O Brother, Where Art Thou?
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Free Music Notes for O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Free Music Review: Tripping Over Heaven
Hit: 5 Stars
My sister-in-law lent me a rental video of "O Brother Where Art Thou?" and I approached it like any other weekly rental. A bit of fun.Brothers and sisters, I have seen the light! The movie is funny, thoughtful, evocative, rooted in a classical story and full of the most wonderful music. I watched it again and again to experience the surreal sights and sounds. Who can possibly forget the sirens pouring honey into the ears of the three runaways, or the beautiful purity of the congregation "Going Down to the River to Pray"?
Lawd, Lawd! I went straight out and bought the soundtrack, where the songs are complete and the voices and music unblemished by dialogue. And I have been listening to it solid this past week. As soon as it finishes, I hit the [PLAY] button again. Downloaded some favorite tracks onto my hand-held. And sang those glorious songs over and over again.
The songs by themselves are great, each and every one, but the "ole-timey" mixture of gospel, blues and folk is just inspired.
The movie is wonderful, the soundtrack better. Like the awesome "Man of Constant Sorrow" single in the movie (and in real life), this is one record that they can't keep on the shelves.
I've been thanking my sister-in-law for putting me onto this. I stumbled into heaven and I've been singing her praises ever since.
If you've seen the movie, you want the soundtrack. Guaranteed. If you haven't seen the movie nor heard the soundtrack, then fly away and get them both. You're in for a treat.
Free Music Review: a lovely mix of traditional music
Hit: 5 Stars
Performed by some of today's best singers, this multi-Grammy Award winner is a marvelous addition to any country/folk music collection. Some of these artists are at the top of their field, but some will be "discoveries" for most of us, like the beautiful rendition of "Hard Time Killing Floor Blues" by Chris Thomas King, a versatile young man who is versed in many styles, and here sings in the old blues tradition and does it brilliantly.The highlights for me are: The legendary Ralph Stanley, with his plaintive acappella chant of "O Death", which carries with it all the pain and soul of Appalachia, and the purity of "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow" by the Soggy Bottom Boys, who consist of Union Station member Dan Tyminsky on lead vocals and guitar, backed by Harley Allen and Pat Enright. For anyone who likes traditional music, you can't get any better than this.
Another acappella gem is "Didn't Leave Nobody but the Baby", with Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, and Gillian Welch with harmonies that sound as if they came from another era. Everything on this disc recalls days gone by; there is a refreshing simplicity, and a lot of the songs are filled with faith.
There is exquisite musicianship on this CD, and it is a nice long one at 60'34 minutes. The booklet insert is something I appreciate too; it is a collage of yellowed stained paper on peeling walls, with a terrific layout, and as it says on one of its pages, "Old-Time Music Is Very Much Alive".
Free Music Review: Stark, Ancestral, Remarkable
Hit: 5 Stars
When an album of old-time music goes platinum and hits #1 on the country chart with no significant radio airplay, one may rightly wonder what the hell is going on. The star power of George Clooney in this depression-era Coen Brothers film may have drawn attention, but the soundtrack stands on its own as a remarkable achievement. The 19 rustic tracks here are mountain music, primitive gospel, and the hobo vein of folk, the ancestors of bluegrass and country. You can feel the desperation, simplicity, and reverence of another era through performances by Ralph Stanley, Gillian Welch, Norman Blake, Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, John Hartford, Chris Thomas King, the Fairfield Four, the Whites, the Cox Family, and others, along with a field recording of a chain gang ("Po Lazarus" by James Carter & the Prisoners), Harry McClintock`s 1928 hobo fantasy "Big Rock Candy Mountain," and the Stanley Brothers classic "Angel Band." Union Station takes on the musical identity of the three star characters onscreen, known as the Soggy Bottom Boys, and their stark, unvarnished renditions of "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow" and "In the Jailhouse Now" are arresting. Ditto for Ralph Stanley, who raises the hairs on the back of the neck with his acapella mountain singing on "O Death," and the Fairfield Four on "Lonesome Valley." The emotional purity and grit of this soundtrack will take the buildup of the plaque of modern living and peel it right off.Free Music Review: Remembrance
Hit: 5 Stars
I remember first viewing the previews for this movie and thinking to myself what a must-see it was certainly not. I had friends who went to see the movie and, while they never said much about the film itself, they were enchanted with its music. Having never owned a movie soundtrack, I had no interest in music for a movie I would not see. Then, during a trip to my local record store, I walked through the doors to be immediately swept back to my childhood.The music I heard reminded me of a decade or so ago when I would sit on the floor by my grandfather's feet and listen to him strum his guitar and sing backwoods bluegrass songs. Two of the songs he would croon were, to my amazement, actually on the soundtrack. 'I'll Fly Away' and 'Big Rock Candy Mountain' are two songs that I have often found myself humming from time to time throughout the years. Now, they have been compiled with a wonderful arrangement of music to be the 'O Brother, Where Art Thou' soundtrack.
I will be the first to admit that this music is not for everyone, but for those of you who prefer the acoustic versions of songs over the original versions or for those who enjoy songs that truly tell a story and are relatable to your own trials and tribulations, this is definitely a cd you should own. The beauty of the human voice and stellar emotional depths are paramount in this collection. I fell in love with this music when I was just a child and to be given the gift of this music in adulthood is truly something I will never forget.
Free Music Review: The greatest movie soundtrack EVER!
Hit: 5 Stars
With the country music airwaves currently being dominated by fresh, new artists like Faith Hill who fit better in the pop circuit, it is refreshing to see an album composed entirely of traditional bluegrass and country do as well as the soundtrack of O BROTHER WHERE ART THOU. Even further impressing is the fact that although none of the songs were released to radio, the soundtrack was propelled to the #1 spot on Billboard's country album charts solely from people hearing the music in the movie theater. This soundtrack is a phenomenal album that is proof to country fans everywhere that although traditional country has appeared to have gone out of style, it is still very much alive and well.The O BROTHER WHERE ART THOU SOUNDTRACK is composed of nineteen songs recorded by some of the most talented country/bluegrass artists in the business, including Gillian Welch (who also served as musical director for the motion picture), Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, and the Cox Family, and and is truly a gathering of musical talent. Also included in the soundtrack is music by musicians who appeared in the film as well as working on the CD, such as the Whites and Tim Blake Nelson.
The O BROTHER WHERE ART THOU SOUNDTRACK is truly, as the CD ads claim, "The ULTIMATE American roots collection!" So, grab your acoustic guitar, fiddle, and Dapper Dan hair pomade, and let the soundtrack from O BROTHER take you on a journey through one of the greatest periods in country music history.