Customer Reviews

Stand Ye Steady: Songs of Courage & Inspiration

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

 

 

Brilliant singing, great arrangements, beautiful and inspiring music. All sung by the phenomenal West Point Cadet Glee Club. Add Broadway star Lea Salonga and tenor Daniel Rodriguez and it's a tour de force recording of timeless material. I urge anyone who loves choral music and just plain great singing to buy this disc! You will not be disappointed. Performed in the magnificent chapel at West Point, the sound is incredible also. 5 Stars!!!

Wonderful songs and wonderful renditions of the songs. I must say, though, that the numbers would have been better if they were performed with more "ooomph" (for instance, "The Star Spangled Banner" could have been sung with more power and the arrangement could have used more creativity). The wisest decision on this CD was the inclusion of the numbers from Ms. Lea Salonga (whose hauntingly beautiful voice is able to effectively draw listeners in) and Daniel Rodriguez, one of America's newest tenors. Overall a good CD.

When I saw and heard this music broadcast Veteran's Day on TBN and my friends serving in our Armed Forces in Iraq saw it broadcast on Armed Forces Network, I was so happy to find the stereo CD and companion Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound DVD on Amazon. I cannot stop listening to it! The 60 minute musical program, reminiscent of the great concept albums of years ago, is one of the most reverent, intelligent and passionate portrayals of America's character ever produced. It contains many styles of choral music - all superbly performed by the world famous Cadet Glee Club of West Point arrayed in breathtaking formation on the altar of the massive 100 year old Cadet Chapel. There are richly textured vocal a capella songs such as "Rise Up O Men of God", "Manisons of the Lord", one of the most popular new hymns written, and "America (My Country `Tis of Thee)". Your buttons will burst with pride when you hear the brand new song "Men of Freedom" introduced by a single Cadet then followed by a cascade of additional voices building to a unified and thunderous declaration of defiant freedom in a style reminiscent of the great Welsh Male Choirs. Four songs highlight the power and majesty of the largest church organ in the world. You'll have to fight the urge to stand at attention when you hear and feel its power kick in on "Lest We Forget", "On Great Lone Hills", "Jerusalem" and "This Christmastide". The musical variety is further enhanced by the addition of brass and percussion for the rousing marches, "The Longest Day" and "Non Nobis". When was the last time you heard these two songs - one by world famous singer, songwriter and teen idol, Paul Anka and the other a medieval celebration of thanksgiving sung in Latin! The rich background vocals of the Cadet Glee Club musically frame two songs that underpin the message of this album - Bravery and Sacrifice. "Into the Fire" by NYPD's Daniel Rodriguez made me want to immediately rise up and rush to anyone's aid and when he holds that note at the end - wow! Tony Award Winner Lea Salonga's performance of the classic Christian hit, "Via Dolorosa", (one of the top 50 Christian songs of all time), is "The Passion of the Christ" embodied in a 5 minute song. You will alternate between tears and goose bumps. Her performance of the Spanish stanza will overwhelm you. Finally, Irish song writing master, Phil Coulter's wistful "Take Me Home" is accompanied by beautiful piano and guitar and introduced by a new poem entitled "I Am A Soldier" that is sobering reminder of the oath our soldiers swear to and the actions they are bound to take. God bless them!

A great bonus of the CD and DVD is that they both include a stylish lyric booklet as well as commentary by the producer on why he chose each song.

On the back cover of the CD and DVD cases is the statement that this production was created to honor the men and women of our Armed Forces, past and present, and the great values of America that they defend. This it surely does!! Also, it states that the producer is contributing a portion of his wholesale proceeds from its sale to organizations assisting our wounded soldiers. Bravo, Mr. Coppi.

A wonderful album of inspirational and exceptional music. You can go to the Daniel Rodriguez official website and see a live stream of him doing this song with the West Point choir. Magnificent! Check on his website Multimedia page to see it at www.danielrodriguezmusic.com/

The CD is exactly as advertised and exactly what I wanted. It is a collection of music aimed at Men of Honor. There may be a limited audience for this CD, but the audience is a great one.

Exceptional CD. Inspirational and motivational. Highy recommend this for anyone seeking great quality music.

I bought this CD originally because it has Mansions Of The Lord and Jerusalem on it. Both are terrific. But there are some gems that were unexpected. Men Of Freedom (the lyrics were written in response to 9/11), sung to the tune Men Of Harlech, which I knew only as the song sung during the movie Zulu; America, which I hadn't really listened to in years and especially Into The Fire with Daniel Rodriguez all really touched me. This is a beautiful work of art.

I found this CD while looking for something and when I heard the selections I ordered immediately, that was in 2004. I recommended it to friends and shared it with the music teacher in my school. In 2008 it became a comfort to me when my only son was killed in combat in Iraq. I listened to the words of "Into the Fire and "I Am a Soldier" for comfort and strength. In 2009 Mr. Doug Coppi was gracious enough to permit the music to be used at the dedication of a Soldier's Cross on Memorial Day at our cities Veteran's Memorial. Worth the buy if you have a heart of patriotism and love of country!

Great music by a fantastic group of whom we are so proud. Recommend this cd highly. we need more of this type of music

I truly enjoy listening to this CD over and over. I also purchased the video of this same CD which takes me back to my days at the Academy many years ago. Amazon is just my best source of purhasing anything and everything. Although I can buy through the military, tax free, Amazon most often beats their prices. Before I buy anything, I always check with Amazon first. Great service, prompt responses to purchases, delivery date and mode. If Amazon doesn't have it, they link you to someone who does. Outstanding!