Heavy Soul: The Anthology

Artist: Atomic Rooster
Label: Sbme Castle Us
Category: Music

Average customer rating:

Format: Original recording remastered
Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 2

UPC: 060768113428
EAN: 0060768113428
ASIN: B00005UKLZ

Release Date: 2002-01-22

Heavy Soul: The Anthology

Related Categories:

General

| Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock

| Pop | Styles | Music

Tracks:

Banstead
Winter
Broken Wings
Friday 13th
Tomorrow Night
Nobody Else
The Devil's Answer
Sleeping for Years
Death Walks Behind You
Breakthrough
Break the Ice
Black Snake
The Price
Decision/Indecision

Tracks:

Head in the Sky
The Rock
Close Your Eyes
Time Take My Life
Stand by Me
Breathless
People You Can't Trust
Can't Find a Reason
Save Me
Ear in the Snow
Never to Lose
Take One Joke
All Across the County
Moods
Tell Your Story - Vincent Crane
O.D. - Vincent Crane

Customer Reviews:

Good compilation for fans and newbies alike..........2007-02-16

Vincent Crane maintained a strong and consistent musical vision throughout the life of Atomic Rooster. Heavy Soul brings it all together in a less than exhaustive but substantial collection of their best material. If you're anything beyond a casual fan, chances are you own at least a few Atomic Rooster albums and more likely their entire catalog. A collection like this may seem redundant since it doesn't include any rarities or bonus tracks. Just the same, it's a well rounded perspective that works well on its own and is an excellent primer for the uninitiated.

Atomic Rooster - 'Heavy Soul: The Anthology' (Castle) 2-CD.......2007-02-08

I've seen this item in retail stores before. As I took a look at the thirty tracks featured on this 2-CD title, I noticed that 'Heavy Soul' didn't include the usual songs that most Atomic Rooster compilations do have. No wonder I didn't immediately recognize many of these songs. This 2-CD pressing features four (4) tunes from Rooster's first five (5) lp's, 1970-1973. It was good to hear the heavy hitters, like "Winter", the almost sinister "Friday The 13th", the rocking "Tomorrow Night", "Death Walks Behind You", "Head In The Sky", "Time Take My Life" and "Can't Find A Reason" once again. Heard that some label put out a DVD or two of this under-appreciated UK heavy rock entity.

Terrific introduction.......2002-04-18

This 2 cd set is indeed a great introduction to the dark, brooding soul-rock of Atomic Rooster. But it is not definitive, as there are no tracks to represent the Rooster's final two '80's albums. Still, this is a finger-licking- good feast. Every song just demands your undivided attention and rewards it. Atomic Rooster was not a band that set the world on fire although they cultivated a rabid fan base; that is because their music simply wasn't very commercial. But, eighteen years following the final breakup and thirteen years following the tragic demise of leader Vincent Crane the fans are still there. That should tell you something. This is the best place to start out with the Rooster; then track down a copy of their brilliant final album, "Headline News". Go from there of course, but thats really all you absolutely need.

Not Just Any Ordinary Chicken!.......2002-02-23

Atomic Rooster was the brainchild of former Crazy World of Arthur Brown keyboardist Vincent Crane. This 2 cd anthology summarizes the first 5 albums of the band before they broke up the first time. Vincent Crane was tormented by psychological problems throughout his existence. He had a number of breakdowns and spent time in mental hospitals. He eventually took his own life on St. Valentine's Day 1989. His music however will live on through "Heavy Soul".

The band was formed as a trio in 1969 with Crane on keyboards, Nick Graham on bass/vocals and the great Carl Palmer (later of ELP) on drums. This line up lasted for just the first album before Palmer bolted for Emerson Lake And Palmer. It also foreshadowed the tendency of band personnel to change quite often. The best known edition of the band (which reunited numerous times later) featured John Du Cann on guitar and vocals and Paul Hammond on drums. The music on their first 3 albums was occult based heavy/progressive rock. The band at this point sounded a little like Black Sabbath crossed with Uriah Heep. This period is featured on the first disk and second two tracks of the second disk of this set. This was arguably Crane's finest work. Tracks such as "Death Walks Behind You" and "Friday The 13th" provide a clue about the band's dark stance. Their two best known tracks from this period are "Tomorrow Night" and "The Devil's Answer" which are included herein. Crane takes a rare lead vocal on the eerie "Black Snake". Crane's depressed mental state comes across in tunes like "Banstead" and "Winter". The last song included from this period the instrumental "The Rock" highlights Crane's organ playing while providing a transition to the more funky and soulful direction the band would take on their next two albums. After their third album "In Hearing Of" Vincent Crane fired the entire band and elected to take the music in a different direction. British R&B singer Chris Farlowe was enlisted as vocalist. The best known track from this period is "Stand By" which was released as a single. Other interesting tracks from this time include "Moods" and "Ear In The Snow". After the unsuccessful fifth album "Nice 'n' Greasy" Crane disbanded Atomic Rooster. The moniker would later be revived numerous times by Crane between work with Arthur Brown and a stint with Dexy's Midnight Runners. Crane's style on organ while not as bombastic as Keith Emerson's is both impressive and intriguing.

Music Album:

Music Album

Music Album

Music CD

Across the Omniverse ~ Either, Orchestra

Reflections in Change ~ Craig Handy

City Never Sleeps ~ Bill Warfield

Live-Paris 1953 ~ Dizzy Gillespie

Minimal Dance ~ Mekong Zoo

Trop Jeune Pour Mourir ~ Stomy Bugsy

poverty and pain

Island Of The Sun

Flower ~ Naohito Fujiki

Osz Az Ido ~ Muzsikas