Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas (1996 Spoken Word Adaptation) [CAST RECORDING] [LIMITED EDITION]

Hunter S. Thompson, Buck Henry, Maury Chaykin, Jim Jarmusch, Jimmy Buffett

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 19, 1996)
• Original Release Date: November 25, 1996
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Cast Recording, Limited Edition
• Label: Island
• ASIN: B000001EAI
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #44,721 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Beware dramatizations of unique literary works. Two years before critics pummeled the 1998 screen version of Hunter S. Thompson's tale of drug madness in Sin City, this audio rendition of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas brought the ugly story to life. Fans of the book might prefer this recording to the film since it preserves more of Thompson's high-octane narrative. With Jim Jarmusch and Harry Dean Stanton sharing the Thompson/Raoul Duke role, this CD brings to life some of the book's more shocking scenes, making all too real what was merely amusing on the page. It's smartly done, even bringing in guitarist (and Keith Richards sideman) Waddy Wachtel to recreate "Sympathy for the Devil." But it's no substitute for the book itself. --Steve Appleford

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars catches the tone well, August 14, 2002

By	Chas (UK) - See all my reviews

I really enjoyed this adaptation of one of my favourite books. It is funny and having become very familiar with the prose I think it is a faithful attempt by the creators to make something that reflects the material well. It makes me laugh and the main advantage of the format is that I can enjoy the book whilst driving. How cool is that?

13 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Well, how would YOU have interpreted it?, June 16, 2001

By	Brent (Ohio) - See all my reviews

All of my other fellow "reviewers" above/below, whatever, seem to be going out of their way to show the world how "hip," how...dare I say this, "gonzo" they are in describing this CD. You're missing the whole point, folks: YOU weren't "there," it's wasn't YOUR "trip," so how dare you have the temerity to say THIS "interpretation" is "incorrect?" I think Duke himself left the verbiage in "Fear And Loathing" purposefully vague, so as to let the reader use his OWN imagination regarding, say, "senzaman wazzyneeds," or "dead grandmother crawling up his leg with a knife in her teeth," or "with the right kind of eyes, you can almost see where the wave crested and broke." Indeed, it's kind of like that old Charles M. Young album review of 'Woodstock' in 'Rolling Stone,' where a female protagonist is saying to someone who is being OH-so-hip, "that's why there will never BE a 'Woodstock Nation,' you won't let anybody share your trip." But, hey, since we're all being so "subjective," and all, let me throw in MY opinion about something: be a little real, Jimmy Buffett portraying the cop that pulled Duke over in the desert? Right, SURE: that's about like Tiny Tim doing the voice of Gonzo...on a more positive closing note though, Harry Dean Stanton's narration is absolutely perfect, and the music is fantastic, PARICULARLY Waddy Wachtel's note-for-note rendition of "Sympathy For The Devil." Buy the ticket and take your OWN ride, people.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars fantastic, January 11, 2007

By	John Mckellep "new father" (Canada) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

this adaptation of the book was so much better than the movie version with johnny depp. the voice acting had so much more feeling and it was more true to the voices i had in my head when reading the book. don't get me wrong i liked the movie but this version will always be what i hear when reading the book over and over again.