The Six Wives Of Henry VIII: Live At Hampton Court Palace [Live]

Rick Wakeman | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 13, 2009)
• Original Release Date: 2009
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Live
• Label: Eagle Records (Fontana)
• ASIN: B002MUR4MS
• In-Print Editions: Blu-ray  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #173,311 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Rick Wakeman's "The Six Wives Of Henry VIII" is one of the landmark albums of the seventies, a critical and commercial success that has sold in excess of 15 million copies worldwide. In May 2009, Rick Wakeman finally achieved his long held dream of performing the entire album live at Hampton Court Palace. It was the first time the whole album had ever been performed in concert & included the Henry VIII track "Defender Of The Faith," that had to be cut from the original album for space reasons, plus new opening and closing pieces. The two spectacular sell out concerts were a never to be repeated event and this live CD shows why they will live long the memory of all those fortunate enough to attend.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Six Wives Live, Live, October 14, 2009

By 

Douglas Harr ""rock music aficionado"" (San Francisco, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Six Wives Of Henry VIII [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray)

I've seen Rick perform over the years as a solo artist, with Yes and with his son Adam, but never were any of those performances staged with all the musicians required to really represent his early work. So it was with great excitement that I noticed a small advertisement for the special engagements at Hampton Court in celebration of King Henry the 8ths 500th anniversary, where Rick presented "Six Wives" in it's entirely to small audiences of 5,000 patrons on May 1st and 2nd, 2009. This was to be my first and possibly last chance to finally see Rick with full orchestra and choir, and though I have never traveled overseas specifically to attend a concert, this seemed like the right time to do it, and the show was absolutely a dream come true.

This DVD very effectively captures the performance, in stunning high definition, with every track and bit of narration included. It will give you a very accurate impression of the actual show, particularly if you turn up the volume! My only quibble is that there was no camera placed above Rick's head to give you frequent shots of his hands at work. So you don't get the first full view of his playing until 27 min. into the concert. Making up for this is the sheer scope of what there is to see here, including 5 piece band, orchestra, choir, narrator, and the castle itself, which is really a key part of the experience. [...]
As for this DVD, get it! Doug

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wakeman Comes Alive, November 6, 2009

By 

Jerome Bush "JBUSH" (Louisiana) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Six Wives Of Henry VIII [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray)

My, my! I always loved the original, but this concert was nothing short of unbelievable. I can't believe how fast a person's fingers can move. Rick may have aged in his physical appearance (we all do), but there's nothing that's changed in his ability to write and play--except that through decades of experience, he's gotten better.

I am a drummer, and I love different time signatures, but it's quite another thing to write those songs, employ those changing time signatures, and play marvelouly across them. A drummer develops a pattern to fit the time, but Rick has to play melodies across them. Just gorgeous.

I bought the blu-ray. The video quality was so clear, I thought I might just be in the audience. The light show that continued throughout the show was lovely at times, vibrant at others. The sound was crystal clear. I always judge the high end by how well I can hear the cymbals: they were beautiful. I'm not a big fan of electronic drums (always prefer accoustic), but they sounded great, and I'm always amazed by left-handed drummers. He was perfectly in time (and in tune) with Wakeman.

The choir...glorious. Dramatic and perfectly balanced. The orchestra was balanced as well (though I thought the electtic bass drowned out the orchestra's basses). Loved the lady trombone player. The marimba and xylophone were well played, and I could hear them.

The standout musician (beside Rick Wakeman) was Ray Cooper. He seems to enjoy playing, and he has the talent to back it up (used to play percussion with Elton John and a host of others). He's equally adept at congas, tambourine, cymbal rolls. He adds so much spice to the concert. He's been playing since the 60s (at least), so he's been around forever. [...]

Sum it up? Fantastic DVD. Get the blu-ray. Worth every penny, and the little book with the history of Henry the Eighth is worth the price of the DVD itself.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars After 36 Years...worth the wait, October 31, 2009

By 

Terry P. Powers - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Six Wives Of Henry VIII: Live At Hampton Court Palace (Audio CD)

Well...the liner notes alone are worth the $11.95. Rick has always been a humorist, (I think he would have been a wonderful T.V. host if he hadn't done music instead)and he shares a few stories about the old days and the making of this album that are a treat. I never noticed Richard Nixon on the album cover...did you? He had petitioned Hampton Court to perform this album back in 1973 but was turned down. Now, 36 years later in front of a very enthusiastic crowd, a full orchestra, and a full choir, Rick brings a fresh performance of his debut album to DVD, and the sound was great. I didn't particularly care for his friend reading notes about all 6 of the wives inbetween each song, but otherwise Rick's performance was a classic. He has lost none of his abilities with age, even donning the shimmering gold cape and ascending a lighted staircase to play the pipe organ on Jane Seymour. If you've ever been a fan of Rick's keyboard mastery, you will enjoy this DVD a lot. A fresh take on an all time classic...ENJOY!