If Middle-earth had a soundtrack album...

[Morthoron]

Yes, yes, I am aware Howard Shore already did the soundtrack for the movie, and it is quite good (I won a 3 CD compilation of the FotR soundtrack from a LotR poetry contest, and enjoy it immensely); however, if there were a pre-existing album from a band/singer that best exemplifies the feeling or mood of Middle-earth, which album would it be? I am sure tucked away somewhere in the BD vaults there is a duplicate thread already discussing this topic, so please forgive my indolence in advance. Besides, I always enjoy a thread discussing music.

Certainly there are specific songs ('Battle of Evermore' and 'Ramble On' by Led Zep have Tolkienesque allusions), and even entire albums devoted to Middle-earth (Enya and Yngwie Malmsteen come to mind), but are there other albums you feel are evocative of Tolkien? I have a few suggestions and would like to hear yours...

Songs from the Wood by Jethro Tull: I always felt that Ian Anderson could have composed a marvelous soundtrack for a LotR movie. Perhaps because much of his music is so fundamentally grounded in English folk, yet classically inclined, that I considered him a natural for the assignment ('A Classic Case' an orchestral rendition of Tull songs that feature the band and ex-Tull mate David Palmer as conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra ranks with The Moody Blues 'Days of Future Passed' as my favorites for use of orchestra within a rock context). In regards to 'Songs from the Wood', that feeling of English minstrelsy is displayed with such virtuousity that one can nearly smell the scots pine and the scent of wild roses that waft in the summer evening breeze of the song 'Velvet Green'.

In the song 'Jack-in-the-Green' (an ode in honor of the woodland spirit exemplified in English May Day celebrations) one can almost sense a hint of Tom Bombadil (or more correctly, the 'Green Man' of English legend):

"The rowan, the oak and the holly tree
are the charges left for you to groom.
Each blade of grass whispers Jack-In-The-Green.
Oh Jack, please help me through my winter's night.
And we are the berries on the holly tree.
Oh, the mistlethrush is coming.
Jack, put out the light."

Likewise, lines evocative of Middle-earth, but plainly descriptive of the land Ian Anderson (and Tolkien) love so well in the song 'The Whistler':

"Deep red are the sun-sets in mystical places.
Black are the nights on summer-day sands.
We'll find the speck of truth in each riddle.
Hold the first grain of love in our hands."

And again in 'Fires at Midnight' (which has a Shire-like quality):

"I believe in fires at midnight ---
when the dogs have all been fed.
A golden toddy on the mantle ---
a broken gun beneath the bed.
Silken mist outside the window.
Frogs and newts slip in the dark ---
too much hurry ruins the body
I'll sit easy ... fan the spark."

Liege and Lief by Fairport Convention: This phenomenal album presents traditional English folk music in a rock context, and it is not so much the song's lyrics that are to me represenative of Middle-earth, it is rather the somber and sad tone of the album that harkens to the first time I read The Silmarillion. At times plaintive and at others powerful, the lead singer Sandy Denny (who, by the way, shared vocals with Robert Plant on the Tolkien-inspired Led Zep song 'Battle of Evermore') conjures an enchanting glimpse of the Elder Days, and the album itself is timeless, straddling the ancient and the modern without dwelling in the past or present.

The eerie 'Reynardine' -- rendered with the ominous yet restrained vocals of Denny -- could well be an accompanying piece to Eöl's seduction of Aredhel:

'Sun and dark, she followed him
his teeth did brightly shine
and he led her up the mountains
Did that sly old Reynardine.'

and the song 'Farewell, Farewell' is evocative of Frodo's feeling of loss and disjointedness:

'Farewell, farewell to you who would hear
You lonely travellers all
the cold north wind will blow again
the winding road does call.

And will you never return to see
Your bruised and beaten sons ?
"Oh, I would, I would, if welcome I were
for they love me, every one".'

But anyway, it seems I ramble on. Please, add your albums for consideration.

[Lindale]

A rather obvous choice, Elvenpath by Nightwish. Oh well. I heard it after the movies, though I'm sure it was released first. The song has a good deal of Finnish stuff and Beauty and the Beast mythos and other "fantasy" stuff, but there are real Tolkien-y parts. And Bilbo gets mentioned.

I'm not a real metal fan, but I like the song anyway. And I think NW has done a good deal of Tolkien-y songs.

