Barcelona [Special Edition]

Great album

A great cd by a great performer. Excellent

Wonderful to hear Mercury sing this genre in collaboration with the soprano Caballé. A real treat.

SUMMARY - a re-recording of the 1988 album keeping the original vocals but replacing the previous musical track with an orchestral arrangement remaining 80% true to the original but with extra flourishes. Also contains an instrumental version of the re-recorded album, a CD of out takes (all of which are found on the large 2000 Freddie box set) and a DVD of songs whose original soundtracks have been replaced with the versions found in the album. REVIEW - a real refresh of the much-loved, cult album fusing pop, rock, gospel, classical, oriental and piano music. Is this what the album would have been if Freddie had had the time or the inclination to write for an 80-piece orchestra? We will never know but, for me, this is not necessarily an improvement on a much cherished collection of songs but I loved every minute of the reinterpretation of it. Songs like Ensueno and Guide Me Home have not been much altered with, but the title track, La Japonaise (the true treat of the original album), The Fallen Priest and The Golden Boy have been given a brand new drama and urgency. The version of Exercises In Free Love is not to be missed. The outtakes are interesting but you'll probably only listen to them once out of curiosity. The videos are as good as ever - I love Montserrat chasing Freddie around the stage on The Golden Boy. The new edit of the Barcelona video features many rushes not seen before. The instrumentals album is punchy but obviously let down by no Fred or Monty (as you'd expect!) As a life long Freddie fan, I loved it. RECOMMENDED FOR - those who love the 1988 version NOT YET RECOMMENDED FOR - those unfamiliar with the work. Buy and fall in love with the ground breaking original and hear Freddie's version first. When you know it word for word, buy this version and get ready to have your breath taken away ... again PS 10 out of 10 for Amazon pre-ordering. Arrived on the day of release.

I was a Queen fan in their early days when they were primarily a rock band. Blues and rock are my main genre but I do try and listen to anything if it's good. I purchased this on the strengh of a Freddie Murcury documentary on Sky Arts recently. I do like some Opera as the music and melodies can make the hairs on your body stand up, so I thought I'd give Barcelona a try. The orchestrations by Stuart Morley and the FILMharmonic orchestra are without doubt superb but there was very little that made the hairs on my body stand up. Maybe I was expecting too much having been spoilt some beautiful pieces in Opera or may be I got it wrong and it was not meant to be an operatic album. However I'm glad I bought it as Freddie and Montserrat Caballe are excellent. I especially liked tracked 6 "Guide me Home" and track 7 "How Can I go on" which is ironic as Freddie was Ill and died five years later. Yes it's a good album but not as good as I expected.

I have always loved this album. I was terribly excited when I found out about the nature of this project, having wondered for a while why no re master of the original was forth coming. When it turned up on my doorstep on the day of release (thankyou Amazon) I couldn't wait to hear the results. I had already listened to the preview on youtube, however that really didn't prepare me for the difference between the original album and this beautifully packaged jewel. The difference the fully orchestrated music has made is tremendous. By this I don't mean that the changes are always dramatically different to the old, though on occasion they are,but its the quality of depth they add to the songs that elevate this recording to a different level. Whilst much of the music was always very beautiful, the orchestration enriches the music and I think invites us to treat it more seriously. It is more "classical" in its nature now. It also emphasizes or reveals more the beauty of the music. Take for example the orchestrated Exercises in Free Love. Before this I hadn't realised just how lovely the music actually is. Or Guide me back.This has always been one of my personal favourites. The music is gorgeous, the lyrics heartbreaking. The new orchestrations add considerable depth and drama to this song and indeed throughout the album. I just love it. The only quibble I have is that it would have been nice to have a re mastered version of the original album with the deluxe package. If you have always loved this album then you will not be disappointed. If you are coming to it new, then you are in for a considerable delight. For me it really is the peak of Freddie's post 70's writing and recording.

This "Barcelona" (Special Edition) release features "Exercises In Free Love" as a now album track at #9 & 1 extra bonus track at #10. The 2019 version does not feature the track #10 "How Can I Go On" bonus track that features David Garrett. The 2012 release is an entirely newly orchestrated re-working and from what I believe, is the same as the 2019 version, but the bonus track is missing on the 2019 version as preiously stated. With this said, the 2012 version is the one to purchase as it sounds better than the original. Freddie Mercury’s and Montserrat Caballé's voices sound even better. The orchestrated re-working makes for a lot better sound to the original, which everyone should own to go along with this. It's a shame that the 4 disc version is not being re-released for those who missed out before. I hope to see the new DVD and Blu-ray sold seperatley. They are featured in the "Never Boring" 4 disc deluxe box set. Some people do not wish to own both DVD and Blu-ray. The "Never Boring" box set also features a new re-working of "Mr. Bad Guy". This you can purchase seperatley. So sit back and relax to the sound of Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballé.

