Stir

stir

Track Listings

1. We Belong

2. Stale

3. One Angel

4. Nephew

5. Looking For

6. Ladybug

7. Star

8. Nothing's Wrong

9. Don't Understand

10. Until Now

11. Train

12. Ten Dances

Stir,Stir,Capitol,Alternative Pop/Rock,American Trad Rock,Pop,Rock

Stir

Average customer rating:

my little one loves Chicken Little
this is a great kids cd!!
Great soundtrack for the children, especially if they liked the movie!
Her favorite gift...
Chicken Little Soundtrack

Chicken Little

Manufacturer: Disney
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Madagascar
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Disney's Karaoke Series: Chicken Little
Chicken Little
Shrek 2

ASIN: B000BBOVEY
Release Date: 2005-11-01

Tracks:

Stir It Up - Patti Labelle
One Little Slip - Barenaked Ladies
Shake A Tail Feather - The Cheetah Girls
All I Know - Five For Fighting
Ain't No Mountain High Enough - Diana Ross
It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine) - R.E.M.
We Are The Champions - Chicken Little
Wannabe - Abby Mallard And Runt Of The Litter
Don't Go Breaking My Heart - The Chicken Little Cast
The Sky Is Falling - John Debney
The Big Game - John Debney
Dad Apologizes - John Debney
Chase To Cornfield - John Debney
Dodgeball - John Debney
Driving With Dad - John Debney

Amazon.com

This soundtrack offers a pretty standard mix of new songs, old chestnuts, and excerpts from the score (here by John Debney). On the new tip, Joss Stone and Patti LaBelle engage in an overheated battle of the divas on CD opener "Stir It Up," a bouncy piece of fluff that sounds more like Aretha Franklin circa "Freeway of Love" than classic soul. Other originals include Barenaked Ladies' "One Little Slip" (this movie's answer to Counting Crows' "Accidentally in Love" from Shrek 2) and the Cheetah Girls' peppy-but-bland cover of "Shake Your Tail Feather." But the real highlights are the songs performed by the movie's vocal cast, which includes Joan Cusack, Garry Marshall, Zach Braff, Steve Zahn, and Amy Sedaris. Their group cover of Elton John and Kiki Dee's "Don¹t Go Breaking My Heart," for instance, sounds as if half of them were drunk in the recording studio (and this is meant as a compliment.) Braff's a cappella version of "We Are the Champions" is smashing and Cusack and Zahn's take on the Spice Girls' "Wannabe" is completely demented. The kids will laugh; their parents will laugh even harder for completely different reasons. --Elisabeth Vincentelli

Customer Reviews:

my little one loves Chicken Little.......2007-04-05

My husband bought the Chicken Little movie for our 3 year old (mostly to get us OFF the Cars movie that we all have memorized) and he fell in love with it! He likes to act out the scenes and loves the music. He loves this CD at night when he's going to bed. We all have to dance to One Little Slip (he knows all the words) and then we have to "shake our tail feathers" before he jumps in bed every night! I enjoy the cd too, so it's good for everyone!

this is a great kids cd!!.......2007-03-24

My daughter absolutely loves this cd. I could not find it anywhere until i looked on amazon, so thank you amazon!!

Great soundtrack for the children, especially if they liked the movie!.......2007-03-14

My son loved the movie Chicken Little, so we decided to purchase this for him to listen to on his discman. He loves the soundtrack as much as the movie, which made it an awesome investment(especially since the soundtrack has many good singers that aren't too hard on the ears for the adult crowdes either). My son was very happy with this item, and so was I.

Her favorite gift..........2006-12-23

I bought the CD to accompany the movie. My four year old watches the movie everyday. When I gave her the CD, after listening to it nightly, she takes it to bed with her everynight where I have to pry it out of her hands after she falls off to sleep. I don't get it, but she does...so it's worth what I paid for it.

Chicken Little Soundtrack.......2006-08-29

This is a great soundtrack from a variety of different artists. If your child loved the movie you will absolutely love this CD!!!

