O Brother, Where Art Thou?
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Free Music Notes for O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Free Music Review: beautiful beautiful music
Hit: 5 Stars
Country music is so misunderstood. These days, anything from Garth Brooks to Faith Hill to LeAnn Rimes is considered country music, when really their music caters more to the commercial market (aka pop music enthusiasts). Whether it's bluegrass, folk, gospel, blues or traditional country - the soundtrack to the Coen brothers' film showcases real country music at its rawest best. Don't expect any familiar names on the list, except perhaps Alison Krauss and Emmylou Harris, but do look forward to some great singing and melodic tunes.
The main song from the album is I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow, appearing as many as four times - one instrumental (acoustic guitar) from five-time Grammy nominee Norman Blake and another one (fiddle) from John Hartford.
Fictional band The Soggy Bottom Boys sings two versions of the song (radio version and band version - not much difference really, but both are pretty good). The Soggy Bottom Boys appears in the movie, and comprises George Clooney, Tim Blake Nelson and John Turturro.
However, Nelson is the only one who actually sings on the soundtrack, singing lead on the catchy In the Jailhouse Now.
Ralph Stanley contributes his soulful tenor on the traditional gospel O Death. The song really gets you in a mournful mood as he laments, "O Death, won't you spare me over till another year?" Lonesome Valley is also one of those depressing yet spiritual songs, and the Fairfield Four's deep, deep voices (bass, baritone and tenor) give a spot-on effect to the song.
One interesting "song" is Po Lazarus, the album opener. Sung by James Carter & The Prisoners, it's a 1959 recording of a prison chain gang in a Mississippi penitentiary, singing and chopping wood in unison. Their bellowing voices and the sharp raps of the axes hitting the wood makes one wonder if the fancy "twings and twangs" of today's music are really necessary.
Chris Thomas King's bluesy Hard Time Killing Floor Blues features appealing guitar work and is somewhat soothing, especially as it slowly and softly trails in the end. Krauss' take on the traditional gos-pel Down to the River to Pray (with additional voices from the First Bap-tist Church Choir of White House, Tennessee, and some of the other singers who worked on the album) is, well, uplifting. The choir's echoing harmonies make a good accompaniment to Krauss' soprano.
O Brother, Where Art Thou - the movie - might never make it to Malaysian cinemas, but fortunately the soundtrack has been released here. (However, as it is imported, the album might be a tad hard to find. One tip: Look for it in big music stores instead of the smaller ones.)
Undoubtedly, this album is not everyone's cup of tea, but if you're all for good music and good singing, take a shot at it. It might just be one of the better things you've heard all year
Free Music Review: O Brother, I have found thee.
Hit: 5 Stars
Let me tell you first off, being a 13 yr old girl, in the middle of the pop world, I hate country. I would beg my parents in the car to let me listen to my Pop/Rock/Rap stations, but one day my dad popped in this Cd, and now we all sing along to it on road trips, or trips to the store.1)Po Lazarus... man, this 1950's was originally recorded by a prision chain gang, the song being written by James Carter. I just wish that the chopping didn't drown out the lyrics.
2)Big rock cany mountians.... the original adult version. This funny song is no Willy Wonka favorite.
3) You are my sushine... Such a sad, touching song. I love this song, with it's syncappated country sound.
4) Down to the river to pray... this is my favorite song to sing and listen to. I love picking out all the bacground harmonys. it is a beautiful song, with Aloson Krauss as lead vocalist.
5) Man of Constant Sorrow.. a catchy, great song. If you've seen the movie, how could you think of anything other than George Clooney's eyebrows?
6)Hard time Killing Floor Blues.. a beautiful song. Chris Thomas King's voice is so rich. Very thought-prevoking
7) Man of constant Sorrow.. a beautiful guitar instrumental that gets you in a mood for music appreciation.
8)Keep on the sunny side.. the titel says it all. A happy true-bluegrass number
9)I'll fly away... an old hym that is very moving, though I like the higher pitched version in the movie better. Wonder why they changed it?
