Search - Rod Stewart, Peter Gabriel, Bryan Ferry :: All This & World War II

Strange Over-the-Top Mid-70s Concept Album

B. Stockwell | San Francisco, California United States | 09/11/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The idea was to do a massive cover project of Beatles songs done by everyone who was hot in the mid-70s - or wanted to be. This was five years after the Beatles broke up, so maybe the time wasn't right; too soon. Today, this would be a Tribute Album; back then, it was a What the Hell IS This Album? Anyway, this was the Golden Age of Ken Russell films, those overwrought maybe-masterpieces you either got or didn't. Someone thought it would be great to make a film along with the album. Then, someone had the insane idea of combining all this music with newsreel and theatrical film footage of . . . World War II? Yep. "Here Comes the Sun" becomes the rising sun of Japan's flag, a defeated Mussolini is a "Nowhere Man," and Hitler is seen relaxing at his Bavarian retreat as "The Fool on the Hill." Someone has to be kidding, right? The project sounds like a YouTube aberration but it was financed and released by 20th Century Fox. It was yanked out of theaters after week or two. The album has had a life of its own, featuring notable names and people you've never heard of. (Wikipedia is a good place to read more.) About the CD; it omits the final song, "Give Peace a Chance," which summed up the film as an extended anti-war statement. The film doesn't exist as an official release - it would probably cost a billion dollars to secure the rights - but a web-search shows you can find it on DVD. You can see the trailer on You-Tube. P.S. John Lennon was slightly involved with the film - he plays guitar on Elton John's "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds." He liked the film, but he was the walrus AND the eggman, so who really knows?



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Best Beatles Tribute Ever?

David Gerrold | Northridge, CA USA | 02/06/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There have been a lot of Beatles tribute albums. Several have been remarkable, like Joshua Rifkin's legendary Baroque Beatles Book (finally out on CD!) and Booker T.'s McLemore Ave., but of all the different albums of Beatles music that have been released in the last fifty years, it's my not-so-humble opinion that this may be the all-round best collection of artists doing some of their very best performances. The sound quality on vinyl was excellent, the instrumentation and arrangements were all superb, and the production throughout was high-quality. Check the artist list: Ambrosia, Peter Gabriel, Leo Sayer, Rod Stewart, Helen Reddy, Frankie Valli, Tina Turner. I'm so glad this was finally released on CD."

All This And WWII

Joseph E. Kleinhenz | 08/19/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have gone through 3 albums and tried to fine someone to put it on CD.

I was shopping on amazon.com and found it and I was shocked, now I have it on album, cassette and now CD.

This CD has some old greats singing Beatles songs and also some newcomers like Peter Gabriel singing Strawberry fields forever this album is just awesome I paid $3.00 for the cutout in 1979 this cd was will worth the $62.00 I paid."