Jeff Wayne's Musical Version Of The War Of The Worlds [Hybrid SACD]

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
In hindsight, it seems almost incredible: 27 years ago, a young musician named Jeff Wayne (who at the time primarily wrote music for commercials) fell in love with H.G. Wells' much-loved book The War of the Worlds, and decided to make a musical version of it. Star Wars had just put people's minds into outer space, musical theatre was hugely successful, and long, anthemic orchestral prog-rock was all the rage. Wayne was inspired by all these elements and decided to gather together his peers and make a musical-mixed-with-spoken-word album, with the script taken directly from the famous book. This was by no means a soundtrack to a movie; in fact, all of the visuals were to come straight from the listener's minds (hard to imagine in today's video-oriented world.) The two-LP set featured Sir Richard Burton as frontman, along with some of the leaders of the progressive rock world who joined in on the fun. Moody Blues' Justin Hayward, "Rock On" vocalist David Essex and Thin Lizzy lead Philip Lynott each did more than sing on the record, they took a part in the musical play, performing key roles alongside the aforementioned dramatist Burton.

Amazingly, the eccentric project was a massive success, selling over 13 million copies and staying on the U.K. charts for over 260 weeks straight. DJs and bands--including the Orbital and Todd Terry--still use WOTW samples to inspire their own works. Unquestionably, the genesis of electronica can (in part) be mapped back to the War of the Worlds' use of sound experimentation and synthesized grooves.

The re-released double CD got a revamping both on an auditory and visual front: on the sonic side, the collection is now a remastered disc, mixed both in stereo and 5.1 surround sound. On the cosmetic side, the collection is now a six-panel digipack, with 48 pages of lyrics, biographies, and a handful of paintings from the original artwork. The music comes as a pair of Super Audio CDs (SACDs), a technology that will play both in standard and SACD players, the latter receiving up to four more times the sonic information for superior sound quality. --Denise Sheppard

Product Description
Original double album re-packaged into deluxe 6 panel digi-pak. Includes:
* 2 Hybrid SACDs - The original double album remixed in stereo and multi-channel 5.1 surround sound from the original 48 track master tapes by Jeff Wayne.
* Expanded 48 page full color booklet with new artwork, sleeve notes and content

Jeff Wayne's Musical Version Of The War Of The Worlds,Jeff Wayne,Sony,Album Rock,Disco,Electronic,Pop,Prog-Rock/Art Rock,Rock,Rock/Pop Collections,V/a Compilations

Tracks:

The Eve Of War
Horsell Common And The Heat Ray
The Artilleryman And The Fighting Machine
Forever Autumn
Thunder Child

Tracks:

The Red Weed (Part 1)
The Spirit Of Man
The Red Weed (Part 2)
Artilleryman (Part 2)
Brave New World
Dead London
Epilogue (Part 1)
Epilogue (Part 2) (Nasa)

Amazon.com

In hindsight, it seems almost incredible: 27 years ago, a young musician named Jeff Wayne (who at the time primarily wrote music for commercials) fell in love with H.G. Wells' much-loved book The War of the Worlds, and decided to make a musical version of it. Star Wars had just put people's minds into outer space, musical theatre was hugely successful, and long, anthemic orchestral prog-rock was all the rage. Wayne was inspired by all these elements and decided to gather together his peers and make a musical-mixed-with-spoken-word album, with the script taken directly from the famous book. This was by no means a soundtrack to a movie; in fact, all of the visuals were to come straight from the listener's minds (hard to imagine in today's video-oriented world.) The two-LP set featured Sir Richard Burton as frontman, along with some of the leaders of the progressive rock world who joined in on the fun. Moody Blues' Justin Hayward, "Rock On" vocalist David Essex and Thin Lizzy lead Philip Lynott each did more than sing on the record, they took a part in the musical play, performing key roles alongside the aforementioned dramatist Burton.

Amazingly, the eccentric project was a massive success, selling over 13 million copies and staying on the U.K. charts for over 260 weeks straight. DJs and bands--including the Orbital and Todd Terry--still use WOTW samples to inspire their own works. Unquestionably, the genesis of electronica can (in part) be mapped back to the War of the Worlds' use of sound experimentation and synthesized grooves.

Album Description

Original double album re-packaged into deluxe 6 panel digi-pak. Includes:
* 2 Hybrid SACDs - The original double album remixed in stereo and multi-channel 5.1 surround sound from the original 48 track master tapes by Jeff Wayne.
* Expanded 48 page full color booklet with new artwork, sleeve notes and content

Customer Reviews:

War Of The Worlds Superb!.......2007-07-26

What a great CD and the narration by the late Richard Burton is truly superb! I first hear this Mucial Marterpiece when I was stationed at the Learmonth Solar Observatory from 1979-1982 (Learmonth, Australia) WA. A friend of mine said that I had to listen to it as I am a great fan of the rock group: The Moody Blues! I was simply blown away from what I heard and told everybody about it! Justin Hayward gives it that Moody Blues sound and the story is really great also! This truly is a "must have" for any CD collection! Buy It!

