Customer Reviews

Violet Journey

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a cd that the more you listen, the more you'll be amazed. First, Orianthi's guitar playing will astound you, then her singing and song writing kicks in and finally, once you realize she played all the instruments and sang all of the vocals (OK at least 99% of them) and did this as a teenager, you know the future is going to be big for her. She plays and sings from the heart. Santana-esque guitar licks, vocal range from Michelle Branch's innocence to in your face rock to soulful blues - she truly is the total package. Enjoy!

There are very few guitarists, artists, songwriters, or albums that really matter. Albums where the musician is so good, the songs are so well crafted, the band works so well, the production is so top-notch, that everything else you listen to completely pales by comparison.

I recently made a list for a friend, of very best albums ever made (I figured he was smart enough to guess Sgt. Pepper)

On the list were things like:
Buffalo Springfield Again
Procol Harum's A Whiter Shade of Pale
Love's Forever Changes and Da Capo
Jeff Beck's Truth and Who Else!
Eric Johnson's Ah Via Musicom
Elegant Gypsy by Al DiMeola
the Mahavishnu Orchestra's Between Nothingness and Eternity
Caravanserai, Lotus, Borboletta, and Illuminations by Santana
the first Shakti album
Love Devotion Surrender by Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin
A Long Time Comin' by the Electric Flag
the Bluesbreakers album by John Mayall and Eric Clapton
Are You Experienced? and Electric Ladyland by Jimi Hendrix
High 61 Revisted by Bob Dylan

And right alongside those albums was Violet Journey by Orianthi.

This wonder from down under named Orianthi has been playing since the age of four, classically trained, and has been writing and recording her own albums for years.

I've been playing guitar for 36 years, and when by chance I landed on a web page playing "Lights of Manos," from this album, I was stunned.

By the time I had heard four notes I realized I was hearing something completely unique and way better than anything else out there, period.

"Lights of Manos" and the videos I saw on YouTube set some pretty doggone high expectations.

So I discovered who it was I was listening to--this Orianthi. Someone who appeared at NAMM onstage with Carlos Santana, and elsewhere with Steve Vai. Someone who Carlos Santana was saying was the only and the best new guitarist worth considering, who Paul Reed Smith himself said "will just blow your mind."

Well, after hearing this album just once, I have to say it. CARLOS AND PAUL WERE RIGHT.

This album exceeded those high expectations. It has completely blown my mind.

This is an album, an artist, a guitarist who matters. Who matters enough to go on stage this year--unknown--at Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival.

There's not a single song on this CD that doesn't work, not a single solo that doesn't hit the perfect spot, not a single vocal that isn't perfect, not a single tone that doesn't give you an audio orgasm.

Frankly, since I got it I have not been able to put it down. I have not been able to stop playing it.

Orianthi does a whole lot more or this album than just play the hell out of her Paul Reed Smith like absolutely nobody else. She sings and writes just as well as she plays.

Except for the drums on two songs and one background vocal, Orianthi played every single note on this album HERSELF--bongos, drums, keyboards, acoustic guitar, synthesizers--EVERYTHING. She even produced, engineeered and mastered the whole thing.

So get yourself a copy of this monster album by this absolute monster of a guitarist, and find out what Carlos Santana and Paul Reed Smith are raving about.

The monster artist we've been waiting for has arrived. Her name is Orianthi.

This prodigy from Austrailia lives up to her reputation on this CD.
The guitar playing moves from eloquent to firey. If you are looking for some solid, creative, lift you out of your seat guitar, this is it.
It is little wonder why Steve Vai had her as his warm up on his American Tour.

An extremely impressive debut by someone very talented. Anyone who can write, sing, and produce an album they play nearly all the instruments on is someone special, especially someone only 20 years old when it all happened. Very impressive Santana-esque guitar solos and bluesy vocals. Opinions may differ, but I like this much more than it's successor, Believe, because the overall sound seems more natural and relaxed. I wish Orianthi would stop referring to Believe as her debut album, because *this* is her true debut and it's one to be really, really proud of.

This is a more instrumental cd, and it really shows how great is Orianthi with her guitar. Really good for those who enjoy classic rock guitar music.

