Great Country, So-So Album

That's my capsule review.   Details:

01. The Pledge of Allegiance (0:31)

02. Star Spangled Banner (2:06)

03. Liberty Fanfare (4:17)

04. America (3:17)

05. This Is My Country (4:08)

06. City of New Orleans (4:34)

07. Doodletown Fifers (4:21)

08. God Bless America (4:06)

09. Boogie-Woogie Bugle Boy (2:39)

10. This Land Is Your Land (2:33)

11. The Gettysburg Address (5:38)

12. America, We're Proud to Serve (4:26)

13. America the Beautiful (5:06)

14. 1812 Overture (15:38)

15. The Stars and Stripes Forever (3:35)

Track One is ruined by some moron adding reverb to the kids’ recitation of our pledge. The other tracks live up to the broad intent of “pops.” For example, there’s probably no way to perform “This Is My Country” without it sounding campy.

“America the Beautiful” starts out schmaltzy, but wins you over by the end. The grand old “1812” would be better served without the cannon sounds, whether live or dubbed. They’re mushy sounding. And I wish they had taken the training wheels off of “The Stars and Stripes Forever”! Instead of pepping up for the big repeat at the end, the thing slows down like the orchestra ran out of steam.

Overall, this is not the best advertising for a post-Williams version of the Pops.

THIS LINK GOOD FOR SEVEN DAYS.

PERMANENT LINK.

This wraps up 2025's JULY SPOCKEBRATION.  See you on Monday for a month of music comps!