Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds

Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds
Studio album by Jeff Wayne
Released 9 June 1978 (1978-06-09)[1]
Recorded May 1976–July 1977
Genre Progressive rock, symphonic rock
Length 94:54
Label Columbia/CBS Records
Producer Jeff Wayne
Jeff Wayne chronology
Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds
(1978)		 Highlights from Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds
(1981)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]

Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds is the debut album by Jeff Wayne, retelling the story of The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells,[1] released in the UK 9 June 1978. A concept album, its main format is progressive rock and string orchestra, using narration and leitmotifs to carry the story and rhyming melodic lyrics that express the feelings of the various characters. The two-disc album remains a bestseller, having sold millions of records around the world,[1] and by 2009 it was the 40th best selling album of all time in the UK with sales of 2,561,286.[3] It has since spawned multiple versions of the album, video games, DVDs, and live tours.

Plot summary

The album consists of two disks, which correspond roughly to the two "books" of Wells' novel.

Part 1: The Coming of the Martians

In a prologue, the Journalist notes that in the late 19th century few people had even considered the possible existence of extraterrestrial life, and yet, planet Earth had in fact long been enviously observed by advanced beings.

The Journalist's account begins with the sighting of several bursts of green gas which, for ten consecutive nights, erupt from the surface of Mars and appear to approach Earth. Ogilvy, an astronomer convinced that no life could exist on Mars, assures the Journalist there is no danger. Eventually something crashes onto Horsell Common, and in the resulting crater Ogilvy discovers a glowing cylinder, the top of which begins to unscrew. When this lid falls off, a Martian creature emerges. By now a crowd has gathered on the common, and when a group of inquisitive men approach the cylinder they are incinerated by the Heat-Ray—an advanced Martian weapon. The Journalist flees with the crowd. Later, hammering sounds are heard from the pit. A company of soldiers is deployed at the common, and that evening an injured and exhausted Artilleryman wanders into the Journalist's house and tells him his comrades have been killed by fighting machines—tripod vehicles built and controlled by Martians, each armed with its own Heat-Ray. They set off for London—the Journalist to ensure his lover Carrie is safe, the Artilleryman to report to headquarters—but are soon caught in crossfire between soldiers and Martians and separated. Three days later the Journalist arrives at Carrie's house but finds it empty. He resolves to escape London by boat and later catches sight of Carrie aboard a steamer, but the gangplank is raised before he can join her. Fighting machines then approach, threatening the steamer, but they are engaged by the Royal Navy battleship Thunder Child and two are destroyed. The steamer escapes, but Thunder Child and her crew are melted by heat-rays, leaving England defenceless against the invasion.

Part 2: The Earth Under the Martians

The wandering Journalist discovers that red weed—the vegetation that gives Mars its colour—has taken root on Earth and spread rapidly across the landscape. In a churchyard he encounters the Parson Nathaniel and his wife Beth. The trio take refuge in a nearby cottage that is soon surrounded by black smoke—a Martian chemical weapon. Nathaniel, driven mad by his experiences, blames himself for the invasion and believes the invaders are demons arising from human evil. As Beth attempts to restore his faith in humanity, a Martian cylinder crashes into the cottage and she is buried under the rubble. The newly arrived Martians construct a handling machine: a squat, spider-like vehicle used to capture and collect humans. After nine days hiding in the ruins, the Journalist and Nathaniel see the Martians 'eating'—harvesting human blood and injecting it into their own veins. Nathaniel resolves to confront the 'demons', believing that he has been chosen to destroy them with his prayers and holy cross. The Journalist knocks him unconscious to silence his ravings, but the Martians are already alerted. A mechanical claw explores the cottage and drags Nathaniel away. Eventually the Martians abandon their camp and the Journalist continues his journey to London. He again encounters the Artilleryman, who is planning a subterranean utopia that would allow humans to evade the Martians and ultimately strike back with reverse-engineered fighting machines. The Journalist, however, realising the Artilleryman's ambitions far exceed his abilities, soon leaves. Upon reaching London he finds it desolate and empty. Driven to suicide by intense despair and loneliness, he surrenders to a fighting machine but realises it is inert, the Martian inside dead.

In his epilogue, the Journalist reports that the Martians were defeated by Earth's bacteria—to which they had no resistance—and that, as humanity recovered from the invasion, he was reunited with Carrie. But, he says, the question remains: is Earth now safe, or are the Martians learning from their failures and preparing a second invasion?

In a second epilogue set in the near future, a NASA mission to Mars flounders when the control centre loses contact with the craft. The controller sees a green flare erupt from Mars's surface. The controller tries to contact NASA, but all communication seems to have been blocked.

