Sir Henry At Rawlinson End [Extra tracks, Import]

Vivian Stanshall | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 1, 1989)
• Original Release Date: November 7, 1980
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Extra tracks, Import
• Label: EMI Import
• ASIN: B0000082FB
• Also Available in: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #167,428 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Vivian Stanshall is GOD!, June 18, 2000

By 

George T. Parsons (Nevada City, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sir Henry At Rawlinson End (Audio CD)

Vivian Stanshall "Sir Henry At Rawlinson End" Started as a track on the Bonzo Dog Band's final album Let's Make Up and Be Friendly from `72, later Vivian extended the concept a bit through a series of appearances on John Peel's radio program. In `78 He recorded this full length album dedicated to Sir Henry the Lord of Rawlinson End, and his moribund clan, which inspired the film starring the late Trevor Howard and Stanshall himself as Sir Henry (if you can find a video let me know, I have looked high and low.), Trevor said it was his favorite film performance. In `83 he recorded Sir Henry at Ndidi's Kraal, which takes our titular "hero" on an incredibly disgusting and hilarious safari. Sir Henry At Rawlinson End is a series of extended narrative descriptions in some of the most hallucinatorily delirious celebrations of the English language this side of Mervyn Peake, intermixed with songs sung from the POV's of the extremely weird cast of characters. Taking the concept of the English eccentric to it's illogical extreme, we're taken inside the minds and lives of an extended family of completely disfunctional lunatics. Great short stories and songs all delivered by one of the most thoroughly British voices and visions ever recorded, with tasty multi-instrumental assistance from his pal Steve Winwood (Stanshall returned the favor by writing lyrics to several songs for Winwood).

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Poet-laureate that never was, August 5, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Sir Henry At Rawlinson End (Audio CD)

The finest 20th Century English poet is yet to be realised as thus. Vivian Stanshall, very sadly missed, had such a magical grasp of his native language, changing yet changeless as canal water, that no matter how inebriated, one cannot hope to compare. My only enduring hero from my teenage years. Please, do yourself a favour, buy this sublime work of art.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Limp hand squids... prepare for whacks..., March 8, 2002

By 

Steven Cain (Temporal Quantum Pocket) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sir Henry At Rawlinson End (Audio CD)

It is almost inconceivable that one person could have crafted this work of genius, yet Stanshall did. Rawlinson is one of the few recorded pieces in which virtually every line is indispensible. Even Sir Henry's throw away expressions such as "Filth Hounds of Hades", "God's teeth and trousers" and "God's turban and tutu" carry with them all the weight of the hekau or Power Words of the ancient cultures.

I had the good fortune to catch the Bonzos farewell tour, and even for a battle-hardened Bonzo Dog nut such as myself, Rawlinson was a revelation. The richness and uniqueness of the many colourful characters gives tremendous depth to this hilarious creation from the mind of the late and truly great Viv Stanshall.

No review, however detailed, could possibly do justice to this complex masterpiece, although George Thomas Parsons came dang close. I shall merely humbly beseech you to buy it on trust. One word of caution, however... If you are an asthmatic, you MUST have a Salbutamol inhaler at the ready!

Blast this leg, by cracky...