Gods and Generals
John Frizzell and Randy Edelman
" Stirring music for Gods and Generals "Written by Thomas Glorieux - Review of the deluxe edition
John Frizzell was the kind of composer that got noticed pretty early in his career, suddenly lost that attention he so fruitfully gained and got back on the saddle several years later. Scoring Dante's Peak and Alien Resurrection in his prime time, the world was about to open for composer John Frizzell. Yet it didn't last and just after Thirteen Ghosts, Ghost Ship and especially Gods and Generals he made a modest comeback.
Gods and Generals is the prequel to the successful movie Gettysburg which received a very stirring yet sadly synthesized score by Randy Edelman. Still, for whatever reason, people were looking forward to hear Randy Edelman repeating his voice, developing his style and composing his material for the prequel as well. Yet this time the scoring assignment fell mostly to the baton of Frizzell, with Edelman composing only several minutes of the entire score.
Included on the disc are two songs which open and end the score. Mary Fahl's "Going Home" is very enjoyable and Bob Dylan is Bob Dylan, performing in two minutes what will be endlessly repeated in the next six minutes, being such an over-long song for the finish. Even though the score doesn't contain exactly what I wanted, the overall consistency and above all wide arsenal of themes still make it a rather enjoyable to listen to album.
This large set of themes makes it even after minimum 3 listens extremely difficult to actually pinpoint at a specific moment which theme you are listening to. Just several are instantly recognizable and one of them is the impressive main theme in "Gods and Generals", a glorious powerful hymn with full choir and drums. It therefore opens this score with magnitude, yet sadly it barely gets this powerful again. This is repeated in "You'll Thank Me in the Morning".
The overall score is, apart from several tracks, a very calm and beautiful listen. The themes overall roll from left to right with grace and dignity, but this also makes it the listen I didn't expect whatsoever. Especially the first two listens resulted in a rather boring experience because I wanted more epic battle music, and none of this calm material. But after several listens, it does open your eyes and ears. "Loved I not Honor More" captures the main theme on piano and "Lexington is my Home" displays the first sign of the violin, performed by Mark O' Connor.
Yet if you want to talk about the real highlights and the tracks that really make it worth it, then initially two tracks spring to mind. "The School of the Soldier" is a beautiful and playful piece, and here two themes are mixed through each other, bringing each one a greater sense of melody. There's a fanfare that's very close to the material Edelman composed for Gettysburg that is very striking, and frankly it should have been used a lot more often.
Luckily it resurfaces one time, and how! The highlight of the score in general has the wonderful heroic fanfare of track 6 returning this time with full choir in "To the Stone Wall" (I'm talking about the moment on 1.13). The other brilliant thing about it is the flawless transition from this theme to the one heard in track 3, making sure there is surely depth to be found in Frizzell's writing.
The tracks of Edelman aren't bad as well. Orchestral and different from the style of Gettysburg, they mesh pretty well with Frizzell's material. The warm and soft "My Heart Shall Not Fear", the wonderful Irish theme on uilleann pipes in "These Brave Irishmen" and the emotional piano in "My Home is Virginia", they are all meaningfull. The only identifiable Edelman sound is when we hear the theme of the previous track return in "No Photographs", in a cute way like only Edelman can do it.
In the end Gods and Generals is not Gettysburg, and nor is it a score with a lot of loud moments. In fact, it will come as a surprise that this is quite frankly a very relaxing peaceful score. The only notable firecracker is the outstanding atonal, choral and threatening "VMI Will be Heard From Today" which will surely cripple you after such a relaxing experience. But Gods and Generals is equally rewarding like Gettysburg and this because it brings consistency and a reasonable amount of lovely themes, enough to guide you through the score comfortable, enjoyable and noble as Gods and Generals did back then.
Tracklisting
1. Going Home: Mary Fahl (4.56)
2. Gods and Generals * (3.42) Excellent track
3. You Must Not Worry For Us * (2.09)
4. Loved I Not Honor More * (3.13)
5. Lexington is My Home *+ (1.23)
6. The School of the Soldier * (3.58) Excellent track
7. Go to Their Graves Like Beds ** (2.24)
8. My Heart Shall Not Fear ** (1.46)
9. These Brave Irishmen *+-++ (2.51) Excellent track
10. To the Stone Wall * (3.41) Excellent track
11. You'll Thank Me un the Morning *+ (3.20)
12. The First Crop of Corn *++ (3.26)
13. My Home is Virginia ** (4.24)
14. No Photographs ***+ (2.53)
15. VMI Will be Heard From Today * (2.42) Excellent track
16. Too Much Sugar *+ (1.56)
17. Let Us Cross Over the River * (2.48)
18. The Soldier's Return *+ (2.02)
19. 'Cross the Green Mountain: Bob Dylan (8.12)
* Music composed by John Frizzell
** Music composed by Randy Edelman
*** Music composed by John Frizzell & Randy Edelman
+ Containing violin performed by Mark O' Connor
++ Containing tin whistle and uilleann pipes performed by Paddy Moloney
Total Length: 62.00
Gods and Generals is the prequel to the successful movie Gettysburg which received a very stirring yet sadly synthesized score by Randy Edelman. Still, for whatever reason, people were looking forward to hear Randy Edelman repeating his voice, developing his style and composing his material for the prequel as well. Yet this time the scoring assignment fell mostly to the baton of Frizzell, with Edelman composing only several minutes of the entire score.