War of the Worlds.......2007-02-17

My father used to listen to this a lot when I was a kid. I final found this and it is as great as I remember...

Jeff Waynes War of the Worlds.......2007-01-04

I am trying to replace my 80's cassettes with dvd's. This s a very inexpensive way of doing this. You guys got a ton more titles that=n the local music store chains. Keep up the good work. My older brother purchased this musical on a 2 record album. It sounded great on a record player, but it sounds even better in this format. Thanx again

One of a kind!.......2006-12-31

Jeff Wayne's "The War of the Worlds" is truly a unique undertaking (a two-hour rock album based on an H.G. Wells novel? who would think of such a thing?)--and a remarkably successful one. Steering almost entirely clear of special effects, Wayne uses recurring musical elements to tell his story--the ominous chords of the main theme; the driving bass rhythm which we first hear at the start of "The Heat Ray"; the eerie Martian whistle which makes a final, unexpected appearance in the Epilogue--with great effectiveness. Sure, this is a 1976 recording, and the wokka-wokka disco sound of the era makes occasional appearances--but overall, this recording has aged remarkably well. Wayne clearly has mastery of all musical genres. My only complaint would be that the second disc isn't quite as inspired as the first--too much atmosphere and not enough action for my taste. Nonetheless, a 5-star album.

Good stuff never fades away.......2006-12-21

I bought the 2 LP set of this back when it first came out, after hearing a snippet of it on the radio. Simply put, it stands on its own against ANYTHING written, or recorded since, in any popular/rock music arena. I just found out how popular it has become, which is very cool. I was right 25 years ago........ ;-)

Jeff Wayne's Musical Version Of The War Of The Worlds

Average customer rating:

Couldn't be happier!!!!
Musical Masterpiece
Good Music Lasts Forever
One of the best albums of all time
Awesome music in an eloquent package...a million stars!!!

Jeff Wayne's Musical Version Of The War Of The Worlds
Jeff Wayne
Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B0009MAPV8
Release Date: 2005-07-05

Tracks:

The Eve Of The War Jeff Wayne featuring Richard Burton and Justin Hayward
Horsell Common And The Heat Ray Jeff Wayne featuring Richard Burton
The Artilleryman And The Fighting Machine Jeff Wayne featuring Richard Burton and David Essex
Forever Autumn Featuring Richard Burton and Justin Hayward
Thunder Child Featuring Richard Burton and Chris Thompson

Tracks:

The Red Weed (Part 1) Jeff Wayne featuring Richard Burton
The Spirit Of Man Featuring Richard Burton, Phil Lynott and Julie Covington
The Red Weed (Part 2) Jeff Wayne featuring Richard Burton
Brave New World Featuring Richard Burton and David Essex
Dead London Jeff Wayne featuring Richard Burton
Epilogue (Part 1) Featuring Richard Burton
Epilogue (Part 2) (NASA) Featuring Jerry Wayne

Tracks:

UlladubUlla: Papa Ootzie Remix
The Eve Of The War: Hybrids Fire In The Sky Mix
Forever Autumn: N-Trance Remix
Horsell Common And The Heat Ray: Max Mondo Remix
The Spirit Of Man: Spirit Of DubTom Frederikse/Gan Schurrer Remix
The Eve Of The War: Hani Remix
The Artilleryman And The Fighting Machine: Max Mondo Remix
Brave New World: Todd Terry Remix
Forever Autumn: Dark Autumn Dub Tom Frederikse/Gan Schurrer Remix
The Red Weed: Mister Joyboy Remix
The Spirit Of Destiny (The Parson Versus Palene): Cassidy/Langan/Wayne Remix
The Eve Of The War: 1980 Disco Steve Thompson Remix
The Spirit Of Man: Max Mondo Remix
The Eve Of The War: Ben Liebrand Remix
Brave New World: Dario G Remix
Dead London: Mister Joyboy Remix
The Eve Of The War Versus Animal And Man: Forrest/Schurrer/Wayne Remix

Amazon.com

Amazingly, the eccentric project was a massive success, selling over 13 million copies and staying on the U.K. charts for over 260 weeks straight. DJs and bands--including the Orbital and Todd Terry--still use WOTW samples to inspire their own works. Unquestionably, the genesis of electronica can (in part) be mapped back to the War of the Worlds' use of sound experimentation and synthesized grooves.

