Category: Music Reviews
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A Tuesday in December’s Musicale
Hi, everyone. I’m still tired after that brief trip down to Miami to retrieve most of my belongings from the place where I lived for 10 months after decamping from New Hampshire last fall. So, instead of a regular post or review, I offer a selection of music videos from YouTube.
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A Tuesday Musicale
Hi, everyone. I have a lot on my mind, most of it unpleasant and stressful, so I’m unable to come up with anything worth anyone’s time. So…here are some music videos instead!
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Sunday Musicale for November 30, 2025
It’s early afternoon on this last day of November here in the Orlando area. Try as I might, though, I can’t seem to pick a topic for my daily blog, and I don’t feel like checking to see what the WordPress daily prompt is. So…how about some music videos instead?
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Music Album Retrospective: ‘The Beatles: 1962-1966 (The Red Album)
The Beatles’ Red Album (1962–1966) was originally released in April 1973 by Apple Records in collaboration with EMI/Capitol, and reissued on compact disc in September 1993. It features 26 Lennon–McCartney tracks from the band’s early years, offering a curated glimpse into their meteoric rise before Sgt. Pepper. 🎵 A Personal Reflection on The Beatles: 1962–1966…
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Music Album Review: ‘Victory at Sea – Richard Rodgers, Robert Russell Bennett & the RCA Symphony Orchestra’
Victory at Sea – Richard Rodgers, Robert Russell Bennett & the RCA Symphony Orchestra Label: RCA Victor Genre: Classical/Film and TV Score Released: 1992 Although Richard Rodgers is best known for his legendary musical theater collaborations with Lorenz Hart and Oscar Hammerstein II—especially the emotionally resonant scores for South Pacific and The Sound of Music—his…
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Music Album Review: ‘Platoon and Songs from the Era: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack’
Platoon and Songs from the Era: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Year of Release: 1986 Record Label: Atlantic, Warner Records (International) Genre: Film Score (Classical/Pop/Rock) Oliver Stone’s Platoon (1986) remains, nearly four decades later, one of the most searing and authentic portrayals of the Vietnam War ever committed to film. Drawing from Stone’s own harrowing experiences…
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Music Album Review: ‘Casablanca – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack’
Casablanca – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Labels: Turner Classic Movies Music/Rhino (1997);Sony Music (Reissue) Year of Release: 1997 (Original), 2010 (Sony Music reissue) Genre: Film Score/Standards/Spoken Word 🎶 Casablanca Soundtrack: Memory, Melody, and the Music of Longing Of all the soundtrack albums I’ve collected over the years, none is quite as haunting—or as structurally unusual—as…
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Music Album Review: ‘The Empire Strikes Back (Symphonic Suite from the Original Motion Picture Score’ (Gerhardt/National Philharmonic Orchestra)
The Empire Strikes Back (Symphonic Suite From The Original Motion Picture Score)Composer: John WilliamsPerformed by: The National Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Charles GerhardtLabel: Varese SarabandeGenre: Film Scores, Symphonic MusicYear Released (This edition): 2006 For those of us who grew up with the original vinyl and cassette editions of John Williams’s score for The Empire Strikes…
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Music Album Review: ‘Holst: The Planets’
Holst – The Planets: Chicago Symphony Orchestra/James Levine Label: Deutsche Grammophon Released: 1991 Genre: Classical/Symphonic Review: Holst’s The Planets – A Celestial Tapestry in Seven Movements Two years before Pluto was demoted to dwarf planet status (not that Pluto minds, I suspect), I wrote an earlier version of this reflection on Gustav Holst’s The Planets,…
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Music Album Review: ‘Cinema Serenade 2 – The Golden Age’
Cinema Serenade 2: The Golden AgeItzhak Perlman, John Williams, Boston Pops Orchestra Label: Sony Classical/Sony Masterworks Year of Release: 1999 Genre: Movie themes, Orchestral music, Violin solos, Boston Pops Following the success of Cinema Serenade, violinist Itzhak Perlman and conductor John Williams reunited for a second cinematic journey—this time with the Boston Pops Orchestra. Cinema…
A Certain Point of View, Too 