Gettysburg (Commemorative Deluxe Edition)

Review by Thomas Glorieux:

It seems that '93 gave Randy Edelman the opportunity to compose two themes that would capture more hearts then just those seeing the respective movie. Dragon was used in a lot of trailers and Gettysburg received acclaim with various sport festivities in America. And that Gettysburg received an expended edition, giving the fan a serious wink with 2 CD's instead of one, and one booklet filled with information, maps, photos and quotes, perfectly organized in 26 pages of pure quality. Now, the fan that already owns the original Gettysburg release is dying to find out if this proves to be more then just filler music or isn't it worthy, that special attention. First of all, any score that receives this expended detail deserves attention no matter what you think of it. But I would mention that this is no extra amount of stunning material: it is good and decent but nothing on it equals the first CD for sure. Still, those who don't know it yet, Gettysburg CD Nr. 1 is still a treat of a disc.

Yet, two major flaws dominate this score: first of all the quality of the second disc. As said before, the second disc (45 min) offers the listener the bonus cues, the unreleased material, the added stuff but not one reaches the quality of the first. So, if you are searching for more good stuff, there isn't that much added here. And secondly, Edelman's cheap sounding tone. I love this score and it is still great with Edelman doing what he does usually but this score would knock socks off if a giant orchestra would have composed it. We don't need the London Symphony Orchestra to make that happen but Edelman in general remains Edelman, maintaining to uphold his style. But forget the style if you want the themes because this is what makes Gettysburg the winner, a noble grand theme explodes within seconds on scene in the first track 'Main Title' and will be repeated long after its dying end seconds of the score. The thematic material is very good yet simple of construction, you will not find John Williams' complexity in Edelman's music, doesn't need to be but I still thought that it might sound cheap for those who care about these things. But you still have to compose them I say. The battle sequences at the end receive majestic marches and fanfares in 'Battle of Little Round Top', 'Over the Fence' and 'March to Mortality (Pickett's Fence)'.

Typical period pieces brought to life by Edelman, 'Dixie' and 'Kathleen Mavourneen' are solid but frankly a bit unmemorable but the last track isn't. 'Reunion and Finale' is a complete compilation with several versions of the stunning main theme. The highlight of the 2 legged score. One other track caught my attention quickly though, the synthesized flute march in 'Fife and Gun', its very catchy. Now word over the second disc: the main theme is hardly used (makes the score harder to fully enjoy) and not everything is that special of praise, the better tracks are 'Refuse the Line' and 'Hancock & Kemper are Shot' but hardly create deja vu's of the first. Because this is the added bonus material, this is extremely sad. But Edelman fans still be warned, those who are still looking or thinking about getting Gettysburg, it is better to buy the double release then the original one. The music itself holds many candles to Dragonheart, Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story and The Last of the Mohicans, with the most shiny one being Dragon. In the end the double CD release Gettysburg 'Deluxe Commemorative Edition' is a very good collector's item and all the information you need to know is found in the huge 26 page booklet. I believe the price is something about $40 but besides the extra space of score, it doesn't truly life up to its promises. But that can hardly be if you've got all the medals already in the first CD. Recommended though for the true fans of the genre.

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Tracks

Double Disc

Disk One: 57.28

1. Main Title (4.33) Excellent Track

2. Men Of Honor (2.55)

3. Battle Of Little Round Top (3.56) Excellent Track

4. Fife And Gun (3.00)

5. General Lee At Twilight (1.25)

6. The First Battle (2.41)

7. Dawn (1.56)

8. From History To Legend (2.56)

9. Over The Fence (4.09) Excellent Track

10. We Are The Flank (2.13)

11. Charging Up The Hill (2.23)

12. Dixie (2.24)

13. General Lee's Solitude (3.39)

14. Battle At Devil's Den (1.45)

15. Killer Angel (4.40)

16. March To Mortality (Pickett's Fence) (3.18) Excellent Track

17. Kathleen Mavourneen (3.15)

18. Reunion And Finale (5.45) Excellent Track

Disk Two: 44.50

1. Gettysburg / Revisited (2.18)

2. Old Friends (2.49)

3. Buford's Decisive Determination (1.47)

4. They're Coming Again! (3.43)

5. To The Queen! (3.19)

6. Pickett's Complaint (2.33)

7. Kilrain's Ride (1.36)

8. Soldier's Irony & Close Call (6.57)

9. Refuse The Line! (3.10)

10. We Will Prevail! (1.50)

11. Message From Alexander (1.42)

12. Freemantle & Armistead (4.51)

13. Hancock & Kemper Are Shot (2.23)

14. Armistead Is Hit (3.12)

15. The Gettysburg Address * (2.28)

* Recited by Jeff Daniels

The use of artwork or photos is posted for non profitable reasons

=== Link to Composer Site: Randy Edelman ===