CD1 : SOLLSCHER: Fool on The Hill, Eleanor Rigby, Here Comes The Sun, Can’t Buy Me Love, Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) ,Day Tripper, Yellow Submarine, Girl, And I Love Her, The Long and Winding Road, Across The Universe : SOLLSCHER/GLORVIGEN: I Want to Hold Your Hand ; Help: MURAJI: Michelle, Yesterday, Hey Jude, : SOLLSCHER with the Goteborgs Symfoniker: From Yesterday to Penny Lane (She’s Leaving Home; Ticket To Ride; Here There and Everywhere, Yesterday, Got To Get You Into My Life, Eleanor Rigby, Penny Lane )
CD2 No guitar content – Not reviewed
Goran Sollscher, Kaori Muraji, Per Arne Glorvigen ( Bandoneon ) and the Goteborgs Symfoniker
Decca: 478 3039
Of course the music of the Beatles has been played on every combination of instruments over the decades, and there are more than a few guitar players who have arranged numerous of their pieces for classical guitar, myself included!
This double CD is slightly unusual as the first CD is guitar, and the second isn’t, but rather full of orchestral, and choir versions, so that second CD is out of the remit for this review, and therefore I am only concerned here with the first .
Goran Sollscher has the most of the CD and he has enough of a reputation for everyone reading this to realize that the playing, the recording, and everything else to do with the performances are all exceptional. The main thing about the CD is how much the arrangement will deviate from the original songs that we all know, and the answer is, depending on the actual piece concerned, quite considerably at times. That of course is not a criticism as now these pieces are wonderful solos, and it is only because of the performing and publishing rights that we don’t find the sheet music for these pieces available for everyone to try. The fact is that this style of music is usually SO expensive to get printed, that most publishers and arrangers, again, myself included, just can’t afford to bother.
The main thing however about this first CD is that all the main parts of the tunes that you associate with each piece, e.g. that opening riff, that bass line , that particular harmony , are all there in these very varied , but wonderful arrangements.
As every single one of these pieces is wonderful I don’t think it necessary to do any individual critique, but suffice it to say that after you hear this wonderful set of recordings , you will be really sad that you cannot buy the music to try out for yourself! The first 16 tracks are solo guitar except for the 2 involving Per Arne Glorvigen, the bandoneon player, who really puts his all into the two he plays with Goran Sollscher, and adds such a great deal to them.
The final seven pieces are a suite -From Yesterday to Penny Lane and here the orchestra comes into play, and indeed this last suite of pieces yet again adds a new dimension to these timeless melodies, and make a superb closing set to what is a fabulous grouping of exceptional arrangements ,and lovely performances of some of our most well – loved music from the 20th Century. This is definitely worth the effort to buy, even if you aren’t so much interested in the 2nd CD, as it is really excellent.
Chris Dumigan