Amazing project from a young Greek/Aussie female guitar prodigy. The liner notes say Orianthi laid down almost all of the tracks herself (all vocals, guitar, bass, & some drums), mostly while still a teenager! Lots of varied styles from jazzy to hard rock. She's a featured artist for Paul Reed Smith guitars, was selected as the featured guitarist for Michael Jackson's "This Is It" tour, and has performed onstage with Carlos Santana, Steve Vai, & Eric Clapton. This is a great import CD and worth every penny. Not a bad track on it, seriously. The Amazon vendor, (...), provided excellent quick shipping. Ori is now breaking through on the pop charts with her newest CD, "Believe", also excellent. Check her out!

An awesome album by a great new guitarist/singer. This is the young lady seen on the Michael Jackson footage of his last practice. She sounds very much like Carlos Santana and it was worth the extra "off-shore" price for this gem of an album. Keep in mind when listening that she wrote all the songs and plays virtually all the instruments and doing vocals and backgrounds, at 20 years old.

One of the best albums of all time! Ori's first CD "Violet Journey" gives me chills it's so good! Her soul comes out in every track, and hits you in the gut! Her amazing guitar skills and superb voice deliver her considerable song writing talent with incredible effect! Buy this and her 2nd CD, "Believe" - they're worth every penny!

Okay, so I fell in love with Orianthi when i saw her play the solo to 'beat it' by Michael Jackson, in this is it, and went home to see what else she was involved in. I listened to the few songs she has on her youtube, and loved them, but wished she focused a little more on her guitar, and playing rock and blues, than the poppy radio friendly stuff on Believe (which is still great).

I bought this album just last week, and it was the answer I was looking for. She does everything from slow soft blues songs, to hard rock instrumentals, to pop songs with ripping solos. I couldn't ask for a better album. Not to mention that she played all of the instruments on every track and recorded/mixed/produced the whole album with no help.

There is something special about this girl, and it doesnt take more than the first few tracks of the album to realize that. Steve Vai, Carlos Santana, and Paul Reed Smith himself all agree with me, so obviously she's worth checking out. You will not be disappointed.

I am one of those people who saw the video clip from Michael Jackson's last rehearsal and wondered who that blonde guitar player was. Thanks to modern technology (i.e. Google), I quickly found out who she was.

The next thing I did was go to Youtube to check out some of her work, and I was amazed. I strongly suggest you do the same if you haven't.

Orianthi was born the same year that Michael Jackson co-wrote "We are the World". And, during his memorial, when the time came to sing the lines that Michael sang in the original recording, the job was given to Orianthi. She has a wide range of vocal styles, but she chose to use that soft voice that Michael used, and it was a very touching moment.

Do not let Orianthi's beauty and youth fool you. She has the skills and the soul of somebody much older and much more experienced. It sometimes seems as if her mind and body are inhabited by dozens of people of varied ages, races, nationalities, and genders.

"Violet Journey" was recorded in 2005. She wrote, produced, recorded, and mixed it herself. She brought in drummers for a few tracks, but aside from those, she played every instrument (including drums). And, aside from her sister Tina doing backup vocals on one song, Ori did all the lead and backup vocals.

So, this CD is a 19 year old girl doing everything.....with nobody telling her what she can or can't do....or what she should or shouldn't do....etc. In some ways, that is the real beauty of this CD. It is extremely polished, but in a sense, it is "raw" Orianthi.

The CD showcases Ori's variety of styles and talents (which is why it is impossible to describe her "style" in this review). I'm guessing that this was her intention. Since "Violet Journey", Ori signed with Geffen, and a new CD is due to be released soon. It will be interesting to see if some producer has gotten her to go in one particular direction or if the new cd is a continuation of her exploration and exploitation of a variety of musical styles.

"Violet Journey" is good music. Every track has a lot of stuff in it, so you can listen to each track multiple times and appreciate each one more and more each time.

But, hearing good music is not the only reason to buy this CD. At 24 years of age, Ori's possibilities are seemingly unlimited, and you will probably want to buy "Violet Journey" sooner or later. You can buy it later to try to learn how she got from "there to here", or you can buy it now and enjoy following her as she goes from "here to there".