Included on the disc are two songs which open and end the score. Mary Fahl's "Going Home" is very enjoyable and Bob Dylan is Bob Dylan, performing in two minutes what will be endlessly repeated in the next six minutes, being such an over-long song for the finish. Even though the score doesn't contain exactly what I wanted, the overall consistency and above all wide arsenal of themes still make it a rather enjoyable to listen to album.
This large set of themes makes it even after minimum 3 listens extremely difficult to actually pinpoint at a specific moment which theme you are listening to. Just several are instantly recognizable and one of them is the impressive main theme in "Gods and Generals", a glorious powerful hymn with full choir and drums. It therefore opens this score with magnitude, yet sadly it barely gets this powerful again. This is repeated in "You'll Thank Me in the Morning".
The overall score is, apart from several tracks, a very calm and beautiful listen. The themes overall roll from left to right with grace and dignity, but this also makes it the listen I didn't expect whatsoever. Especially the first two listens resulted in a rather boring experience because I wanted more epic battle music, and none of this calm material. But after several listens, it does open your eyes and ears. "Loved I not Honor More" captures the main theme on piano and "Lexington is my Home" displays the first sign of the violin, performed by Mark O' Connor.
Yet if you want to talk about the real highlights and the tracks that really make it worth it, then initially two tracks spring to mind. "The School of the Soldier" is a beautiful and playful piece, and here two themes are mixed through each other, bringing each one a greater sense of melody. There's a fanfare that's very close to the material Edelman composed for Gettysburg that is very striking, and frankly it should have been used a lot more often.
Luckily it resurfaces one time, and how! The highlight of the score in general has the wonderful heroic fanfare of track 6 returning this time with full choir in "To the Stone Wall" (I'm talking about the moment on 1.13). The other brilliant thing about it is the flawless transition from this theme to the one heard in track 3, making sure there is surely depth to be found in Frizzell's writing.
The tracks of Edelman aren't bad as well. Orchestral and different from the style of Gettysburg, they mesh pretty well with Frizzell's material. The warm and soft "My Heart Shall Not Fear", the wonderful Irish theme on uilleann pipes in "These Brave Irishmen" and the emotional piano in "My Home is Virginia", they are all meaningfull. The only identifiable Edelman sound is when we hear the theme of the previous track return in "No Photographs", in a cute way like only Edelman can do it.
In the end Gods and Generals is not Gettysburg, and nor is it a score with a lot of loud moments. In fact, it will come as a surprise that this is quite frankly a very relaxing peaceful score. The only notable firecracker is the outstanding atonal, choral and threatening "VMI Will be Heard From Today" which will surely cripple you after such a relaxing experience. But Gods and Generals is equally rewarding like Gettysburg and this because it brings consistency and a reasonable amount of lovely themes, enough to guide you through the score comfortable, enjoyable and noble as Gods and Generals did back then.
Tracklisting
1. Going Home: Mary Fahl (4.56)
2. Gods and Generals * (3.42) Excellent track
3. You Must Not Worry For Us * (2.09)
4. Loved I Not Honor More * (3.13)
5. Lexington is My Home *+ (1.23)
6. The School of the Soldier * (3.58) Excellent track
7. Go to Their Graves Like Beds ** (2.24)
8. My Heart Shall Not Fear ** (1.46)
9. These Brave Irishmen *+-++ (2.51) Excellent track
10. To the Stone Wall * (3.41) Excellent track
11. You'll Thank Me un the Morning *+ (3.20)
12. The First Crop of Corn *++ (3.26)
13. My Home is Virginia ** (4.24)
14. No Photographs ***+ (2.53)
15. VMI Will be Heard From Today * (2.42) Excellent track
16. Too Much Sugar *+ (1.56)
17. Let Us Cross Over the River * (2.48)
18. The Soldier's Return *+ (2.02)
19. 'Cross the Green Mountain: Bob Dylan (8.12)
* Music composed by John Frizzell
** Music composed by Randy Edelman
*** Music composed by John Frizzell & Randy Edelman
+ Containing violin performed by Mark O' Connor
++ Containing tin whistle and uilleann pipes performed by Paddy Moloney
Total Length: 62.00