As I return to my room
And as sleep takes me by my hand
Madrigals from the woods
Carry me to neverland
In this spellbound night
The world's an elvish sight

That bit has an almost Smith of Wooton Major feel.

[Morthoron]

Originally Posted by Lindale

A rather obvous choice, Elvenpath by Nightwish. Oh well. I heard it after the movies, though I'm sure it was released first. The song has a good deal of Finnish stuff and Beauty and the Beast mythos and other "fantasy" stuff, but there are real Tolkien-y parts. And Bilbo gets mentioned.

I'm not a real metal fan, but I like the song anyway. And I think NW has done a good deal of Tolkien-y songs.

Interesting, having never heard of them previously, I checked them out on YouTube. They're rather like a more operatic (in both theme and aural tone) version of Evanescence.

But though they write about aspects of Middle-earth, do you think they actually invoke a feel of Tolkien's world? I mentioned Led Zeppelin and their allusions to Tolkien, and I do feel that The Battle of Evermore certainly has a 'Tolkien-y' effect, but a song like Ramble On (that invokes the names of Gollum and Mordor) does not have that same feel. In fact, the specific stanza...

"Mine's a tale that can't be told, my freedom I hold dear.
How years ago in days of old, when magic filled the air.
T'was in the darkest depths of Mordor, I met a girl so fair.
But Gollum, and the evil one crept up and slipped away with her, her, her....yeah."

makes little sense from a Middle-earth standpoint; although Robert Plant was never one for depth of lyrics (as a reading of Stairway to Heaven makes abundantly clear).

Perhaps rather than pointing out entire albums that have such flair, maybe a Middle-earth soundtrack would have songs from different bands that best exemplify specific events in Middle-earth history.

[Bêthberry]

Great reviews of Jethro Tull and Fairport Convention, Morthoron. Both very fitting, I'd say.

Nightwish covered a song by Gary Moore that is steeped in British military tradition, with versions going back over several centuries. Moore's and Nightwish's lyrics aren't exactly Tolkienish, based as they are on adultery and deceit (a sort of British 'Long Black Veil', without the capital punishment), but the haunting melody and drums evoke for me a sense of Middle-earth. Nightwish brings in Viking elements while Moore brings in Celtic.

Here's some YouTube versions and then a link to the traditional versions of the song.

Gary Moore's Over the hills and far away

Nightwish's Over the hills and far away

Over the hills and far away--traditional versions

[ninja91]

The Robin Hood themesong gets my fantasy fires burning. Its very adventurous, especially the version played by the Warner/Tamerlane version. It makes me think of the adventure and thrills that is present in The Lord of the Rings and so many other fantasy stories.

[Morthoron]

Originally Posted by Bêthberry

Great reviews of Jethro Tull and Fairport Convention, Morthoron. Both very fitting, I'd say.

Thank you very much. Tull and Fairport are two of my favorites. I've always appreciated musicians who go decidedly against the grain. Would that there were more bands with such independent spirit.

Originally Posted by Bêthberry

Nightwish covered a song by Gary Moore that is steeped in British military tradition, with versions going back over several centuries. Moore's and Nightwish's lyrics aren't exactly Tolkienish, based as they are on adultery and deceipt (a sort of British 'Long Black Veil', without the capital punishment), but the haunting melody and drums evoke for me a sense of Middle-earth. Nightwish brings in Viking elements while Moore brings in Celtic.

Here's some YouTube version and then a link to the traditional versions of the song.

Thanks for the links. I've played 'Long Black Veil' in the different bands I've pub crawled with for years (the version by The Band is my favorite), as well as 'Matty Groves', a Fairport tune that is another of the cautionary tales regarding adultery that seemed to proliferate in 15th/16th century England. I could not find a Sandy Denny recording of 'Matty' on YouTube, but here is a reunion version of the song with various Fairport members old and new (Sandy Denny died several years ago, and I do not know this singer's name, but the great Richard Thompson is playing guitar). The quality of the video is iffy, but you'll get the general idea...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6PMJ...elated&search=

Here is a Sandy Denny/Fairport version of Tam Lin, a 16th century tale of Faery abduction and enchantment which definitely captures the more fey aspects of Middle-earth...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJrLg...elated&search=

As far as Tull, here's something a Hobbit might be singing on a long journey...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rioYOoFqyAo

And a lusty air from 'Songs from the Woods' (Velvet Green)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NyvT...elated&search=

[MatthewM]

Mostly Autumn, a British band that captures a great Middle-earth spirit. They have a female singer and a ripping lead guitarist. They actually did an album dedicated to The Lord of the Rings. GREAT stuff.