10)Didn't leave nobody but the baby.... Ahh the sirens, the vocals are supurb, but when u really listen to the lyrics, they are quite desturbing.
11) In the Highway.... if u haven't seen the movie (u need to) then u will not understand why there are three little girls singing.
12)I am weary (let me rest).... one of my favorites, the Cox family is very talented.
13)Man of Constant sorrow... I love this violin instrumental. It is my favorite song. A violin player myself, i guess I appreciate it, but it's just so beautiful!!
14)o death.... O DEATH!!!! Ralph stanley's haunting tenor voice is perfect for this song. It upsets my mom, but I love it. It makes me thankful for life.
15)In the Jailhouse now... a funny, uplifting song, with a suprising yodel. you should hear my family on this part, haha.
16) Man of Constant sorrow... The full band id behind them this time, and I like it better than Just the gitar accompaniment (sorry tommy) (see the movie)
17)Indian War Whoop... don't worry, it's not what it sounds like. it portrays the village idiots... once again, WATCH THE MOVIE
18)Lonesome valley... while this is kinda a weird song, u have to admit, the vocal harmony is amazing.
19)Angel Band.... this is a beautiful song. The stanley brothers are very good. In the movie i liked it better, but it's still wonderfull.
I hope u found this movie.
Free Music Review: One of the best of all time
Hit: 5 Stars
One of the best not just soundtracks, but albums. It's phenomenal.#1. Po Lazarus - What's great about this is that it is a real chain gang chopping wood in the 1950's. Sure, you can have the inmate extras do it, but here's the authenticity and careful planning that went tino this soundtrack.
#2. Big Rock Candy Mountain - Not for the kids. My grandfather left out the good parts when he sang it to me whenI was child. It's a great hobo theme song.
#3. You Are My Sunshine - Boy oh boy, I hope no one is disappointed when you hear all fot his song, not just the familiar chorus. The pinnacle of old timey music.
#4. Down To The River To Pray - Just a wonderfully melodic acapellea gospel tune. I love this, it's one of my favorites. Alison Krauss has a phenomenal voice.
#5. I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow - First rough cut. Not a bad version. It gets better though.
#6. Hard Time Killing Floor Blues - Damn, this is what the blues are all about. Sorrowful lyrics, morose chords and guitar strumming and Chris has an excellent voice.
#7. I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow - Just filler music, but I have no complaints.
#8. Keep On The Sunny Side - Another one of those signature old timey classic.s
#9. I'll Fly Away - Oh, this one is special. Beautufil duet with Alison and Gillian. So pretty, subtle and gentle gospel tune.
#10. Didn't Leave Nobody But The Baby - Just dirty and seductive and very enticing. Gentle grooves, subtley funky.
#11. In The Highways - Cute little praise nubmer and the girls do a great job.
#12. I Am Weary (Let Me Rest) - Beautiful, beautiful singing, love the accompaniment. Another great old timey classic.
#13. I Am A Man OF Constant Sorrow - More filler, but no complaining here.
#14. O Death - Truly inspired performane of a great dark and almost sinister song.
#15. In The Jailhouse Now - Who would've thought that Tim Blake could really sing and that he has a heavenly voice. This is a funny old story song. I love it.
#16. I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow - This is the one everyone knows and loves. It's great. It's country meets the blues. Great lyrics, great rhythm backing, deep country beat, great song.
#17. Indian War Whoop - Great blue grass, foot stompin' fiddle tune. Great little number.
#18. Lonesome Valley - I love this song, very clean acapella number. Perfect harmonies.
#19. Angel Band - Great song and a great ending to this one of a kind music experience.
All in all, this is phenomenal music. Buy this and listen to it then wear a groove in it so you have to buy another one and listen to that one that much too. It's just the perfect soundtrack, and great, for such a great movie.
