War Of The Worlds - JEFF WAYNE****

The Eve Of The War/Horsell Common & The Heat Ray/The Artilleryman & The Fighting Machine/Forever Autumn/Thunder Child/The Red Weed Part 1/The Spirit Of Man/The Red Weed Part 2/Brave New World/Dead World/Epilogue Part 1/Epilogue Part 2

War Of The Worlds was a musical concept album composed by Jeff Wayne, inspired by the H G Wells classic with narration by Richard Burton. Features the top 5 UK hit Forever Autumn by Justin Hayward. (UK:5)

“One of the best known progressive rock concept albums of all time is this ambitious effort by Jeff Wayne. It is an extremely intense package full of different kinds of musical styles that create a true musical and emotional totality. The spoken word sections fit the album just perfectly.”

“There's plenty to like and dislike about this album. At 95 minutes, it's certainly too long with four tracks spanning more than ten minutes and another couple more than eight. Richard Burton as the narrator is great and the narration provides the cohesion the album needs in telling the story. Of the singers, Justin Hayward got the best part with Forever Autumn and does a nice job”

“I really love the first half of this album, even with the disco stuff and the cheese levels approaching critical, there is still enough fuzz and weirdness to make it worthwhile and Burton’s narration is a cracking listen.”

“Very alternative mix of rock, disco, opera and even some new wave and synth pop influences. I enjoyed this quite a lot, although some of the material was a bit confusing. Lots of quite long tracks, but still a very smooth and pleasant listen.”

“Jeff Wayne's War Of The Worlds takes all the thrill of the H.G. Wells classic and sets it to some incredible music. Featuring wonderfully evocative narration, the album conveys not only the story, but the intense emotion behind it. Jeff Wayne has done a wonderful job of bringing the storyline down to its essential components. The combination of the music and narration does a much better job of telling this classic story than any movie adaptation ever has, or could.”

“It's very long, dated (often backed by disco beats and synthesizers), it's strange, and something of a tedious listen. There's music here, but the majority of it tends to be instrumental. However, it's a one-of-a-kind project, with a very unique sound, featuring a large variety of talented musicians who do their jobs very well. The music itself is rarely boring, and the songs featured are mostly excellent.”