Customer Reviews

Return To The Centre Of The Earth

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

once again we are treated to some of the finest talent available today. Having been a fan of Rick's for 27 years, and with solid memories of a televized performance of the original 'Journey...' back in 1974, I heartily endorse this wonderful return to a time when musical talent was the cornerstone of an album, when the artists transport us into a world of vision and aural stimulation far removed from the present. In that true Wakeman ability to mix the worlds of rock and classical, 'Return...' is so much more than a remix or sequel; rather a whole new set of songs, with Patrick Stewart's superb narrative painting crisp pictures in our minds. The varied vocalists do an awesome job of bringing a variety of styles. Who would have believed Ozzy Osbourne doing such a fine job in a Wakeman piece? My favorite is probably Bonnie Tyler in 'Is Anybody There', a piece we can all relate to in the quiet hours of the morning. I recommend this album to all Wakeman fans and any others tired of the computerized drivel forced upon us today. A big "good job!" to Rick and crew on this refreshing work.

Easily the most incredible album I've heard so far this year. Rick Wakeman combines the best aspects of both Rock and Classical Music styles and in the process has given the term 'Symphonic Rock' a new meaning with this CD. The Rock aspect of the album is definitely Classic in every sense of the word, and the Classical aspect most definitely Rocks!

While Rick Wakeman more than merits Five Stars for this album, so do the guest singers on this CD, although Ozzy Osbourne and Trevor Rabin stand head and shoulders above the rest and as for Patrick Stewart ... well, this album would not be the same were it not for him.

Having never heard of it, I saw this album at a large department store and picked it up thinking it was simply a new re-recording of "Journey To The Centre Of the Earth", (which as always been a favourite of mine) only this time using the digital technologies of nowadays. But to my utter amazement it turned out to be a completely new work, based on the former title, but featuring entirely new music and lyrics. And, as I listened to it that night, lights off, I just couldn't believe how good it was, I am not exaggerating at all when I say I thought it couldn't be real, I was just dreaming. From the very first track I remained there, in total disbelief of finding each track as good or better than the former one, from the narrator's very first words to the final choral climax. It hasn't even a single bad track, all of them are either very good or extraordinary, and there are plenty of them because this CD is some 77 min. long. The sound quality is absolutely superb, among my top 5 CDs (and I've got some 1,500+), in breathtaking Dolby Surround, boistering both the deepest bass and the cleanest high frequencies you can imagine. The styles are also incredibly varied, both vocal and instrumental, as are the featured singers and even the production is also beyond belief, with some awesome graphics and booklet. On top of that, the narrator is no other than Patrick Stewart, i.e: Star Trek TNG's Captain Picard himself. His voice talent adds a new dimension to this already wonderful masterpiece with all kinds of subtleties and nuances, as well as perfect tempo and intonation that lead you straight into the story, as if you were there. His performance is on a par to Richard Burton's classic one in "The War of the Worlds". The arrangements, the orchestra, the chorus, even the incidental music which serves as background to the narrative, all are of the utmost quality, which you can appreciate in every minor detail such as the fact that the track numbering has been indexed in such a way that you can easily program your CD reader to either listen to just the narrative or just the music if you so desire, and the booklet doesn't forget to tell you about it! Briefly, this is an absolute masterpiece which will let you wondering in awe as you go discovering layer after layer of complex harmonies. It's difficult to single out a "best track", but then "The Dance of a Thousand Lights" and "The Kill" will no doubt leave a deep impression in your musical soul. A must.

In a brilliant blend of choral, symphonic, electronic and rock music within a fascinating story based on Jules Verne's original "Journey," Rick Wakeman has produced his masterpiece. This is by far the best work Rick has ever done, and it should go down in the books as the greatest progressive rock work ever recorded. Anyone wanting to hear the London Symphony "rock out" while still maintaining that symphonic sound should DEFINITELY check this out.

Not only will the music turn you on your ear, but the story is really interesting as well. Patrick Stewart's narration is great. It's difficult for this reviewer to fathom how all of this came from one man's mind. Rick is truly a musical genius and a mastermind at his craft. Kudos to Rick, and kudos to EMI Classics for taking on such a progressive project.

This album belongs in everyone's collection. It's absolutely amazing.

I may be biased because Rick Wakeman is my all-time favorite musician, but I've heard one or two bores among his MANY solo albums. By Rick's own confession, Journey to the Centre of the Earth was a work he wanted to revisit and give it the treatment it deserves.

So he gathers an all star team of performers (I love most of them - it was as if I had half the votes :-) and writes broadly connected compositions with each performer in mind. For example, he wrote a beautiful song for Justin Heyward and a heavy metal song for Ozzy Osbourne. It's safe to say that those two could not have reversed roles. The same went for Trevor Rabin, Bonnie Tyler and Katrina Leskanich (from Katrina & the Waves.) I had not heard of Tony Mitchell before, but I was not impressed by his song.

Bookending and included throughout the album was a good rock band, The London Symphony Orchestra and The English Chamber Choir. The latter two appeared in the original Journey.... Of course, Patrick Stewart was an excellent choice for narration (again, I am biased as a Trekkie.) The first, last and four other tracks were just Rick, rock band, orchestra, choir.