Cast

Performers

Album

Tours

  • Richard Burton – spoken words (The Journalist) (via a "virtual" Richard Burton: a large bust of the Journalist plus a projected image)
  • Liam Neeson – spoken words (The Journalist) (The New Generation 2012, 2014 and the Dominion Theatre stage production 2016)[4]
  • Justin Hayward – vocals (The Sung Thoughts of the Journalist) (all tours: 2006, 2007 Australian, 2007 UK, 2009 30th Anniversary, and 2010 tour)
  • Alexis James – spoken words and vocals (The Artilleryman) (2006, 2007 UK, and 2009 30th Anniversary tour)
  • Michael Falzon – spoken words and vocals (The Artilleryman) (2007 Australian tour)
  • Jason Donovan – spoken words and vocals (The Artilleryman) (2010 tour)
  • Chris Thompson – vocals (The Voice of Humanity) (all tours: 2006, 2007 Australian, 2007 UK, 2009 30th Anniversary, and 2010 tour)
  • Russell Watson – spoken words and vocals (Parson Nathaniel) (2006 tour)
  • Shannon Noll – spoken words and vocals (Parson Nathaniel) (2007 Australian and first half of 2009 30th Anniversary tour)
  • John Payne – spoken words and vocals (Parson Nathaniel) (2007 UK tour)
  • Damien Edwards – spoken words and vocals (Parson Nathaniel) (second half of 2009 30th Anniversary tour)
  • Rhydian Roberts – spoken words and vocals (Parson Nathaniel) (2010 tour)
  • Tara Blaise – spoken words and vocals (Beth) (2006 tour)
  • Rachael Beck – spoken words and vocals (Beth) (2007 Australian tour)
  • Sinéad Quinn – spoken words and vocals (Beth) (2007 UK tour)
  • Jennifer Ellison – spoken words and vocals (Beth) (2009 30th Anniversary tour)
  • Liz McClarnon – spoken words and vocals (Beth) (2010 tour)
  • Carrie Hope Fletcher – spoken words and vocals (Beth) (2014 tour)
  • Daniel Boys – spoken words and vocals (Male Understudy) (all tours: 2006, 2007 Australian, 2007 UK, 2009 30th Anniversary, and 2010 tour)

Black Smoke Band

Album

Tours

  • Jeff Wayne – composer, conductor
  • Chris Spedding – electric guitar, acoustic guitar
  • Herbie Flowers – bass guitar
  • Huw Davies – Electric Guitar
  • Gaetan Schurrer – Tar, Keyboards
  • Tom Woodstock – guitars, keyboards, backing vocals
  • Laurie Wisefield – guitars, mandolin, autoharp, tar
  • Accy Yeats – drums
  • Gordy Marshall – drums
  • Julia Thornton – percussion, harp, keyboards
  • Steve Turner – keyboards
  • Neil Angilley – keyboards
  • Kennedy Aitchison – keyboards

String Orchestra

Album

  • Littlechap Strings

Tours

  • ULLAdubULLA

About the album

Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds was created by composer Jeff Wayne based on the 1898 novel by H. G. Wells. It features Academy Award nominated actor Richard Burton, Justin Hayward (of The Moody Blues), Chris Thompson (of Manfred Mann's Earth Band), Phil Lynott (of Thin Lizzy), Julie Covington (of Evita and Rock Follies), and David Essex (Evita, The China Plates). Wayne conducts what would come to be known as the Black Smoke Band and the ULLAdubULLA string orchestra.

"Forever Autumn" was a UK Top 5 single, sung by Hayward. In Canada, it only managed to reach #73 and fared only slightly better in the US, peaking at #47. The album itself spent 290 weeks in the UK album charts. It was in the top 10 in 22 countries and reached #1 in 11 countries. In Canada, the album reached just #76.

Most of the lyrics on the album were written by former Elton John lyricist Gary Osborne.

The album was one of the first recorded on 48 tracks, using two synchronised 24 track Studer A80s at Advision Studios in London. It was engineered by Geoff Young, who brought the recordings together with only a 16 track desk. He later worked with George Michael to record "Last Christmas" and "Careless Whisper" using the same studio and equipment.

The repetition of "Ulla!", the cry made by the Martians, and certain musical refrains throughout the musical act as leitmotifs.

The official album comes with several paintings by Peter Goodfellow, Geoff Taylor and Michael Trim that illustrate the story.

Other versions of the album

To promote the 1978 release, an abridged album containing "Radio edits" was distributed to radio stations. Special intros and endings had to be added to certain tracks because they simply were not written with radio in mind. The "air play" album turned out so well that in 1981 CBS decided to release it commercially under the title Highlights from Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds.

Two Spanish versions of the album were released in 1978, one featuring Anthony Quinn in the role of the journalist, and the other for Spain featuring Teófilo Martínez in the same role. A version in Dutch was recorded for Radio Veronica in the Netherlands, but never released as an album. A German version was released in 1980 with Curd Jürgens taking the part of the journalist.

A 1989 version of "The Eve of the War" remixed by Ben Liebrand reached number 3 in the UK singles chart. A 1995 edition of the album featured additional remixes of some tracks and additional conceptual art. Australian progressive metal band Alchemist released a version of "Eve of the War" on a 1998 EP.

In 2000, a collection of remixes of tracks from the original album—including several used in the 1998 computer game—were released on a double CD titled The War of the Worlds: ULLAdubULLA—the Remix Album. While most of the contributors are relatively unknown,[5] the album includes two versions of a remix of "Dead London" by Apollo 440 and other remixes by house-music pioneer Todd Terry.

On 23 June 2005 the original album was re-released in two forms: one in a remastered 2-disc Hybrid Multichannel Super Audio CD set; another in a 7-disc "Collector's Edition" featuring additional remixes, outtakes, the actors reading from the unabridged script, excerpts from the Anthony Quinn and Curd Jürgens performances as the reporter, as well as a seventh disc being a DVD showing the making of the album, produced by Phoenix Film & Television Productions.

