Search - Rick Wakeman, Mônica Giardini, Young Symphonic Band of the State of Sao Paulo :: The Myths And Legends Of King Arthur And The Knights Of The Round Table

THIS IS NOT RICK WAKEMAN

Super Chicken | Southern California | 09/14/2004

(1 out of 5 stars)

"9/13/2004-I purchased this cd only to return it promptly. Rick does not have anything to do with this cd. He does not play on it nor does he have any producing credits. The only connection is that Banda Sinfonica did a cd of Rick Wakeman tunes and that's it. The description is very misleading so beware. Rick was home watching The Simpsons while this was being recorded!



1/20/2005-Isn't it interesting that Amazon has now changed the title to "The Myths and Legends of King Arthur...". This was not the title when I bought it and left this review. Are they purposely trying to deceive the public?"

A Very Faithful Cover of a Prog Classic

Philm35 | Cincinnati, OH USA | 07/26/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Was Rick Wakeman's "Myths and Legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table" an overblown, pretentious example of the 70's progressive rock era? Sure, but I love it. Does it hold up after 30 years have gone by? No... but I still love it. Is it cheesy and excessive at times? Absolutely, but I love it anyway.



I had the good fortune to sit in the front row at Wakeman's concert of this epic in 1978. (Gary Wright opened for him and Wakeman singlehandedly blew Wright's 3 keyboardists off the stage with his opening notes). Wakeman flitted between 12-15 keyboard instruments, sometimes playing 3 or 4 at a time, while flawlessly and spectacularly executing the "Myths and Legends'" complex arrangements. It was really something to witness.



This album is a cover of "Myths and Legends", performed by a Brazilian youth choir and orchestra. These guys were painstakingly faithful to the original recording... at times this CD sounds like a newly remastered version of the original recording, rather than a cover. The playing is tight, expressive, and sometimes even better than the original. The orchestra, vocals and choir sound nearly identical to the original, and the synth parts sound exactly like the vintage Moogs, Mellotrons and Hammond C3 that populated the original.



So why buy this one instead of the original? I'm not really sure, except that sonically, using modern recording equipment and technique, this is a superior recording. The Brazilians nailed the performance, making this a more than adequate replacement for the original.



If you love 70's progressive rock, this one's a keeper."