Average customer rating:

One of Parkening's Finest
Music that perfectly touches the soul ...
The end of a Search
Simple, yet delightful, Gifts!
Exquisite & Divine

Simple Gifts: Christopher Parkening
Christopher Parkening , Johann Sebastian Bach , Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , Engelbert Humperdinck , traditional , Gordon Young , John Rowland , Ronald Ravenscroft , and John Hughes
Manufacturer: Angel Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Grace Like A River - Christopher Parkening
Jubilation

ASIN: B000002SJJ
Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

Cantata No. 29: Praludium
Our Great Savior
God of Grace and God of Glory
Bretheren, We Have Met To Worship
Deep River
Jesus, We Want To Meet
Hanel & Gretel: Evening Prayer
Hymn of Christian Joy
Simple Gifts
Fairest Lord Jesus
Stir Thy Church, O God Our Father
All Creatures of Our God and King
Quartet, Op. 79 No. 3: Variations On 'Glorious Things Of Thee Are Spoken'
Solemn Vespers, K. 339: Praise Ye The Lord

Customer Reviews:

One of Parkening's Finest.......2007-01-16

A beautiful and contemplative solo guitar recording of hymns, spirituals and other sacred works such as Mozart's Laudate Dominum and Humperdinck's Evening Prayer. Parkening is in exceptional form, the transcriptions are superb, and the recording itself is of the highest quality. Little wonder this has been an enduring classic since its release in the early 1980s.

Music that perfectly touches the soul ..........2005-10-24

Christopher Parkening is the most musically inventive person playing the classical guitar today; you must purchase this CD if you haven't already. It contains exquisitely beautiful hymns & sacred music (arranged perfectly for guitar, I might add) along with Mr. Parkenings masterful transcriptions of works by Bach, Haydn, Mozart and Humperdinck.

Above all, this is music that glorifies God and that was the ultimate purpose of creating this CD.

The end of a Search.......2005-09-23

Classsical guitar is among the top forms of music and Christopher Parkeniong is one of the greatestartists in this genre, if not the best. I had despaired at ever findinding the CD "Simple Pleasures" and was so very pleased to locate it . I am so enjoying it now. I will be back for more as funds permit.

Simple, yet delightful, Gifts!.......2005-02-21

This was one of the first CD's I purchased back in 1988, and I bought it on a whim. Of the hundreds of CD's I now own, including many genres, this one remains in my list of top 10 favorites for a number of reasons.

1. Mr. Parkening plays every song on it with remarkable technical excellence and clearly discernible passion.
2. It includes classical, folksy, and reflective material, which could create a rough flow, but Mr. Parkening moves deftly from mood to mood leaving the listener with a sense of seamless transitions.
3. Although the songs on it are all religious classics they are played without pretense, which makes it accessible to any listener and uplifting for those seeking spiritual refreshment.

In closing, the is one thing "wrong" with this CD is it's too short!

Exquisite & Divine.......2001-02-17

This treasure chest holds such jewels! The cd rushes in with the joyous energy of Bach's Praludium, allows you to reflect and catch your breath on Pritchard's Hyfrydol and Variation, and flows forward with the grace and underlying passion that makes this a precious favorite.

Average customer rating:

AMAZING...
ANY STIR CD
Best Of The Best
Strong, Underrated Album
Underrated

Stir
Stir
Manufacturer: Capitol
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Holy Dogs
Broken Tongues
Dyslexicon
Lowercase

ASIN: B000002U61
Release Date: 1996-10-01

Tracks:

We Belong
Stale
One Angel
Nephew
Looking For
Lady Bug
Star
Nothing's Wrong
Don't Understand
Until Now
Train
Ten Dances

Customer Reviews:

AMAZING..........2006-05-15

OK. Here it goes. I saw these guys open up for what I would have called a 'lesser known band' at the time. Stir was great, and the sound surpassed the crisp sound on their album, if that is believable! The vocals on this album remind me of Jackson Browne in the way that they are 'everyman' vocals, and not too high or low, but just perfect. It's a damn shame that these guys didn't get the push they deserved. From top to bottom this CD is worth the money. Buy this CD please, and recognize one of the best undiscovered bands of the '90's...

