, Greenaway and Nyman did seem to work very closely together). It does seem to equally wear it's influences on (or up?) it's sleeves as much as it improves or conquers them.

But a great soundtrack, and piece in it's own right, 5 stars for feeling and evocative mood alone.

100.......2000-05-18

A fantastic collection of Michael Nyman concert pieces and selections used in the film, this was mostly derived from the works of Mozart, although bearing little musical similarity. It fits the film perfectly, being both ancient and modern, with a definite melancholic edge. It's my personal favourite of all the Greenaway / Nyman collaborations, and my favourite single Michael Nyman album.

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Colour by Numbers
Culture Club
Manufacturer: Atlantic / Wea
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B00008EQ6X
Release Date: 1990-07-17

Tracks:

Karma Chameleon
It's a Miracle
Black Money
Changing Every Day
That's the Way (I'm Only Trying to Help You)
Church of the Poison Mind
Miss Me Blind
Mister Man
Stormkeeper
Victims

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