While the original ULLAdubULLA album had a limited run and went out of print, following the success of the 2005 re-release of the original album, ULLAdubULLA II was released on 17 April 2006. This single CD release was largely made of tracks from the original remix album, with some additional new remixes by Tom Middleton and DJ Keltech, and hip-hop versions of two tracks by DJ Zube. Middleton's remixes of "The Eve of the War" were also released on CD and vinyl.

Beyond the album

Video games

In 1984 CRL Group PLC released Jeff Wayne's Video Game Version of The War of the Worlds for the Sinclair ZX Spectrum home computer. It was also released in Germany as Jeff Wayne's Video Version von Der Krieg der Welten.

In 1998, a real-time strategy game, Jeff Wayne's The War of the Worlds, was created by Rage Software and released for the personal computer. Jeff Wayne himself produced the musical arrangements for the game, consisting of 45 minutes of material re-scored and remixed in a newer electronica style with techno beats. The game's artwork was based on the Michael Trim, Geoff Taylor and Peter Goodfellow illustrations found throughout the original album booklet, and some of Richard Burton's dialogue as the journalist is used in the opening and closing scenes.

In 1999, a third-person shooter, also entitled Jeff Wayne's The War of the Worlds, was developed by Pixelogic and released for the Sony PlayStation. It used much of the 1998 game's music and graphical elements, but featured an entirely different campaign with a focus on vehicular combat.

Animated version

In late 2004 the ULLAdubULLA II production had been commissioned for an animated CGI film version. Test footage of some Martian machines was released, but the film itself never materialised.[6]

Tours

Liz McClarnon as Beth during the 2010 tour

A live tour, based on the album, began in the UK and Ireland in April 2006. Jeff Wayne returned to conduct the 48-piece ULLAdubULLA Strings and 10-piece Black Smoke Band. A "virtual" Richard Burton (a large bust of the Journalist onto which was projected an image of a young Burton with a super-imposed actor's mouth and jaw lip synched to the original Burton recordings) performed as The Journalist. Justin Hayward reprised his original role as The Sung Thoughts of the Journalist and Chris Thompson returned as The Voice Of Humanity. Also from the original recording were Chris Spedding playing lead guitar and Herbie Flowers on bass guitar. Other guest artists who appeared were the "People's Tenor" Russell Watson as Parson Nathaniel, Alexis James as The Artilleryman, and Tara Blaise as Beth. Daniel Boys (known from BBC's Any Dream Will Do) was understudy for all the roles sung by male artists. A model Fighting Machine featured on stage. A short animated 'prequel' to the story was also presented in the style of the upcoming feature-length film detailing the Martians' ecological destruction of their own world (which was originally made for the 1998 computer game) and their preparations to invade Earth, and including a short remix of "The Red Weed". The show was produced by Ray Jones, Damian Collier and Jeff Wayne.

The live show toured Australia and New Zealand in 2007, with dates in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane and Auckland. The Australian tour featured Australian Idol runner-up Shannon Noll as Parson Nathaniel, actress Rachael Beck as Beth and Michael Falzon as the Artilleryman, alongside Justin Hayward and Chris Thompson from the original cast with Chris Spedding and Herbie Flowers in the band.[7] A further UK live tour took place in December 2007 with Justin Hayward, Chris Thompson, Alexis James, John Payne as Parson, and Sinéad Quinn as Beth.

2008 marked the 30th anniversary of the original album release and a number of events took place, including a "30th Anniversary Tour" which started on 7 June 2009 in Dublin.[8] The 30th anniversary saw Justin Hayward, Alexis James and Chris Thompson reprise their respective roles, with Shannon Noll taking the role of Parson Nathaniel and Jennifer Ellison as Beth. When Noll had to leave the show halfway through its 2009 tour, the role of Parson Nathaniel went to Damien Edwards, who completed the run. The virtual Richard Burton was also improved; the whole face was animated (an actor was found with a similar facial structure, all of Burton's narrative parts were mimed, and his face was super-imposed onto the face of the actor). In November 2009, Wayne announced on his website dates for another tour in the UK, Ireland, Germany, and the Netherlands, and for the first time, Belgium, in late 2010–early 2011. Justin Hayward and Chris Thompson reprised their roles as The Sung Thoughts of the Journalist and The Voice of Humanity respectively, with Rhydian Roberts as Parson Nathaniel, Jason Donovan as The Artilleryman and Liz McClarnon as Beth.

DVD

A two disc Region 2 DVD of the 2006 Wembley Arena, London show was released 6 November 2006 by Universal. Disc 1 contains the live show and Disc 2 contains extras and a documentary of the making of the live show. It is titled Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of The Worlds - Live on Stage.

The New Generation

In 2011 after a short hiatus from touring, Jeff Wayne announced a new Musical Version of The War of the Worlds album to be released in June 2012 entitled The New Generation.[9] The release date was later pushed back to November, due to problems with scheduling recordings with guest artists.[10] With the album's release, The New Generation would also cross Europe on a major arena tour.

Wayne explained that the idea was to return to the original album and explore H. G. Wells' characters in more detail, as well as develop the love story between the story's main character, George Herbert, and his fiancee Carrie. Wayne also explained that it would allow him to re-interpret his compositions with the new production techniques of today.

