Wakeman, Rick - Journey To The Center Of The Earth Live in 1975 - 30th Anniversary Edition

Year of Release: 2005
Label: Classic Pictures
Catalog Number: DVD8049X
Format: DVD
Total Time: 115:43:00

Wakeman fans the world over were already ecstatic when they were treated to a DVD recording of Rick and band performing live in Australia on 4th February 1975 as released by Classic Pictures a couple of years back. Performing all of Journey To The Centre Of The Earth, some highlights from The Six Wives Of Henry VIII and a snippet from the then new album Myths And Legends Of King Arthur And The Knights Of The Round Table this most certainly has to be one of the most prized possessions for any real Wakeman fan.

Only a couple of years later and Classic Pictures already releases a new version of this footage this time including the extra banner which reads "30th Anniversary Collectors Edition." The concert remains exactly the same, although a little extra has been added entitled "The Lost Journey." Filmed by none other than Gary Pickford Hopkins with one of the then state of the art cameras (which now looks like something out of an antiques shop), around half an hour's worth of never before seen material has now been made available for all the world to see. In January 2005, Rick Wakeman, Ashley Holt, Gary Pickford Hopkins, Roger Newell and Barney James all got together in Shepperton Studios to look at those images and also to comment on this great adventure. Each and every one of them shines as they go through it all over again. Rick gets very aroused when he sees footage of the airplane sporting the Rick Wakeman logo. Before actually seeing it on screen, Rick didn't know footage of the plane existed.

The funny thing is that all five of our friends are sitting in Shepperton Studios drinking a cup of tea whilst they rave about those incredible times where masses of beer and scotch were consumed. Angry old men indeed. On the other hand, we have the sad atmosphere as well as they recognize at least half a dozen people on those images who have since died. Thirty years on, this is exactly what you can expect. I was seventeen when Rick performed Journey the world over. Whilst others were getting bonkers about The Osmonds or David Cassidy, I drew keyboards and mini-Moogs on my school bench, imitating Rick during his incredible solos. No wonder the girls at school thought I was mad!

So next to this wonderful unexpected extra feature, there's of course the actual concert as well. When Rick took to the stage in Melbourne, he was the world's number one keyboard player and no fewer than twelve million people would buy his theatrical Journey To The Centre Of The Earth album. Prior to delivering the entire Journey project live, he also performed some highlights from his much acclaimed debut album Six Wives Of Henry VIII and also performed some material from his then to be released third album The Myths And Legends Of King Arthur And The Knights Of The Round Table much to the delight of the many thousands who witnessed this great performance. It is clear that Ashley Holt is a much better singer than Gary Pickford Hopkins and one asks himself why the hell both men had to go on tour with the Wakeman extravaganza in the first place? But let us not forget that these were the days of Rick's heavy drinking (and smoking, just look at his teeth for proof!), recruiting his backing band straight from the pub, although manager Brian Lane had offered Rick such guests as Eric Clapton and Roger Daltrey to name but two. Just look at the cans of beer on top of Rick's grand piano and I rest my case! Dressed as the pure "caped crusader" you can see Wakeman struggling with his many synths, sometimes having to spread his legs as wide apart as possible in order to tackle the right keys. Bearing in mind the difficulty in tuning the mini-Moogs correctly, during live performances it is inevitable that there is the odd bum note whether it comes from "uncle" Rick or from someone in the orchestra or choir.

When you look at this DVD it shows how much of a gamble every single concert with orchestra and choir really is, as Rick and the band applaud enthusiastically once the final note of the Journey epic has died down. It's as if they are glad it's all over and no harm has been done. Not in a big way anyway, as throughout this concert you can hear the Moog sounding off key, as is also the Mellotron for that matter. In the first part of Journey, the brass section doesn't sound at all convincing and the choir sometimes has it hard to keep track. As opposed to its vinyl counterpart, this concert shows the whole of Journey in one go, even including the cheap inflatable dinosaurs (I wonder what happened to them since. Have they been offered on eBay yet?). But then again, this is no ordinary DVD, as it has a more historic importance rather than trying to obtain the highest recognition in the quality control department. The close-up Moog and harpsichord solos during "The Battle" simply are breathtaking. As an encore, Wakeman performs "Catherine Howard" in a brand new arrangement giving guitarist Jeffrey Crampton the chance to really shine. During the then new song "Merlin" we see Rick running from one side of his keyboards to the other, from his Moog to the piano. Again the Mellotron is completely out of tune here. It's wonderful to see how Wakeman is almost in a trance during "Anne Boleyn." With a reprise of "The Forest" comes an end to a remarkable concert. Even if at times someone runs in front of the camera throwing a huge shadow onto the stage, this live concert is of a big historical significance. So pop this DVD in your player and think you're entering a time capsule taking you back in time a cool thirty years, a time where the word "stress" apparently still had to be invented!