ANY STIR CD.......2006-05-13

IT IS A F--ING SHAME THAT NO ONE WILL EVER SEE THIS REVIEW. I INVITE ANYONE THAT GETS TO THIS POINT TO HELP ME RAISE AWARENESS FOR ONE OF THE GREATEST POWER-POP BANDS SINCE CHEAP TRICK. i HAVE SEEN THIS BAND LIVE ONLY ONCE, IN A SMALL VENUE IN A SMALL TOWN CALLED COMBINED LOCKS, WISCONSIN. THEY WERE ABSOLUTELY UNBELIEVABLE AS A LIVE BAND!THERE IS ONLY ONE REASON WHY THEY DIDN'T BECOME STARS, AND THAT IS THAT THEY HAD IDIOTS FOR MANAGEMENT.
THESE BOYS ARE POSSIBLY THE BEST POWER POP TRIO I HAVE EVER SEEN. THEY ARE YOUNG ENOUGH THAT THEY COULD MAKE A COMEBACK IF THEY HAD ENOUGH SUPPORT. MY BEST AND STRONGEST RECCOMENDATION FOR THEM IS THAT IF I HIT THE LOTTERY TOMMOROW, I WOULD DEVOTE EVERY DOLLAR I HAVE TO ALLOWING THEM TO PURSUE THEIR CRAFT, A CRAFT THAT WOULD BRING THEM TO THE FOREFRONT OF ROCK MUSIC.BANDS THAT ARE POPULAR TODAY SUCH AS "GREEN DAY" WOULD PAY MONEY TO KISS THEIR A_S I WOULD APPRECIATE ANY RESPONSE TO THIS REVIEW. I NEVER GIVE UP ON ANYONE, AND ANY HELP OR SUPPORT YOU COULD GIVE ME WOULD BE APPRECIATED
HENGDOG@AOL.COM

Best Of The Best.......2005-09-08

I hate to rehash what every other reviewer has said but oh my god are these guys under-rated. THE single greatest thing to happen to music since the Beatles, just without any of the mass popularity. Expect a little bit of AMERICAN classic rock sound mized with semi-country but not so country riffs..it's hard to explain. Songs like "We Belong" "Star" "One Angel" and "Ten Dances" are classics that I'll never stop listening to...truly timeless music that will never go out of style. If you haven't already then do yourself a big favor and buy this.

Strong, Underrated Album.......2005-07-24

I won't gush like the earlier reviews, but they're correct that it's a solid CD full of listenable tracks. The music reminds me of a cross between Neil Young / Crazy Horse, and 38 Special. I think cut #5, "Looking For" is my favorite.

The vocals have a nice "everyman" feel, without sounding too folk-y or twangy.

Underrated.......2004-10-26

STIR is one of the most underrated bands of all time. They are the epitome of straight forward rock-n-roll. I agree with an earlier review that this album should've gone platinum, even multi-platinum. There's only one way a band this good can go unnoticed and that is lack of proper support from their record label. Capitol was sitting on a gem with this and the follow-up disc, Holy Dogs, but they didn't push it the way they should have. They must not have been AWARE (hehe chuckles) of STIR's real potential. If you like rock-n-roll BUY THIS CD and their sophmore release Holy Dogs!

Average customer rating:

reggae and jazz come together
Does no justice whatsoever
superb music
5 stars recording 3 stars rendition
A pleasant surprise

Stir It Up: The Music of Bob Marley
Monty Alexander
Manufacturer: Telarc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Reggae | International | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B00000J5Z6
Release Date: 1999-05-25

Tracks:

Jammin'
Kaya
The Heathen
Could You Be Loved
Running Away
Stir It Up
It This Love?
No Woman No Cry
Crisis
I Shot The Sheriff
So Ja Sah
Nesta (He Touched The Sky)
Could You Be Loved (Extended Remix)