Along with the new album would come a new voice of the Journalist, originally played by Richard Burton in the 1978 album. The role would now be played by Irish actor Liam Neeson, appearing in 3D holography on stage for the Arena tour. On 1 March 2012, Kaiser Chiefs frontman Ricky Wilson was announced as the Artilleryman for both the album release and the tour version, while Kerry Ellis would play Beth for the arena tour only.

Later, Marti Pellow was added to the tour cast and announced as the Voice of Humanity and it was confirmed that Jason Donovan would return to the production but as Parson Nathaniel rather than the Artilleryman, which he played on the previous tour. Later it was announced that Marti Pellow had switched roles to the Sung Thought of the Journalist; Jettblack's lead singer and guitarist Will Stapleton would take his place as the Voice of Humanity. Two new characters were also introduced for the prologue, William (Michael Falzon) and Vera (Lily Osborne).

Both Wayne and Neeson were interviewed at the album's press conference where a clip of Neeson playing the journalist was shown. It was explained that Neeson would appear on stage as Journalist George Herbert in three ways: First as an 11-foot holographic head and shoulders (much like the Richard Burton image on the 2009 tour). Second, as a full body hologram, interacting with live performers on stage without actually being present during the show. And third: Neeson would appear in the 2-hour CGI film displayed on a 100-foot "animation wall" played throughout the show.

Jeff Wayne would conduct the ULLAdubULLA Strings and Black Smoke Band as he had done in the tours before.

In mid September, the cast for the new album was released casting Ricky Wilson as the Artilleryman, Joss Stone as Beth, Alex Clare as the voice of Humanity, Maverick Sabre as Parson Nathaniel, and Take That singer Gary Barlow as the Sung Thoughts of the Journalist, as well as Neeson as the voice of the Journalist. The release date for the New Generation album was set to be 12 November 2012 but moved to 26 November to coincide with the Arena tour.

In February 2016, the stage show opened at the Dominion Theatre in London's West End and ran until 30 April 2016.[4]

Track listing

LP and tape

All dialogue written by Doreen and Jerry Wayne, based upon H.G. Wells's original text.

All tracks written by Jeff Wayne, except where noted.

Side A (Tape 1, Side A)
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."The Eve of the War"Justin Hayward and Richard Burton9:06
2."Horsell Common and the Heat Ray"Richard Burton11:36
Total length:20:42
Side B (Tape 1, Side B)
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."The Artilleryman and the Fighting Machine"David Essex and Richard Burton10:36
2."Forever Autumn" (lyrics by Paul Vigrass and Gary Osborne)Justin Hayward and Richard Burton7:43
3."Thunder Child" (lyrics by Gary Osborne)Chris Thompson and Richard Burton6:10
Total length:24:29
Side C (Tape 2, Side A)
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."The Red Weed (Part 1)"Richard Burton5:55
2."Parson Nathaniel"Phil Lynott and Richard Burton1:45
3."The Spirit of Man" (lyrics by Gary Osborne)Julie Covington, Phil Lynott, and Richard Burton9:52
4."The Red Weed (Part 2)"Richard Burton6:51
Total length:24:23
Side D (Tape 2, Side B)
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."Brave New World" (lyrics by Gary Osborne)David Essex and Richard Burton12:13
2."Dead London"Richard Burton8:37
3."Epilogue (Part 1)"Richard Burton2:42
4."Epilogue (Part 2)"Jerry Wayne2:02
Total length:25:34

Compact disc

Same as LP, reorganised as a double CD. Original CD release date 1985:

All tracks written by Jeff Wayne, except where noted.

Disc One – The Coming of the Martians
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."The Eve of the War" (misprinted "The Eye of the War" in some pressings)Justin Hayward and Richard Burton9:07
2."Horsell Common and the Heat Ray"Richard Burton11:35
3."The Artilleryman and the Fighting Machine"David Essex and Richard Burton10:37
4."Forever Autumn" (lyrics by Paul Vigrass and Gary Osborne)Justin Hayward and Richard Burton7:55
5."Thunder Child" (lyrics by Gary Osborne)Chris Thompson and Richard Burton6:03
Total length:45:17
Disc Two – The Earth Under the Martians
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."The Red Weed (Part 1)"Richard Burton5:51
2."The Spirit of Man" (lyrics by Gary Osborne) (incorporates LP track "Parson Nathaniel")Phil Lynott, Julie Covington, and Richard Burton11:45
3."The Red Weed (Part 2)"Richard Burton6:19
4."Brave New World" (lyrics by Gary Osborne)David Essex and Richard Burton12:36
5."Dead London"Richard Burton8:36
6."Epilogue (Part 1)"Richard Burton2:42
7."Epilogue (Part 2)"Jerry Wayne2:01
Total length:49:50
Disc Two – The Earth Under the Martians (1989 release)
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
8."The Eve of The War (Ben Liebrand Mix)"Richard Burton7:05
Disc Two - The Earth Under the Martians (1995 release)
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
8."The Spirit of Man (Dubulladub)"Phil Lynott, Julie Covington4:14
9."Dark Autumn Dub"Justin Hayward, Richard Burton8:51
10."Forever Autumn (Remix 95)"Justin Hayward4:21
11."Epilogue (Part 2) / The Eve of the War (Remix 95)"Jerry Wayne, Justin Hayward, Richard Burton5:33
Disc Two – The Earth Under the Martians (1996 release)
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
8."The Spirit of Man (Dubulladub)"Phil Lynott, Julie Covington, and Richard Burton4:15
9."Forever Autumn (Remix '96)" (lyrics by Paul Vigrass and Gary Osborne)Justin Hayward4:46
10."Forever Autumn (Dark Autumn Dub)" 8:51
11."The Eve of the War (pi-r2h Mix)"Justin Hayward and Richard Burton6:19

Seven-disc box set

Discs one and two of this set are hybrid SACDs and include a 5.1 channel mix; they are identical to the standalone 2-disc SACD edition.