While for many, the War of the Worlds remastered double CD and 48 page booklet set will provide enough prog rock fun, true aficionados will be filled with intergalactic glee when they see how many goodies accompany the collector's edition--a whopping seven CDs that start with the two remastered discs, then disc 3, which contains the best club/DJ remixes sampled from the original recording (including N-Trance's club-y version of the hit "Forever Autumn" and a take on "Brave New World" from famed house producer/DJ Todd Terry. Discs 4 through 6 deserve awards for unprecedented attention to fandom: three full CDs of outtakes, ranging from the original 1975 radio commercial, to acoustic demos of songs, to an additional 37 minutes of previously unheard Richard Burton narrative. Many of the best add-ons, however, exist on disc 7, a 92-minute DVD documentary featuring "The Making of" as well as a full album deconstruction, narrated by Jeff Wayne himself. The whole shebang is packaged in a hardcover 76-page book which features a written history, HG Wells' bio, and a plethora of full-color artwork. --Denise Sheppard

Customer Reviews:

Couldn't be happier!!!!.......2006-03-15

My husband has been looking for this ALBUM for a very long time. When I found it on line at Amazon I immediately ordered two copies. One for my husband and one for my son.. They couldn't have been happier and are still raving about the set.

Musical Masterpiece.......2006-02-24

Jeff Wayne's musical version of the War of the Worlds is an all time classic.
If you don't own it, you're missing out on part of music history the likes of which will never be repeated!

Good Music Lasts Forever.......2006-02-20

Get immersed into the world of HG Wells' novel War of the Worlds with Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of the War of the Worlds. Originally released in 1978, Jeff's music has had many fans and has grown to become a classic. Now a whole new generation will be exposed to this galactic experience. And they will be pleasantly surprised at how quickly the music will pull them into the story a create a whole new world from HG Wells words.

At times the music seems a little dated [at one point it is very reminiscent of Logan's Run or the disco scenes from Buck Roger's in the 25th Century], but that feeling quickly disappears as one becomes so engulfed in the music and what it is telling us above and beyond the words of the narration.

Fans of the both the book and films will find this to be a remarkable addition to the entire War of the Worlds experience.

One of the best albums of all time.......2006-02-19

The original concept album itself is a stunner, and this box set is a wonderful toy for the serious fan. The alternate version of songs and outtakes, in addition to the beautiful coffee table book, make a second (or third or fourth...) purchase worth it. The musicianship, the composition, and the performances are all first rate. I have loved this album for 25 years, and this new version only makes me love it more.

Awesome music in an eloquent package...a million stars!!!.......2006-01-23

Over 25 years ago, I received the 12" double vinyl LP version of "Jeff Wayne's Musical Version Of The War Of The Worlds" as a gift from my brother (a Moody Blues fan), and I can say that this is one of my personal treasures. I was immediately blown away by the illustrated cover and the booklet that offered more illustrations and the biographies of all involved. Two of my all-time favorite entertainers were showcased, Welsh actor Richard Burton and Irish rock legend Phil Lynott. The music was staggering in its brilliance, and even then the music lept out of the speakers. Over the years, I reinvested several times (cassette, the "dub" cds, the previous 2cd reissue), and made this masterpiece my gift-of-choice to favorite friends and relatives until cd copies became too hard to find.

The deal with "collector's editions" is that you should get improved production and increased clarity that is noticeable to even the untrained ear; attention to detail in the packaging should then be second only to the digitally remastered sound quality on the CD's. Here, then, is a lavish, carefully assembled
set for those who basically worship the ground Jeff Wayne and his musical collaborators walk on. The 12" hardbound cover is a large size picture book, not some lump of paper wedged into a digipack, with beautiful reproductions of the original illustrations, new illustrations, and updated bios of the artists (some, including Burton and Lynott, have passed away).

If you are unfamiliar with this extremely well-conceived collection of music, you should first understand that this has to be in any serious rock library. As far as renditions (movie, musical, or written) of this H. G. Wells science fiction classic are concerned, I believe this one best conveys the very primitive yet real sense of impending doom for a self-assured species, largely due to Burton's masculine but worried narrative tone. The music is awesome, jaw-dropping, and mind-bending. The description of the spaceship's opening ("2 feet of shining screw projected, when ,suddenly, the lid fell off....a huge rounded bulk, larger than a bear, rose up slowly, glistening like wet leather...the clumsy body heaved and pulsated") set to scorching guitar riffs (before "an invisible ray of heat leapt from man to man") is my own personal highlight.

For those who know the music, this treatment of Jeff Wayne's Musical Version Of The War Of The Worlds is like the "director's cut" of a great film you've already seen. Every fan feature imaginable is here, sounds much better than ever, and includes every alternate take, outtakes, snippets of foreign language adaptations, and even some recording room conversations. The DVD hosted by Jeff Wayne himself is the Holy Grail, and could not have been done better.

This is pure Heaven for those of us who know the music, and worth every penny. I've got to thank my little brother again for turning me on to this so many years ago.

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