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Vangelis: Heaven and Hell

 A l b u m   D e t a i l s


Label: RCA Records
Released: 1975
Time:
 43:27
Category: Electronica
Producer(s): Vangelis
Rating: *********. (9/10)
Media type: CD
Web address: www.vangelisworld.com
Appears with: Aphrodites Child, Jon & Vangelis
Purchase date: 2008.05.20
Price in €: 8,99



 S o n g s ,   T r a c k s


[1] Heaven and Hell Patr I (Vangelis) - 21:58
       So Long Ago, So Clear - 4:58
[2] Heaven and Hell Patr II (Vangelis) - 21:16

 A r t i s t s ,   P e r s o n n e l


Vangelis - Percussion, Arranger, Keyboards, Producer

Jon Anderson - Vocals
Vana Beroutis - Vocals
Vana Veroutis - Vocals

English Chamber Choir - Choir
Guy Protheroe - Conductor

Mike Doud - Concept, Cover Design
Alan Lucas - Engineer
Geoff Halpin - Design, Logo
Paul Wakefield - Photography

 C o m m e n t s ,   N o t e s

1975 LP RCA 5110
1975 CS RCA LPK1-5110
1976 CD RCA nd71148
1989 CD Denwa 271148
1997 CD Windham Hill 11232
2006 CD BMG Japan 37678
2006 CD BMG 82876818502

Listening to this odd-man-out entry in the sweeping Vangelis catalogue nearly 30 years after its release, one is instantly reminded of the time and musical climate in which it wasrecorded - this is a disc that distills the glorious pomp and circumstance that was mid-'70s prog-rock. The maelstrom that is the opening five-minute bombast of "Heaven and Hell, Part One", where the "sturm und drang" of Vangelis's keyboards probably made everyone from Keith Emerson to Rick Wakeman green with envy. Funereal chords dredge up dark lords of theunderworld while drums and cymbals ricochet and pound into each other like Armageddon's fist into Eternity's palm. EvenJon Anderson is on hand, lending his trademark falsetto to Vangelis's symphonic preen. Still, despite the bravado, thisis a galvanising record of moods and contrasts, where dark meets light, thunderous synth chords roll and break, and Vangelis weaves all sorts of odd percussive fillips into the chaotic reverie. Those wishing their dose of musical catharsisfrom over-indulgence on CHARIOTS OF FIRE can hold their breath and start right here.



Those used to Vangelis' later and lighter synthesized outings may not be quite ready for this dark, thundering album. While it did provide us with the theme music for the TV series Cosmos and bring Jon Anderson into partnership with Vangelis (following an abortive approach to Vangelis joining Yes) on "So Long Ago, So Clear," it also served up massed Gothic choirs and a musical depiction of all the tortures of the damned, with an impressive amount of string-driven shrieking. Even so, it's a brilliant piece of work that should not be absent from any Vangelis collection.

Steven McDonald - All Music Guide



It's easy to forget the sheer freight of Vangelis's 1975 recording, Heaven and Hell. Released five years before his infamous score for the film Chariots of Fire, Heaven and Hell is a symphonic suite for orchestra and chorus; only the orchestra is all Vangelis, playing an array of electronic keyboards and percussion, joined by the English Chamber Choir. It's a magnificent work, both bombastic and serene, part Carl Orff, part Bach, but rich with that indefinable, spatial moodiness that's trademark Vangelis. The choir calls out to the heavens, synthesizers spin in counterpoint to tuned percussion, and timpani and cymbals crash on the shores of Vangelis's electronic orchestra. The second movement begins in pure abstraction before leaping into a joyous Asian-inspired section of rippling koto and plucked synth timbres and chimes. While the title suite makes up more than 40 minutes, the album's still best known for Vangelis's delicate if overly sentimental duet with Yes singer Jon Anderson on "So Long Ago, So Clear." Twenty years on, Vangelis can still move heaven, hell, earth, and your stereo system.

John Diliberto - Amazon.com


 

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