All tracks written by Jeff Wayne, except where noted.

Disc One – The Coming of the Martians
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."The Eve of the War"Justin Hayward, Richard Burton9:07
2."Horsell Common and The Heat Ray"Richard Burton11:35
3."The Artilleryman and The Fighting Machine"David Essex, Richard Burton10:37
4."Forever Autumn" (lyrics by Paul Vigrass and Gary Osborne)Justin Hayward, Richard Burton7:55
5."Thunder Child" (lyrics by Gary Osborne)Chris Thompson, Richard Burton6:03
Total length:45:17
Disc Two – The Earth Under the Martians
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."The Red Weed (Part 1)"Richard Burton5:51
2."The Spirit of Man" (lyrics by Gary Osborne) (incorporates LP track "Parson Nathaniel")Phil Lynott, Julie Covington, Richard Burton11:45
3."The Red Weed (Part 2)"Richard Burton6:19
4."The Artilleryman Returns"David Essex, Richard Burton1:27
5."Brave New World" (lyrics by Gary Osborne)David Essex, Richard Burton12:36
6."Dead London"Richard Burton8:36
7."Epilogue (Part 1)"Richard Burton2:42
8."Epilogue (Part 2) NASA"Jerry Wayne2:01
Total length:49:12
Disc Three – The Remixes – 1979–2005
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."UlladubUlla – Papa Ootzie Remix"Lewis MacLeod3:11
2."The Eve of the War – Hybrid's Fire in the Sky Mix" (lyrics by Gary Osborne)Richard Burton4:39
3."Forever Autumn – N-Trance Remix" (lyrics by Paul Vigrass and Gary Osborne)Justin Hayward3:31
4."Horsell Common and the Heat Ray – Max Mondo Remix" 3:48
5."The Spirit of Man – Spirit of Dub—Tom Frederikse/Gaëtan Schurrer Remix" (lyrics by Paul Vigrass)Julie Covington, Phil Lynott5:48
6."The Eve of the War – Hani Remix"Richard Burton4:16
7."The Artilleryman and the Fighting Machine – Max Mondo Remix" 3:50
8."Brave New World – Todd Terry Remix"David Essex, Richard Burton3:11
9."Forever Autumn – Dark Autumn Dub Tom Frederikse/Gaëtan Schurrer Remix" 4:07
10."The Red Weed – Mister Joyboy Remix" 3:22
11."The Spirit of Destiny (The Parson Versus Palene) – Cassidy/Langan/Wayne Remix"Phil Lynott, Catherine Zeta-Jones4:59
12."The Eve of the War – 1980 Disco Steve Thompson Remix"Justin Hayward4:48
13."The Spirit of Man – Max Mondo Remix" (lyrics by Paul Vigrass)Julie Covington, Phil Lynott5:17
14."The Eve of the War – Ben Liebrand Remix"Richard Burton3:50
15."Brave New World – Dario G Remix" 5:10
16."Dead London – Mister Joyboy Remix" 5:06
17."The Eve of the War Versus Animal and Man – Forrest/Schurrer/Wayne Remix"Richard Burton, Anthony Hopkins5:52
Total length:1:14:45
Disc Four – The Coming of the Martians – Revisited (Original Studio Out-Takes: I of III)
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."Four Narrators (Opening Passage)"Richard Burton, Anthony Quinn, Teófilo Martínez, and Curd Jürgens0:47
2."The Eve of the War (Original Unused Intro)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton0:54
3."The Eve of the War (Early Band Take)"Jeff Wayne, Chris Amoo4:14
4."The Eve of the War (Stripped Down Mix)"Jeff Wayne4:05
5."The Eve of the War"Jeff Wayne, Chris Thompson0:50
6."'That' Laugh"Jeff Wayne, Barry Morgan, Ken Freeman, Herbie Flowers, Jo Partridge, Roy Jones, Barry Desouza, Chris Spedding0:49
7."Out-Takes (from Horsell Common)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Jerry Wayne0:14
8."Out-Takes (from Horsell Common) (Continued)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Charles Dublin0:11
9."Out-Takes (from Horsell Common)"Jeff Wayne1:56
10."Horsell Common and the Heat Ray (Early Version)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton4:42
11."Out-Takes (from Horsell Common and the Heat Ray)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Jerry Wayne0:44
12."The Heat Ray Versus The Jangle Piano (Martian Versus Man)"Jeff Wayne, Jo Partridge1:20
13."The Artilleryman and the Fighting Machine (Early Band Take, Featuring Original Unused Intro)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, David Essex, Ozzie the Owl4:06
14."Richard Burton Out-Take"Richard Burton, Charles Dublin0:16
15."Lego Toys (Original 1969 Radio Commercial)"Jeff Wayne, Paul Vigrass, Gary Osborne0:32
16."Forever Autumn (Original 1972 Version)"Jeff Wayne2:55
17."Bar Count – Under Attack (from Forever Autumn)"Jeff Wayne, Chris Spedding1:28
18."Forever Autumn (Early Version)"Jeff Wayne4:57
19."Bar Count Continues (from Forever Autumn)"Jeff Wayne, Chris Spedding0:25
20."Paperboys (Original Unused Out-Take)"Jeff Wayne, Charles Davis, David Essex, Geraldine0:44
21."Paperboys (Original Unused Out-Take)"Jeff Wayne, Charles Davis, David Essex, Geraldine0:13
22."Paperboy Shouts and Panicking Crowd (Original Unused Out-Takes from Forever Autumn)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Charles Davis, Geraldine0:25
23."Paperboy Shouts and Panicking Crowd (Original Unused Out-Takes from Forever Autumn)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Charles Davis, Geraldine0:26
24.""Ugly Brutes!" and "See Them?" (Original Unused Out-Takes)"Jeff Wayne, Charles Davis, Geraldine0:09
