The Household Troops Band is the premier marching band of the Salvation
Army. It is led here by Bandmaster Carl Saunders, who has been at the helm
since 2010. They're well-known for their lively and adventurous
concerts, spirited marching demonstrations and distinctive white pith
helmets.
This disc - SP&S is a division of the Salvation Army Trading Company
Ltd - is their latest release, presenting a varied collection: seven
individual songs and six medleys, all selected and arranged from the world
of musical theatre. Details of the individual tracks are listed at the end
of this review.
There are many fine songs and performances here. Some of my favourites are
the arrangements for the medleys:
Aspects of Andrew Lloyd Webber,
in particular, is an interesting mix of songs; the slower ballads are
followed by the faster melodies. The insertion of Variation No.1 as a brass
march works brilliantly.
Hosea and
Selection from Spirit
are each filled with seldom-heard tunes, and the band performs them with the
right balance of serenity and exuberance, alternating leads between the
cornets and horns. Vocalist, James Morley has a strong tenor voice and sings
Bring Me Home with feeling and impact, beautifully capturing the
prayer's intent. The light and breezy song
When I Grow Up sounds
full and rich when played by a 32 piece brass band, particularly with a bass
solo.
This album was recorded by World of Sound with engineer Daniel Lock and
Melissa Dee as the producer. A 12-page booklet comes with the disc, with
band notes and a personnel list. The booklet also includes the lyrics for
the songs, but not all of the song titles.
Bruce McCollum
Track-List
1.
Jesus Christ Superstar - Title song from the 1970 rock opera
Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, lyrics by Tim Rice
2
Aspects of Andrew Lloyd Webber -
A medley of 5 well-known Lloyd Webber tunes;
Love Changes
Everything and
Hand Me The Wine And The Dice, from the musical
Aspects of Love,
Think Of Me and
Music Of The
Night, from
Phantom Of The Opera, and
Variations No.1, on
a Theme from Paganini.
3 Selections From
Godspell- Three
from the 1971 musical
Godspell, with music and lyrics by Stephen
Schwartz.
Prepare Ye The Way Of the Lord,
All Good Gifts,
and
Day By Day.
4
All I Ask Of You - From 1986 musical
Phantom Of The
Opera
Composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Charles Hart
5
Breezin' Down Broadway - Six of the best from Broadway:
There's No Business like Show Business by Irving Berlin,
Another Opening, Another Show by Cole Porter,
Get Me To The
Church On Time by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe,
Oklahoma! By Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II,
That's
Entertainment by Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz, and
Seventy-Six
Trombones by Meredith Wilson.
6
Bring Him Home - From the 1980 musical
Les
Miserables
Written by Claude-Michel Schonberg and Alain Boublil
7 Symphonic Highlights from
Frozen - A medley of four tunes
composed by Kristen Anderson Lopez and Robert Lopez for the 2013 musical
Frozen;
Frozen Heart,
Let It Go,
Do You Want
To Build A Snowman, and
For The First Time In Forever.
8
Any Dream Will Do - Written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim
Rice
From the 1968 musical
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor
Dreamcoat
9
Hosea - First performed in 1969,
Hosea is the second
of ten musicals written by Salvation Army officers John Gowans and John
Larsson. The six medley selections are:
You've Got To Conform To
Belong,
Down The Street,
I Came To Him, a short
passage from a mini musical within the musical,
I Nearly Forgot To Say
Thank You, and
Only People.
10
Love Changes Everything - From the 1989 musical
Aspects of
Love
Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, and lyrics by Don Black and Charles Hart
11
What Does The Spirit Say? - From the 1973 musical
Spirit
Music and lyrics by John Gowans and John Larsson
12
When I Grow Up - From the 2010 musical
Matilda
Music and lyrics by Tim Minchin
13 Selection From
Spirit - This is the fourth musical written by
John Gowans and John Larsson and was first performed in 1973. Five medley
selections from this musical are:
Ask, Seek, Knock, followed by
To Be Like Jesus,
Love Cannot Fail, and
Burning,
Burning, and closing with
What Does the Spirit Say To The
Churches.