Free Music Review: Diverse selection of old-time music
Hit: 5 Stars
The music here, like the film it provides the soundtrack for, is presumably intended to take us back to the thirties. Several songs from that era are featured along with traditional material that would have been popular then. Recorded mainly with state-of-the-art technology (except for some old recordings that are included and re-mastered), the sound quality is far superior to anything available in the thirties. Several different types of music can be found here - blues, gospel, country and folk - mainly performed by contemporary artists with a deep respect for tradition. I'll just pick out some of them although there are many excellent songs here.
Even Alison Krauss sticks firmly with tradition here - she often brings contemporary influences into her music these days but not here. Alison can be heard here on Down to the river to pray (as a solo singer), I'll fly away (providing harmony vocals for lead singer Gillian Welch) and Didn't leave nobody but the baby (joining Gillian and Emmylou in three-part harmony).
The inclusion of two Carter Stanley songs on a soundtrack such as this is predictable but welcome, with the Whites performing a superb version of the oft-recorded Keep on the sunny side, while the Peasall children (Hannah singing lead with Sarah and Leah providing harmony vocals) are in great form on In the highways. Children's recordings rarely impress me but this track does.
One song here that surprised me (though perhaps it shouldn't have) is Big rock candy mountain. It can be found on plenty of albums of children's songs, when it is invariably presented as an up-tempo song that children can (if they wish) sing along to. Here we get the original 1928 recording by Harry McLintock, who sings it at a more measured, reflective pace, showing that there is more to this song than I originally thought. I still prefer it as an up-tempo song generally but I'm glad I heard this version. I wonder what the Peasall sisters would have done with this song.
The Coen brothers clearly hoped that this soundtrack would provide a resurgence of interest in traditional music. While this soundtrack was a big commercial success, it seems that the majority of people who bought it (and continue to buy it) regard it as something of a novelty. Nashville record labels signed some traditional singers (Elizabeth Cook, though not featured here, is one that comes to mind) but they didn't get enough airplay on American country radio, so such artists were dropped and Nashville returned to its contemporary format. I'm sure that this soundtrack helped to win some new fans for traditional music, but not as many as the Coen brothers would like.
Free Music Review: A fantastic soundtrack from a fantastic movie
Hit: 5 Stars
The Coen brothers have worked their magic again with their excellent film "O BROTHER, WHERE ART THOU?" The unique vision and perspective of the film is rivaled only by the excellence of its soundtrack, which might just be the best movie soundtrack I've heard.Quite simply, there is not one weak track on this CD, period. Not one. There are highlights, to be sure, but the greatest aspect of this soundtrack might be that the diverse array of recordings and styles presents the listener with something new to appreciate every time they play the CD.
Some tracks deserve special mention, however. Ralph Stanley's "O Death" is a haunting, passionate song , especially if one recalls the scene in which it appears during the movie. "Down In The River To Pray" by Alison Krauss is another excellent track; when my friend heard the the harmonies of this song, so wonderfully ethereal and poignant, she simply said: "that's beautiful." And the Peasall Sisters are outstanding on "In The Highways," singing with the innocence of children but harmonizing like adults as well.
In my opinion, however, the true gems of this soundtrack are the recordings by the Soggy Bottom Boys, featuring Tim Blake Nelson and Dan Tyminski. "In The Jailhouse Now" is just fun to listen to, and knowing that Tim Blake Nelson and John Tuturro actually sang their parts for the movie rather than lip-synching adds an authenticity that is hard to get from Hollywood these days.
"I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow" is, however, the spiritual center of the movie and the most outstanding part of the soundtrack. In the movie, George Clooney did such an excellent job lip-synching that moviegoers swore he was really singing the tune. It was actually the work of Dan Tyminski, though Tim Blake Nelson and John Tuturro again sang their own parts. This song simply sticks in your head and stays there, and for once that's a good thing. Tyminski's vocals are outstanding, and the two recordings are distinctive enough that one appreciates both versions being included on the soundtrack.
Another noteworthy aspect of this CD is the liner notes by the Coen brothers, who unabashedly lament the disappearance of this style of music from Nashville in favor of 'modern country music.' It is an interesting perspective from two filmmakers who always seem to have something important to say through their art.