25."Forever Autumn (Early Version)"Jeff Wayne, Chris Amoo4:00
26."Thunder Child (Early Version)"Jeff Wayne, Chris Amoo3:52
27."Thunder Child (Later Version)"Jeff Wayne2:51
28."Four Narrators (The Earth Belonged to the Martians)"Richard Burton, Anthony Quinn, Teófilo Martínez, Curd Jürgens0:26
29."Four Narrators (The Red Weed)"Richard Burton, Anthony Quinn, Teófilo Martínez, Curd Jürgens0:24
30."The Red Weed (Early Version)"Jeff Wayne, Chris Spedding, Barry Morgan, Herbie Flowers, Ken Freeman, Roy Jones, Jo Partridge, Barry Desouza, Ray Parker4:28
31."Unused Out-Take (from the Red Weed)"Jeff Wayne1:21
32."The Red Weed (Original Unused Parts)"Jeff Wayne0:48
33."The Red Weed (Original Unused Parts)"Jeff Wayne1:03
34."Jeff's "Worth a Listen" Red Weed Alternative"Jeff Wayne0:22
35."Original 75" Radio Commercial"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Justin Hayward1:16
Total length:58:13
Disc Five – The Earth Under the Martians – Revisited (Original Studio Out-Takes: II of III)
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."Parson Nathaniel (2005 Revisited Version)"Jeff Wayne, Chris Amoo, The Real Thing 
2."The Spirit of Man (Early Version with Unused Acting Parts)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Phil Lynott, Julie Covington1:51
3."The Spirit of Man (Early Version Guide Vocals)"Jeff Wayne, Clare Torry, Bob Saker5:08
4."The Spirit of Man (Jerry, Doreen & Phil Acting Out-Takes)"Jeff Wayne, Geoff Young, Doreen Wayne, Phil Lynott1:02
5."The Spirit of Man (Alternate Version)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Phil Lynott, Julie Covington0:47
6.""Are You Ready Jeff?" (Acting Out-Takes from The Spirit of Man)"Jeff Wayne, Geoff Young, Jerry Wayne, Doreen Wayne, Phil Lynott1:28
7.""Are You Ready Jeff?" (Acting Out-Takes from The Spirit of Man)"Jeff Wayne, Geoff Young, Jerry Wayne, Doreen Wayne, Phil Lynott0:54
8."The Spirit of Man"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Phil Lynott, Clare Torry1:07
9."The Spirit of Man (Out-Takes, Including Original Unused Script)"Jeff Wayne, Phil Lynott0:31
10."The Spirit of Man (Out-Takes, Including Original Unused Script)"Jeff Wayne, Phil Lynott0:26
11."The Spirit of Man (Out-Takes, Including Original Unused Script)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Phil Lynott, Julie Covington1:26
12."The Spirit of Man (Beth & Parson Out-Takes, Including Original Unused Script)"Jeff Wayne, Phil Lynott, Julie Covington0:51
13."The Spirit of Man (Out-Takes, Including Original Unused Script)"Jeff Wayne, Julie Covington0:40
14."The Spirit of 'Mayan' (Parson Out-Takes)"Jeff Wayne, Phil Lynott4:31
15."The Spirit of Man (Beth Is Killed)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Phil Lynott1:01
16."The Spirit of Man (Beth Is Killed - Original Out-Take)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Phil Lynott0:20
17."The Spirit of Man (Guitar Solo)"Jeff Wayne, Chris Spedding, Barry Morgan, Herbie Flowers1:13
18.""Outcries" (from The Spirit of Man)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Charles Dubin0:45
19."The Spirited Man (Strings and Acoustic Guitar Alternative)"Jeff Wayne, Jo Partridge, The Littlechap Strings2:48
20."The Spirit of Man (Beth Out-Takes)"Jeff Wayne, Julie Covington0:34
21."The Spirit of Man (Beth Out-Takes)"Jeff Wayne, Julie Covington, Phil Lynott0:35
22."The Spirit of Man (Beth Out-Takes)"Jeff Wayne, Julie Covington, Phil Lynott0:29
23."The Spirit of Man (Beth Out-Takes)"Jeff Wayne, Julie Covington0:25
24."The Spirit of Man (Beth Out-Takes)"Jeff Wayne, Julie Covington0:17
25."The Spirit of Man (Beth Out-Takes)"Jeff Wayne, Julie Covington0:15
26."The Spirit of Guitars (Guitars and Strings from The Spirit of Man)"Jeff Wayne, Chris Spedding, Jo Partridge, The Littlechap Strings0:46
27."Tea For Two: Jerry & Phil's Late Night Cabaret"Jeff Wayne, Phil Lynott0:48
28."Parson Nathaniel Scream Out-Takes (from The Spirit of Man)"Jeff Wayne, Phil Lynott, Geoff Young2:26
29."Parson Nathaniel Scream Out-Takes (from The Spirit of Man)"Jeff Wayne2:09
30."Original Parson Scream Out-Takes"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Charles Davis0:33
31."Original Spanish Parson Scream Out-Takes"Jeff Wayne, Miguel Peñaranda0:25
32."German Journalist And Parson Out-Takes"Jeff Wayne, Manfred Lehmann0:40
33."Spanish Journalist and Parson Scream Out-Take"Jeff Wayne, Teófilo Martinez, Daniel Dicenta0:41
34.""And There Was Nothing I Could Do To Prevent It" (Out Takes And Master)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton0:37
35."Parson Nathaniel (Original Unused Song)"Jeff Wayne, Chris Amoo, The Real Thing6:05
36.""Less Piano And More Air, Please!""Jeff Wayne, Barry Morgan0:47
37."The Artilleryman Returns (With Unused Parts)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton1:33
38."The Artilleryman's Out-Takes (from Brave New World)"Jeff Wayne, David Essex, Geoff Young0:28
39."The Artilleryman's Out-Takes (from Brave New World) (Continued)"Jeff Wayne, David Essex, Geoff Young0:24
