Search - Various Artists :: The Great War: An American Musical Fantasy

Of great historical value and hearbreaking

F. Behrens | Keene, NH USA | 04/30/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The people at Archeophone have been doing a splendid job in making available on CDs historical recordings of songs from the past, accompanied by fact-filled program notes that are worth the price of the set alone. Now, in my opinion, they have outdone themselves in an imposing 2-CD set titled "The Great War: An American Musical Fantasy."





There are no less than 56 selections sung by artists such as Nora Bayes, John McCormack, Irving Kaufman, Henry Burr, Arthur Fields, Billy Murray, Vernon Dalhart, Elizabeth Spencer, Van and Schenck, Al Jolson, Enrico Caruso, and the American and Peerless Quartets. (Some of these singers have their own CDs in the Archeophone catalogue.) Heard also are the voices of President Wilson and General Pershing, both of which add to the chilling and thrilling time-machine feeling one gets when hearing recordings such as these.





The producers have given a shape to the selections in the following way. The first CD is devoted to recordings made from 1914 to 1917 and "they witness [as the program notes say] American policy toward The Great War change from neutrality to preparedness to belligerence--and the variety of emotions and arguments supporting each position."





So we have protest songs like "I didn't raise my boy to be a soldier" and "Don't take my darling boy away," side by side with "The ragtime volunteers are off to war" and "Lafayette (we hear you calling)." There are songs of rationalization such as "I'd feel at home if they let me join the army" and even songs looking forward to homecoming such as "When you come back (and you will come back, there's a whole world waiting for you)."





The second disc brings us up to 1926 with a "surge of American boosterism, sentimentality and realism." There are still carefree lyrics, but they now mingle with "paeans to fallen buddies and songs of remorse." So a title like "If he can fight like he can love (good night, Germany)" were found in the piles of sheet music on pianos all over America with titles like "My sweetheart is somewhere in France" and "The boys who won't come home."





The program notes give further details about how the material is organized; and it is obvious that a tremendous amount of research has been put into the creation of this set.





There is a good deal to weep over and even to laugh with in this incredible collection, especially when one realizes that the singers were living during the War to End All Wars and their hearts were in these recordings in a way that no "restoration" with singers of today could possibly convey.





Again, I must urge you to read the program notes before hearing each of the discs. Some of the sheet music covers shown in the booklet might very well bring back some memories. As is true with all Archeophone sets, this is a MUST for history classes--and for those who do not wish to repeat the mistakes of the past by supporting those in power who will certainly repeat those mistakes.



"