Amazon.com

The Jamaican-born pianist Monty Alexander has worked with musicians such as Milt Jackson, Dizzy Gillespie, and Sonny Rollins, but over the years he has always managed to wed North American improvisation to reggae and Jamaican folk rhythms. This CD is a happy hybrid of all of the above. Alexander weaves his American rhythm section consisting of drummer Troy Davis, bassist Hassan Shakur, and guitarist Derrick Di Cenzo with the five-man Jamaican ensemble Gumption--who back up dancehall stars like Buju Banton: drummer Rolando Alphonso, guitarist Robert Angus, keyboardist Dwight Dawes, bassist Glen Brownie, and percussionist Desy Jones. The result: Imagine the Nat King Cole Trio sitting in with the Wailers and you'll get the CD's boppish island-breezed vibe. Alexander and crew stick to Marley's melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic structures. Spliff anthem "Jamming," title tune "Kaya," and "Could You Be Loved" can rock any sports utility vehicle or summer festival, while "Heathen" rings with Alexander's raindrop chords, piercing melodica, and ethereal tonal shadings. The ska-guitar scratches drive "Is This Love?" and Alexander's gospelish pianisms echo Marley's loving laments on "No Woman No Cry." Steve Turre makes a guest appearance and his splendid seashell sound heralds "I Shot the Sheriff." Alexander's plaintive composition "Nesta"--Marley's middle name--is spiced by Jones's Rastafarian nyabinghi conga rhythms and completes this jazzy "jump up" carnival. --Eugene Holley Jr.

Customer Reviews:

reggae and jazz come together.......2006-01-20

Monty and his crew take Bob's music to a different level and yet he ads a dimension that even Bob would be proud of. He combines both the jazz and reggae and interweaves both so perfectly as one and yet still remaining true to Bob's music in Monty's own personal interpretation of Bob's music. Monty and his musicians honors both the jazz and Reggae and yet this cd remains a reggae disc with touches of Jazz flavored throughout. Splendid job by Monty and his pals.

Does no justice whatsoever .......2005-07-15

When I first heard Monty Alexander's piano lines, I thought I was on the internet and was listening to a MIDI file of a Bob Marley tune. This is the type of "Tribute album" that gives Tribute albums their horrible name. There is no creativity in these versions, at all. It sounds like a bunch of cheesey worn out musicians that have no where else to go in their careers. Do not buy this album unless you are into cheesey renditions of other people's music.

superb music.......2004-03-11

Been a long time fan of bob marley it was one of the greatest delight of my life when i first saw this cd. I was not disappointed the renditions are superd. For all monty and by extension marley fans this is a must have.

5 stars recording 3 stars rendition.......2002-11-22

Telarc SACD is a very good recording. 5 stars.
Previous reviewer wrote,"Not having been exposed to Monty Alexander previously, I was worried this cd would be "elevator" music- unpalatable piano renditions of an artist that I very much like."...and then said he was pleasantly surprised. I was not. Elevator music compared to the real thing. 3 stars.

A pleasant surprise.......2002-09-25

Not having been exposed to Monty Alexander previously, I was worried this cd would be "elevator" music- unpalatable piano renditions of an artist that I very much like. I must admit, it wasn't until putting this cd away for a few months, and then listening to it again, this time, with the volume cranked up a bit on a good set of headphones, that I began to appreciate this cd. The sound quality is excellent- this recording has a "live" feel to it and great dynamic range. Musically, I really enjoy Monty's interpretations of these Marley classics. It is a nice blend of jazz and reggae. Definitely recommended, just play it loud!

Average customer rating:

Good movie, good soundtrack
Hauntig Score, the rest is OK
Gob is Awesome
i love Johny Lang's version of PAINT IT BLACK
great mood ambience

Stir of Echoes (1999 Film)
Various Artists - Soundtracks
Manufacturer: Nettwerk Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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The Sixth Sense: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Stir of Echoes (Special Edition)

ASIN: B00000K4GD
Release Date: 1999-09-14

Tracks:

Empty Couch
Breathe - Moist
Kidnapping Jake
Stay Awake - Dishwalla
Nightmare Lovemaking
Mirror Mirror - Wild Strawberries
Deja Vu
Digging
Nothing But The Shell - Steve Wynn
Neil
Paint It Black - GOB
Feathers
Hello - Poe
First Hypnotism
It's Not The Spotlight - Beth Orton

Customer Reviews:

Good movie, good soundtrack.......2007-04-02

Like all soundtracks, you get the good with the bad. More good than bad on this CD; I believe Beth Orton singing "It's not the spotlight" justifies the cost, the rest of the songs are a bonus.

