Tracklist

Companies, etc.

• Copyright (c) – Fragile Records Ltd.
• Manufactured By – Videoarts Music Inc.

Credits

• Composed By – Rick Wakeman

Notes

Barcode and Other Identifiers

• Barcode: 4 988112 303805

Other versions

Journey to the Centre of the Earth is the third album by English keyboardist Rick Wakeman, released on 3 May 1974 by A&M Records. It is a live recording of the second of his two concerts at the Royal Festival Hall on 18 January 1974, the premiere of his 40-minute orchestral rock piece based on Jules Verne's science fiction novel of the same name.

Текст песни: By horse, by rail, by land, by sea, our journey starts Two men incensed by one man’s journey from the past In Iceland, where the mountain stood with pride They set off with their guide. Not only had they found life in the water but they had also found a flowing guide to the Centre of the Earth. They called the stream the Hansbach. Narration 3 Replenished with the water the journey continued with haste, but somehow they find themselves separated.

Cerebral Theatrical Atmospheric Elaborate Indulgent Dramatic Literate Campy. Imagination Introspection. Journey to the Centre of the Earth.

The album is a live recording of his second of two concerts on January 18 1974 at the Royal Festival Hall in London. With it's concept based on Jules Verne's same-titled science fiction novel, the album tells the story of Professor Lidenbrok, his nephew Axel, and their guide Hans, who follow a passage to the Earth's center originally discovered by Arne Saknussemm, an Icelandic alchemist. Bought this album in vinyl hundreds of years ago.

The album is a live recording of his second of two concerts on 18 January 1974 at the Royal Festival Hall in London. With its concept based on Jules Verne’s science fiction novel of the same name, the album tells the story of Professor Lidenbrok, his nephew Axel, and their guide Hans, who follow a passage to the Earth’s centre originally discovered by Arne Saknussemm, an Icelandic alchemist. Wakeman performs with the London Symphony Orchestra, the English Chamber Choir, and a group of hand-picked musicians for his rock band, which later became the English Rock Ensemble. The album earned Wakeman a nomination for an Ivor Novello Award and a Grammy Award. In 1999, Wakeman released a sequel, Return to the Centre of the Earth. He re-recorded the album with additional parts previously removed from the original score due to time constraints, in 2012.

LONDON (Reuters) - The story behind the upcoming re-issue of Rick Wakeman’s 1974 concept album Journey to the Center of the Earth sounds almost as unlikely as the Jules Verne tale that inspired it. Rick Wakeman, keyboarder of the British rock group Yes performs at the Montreux Jazz Festival July 14, 2003. Progressive rock veteran Wakeman had presumed the original orchestration to his chart-topping disc was lost for good when his record company MAM, where the manuscripts had been stored in boxes, was brought to its knees in the early 1980s. Although he could have re-orchestrated the work from the original album, recorded live at the Royal Festival Hall in London in 1974, Wakeman knew it would be far from perfect. And the original score was 55 minutes long whereas the 1974 version had to be cut to closer to 40 due to the constraints of vinyl recordings at the time.

On May 9, 1974, Wakeman released the original album Journey To The Centre Of The Earth. And hell, maybe Rick is a little crazy, but that, aligned with his unimpeachable talent, is what makes him, and Journey To The Centre Of The Earth, such a vital part of the progressive rock firmament. It’s worth remembering that A&M practically threw him out of their UK office when he delivered the original to them and told him they wouldn’t release it; fortunately, label co-owner Jerry Moss, based in the States, had a little more foresight. Like the original, this is, by turns, preposterous, pompous and profound.