I thought the pacing and flow throughout the album was excellent. The story is pretty good for a keyboardist trying to be Jules Vern - don't go in with lofty expectations of a tremendous plotline. The focus is on the music for a reason. The rock band held their own, but the choir and orchestra turned in a command performance that moved me emotionally. Couple that with the best keyboardist of our time, and you've got a masterpiece. The first track was a great setup musically and the last track was the most dramatic finish you can have without sounding bombastic.

I normally don't recommend albums like this for outside of Yes fans or Progressive Rock fans. But this album is a unique musical experience that most music fans will appreciate.

i see lot of people here that rate this album with one star, its awfully!, this album is a master piece symphonic prog rock, good vocal players, fortunately ashley holt is not here, i mean i buy this album just for the dance of the thousand lights!, a master piece, and you know you can give your opinion about this album if you dont listen to it lot of times, rick wakeman music is complex, is not eaasy listening, have a chance and buy it, it is from piano and orchestra, and new age narrations, from the symphonic prog rock,and check buried alive with ozzy osburne voice, suport artist like rick this is a quality album!!!! Buy it now!.

I'm a Rick Wakeman fan from way back, and I really did want to like this CD. There are some parts of it that I really did enjoy. I thought the music was great...though I did have trouble hearing/understanding the choir on my old 2-channel stereo system. (The disc is mastered for surround...don't know if that had anything to do with that or not.) I also liked Patrick Stewart's narration...a quieter, smoother job than the original. But the songs.... You know, in the original Journey, the songs acted to move the story along, or to enhance a point of action or character...the same way a traditional musical does. But in Return, the songs have only the barest connection to what's going on at best. It's as if they were simply dropped in, in hopes of selling singles later on down the line. There's almost no connection to the story or characters...and that really hurts this CD for me. With properly written lyrics that helped propel the story and enhance the mood of it, this CD could have been awesome. As it is...it's OK to pretty good. Disappointed? Yes. But I would say it's worth a listen for Wakeman fans, if for no other reason than Wakeman's music, which rocks.

The 1st album I ever bought, featured Rick in his debut with Yes (1971 Fragile). The 3rd album I bought was The six Wives of Henry VII, followed very soon after by the original 'Journey to the Centre of the Earth'. I now have a great many (but not all) of his albums from those days onward. More than three decades!

I have to admit, I was looking forward to hearing the 'Return to the Centre of the Earth' and was not disappointed. A complete new journey with new musical characters and that Wakeman flair for musical story telling. A great 'listen to' album. I recommend taking the original Journey, then make the Return.

Why I didn't give 5 stars. Although I really like anything I have heard by Rick, my personal preferences lie closer to his 'New Age' style recordings, where Rick's awesome keyboard talents are much more to the foreground.

To fans of Rick, this is a must have.

This CD is a welcome addition to the very short list of narrated story albums. As an album, it is good. As a sequel, it is fantastic.

This CD is a sequel to the 1974 album, "Journey to the Centre of the Earth". However, while the 1974 album was recorded live, and was limited to one album of about 40 minutes, this CD was a studio production and runs for a phenomenal 76 minutes. What a great 76 minutes it is. There are keyboards (duh - it's Rick Wakeman), guitars, drums, a full orchestra, a choir, songs by Yes compatriot Trevor Rabin, fellow prog rocker Justin Hayward of the Moody Blues, Katrina Leskanich of Katrina and the Waves, Bonnie Tyler ("It's A Heartache"), Tony Mitchell and the one and only Oz-man, Ozzy Osbourne, and a great narration by Patrick (Captain Picard) Stewart. At this point you know you need to read no more, this is a good album.

If you subtract the vocal performances, you find this album is reminiscent of the original. However, the production is substantially better, and you have a feeling that the concept is more fully realized compared to the original. When you add back the vocals, this album becomes fully realized plus.

All the vocals are good, but some stand out above the others. I think the best is probably Ozzy Osbourne's "Buried Alive". I would like to pick which I think is second best, but it's just too darn hard. I like the rest as well. The range of vocals runs from mellow to Ozzy's rocking "Buried Alive" and Katrina's "Ride of Your Life".

Are there any downsides to this album? I'm going to scrunch myself down really small when I say this. The choir gets just a bit annoying in a place or two. The choir is fantastic. Their vocals are great. However, you can have too much of a good thing. Near the end I probably would have cut their vocals back just a touch to finish off the album a little more quickly. A small thing really. It is possible that other listeners may enjoy the choir and wish there had been more of them.

One more teeny little complaint: Rick Wakeman should get a little help on his lyrics. As a composer, he is awesome, as a lyricist, well, let's say that he's a very good composer.

The story here is complete from the beginning to the end, thus putting this album into the same class as Jeff Wayne's "War of the Worlds". I've always enjoyed stories on albums, and have a complete story set to an appropriate musical background, including a variety of rock songs, makes this album one of the best in class. This album certainly ranks with "War of the Worlds" in concept and execution.

If you liked the original "Journey to the Centre of the Earth", or Jeff Wayne's "War of the Worlds", or any of Rick Wakeman's other albums, then this album is an absolute must have. In the story album genre, this one gets 5 stars plus.

Actually, yes it can. But not being an artist myself,
I don't know how! Really, though, I'm on about my
tenth listening or so. Don't expect a repeat of the
original. Maybe a little dissapointing at first, but
Oh, the payoff! Just as I've long known not to judge
a progressive album right away, so with this.

So much more mature and polihed than the first. And,
with even more emotion! Highly recommended.