40."The Artilleryman's Out-Takes (from Brave New World)"Jeff Wayne, Geoff Young, David Essex0:53
41."Brave New World (Early Piano Demo)"Jeff Wayne3:41
42."Brave New World (Early Band Take)"Jeff Wayne, Herbie Flowers, Chris Spedding, Ken Freeman, Ray Cooper, Barry Desouza, Jo Partridge4:43
43."The Artilleryman's "I've Got A Plan!" Out Takes (from Brave New World)"Jeff Wayne, Geoff Young, David Essex0:35
44."Brave New World (Acoustic Alternative)"Jeff Wayne, Jo Partridge, Barry Morgan, Ken Freeman, Ray Cooper1:17
45."Brave New World (Alternate Version)"Jeff Wayne, David Essex2:22
46."The Spanish Artilleryman's Plan (from Brave New World)"Jeff Wayne, Luis Varela, Teófilo Martinez3:02
47."Acting Out Takes (from Brave New World)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, David Essex0:23
48."Acting Out Takes (from Brave New World)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, David Essex0:23
49."Acting Out Takes (from Brave New World)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, David Essex0:22
50."Acting Out Takes (from Brave New World)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, David Essex0:19
51."Acting Out Takes (from Brave New World)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, David Essex1:13
52."Original 40" Radio Commercial"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Justin Hayward0:42
53."Regressing Bar Count"Jeff Wayne, Chris Spedding0:45
Disc Six – The Earth Under the Martians – Revisited (Continued) (Original Studio Out-Takes: III of III)
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."Dead London (Early Version, featuring Original Piano Demo)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton3:53
2."Dead London (Early Band Run-Through)"Jeff Wayne, Herbie Flowers, Roy Jones, Jo Partridge, Chris Spedding, Barry Desouza, Ken Freeman, Ray Cooper6:31
3."Murderous Out-Takes (from Dead London)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Charles Dublin1:07
4."Murderous Out-Takes (from Dead London)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Charles Dublin0:21
5."Bar Count (from Dead London)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton0:25
6."Breathless Out-Take (from Dead London)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Charles Dubin0:43
7."Epilogue 1 (Early Bird Take)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton5:04
8."The Four Narrators (Epilogue)"Jeff Wayne, Richard Burton, Anthony Quinn, Curd Jürgens, Teófilo Martinez0:24
9."Unused Alternate NASA Epilogue Out-Takes"Jeff Wayne, Doreen Wayne, Charles Dubin1:00
10."Unused Alternate NASA Epilogue Out-Takes"Jeff Wayne, Doreen Wayne, Charles Dubin0:44
11."Unused Alternate NASA Epilogue Out-Takes"Jeff Wayne, Doreen Wayne, Charles Dubin0:21
12."NASA Epilogue (Spanish Version)"Jeff Wayne, Honorio Herrero1:50
13."Spanish Narrator Out-Takes"Jeff Wayne, Anthony Quinn, Geoff Young, Anthony's Director (Name Unknown)1:00
14."Spanish Narrator Out-Takes"Jeff Wayne, Anthony Quinn, Geoff Young, Anthony's Director (Name Unknown)1:24
15."Spanish Narrator Out-Takes"Jeff Wayne, Anthony Quinn, Geoff Young, Anthony's Director (Name Unknown)0:21
16."Spanish Narrator Out-Takes"Jeff Wayne, Anthony Quinn, Geoff Young, Anthony's Director (Name Unknown)0:36
17."The Eve of the War (Original Narration and Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne1:39
18."The Falling Star (Original Narration and Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne2:13
19."Horsell Common and the Heat Ray (Original Narration and Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne2:36
20."The Fighting Begins (Original Narration and Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne0:56
21."The Artilleryman and the Fighting Machine (Original Narration and Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne3:56
22."The Exodus from London (Original Narration and Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne2:16
23."The Thunder Child (Original Narration and Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne1:11
24."The Red Weed (Original Narration and Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne1:57
25."How I Fell in with the Parson (Original Narration And Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne2:29
26."The Days of Imprisonment (Original Narration and Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne1:45
27."What We Saw from the Ruined House (Original Narration and Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne2:13
28."The Artilleryman and the Brave New World - The Spirit of Man (Original Narration And Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne6:32
29."Dead London (Original Narration and Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne4:36
30."The Epilogue (Original Narration and Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne1:09
31."NASA Epilogue (Original Narration and Acting Parts)"Richard Burton, Charles Davis, David Essex, Jeff Wayne0:44
Disc Seven – Deconstructing The War of the Worlds (DVD Documentary)