Recorded live on february 4th 1975 at the Sydney Myer Music Bowl in Melbourne, Australia featuring the Melbourne Philharmonic Orchestra and The Melbourne Chamber Choir conducted by Verdon Williams

Tracklisting:
Catherine Parr (11:51) / Guinevere (6:11) / Journey To The Centre Of The Earth (41:20) / Catherine Howard/ Merlin (7:48) / Anne Boleyn (6:42) / Reprise from The Forest (11:13)

Special feature: The Lost Journey (30:38)

Musicians:
Rick Wakeman - all keyboards
Jeffrey Crampton - guitars
Roger Newell - guitars
Barney James - drums
Ashley Holt - vocals
Gary Pickford Hopkins - vocals
John Hodgson - percussion
Terry Taplin - narration

Discography:
Piano Vibrations (1971)
The Six Wives Of Henry VIII (1973)
Journey To The Centre Of The Earth (1974)
Lisztomania (1975)
The Myths & Legends Of King Arthur & The Knights Of The Round Table (1975)
No Earthly Connection (1976)
Rick Wakeman's Criminal Record (1977)
White Rock (1977)
Animal Showdown (1979)
Rhapsodies (1979)
I'm So Straight I'm A Weirdo (1980)
1984 (1981)
The Burning (OST) (1981)
Rock N Roll Prophet (1982)
Cost Of Living (1983)
G'ole! (1983)
Crimes Of Passion (OST) (1984)
Live At Hammersmith (1985)
Lytton's Diary (1985)
Silent Nights (1985)
Country Airs (1986)
The Family Album (1987)
The Gospels (1987)
20th Anniversary Limited Edition (1988)
A Suite Of Gods (1988)
Custer's Last Stand/Ocean City (1988)
Time Machine (1988)
Zodiaque (1988)
Black Knights At The Court Of Ferdinand IV (1989)
Sea Airs (1989)
Phantom Power (1990)
In The Beginning (1990)
Night Airs (1990)
Phantom Power (1990)
2000AD Into The Future (1991)
African Bach (1991)
Aspirant Sunrise (1991)
Aspirant Sunset (1991)
Aspirant Sunshadows (1991)
Rock N Roll Prophet Plus (1991)
Softsword (1991)
The Classical Connection (1991)
Best Works Collection (1992)
Country Airs (1992)
Classic Tracks (1993)
No Expense Spared (1993)
Prayers (1993)
The Classical Connection 2 (1993)
The Heritage Suite (1993)
Unleashing The Tethered One - The 1974 North American Tour (1993)
Wakeman With Wakeman (1993)
Light Up The Sky (1994)
Live On The Test (1994)
Lure Of The Wild (1994)
Rick Wakeman's Greatest Hits (1994)
The Stage Collection (1994)
Wakeman With Wakeman - The Official Bootleg (1994)
Wakeman With Wakeman Live (1994)
Almost Live In Europe (1995)
Cirque Surreal (1995)
Rick Wakeman In Concert (1995)
Rock & Pop Legends (1995)
Romance Of The Victorian Age (1995)
The Piano Album (1995)
The Private Collection (1995)
The Seven Wonders Of The World (1995)
Visions (1995)
Can You Hear Me? (1996)
Fields Of Green (1996)
Orisons (1996)
Tapestries (1996)
The New Gospels (1996)
The Word And Music (1996)
Vignettes (1996)
Voyage (1996)
Welcome A Star (1996)
Fields Of Green '97 (1997)
Simply Acoustic - The Music (1997)
Tribute (1997)
Master Series (1998)
Themes (1998)
Official Live Bootleg (1999)
Return To The Centre Of The Earth (1999)
Stella Bianca Alla Corte De Re Ferdinando (1999)
The Masters (1999)
The Natural World Trilogy (1999)
White Rock II (1999)
Christmas Variations (2000)
Chronicles Of Man (2000)
Morning Has Broken (2000)
Preludes To A Century (2000)
Recollections - The Very Best Of Rick Wakeman (2000)
Rick Wakeman The Legend Live In Concert 2000 (2000)
The Caped Collection (2000)
Classical Variations (2001/2002)
Simply Acoustic (2001)
Out Of The Blue (2001)
Two Sides Of Yes (2001/2002)
Treasure Chest Volume 1 - The Real Lizstomania (2002)
Treasure Chest Volume 2 - The Oscar Concert (2002)
Treasure Chest Volume 3 - The Missing Half (2002)
Treasure Chest Volume 4 - Almost Classical (2002)
Treasure Chest Volume 5 - The Mixture (2002)
Treasure Chest Volume 6 - Medium Rare (2002)
Treasure Chest Volume 7 - Journey To The Centre Of The Earth (2002)
Treasure Chest Volume 8 - Stories (2002)
Two Sides Of Yes - Volume II (2002)
Wakeman & Cousins -Hummingbird (2002)
Out There (2003)
Retro (2006)
Retro 2 (2007)
The Six Wives Of Henry VIII Live At Hampton Court Palace (2009)
Always With You (2010)
Past, Present, and Future (2010)
Anderson/Wakeman - The Living Tree (2010)
In The Nick Of Time-Live In 2003 (2012)
Journey To The Centre Of The Earth 2012 (2012)
The Myths & Legends Of King Arthur & The Knigts Of The Round Table 2016 (2016)
Piano Portraits (2017)
The Phantom Of The Opera (2017)