Hauntig Score, the rest is OK.......2001-03-17

If "Unbreakeable" is the sister score of "The Sixth Sense," by James Newton Howard, then "Stir Of Echoes" is the cousin that nobody talks about. The score in the song/score album is simply brill. The same uneasyness that is in the above mentioned scores is present in this score. The main theme is simple a creepy. The "Kidnapping Jake" cue is great, pulsating fun. The songs are OK, but I wish that the score and songs were on two seperate album, which is why I gave the album a 4 instead of 5. One last thing; I wish that they would have added the childs vocals of "Paint It Black" (as herd at the begging of the film) on the album as an extra.

Gob is Awesome.......1999-12-12

Two fans from Canada think that this soundtrack is really awesome mainly due to Gob's 'Paint It Black'. We bought the CD just for this song. We are Gob's biggest fans. Moist's 'Breathe' was an added to this already great CD.

i love Johny Lang's version of PAINT IT BLACK.......1999-11-10

its awesome! I have heard great things about this album. i am so going to get it!

great mood ambience.......1999-11-08

Hard hitting tracks - Gob especially - and deeply moody ambience. Two versions of Paint it Black were done and only one included on this CD - the Stones original is covered closely by Gob on the other but you'll have to rent the movie to hear it.

Average customer rating:

Great CD from a relatively unknown band.
A Fine Followup - Ignore the Bashers
Pretty good follow-up
...
It's That D**n Good

Holy Dogs
Stir
Manufacturer: Capitol
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Stir
Broken Tongues
Lowercase

ASIN: B00004R8TY
Release Date: 2000-03-14

Tracks:

Superstation
Climbing The Walls
Velvet Elvis
New Beginning
Only A Dream
Spaceman
Stop Killing Me
Help
Grounded
Moon
Clear
Holy Dogs

Customer Reviews:

Great CD from a relatively unknown band........2006-07-10

Please don't take offense of my title for this review. I used to work in radio, therefore I was exposed to all kinds of musical groups, famous and unknown alike. I have also been accused of actually liking the "no-name" artists (Stir, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Transmatic, etc.). Stir is big around St. Louis, but go anywhere else and you will likely have to work hard to find people who know about them. I actually became acclimated to Stir towards the end of college. I bought their CD on a whim, and it paid off! Great, straightforward rock and roll that you can listen to over and over. I will agree, you probably won't find anything new here, but at least you'll know what you'll get if this is your genre of music. Standout tracks are "New Beginning", "Climbing The Walls", "Stop Killing Me", and "Moon". If you're skeptical from the online reviews, listen to the samples on this page, then decide for yourself.

A Fine Followup - Ignore the Bashers.......2006-03-31

Fans of the first CD will like this one, if they have an open mind. Stir was clearly aiming to update their sound, heading into territory plowed by Oasis / Toad the Wet Sprocket / Collective Soul / Seven Mary Three.

But it's a well delivered CD, with nice variety between the songs. Some of the tracks segue together wonderfully, such as "Climbing The Walls" to "Velvet Elvis"... or "Grounded" to "Moon".

"Grounded" is a real showcase, in my opinion. Andy Schmidt's vocals carry large portions of it, with very light instrumentation. The song does a splendid job of creating a tense, claustrophobic feeling... that disperses over its course into bright, flowing harmonies.

"Climbing The Walls" and "Help" are great standouts too. This is a fairly upbeat album... and it carries a lot of themes about accepting onesself, and finding happiness. Well worth picking up, if you find it in your store.

