SKU
094638563327
So who is Alan Simon? I didn't really know the answer until recently. Alan Simon is a French composer and producer with ties to Supertramp. Simon composed a Celtic rock album called Excalibur, The Legend Of The Celts for Sony. Apparently all of France went nuts for the album. It was the first of a proposed trilogy. Excalibur II is obviously the second volume in the series...
This is a huge budget affair which brings together progressive rock and Celtic folk music on a grand scale. Simon has brought in some heavyweight names - Jon Anderson, John Wetton, Fairport Convention, Maddy Prior, Andreas Vollenweider, Pentangle, Barclay James Harvest, Justin Hayward, and others. The music is extremely orchestral and quite clearly Celtic themed. There is even some real Mellotron! Forget about the vocalists - the musicians on the disc are ridiculous - Dan Ar Braz, Martin Barre, Dave Pegg, Richard Palmer-James, Jeremy Spencer, John Helliwell, and many many many others. I can't conceive how much this album cost to produce...considering Alan Parsons mixed it! Think Moody Blues meets Lorenna McKennitt. File under: over-the-top!
Scored an amazing deal. We found a small horde of original French pressings with the bonus DVD. This is a PAL format Region 0 disc that runs 45 minutes and features a "making of" documentary. $9 for just the CD would be ridiculous - $9 for the out of print 2 disc version is almost illegal. Feel dirty...put it in your shopping cart!
- Style:Celtic Symphonic Rock
- Record Label:EMI
Customer Reviews
Average Rating
If you liked War of the Worlds, then, you will love this disc. There are Celtic melodies intertwined in the tracks, but considering the time period of the rise of King Arthur and Merlin, it makes sense. Coupled with all the guest singers, musicians and Alan Parsons on the opening track, this is a great album. I only wish that the first Excalibur was available.
There is an added track on this version (17 vs. 16). It is not a substantial track, but it does not detract from the music as a whole. It is also embedded in the track listings, not an add-on, like so many other discs have.
The bonus DVD is a nice addition. Not essential, but worth looking at once.
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