Piano Odyssey (2018)
Christmas Portraits (2019)
Official Bootleg Series - Boston USA 1974 (2019) Official Bootleg Series - Osaka Japan 1975 (2019) Official Bootleg Series - Sheffield UK 1981 (2019) Official Bootleg Series - Vienna Austria 1976 (2019) Official Bootleg Series - Preston UK 1981 (2019) Official Bootleg Series - Tokyo Japan 2008 (2019) Official Bootleg Series - Cropredy UK 2010 (2019) Official Bootleg Series - Osaka Japan 2014 (2019) Official Bootleg Series - Tokyo Japan 2014 (2019) Official Bootleg Series - Daphne Du Maurier Festival UK 2001 (2019)

The Classical Connection (VHS) (1991)
The Very Best Of The Rick Wakeman Chronicles (VHS) (1994)
Simply Acoustic (VHS) (1996)
The New Gospels (VHS) (1996)
The Piano Tour Live (VHS) (1997)
Rick Wakeman Live (VHS) (1998)
An Evening WIth Rick Wakeman (VHS) (2000)
Rick Wakeman Live In Concert 2000 (DVD) (2000/2002)
Journey To The Center Of The Earth Live In 1975 (DVD) (2001/2002)
Rick Wakeman & The English Rock Ensemble - Live In Buenos Aires (DVD) (2001/2002)
Rick Wakeman & The English Rock Ensemble - Out There (DVD) (2004)
Journey To The Centre Of The Earth Live In 1975 - 30th Anniversary Edition (DVD) (2005)
Made In Cuba (DVD) (2005)
Amazing Grace (DVD) (2007)
The Other Side Of Rick Wakeman (DVD) (2007)
Video Vault Volume 1 - 1975 Live At Empire Pool, King Arthur On Ice (DVD) (2007)
Video Vault Volume 2 - Live At The Maltings 1976 (DVD) (2007)
Video Vault Volume 3 - Live 1980 Swedish Television Special (DVD) (2007)
Video Vault Volume 4 - 1984 Live At The Hammersmith Odeon 1981 (DVD) (2007)
Video Vault Volume 5 - Night Music (DVD) (2007)
Video Vault Volume 6 - Rarities Plus Interview (DVD) (2007)
The Six Wives Of Henry VIII Live At Hampton Court Palace (DVD/BR) (2009)
Classical Wakeman Volume 1 - Live In Lugano (DVD) (2010)
Starmus (DVD) (2017)
Live Portriats At Lincoln Cathedral (DVD) (2018)

Genre: Symphonic Prog

Origin UK

Added: March 8th 2005
Reviewer: John "Bobo" Bollenberg

Artist website: www.rwcc.com
Hits: 3432
Language: english