[Lalwendë]

Originally Posted by MatthewM

Mostly Autumn, a British band that captures a great Middle-earth spirit. They have a female singer and a ripping lead guitarist. They actually did an album dedicated to The Lord of the Rings. GREAT stuff.

I'm glad you posted that as I was trying to remember the name of this band for months! I was going to check them out on one of these new-fangled downloading whatsit sites (I won't utter the name of the sinister Apple site...) and completely forgot who they were! Interestingly, the singer is married to the former singer in Marillion - named after...?

On the subject of Led Zep, Plant asserts that he did not base any of his songs on Tolkien, that this was just one of many influences floating in the highly charged ether at the time, and I can believe that, what with the mercurial and enigmatic Jimmy Page and his interest in Aleister Crowley etc. Hammer Of The Gods is required reading for any Zep fan who wants to know more.

The other day davem shouted me to 'come and look at this video!' - he'd found a video (Nedgang) by Finntroll on YouTube. This is well worth looking up, as this Scandinavian metal is thoroughly Northern and Middle-earth appropriate to my mind. Also have a look for Tyr, a Faroese metal band who sing about Viking lore and life in English or their native language - I am rather fond of Hail To The Hammer...can imagine Rohirric warriors singing stuff like this. Love it! And many thanks are in order to Mr Eomer himself for recommending these bands!

On the opposite note - try some Vashti Bunyan for the most whimsical yet not at all sickly Hobbitish music around, songs about frogs and dragonflies and living in a gypsy caravan...and you might try Martin Carthy's Rackabello - a rather ace jaunty song about a man killing a Giant's little pig...and I've got but have yet to rip a new CD of ancient Yule songs/carols/wassails/hails to the Green Man by the Watersons & Martin & Eliza Carthy, as performed in Whitby last Christmas...but don't get me started on the area of folk music because I'll rattle on for hours and I shall have Mithalwen accusing me of being a beardy weirdy.

[Morthoron]

Originally Posted by Lalwendë

...and you might try Martin Carthy's Rackabello - a rather ace jaunty song about a man killing a Giant's little pig...and I've got but have yet to rip a new CD of ancient Yule songs/carols/wassails/hails to the Green Man by the Watersons & Martin & Eliza Carthy, as performed in Whitby last Christmas...but don't get me started on the area of folk music because I'll rattle on for hours and I shall have Mithalwen accusing me of being a beardy weirdy.

Mr. Carthy is a brilliant guitarist and is one of those underappreciated masters who influenced an entire generation of folk musicians. I met him in the mid-90's during a Steeleye Span reunion tour (I am sure I was gushing like a little schoolgirl). And Lalwende, if you wish to rattle on for hours regarding folk music, please do so. This is the perfect thread for it.

The aformentioned Steeleye Span is another band who could add to the Middle-earth soundtrack. There are a few songs from The Waterboys you could throw in there as well, particularly on the 'Room to Roam' album (which has one of the best renditions of 'Raggle Taggle Gypsy'), like 'Song From The End Of The World'....

Here is the smell
of seafood pie
a broken tower
on the open sky
a chain of islands
rolling West
in sight of the house
where we are guests

A rambling old river
twist through the fields
ancient names
imprinted on shields
gifts arrive
for a baby girl
born a queen
at the end of the world

Furious music
from an open door
the sound of feet
beating on a stone floor
always the wind
always the form
of an elder God
hooved and horned

The head of the mountain
lost in a cloud
a country woman
soft and proud
into the bay
the horses swirl
for we come to the sea
at the end of the world

[Lalwendë]

Interestingly, The Waterboys' most famous and enigmatic song - The Whole Of The Moon is in part influenced by CS Lewis according to Mike Scott (singer & songwriter - main man in the band...). The lyrics on this are fascinating - the singer tells of things he has done and then counters each with things the subject has done - the latter seems to have lived a cloistered, quiet life but even so, has seen wondrous things and had amazing revelations - there's the line in the chorus: "I wandered out in the world for years while you just stayed in your room. I saw the crescent, you saw the whole of the moon". The song has always fascinated me...