This DVD accompanies Jeff Wayne in the memories of the intensive work while making the original album, featuring footage and an abundance of information about the participating crew and the workflow behind the album.

iTunes / SACD version

When bought through iTunes or on the 2005 5.1 channel SACD version, the track layout is slightly different:

All tracks written by Jeff Wayne, except where noted.

Disc One – The Coming of the Martians
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."The Eve of the War"Justin Hayward, Richard Burton9:09
2."Horsell Common and the Heat Ray"Richard Burton11:35
3."The Artilleryman and the Fighting Machine"David Essex, Richard Burton10:36
4."Forever Autumn" (lyrics by Paul Vigrass and Gary Osborne)Justin Hayward, Richard Burton7:41
5."Thunder Child" (lyrics by Gary Osborne)Chris Thompson, Richard Burton6:16
Total length:45:17
Disc Two – The Earth Under the Martians
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
1."The Red Weed (Part 1)"Richard Burton5:55
2."The Spirit of Man" (lyrics by Gary Osborne) (incorporates LP track "Parson Nathaniel")Phil Lynott, Julie Covington, Richard Burton11:37
3."The Red Weed (Part 2)"Richard Burton5:24
4."The Artilleryman Returns"David Essex, Richard Burton1:27
5."Brave New World" (lyrics by Gary Osborne)David Essex, Richard Burton12:14
6."Dead London"Richard Burton8:35
7."Epilogue (Part 1)"Richard Burton2:30
8."Epilogue (Part 2) NASA"Jerry Wayne1:30
Total length:49:12
Disc Two - The Earth Under the Martians (2009 release)
No.TitlePerformer(s)Length
9."The Spirit of Man 2009"Jennifer Ellison, Shannon Noll4:17
10."The Eve of the War & Forever Autumn Medley"Justin Hayward, Richard Burton5:01

Charts

Year Chart Position
1978 Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart 1
Dutch Top 40 LP Top 50 1
UK Albums Chart (Official Chart Company)[11] 5
Canada - RPM Magazine LP Top 100 76

Reception

C. Ben Ostrander reviewed the musical version of The War of the Worlds in The Space Gamer No. 18.[12] Ostrander commented that "This is a magnificent two record LP narrated by Richard Burton. Although not quite the same as Wells wrote it, WOTW is a kind of rock/radio play with modern interpretations. Included is a 16 page booklet with words, credits, and some great art work. Said to be two and a half years in the making, WOTW is better than most crap on TV, and makes for a fun evening around the stereo."[12]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds website, The Story, Chap.14.
  2. ↑ "Allmusic review".
  3. ↑ "BPI Top 40 albums" (PDF).
  4. 1 2 Shea, Christopher D. (20 March 2016). "'War of the Worlds' Shape-Shifts Onto the London Stage". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 March 2016.
  5. ↑ "Jeff Wayne - The War Of The Worlds : ULLAdubULLA The Remix Album".
  6. ↑ "Jeff Wayne's Musical Animated Film". Archived from the original on 1 March 2013.
  7. ↑ "Showbiz.com.au". Archived from the original on 1 July 2007.
  8. ↑ "30th Anniversary of Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of The Worlds". Official Website. 9 June 2008.
  9. ↑ "The War of The Worlds...The New Generation". Official Website. 18 November 2011.
  10. ↑ "Jeff Waynes Musical Version of The War of The Worlds".
  11. ↑ http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/_/jeff%20wayne/ JEFF WAYNE'S AL VERSION OF THE WAR OF THE WORLDS JEFF WAYNE (CBS 96000). OCC Chart Archive. 1 July 1978.
  12. 1 2 Ostrander, C. Ben (July–August 1978). "Books". The Space Gamer. Metagaming (18): 24.

Bibliography

  • Flynn, John L. (2005). "Chapter 6:The Jeff Wayne album". War of the worlds: from Wells to Spielberg. Galactic Books. pp. 75–84. ISBN 0-9769400-0-0.
  • Miller, Thomas Kent. Mars in the Movies: A History. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2016. ISBN 978-0-7864-9914-4.
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