Customer Reviews

Gangs of New York

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

this is an excellent soundtrack. there are instrumentals, vocals, traditional pieces, very modern pieces, irish songs, african songs, chinese songs; a little bit of everything from the movie. According to the cd liner notes there were 86 different tracks played in the movie. there are only 18 tracks on the cd. this means many of the songs and much of the music from the movie are not included which is a pity because the music from this movie is so rich and diverse. There are pieces written just for the movie as well as classic irish music and even music recorded by the great alan lomax. The fifth track, which is a fife and drum piece
played while the characters are preparing for a street battle, is truly stirring. a strongly recommended soundtrack. hopefully the entire collection of 86 tracks will eventually be made available.

I purchased the soundtrack right after seeing the movie. To my delight, the drum track that occurs in the opening scene is on the soundtrack as song #5. Just this alone was worth the price of the CD. If you see the movie you will understand! The other tracks are pretty good. However, there were some Americana fife & drum songs that should have been included from the movie. All in all, if you liked the movie, you will enjoy the soundtrack.

When the American west opened up hundreds of immigrants, from Germany, Ireland, and Italy (chiefly). This fresh infusion of American citizens sparked a boom economy where men went from boot-black to big business man. But, as this changing of the ecomonic guard continued, the immigrants that made their fortunes in a matter of years began to worry about the growing number of new immigrants, this sparked a brand new wave of anti-immigrant sentiment. This is a period of American history you don't get from High school text books. The riots, the fears that a second civil war might come about, are all things we like to forget, and at the same time we forget an entire ethnicity's culture. The Irish-Americans that made up the majority of the New York workforce for the latter part of the 19th century and the early 20th century produced poets, musicians, actors, their own celebrities the same way the african-American community has in recent decades, but without the wide-spread fame. This CD explores the beauty of Traditional Celtic music as it evolved on American soil. These pieces like 'New York Girls' (a really fun jig dance piece), 'Paddy's Lamentation' (a ballad concerning the renegade drafting of immigrants for the civil war), and 'Unconstant Lover' (a very traditional Irish song) are perfect glimpses of the life of this forgotten sub-culture. Other songs like 'Dark moon, high tide', 'Shimmy she wobble', and 'Dionysus' are contemporary pieces that recall the period by some of the best names in this genre. The scoring by Howard Shore ('The Fellowship of the Ring') is undeniably beautiful, and the pop pieces by U2 and Peter Gabriel bring the music full circle as the generation that was secured by these early immigrants pays their respect. It's a must-have CD for anyone interested in musical history or Celtic music.

Howard Shore ("Lord of the Rings") provides an excellent Celtic-like score that serves as a very good background for Martin Scorcese's latest movie. Complementing his work, the two biggest highlights are the first track of the movie (during the first battle), which is an instrumental version of the song "Signal to Noise" taken from Peter Gabriel's most recent production, 'UP'; and "The Hands That Built America" by U2, which plays along the final credits.

this is for "drifter855"

the music you are searching for, when the soldiers shoot at the mob is: "vows" from jeff johnson & brian dunning
featured on their album "byzantium"

An awesome mix of songs and score that capture the film to it's very soul. If it wasn't for the ommision of the beautiful track that plays when DiCaprio reluctently dances with Diaz this soundtrack would've felt complete. Hopefully a sequel album will be released so we can enjoy more of the astounding 86 music pieces used in the movie.

while in the movie the music sounded excellent, here it just chaotic...I loved the irish/cosmopolitan sounds that were the background for movie action,but without movie it sounds empty.
but some tracks stand alone proudly - these are the Afro celt sound system,U2's "hands that built america" and different version of "Signal to noise" from Peter Gabriel's "Up" album...
i love the movie, but as is said before,without movie it doesn't sound the same...

I bought the album for 1 song. 'New York Girls" by Finbar Furey. I was pleased that in addition to U2's song, "The Hands that Built America", the other music thouroughly captured the movie in mood and feel.

can anyone tell me the name of the song thats playing when Leo DiCaprio meets Bill (Daniel Day-Lewis) for the first time? Its like some Irish drinking song....My dear Annie?

Charlie Wiggins: the name of the track you're looking for is the track no.5 - Shimmy She Wobble - Othar Turner. Love that tune too. Peace