They have used a fair few other literary influences too including Joyce, George MacDonald, Robbie Burns and WB Yeats. Well worth investigating Fisherman's Blues and This Is The Sea.

[Morthoron]

Originally Posted by Lalwendë

They have used a fair few other literary influences too including Joyce, George MacDonald, Robbie Burns and WB Yeats. Well worth investigating Fisherman's Blues and This Is The Sea.

The rendition of Yeat's 'The Stolen Child' on Fisherman's Blues is particularly good. One of my favorite poems from one of my favorite poets. Also, the title 'Room to Roam' is taken from MacDonald's Phantastes, as is most of the lyrics from that song.

[Thenamir]

In the ill-spent days of my high-schooling, circa 1980, there was a group I'm sure no one here has ever heard of (Arkangel, and yes, that's the correct spelling) that made an single album (to this day one of my favorites) named Warrior. The title cut from that album contained a long roll-out at the end -- so long, in fact, that that section of the tune merited its own separate title - "The March of the Ents".

It was a slow marching cadence, with a single rolling snare drum marking the time, punctuated on the downbeats with a bass drum that sounded as if it were 9 feet in diameter being struck by a cave troll on steroids. A thrumming single note bass line accompanies a stirring bagpipe lead (an electric guitar lead is added later to counterpoint the bagpipe), while a quartet of basso profundo voices chants

Ta-run-da! Ta runda-runda-runda rom!

This song became part of what transpired in my brain whenever I read The Two Towers forever after.

As I reflect on the Two Towers movie, I remember thinking that is was practically a crime to omit the marching song of the Ents as it appeared in the book. But of course, that whole affair with the Ents in the movie was a sad travesty of the scenes as written by JRRT,

We come, we come with roll of drum: ta-runda runda runda rom!
We come, we come with horn and drum: ta-rūna rūna rūna rom!

To Isengard! Though Isengard be ringed and barred with doors of stone;
Though Isengard be strong and hard, as cold as stone and bare as bone,
We go, we go, we go to war, to hew the stone and break the door;
For bole and bough are burning now, the furnace roars – we go to war!
To land of gloom with tramp of doom, with roll of drum, we come, we come;
To Isengard with doom we come!
With doom we come, with doom we come!

That scene could have been incredible, and the music something truly glorious. As it was, the only marching scene that comes close is the march of Mordor on Minas Tirith. Sad.

[Thenamir]

I forgot to mention the group Glass Hammer, whose albums are available online at www.glasshammer.com. Two albums of especial note: Journey of the Dunadan, and The Middle Earth Album. The latter I especially like. as it is portrayed as if Glass Hammer was booked for a night's entertainment at The Prancing Pony, complete with an appreciative (and occasionally heckling) audience. After one particular song you can hear a couple of men in the background arguing over a plate of taters...

[Morthoron]

I do remember Arkangel, Thenamir. Boy, that blast from the past dredged up some rather licentious memories of that era! Let the Bacchanalia begin!

Ummm...anyway, I was listening to Genesis' Trick of the Tail (The album directly after Peter Gabriel left the band, and my personal favorite alongside Selling England by the Pound), and I got to thinking about the song 'Dance on a Volcano'. As well as being superb musically, it could perhaps be perfect accompaniment for the long climb up Orodruin and the dreadful dance Frodo and Gollum perform on the very edge of the Sammath Naur:

Holy mother of god
Youve got to go faster than that to get to the top.
Dirty old mountain
All covered in smoke, she can turn you to stone
So you better start doing it right
Better start doing it right.

Youre halfway up and youre halfway down
And the pack on your back is turning you around.
Throw it away, you wont need it up there, and remember
You dont look back whatever you do.
Better start doing it right.

On your left and on your right
Crosses are green and crosses are blue
Your friends didnt make it through.
Out of the night and out of the dark
Into the fire and into the fight
Well thats the way the heroes go, ho! ho! ho!

Through a crack in mother earth,
Blazing hot, the molten rock
Spills out over the land.
And the lavas the lover who licks your boots away. hey! hey! hey!
If you dont want to boil as well.
B-b-better start the dance
D-d-do you want to dance with me.

You better start doing it right.

The musics playing, the notes are right
Put your left foot first and move into the light.
The edge of this hill is the edge of the world
And if youre going to cross you better start doing it right
Better start doing it right.

You better start doing it right.

Let the dance begin....

http://youtube.com/watch?v=FraoJitaP7I