---

(I will agree with other reviewers that the sound effects sprinkled haphazardly through some of the songs, are an unecessary distraction... I would have considered giving the CD a 5 star rating otherwise. I guess somebody "Phil Spector'd" this CD before release.)

Pretty good follow-up.......2006-03-01

I can't say this compares to their first cd in the least, but at the same time there are alot of quality songs that any soft rock listener will be able to get into. Personal favorite from this cd are Clear, Spaceman, Velvet Elvis, Climbing The Walls, and New Beginning. The only reason I can't bring myself to give this a 5 star rating is because there's a few filler tracks that really aren't that good at all and it's slightly disappointing to hear a band perform such a great song and then you push the skip button and hear crap on the next song. Some GREAT songs, some decent, and a couple that should be forgotten forever..

..........2006-02-11

now im not your typical music junkie, i buy a cd about two or theree times a year....i was a music major and i find stuff on the market to cookie cutter and stale. that being said i was listning to launch cast radio and grounded came on....i imidiatly had to get the CD....unexpected cord progressions made this an intresting buy...i love it!

It's That D**n Good.......2005-12-27

I grew up in and around St. Louis. I bought their first cd (self-titled) and honestly wasn't too impressed with it. But the music was good. Then Holy Dogs came out, and since I have a friend who is friends with the band, I was able to get a copy of this before it came out. It starts strong, finishes nicely, and is really good all the way through.
Stand out tracks are "New Beginning" "Velvet Elvis" "Only a Dream" and "Climbing the Walls." The songs are not "deep" but they tell a great story from adultery to going on an intergalactic journey on "Superstation." It's modern rock n roll with a nice edge. It's not "hard" rock. It's how rock n roll was meant to be.

Average customer rating:

A Composition that Missed the Mark
I generally admire Tan Dun, but this project was a misstep
Dark depths and bright voices, a shock, a whimsy
A Music Collage
Mind Opening

Bitter Love

Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Water Passion After St Matthew

ASIN: B00000JWBU
Release Date: 1999-08-17

Tracks:

Against Time Of Desire
I Once Dreamed
Moist With Sweat
NChiCa
Gentle Showers
How Sweet This Incense!
It Is A Ghost!
Your Solemn Vow
Can It Be True
This Is My Fear
To Come
At Peony Pavilion
Stir My Belt Ornaments
Secrecy Departing

Amazon.com

When he was a youth in his native China, Tan Dun spent a period as a fiddle player for a Beijing opera troupe. His intimate familiarity with the great Chinese epic opera The Peony Pavilion from the 16th century (produced during the 1999 Lincoln Center Festival) is evident in his own work of the same name, for which Peter Sellars collaborated as stage director. Bitter Love is a self-contained fusion of music and poetry that draws from Tan's larger opera score. The traditional love story of The Peony Pavilion--which bears some striking similarities to the Orpheus myth--comes through in floating, dreamlike fragments that reflect Chinese poet Tang Xianzu's lucid imagery like a smoky moon against water. As in his earlier and fascinatingly experimental opera Marco Polo, the New York-based Tan creates an eclectic collage of styles that mix East and West, old and new, as well as classical purity and pop energy, all with audacious imagination. This is, after all, a composer who has written music for water and stones, and he exhibits an almost childlike delight in the sensuous appeal of sounds here, in the overlay of traditional Chinese instruments such as pipa with synth beats, cross rhythms, and a panoply of percussion. Soprano Ying Huang gives Tan's fluttering threads of melody a silver sheen. However tempting it might be to label Tan's project as "crossover," it displays a depth and artistic integrity not usually associated with the term. --Thomas May

Customer Reviews:

A Composition that Missed the Mark.......2007-06-15

'East meets West' appears to be the hallmark for this work of avante garde Chinese composer Tan Dun.
Well, I love Chinese music, been listening to large volumes of Chinese operatic recordings and performances for more than 40 years - from the southern Cantonese to the north-western Qin and Yu operas, and even more the Eastern Kun operas and Huang Mei lyrics.
What is being achieved in this album? I would hesitate to call it East meeting West.
Fine, it is original. Fine again, that Miss Huang Ying is a lyrical soprano with a good voice and sound technique.
But please do not mistook the work as having any lineage with the Chinese operatic tradition: it has virtually none of such.
The choice of singer alone reveals that there is no regard to the authentic Chinese operatic tradition: a Western lyrical soprano is UNABLE to bring out the style and sonics in Chinese traditional-styled melodies. For such performer, go for the celebrated Chinese soprano Miss Wu Bixia instead, the pioneer of fusion of Chinese and Western vocal styles.
Very much unlike the more recent work of Tan "The First Emperor", this album endeavours to present music that is off the beaten track. However, the result is that it is off track. The stuff here, I dare say, accounts for more than half of the adverse criticism of that opera, a much more valid work in all respects but for these 'grey area' elements.
Chinese operatic arias are much more than wailing and whining. Musical lines are more melodious, harmonics much clearer.
The blurred effects here are not authentic Chinese style.
I envy those who are able to enjoy this album.

I generally admire Tan Dun, but this project was a misstep.......2006-03-28

BITTER LOVE is a selection of songs from Chinese contemporary composer Tan Dun's 1998 version of the classic Chinese opera "Peony Pavilion". Soprano Ying Huang has the spotlight, with the New York Virtuoso Singers and the NChiCa-Orchestra performing and the composer himself conducting. The staging of the opera, produced by Peter Sellars, was toured around the world, but no video recording was made. These fourteen songs are all we have, but make a conveniently concise single-disc presentation.

Tan Dun's updating is drastic, maintaining the text (in English translation by Cyril Birch) but with totally new music. The traditional music of "Peony Pavilion", of which "Hang the Curtain Down" might be the most well-known, is nowhere to be heard here even in brief quotation. Instrumentation consists of pipa (a Chinese flute), percussion, several midi instruments, electronic sampler, and water gong. The rhythms, the scat singing, and the electronics make this work quite outside both the Western and Chinse traditions, and lovers of chillout projects such as Thievery Corporation may find this CD to their liking. Ying Huang's singing, however, displays the mannerisms of Beijing opera, so the work is a real fusion of styles.

Were this the only work by Dun, it might seem fresh and admirable, but it compares poorly to some of his recent works like THE MAP and the WATER PASSION. Some novel ideas, such as the mix of Chinese and Western instrumentation and the use of water for sound are present, but all in all the musical material here is very limited and repetitive. Perhaps it would be another matter entirely if I were watching a live performance where the orchestra is meant to accompany action onstage, but on its own the music isn't rich enough. Furthermore, Sony's packing of the material, with very unhelpful liner notes, makes it look as if Tan Dun's talent is being used to advance some mission of world music crossover gimmickry. I regrettably cannot recommend this like I can other works by Tan Dun, who is generally one of the most interesting living composers.

Dark depths and bright voices, a shock, a whimsy.......2004-05-24

This piece of music either creeps up on you out of nowhere - like a tarantula imitating a meteor streaking out of outerspace - or it "conveys" itself to you like a waiter extending to you a glass of dark wine - or a film that seeks to shock you with an unexpected silence and a pagan cry. You must be the judge. But if you are faint hearted - quick to flee sexuality in all of its forms - you should go nowhere near this piece. And and if you are bold and brazen and hot for simplistic outrages you should probably bury your head in the sand. This work is for mature listeners only. By "mature" I mean a listener who is willing to cast to the side - as if she or he is flinging to the wind cherry blossoms in autumn - all grotesque fundamentalisms of ANY KIND. The music begins with a luminous voice slowly moving out of darkness. The voice wanders around in the dark over a deep abyss but I do not sense that the abyss is strong enough to terrify that wondrous voice. And the full piece, as it develops, may be best called "The Complicated Tales Of Incandescent Bliss". This piece of music is hideously subversive. I say that with a tongue in my cheek and a fart in my belly. The mere "subversive" is hideously dull. For a century now we have lived with a million, billion artists who wished - desperately wishing to canonize their egos - to "subvert" things. "Bitter Love" is horribly subversive. It is horribly subversive because it does not aim to be "subversive". Its power comes from a source that is not easily described. I am not a witch, but I would like to pretend that I am a witch gazing with my dark-gold eyes into a blasphemously kitsch crystal ball. I would say, gazing into profound fires, that I see a century of struggling, sick, twisted artists striving to catch up to "Bitter Love". It is dark without that pretentious quality that defines the run-of-the-mill Goth. It is bright without protestatiing itself before the blasphemously sentimetality of movies like "The Sound of Music". It plays havoc with our senses without toadying up to the most stupid features of the avant-guard. "Bitter Love" will shock you even while it consoles you.

A Music Collage.......2003-12-01

A soprano; a tenor; a monk; a baritone chorus; an infant; unconventional Chinese orchestration mixed with bits and pieces of Peking Opera; folk tunes; lots of percussions, these are the sounds with which the story of Peony Pavilion is musically revealed. Rather than an opera, it is a musical dream or a conception. Chinese traditional culture is always a rich resource for musicians (especially Chinese musicians) to tap into, and Tan Dun is one of those who know exactly where to get his inspirations. The work is a collage of various individual and seemingly disparate elements of West and East, ritual and sensual, ancient and modern, only that Tan displays them with a sense of assimilation at times, and antithesis at others. As always, Tan's unique music perspectives, distinctively modern though they are, are fulfilled by returning to the original purity and simplicity of the basics and down-to-earth folk music elements.

Ying Huang's pure soprano displays the poetry of the music beautifully. With sensuous approach, her singing is well attuned to the music's aura of longing and exotic beauty. The fabulous baritone chorus from The New York Virtuoso Singers gives a touch of the western opera and provides an indispensable layer to the otherwise rather thin orchestration.

But the music is not for everyone, nor for everyday. Despite its depth and range, it could be a strange land for the ears not tuned to its novelties and diversities, and as for that matter, one may wonder how much of the profound emotions Tan meant to deliver has actually reached the audience at general level.

Mind Opening.......2002-04-24

If you're unfamiliar with Chinese Opera this album may be shocking. But, once you take the time to listen this is a beautiful experience. Tan Dun's blend of eastern and western musical traditions is brilliant. Ying Haung's voice is clear with tones "razor sharp."

I would recommend this to anyone. Truly, a wonderful musical experience.

Stir It Up
Average customer rating:
Stir It Up
Imperials
Manufacturer: Navarre Corporation/
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Gospel | Christian & Gospel | Styles | Music
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Pure Horror: A Compilation of Original Score Themes
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Total Haunted House Material!

Pure Horror: A Compilation of Original Score Themes

Manufacturer: Beyond Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Film Scores | Theatrical, Incidental & Program Music | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B00005PJCY
Release Date: 2001-10-02

Tracks:

Stir Of Echoes: Empty Couch - James Newton Howard
Candyman 3: Day Of The Dead: Main Title - Adam Gorgoni
Book Of Shadows: Blair Witch Project 2: Funny Farm - Carter Burwell
Wishmaster 2: Evil Never Dies: Transformation - David Williams
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Soul Survivors: There's No Grade - Daniel Licht
The Blair Witch Project: The Cellar - Antonio Cora

Customer Reviews:

Total Haunted House Material!.......2005-01-14

I run a Haunted House every Halloween season and this compilation will go very nicely for the queue line. Not a bad song in the bunch. There's stuff to keep people on their toes, weirded out and just plain pumped up to enter the haunt. A definite mood setter!

Average customer rating:

reggae and jazz come together
Does no justice whatsoever
superb music
5 stars recording 3 stars rendition
A pleasant surprise

Stir It Up: The Music of Bob Marley
Monty Alexander
Manufacturer: Telarc
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Customer Reviews:

reggae and jazz come together.......2006-01-20

Does no justice whatsoever .......2005-07-15

superb music.......2004-03-11

5 stars recording 3 stars rendition.......2002-11-22

A pleasant surprise.......2002-09-25

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