This CD arrived beautifully packaged from 'Unique Place' in Switzerland and it was very reasonably priced.The combination of the voices of Freddy Mercury and Monserrat Caballe is wonderful and the music is very emotional and moving. In many ways it tells the story of their relationship, which in itself is very emotional. I had heard 'Barcelona ' before but it is not on many other CD's ( if any ?)I didn't know what to expect from the other songs on the album, but I was very impressed and found all the songs musically excellent The second song is 'La Japonaise' which Freddy sings in perfect Japanese .I can totally recommend this album -- you will enjoy it .

delivered as promised in perfect condition. delighted with the CD thank you.

The 4-disc set is stunning. It's an elaborately detailed release that, among other things, documents an amazing collaboration. Queen/Mercury fans know the story of how Freddie Mercury came to create this album of various duets with Spanish opera star, Montserrat Caballé. The main focus of this 25th anniversary edition is the replacing of the original synthesized score with a full 80 piece orchestra. It works. A lot of work was put into this, from trying to match the feel of the original backing tracks to replacing the faux-Japanese koto in "La Japonaise" with the real thing. You can complain all you want about the intent of this project but, to me, it finally sounds finished. As early Queen albums proudly announced, "No synths." The original version is still available but it's been solidly thrashed by this 2012 version. The people behind this project - some of whom were there when the original album was created - make a strong case for this being what Mercury would've wished for. I suppose the best evidence is a simple one: it sounds better. Mercury and Caballé sound absolutely more natural with a huge orchestra backing them up. VERY special mention has to be made of two soloists on one song. There is no call for a Brian May-style solo on this album, since the original had no guitar work. However, "How Can I Go On" has a part for drum and bass guitar. The drums are played by Rufus Taylor - Roger's son - and the bass guitar part is played by John Deacon, taken from the original release; you don't replace or mess with something like that. The first disc is the new album. The second disc is full of the sort of demos and alternate takes that make this release a document of how the album was created, not just a "for fans only" montage of outtakes. Among the tracks are Mercury's demos of several songs in which he sings both his AND Caballe's parts, often improvising wordless vocals for as-yet-unwritten lyrics. I won't bother you with a track-by-track description of this disc. But, there are a few surprises to anyone familiar with the album, these are not musical scraps. Hearing Caballé rehearse "Ensueño" with Mike Moran on the piano is a special treat. This is a great little art song. At a little under 40 minutes, disc two doesn't overstay its welcome. The third disc is a DVD and it's full of treats, lots of them. Besides a smallish documentary about the making of the original album and the new version, there are very good looking transfers of the promotional videos done in the 1980s. They look good, although the original promotional video for "Barcelona" (the song) looks very mid-80s MTV-ish. More on this in a bit. As you would hope/expect, the videos employ the new orchestral score. This makes the performances of Mercury and Caballé even more vivid ("No synths!). You might say this is after-the-fact tampering and dishonest but the originals were lip-synched to begin with, so why not take this to the logical conclusion and add the new orchestral score? That's what show business is all about. The original videos were done in the 4:3 format of 1980s television. I am grateful that this is how these videos are presented here, with one exception. When you go from a square-ish to a modern widescreen format, you either need to leave black areas at either side of the screen or chop off the tops and bottoms of the image. That latter option can completely ruin the original image (if you've seen the horrible chopped-and-stretched releases of Queen's videos by Eagle Entertainment, you'll know what I'm talking about). Universal, the company behind this release, have transferred the videos as originally shot. They look very good and the premiere of the song "Barcelona" in May of 1987 at the Ku Club in Ibiza looks spectacular, as if it were shot recently on motion picture stock, not video. You can kiss those awful YouTube uploads goodbye, forever! The three songs performed in Barcelona, in front of Montjuic Castle before a huge audience including the King and Queen of Spain, also look great, better than ever in spite of being shot on video. (Note: I watched this DVD on a 32" SONY Bravia HDTV with good speakers, so I'm pretty sure about how good this material looked and sounded.) A minor disappointment is the presentation of the original "Barcelona" video, here called a "classic" video. The top and bottom of the image are sliced off. Besides making for a few awkward shots, this also means the video was enlarged and, folks, you just shouldn't do that with video footage from the 1980s. That is SO Eagle Entertainment! This is followed by the brief documentary about the making of the "Barcelona" original album and the new one. The DVD ends with a wonderful treat. The new score has been added to a newly edited version of the "classic" Barcelona video. In this version, alternate camera shots were used throughout and they appear to be from a much better source than seen before. It was edited very intelligently in 16:9 wide screen by the Rhys Thomas, one of the geniuses behind the 2011 documentary "Queen: Days of Our Lives" and the 2012 follow-up, "Freddie Mercury: The Great Pretender." This new video has not only replaces the "classic" version in my heart, it also apologises for how it - the "classic" version - appears on this DVD. Finally, Disc 4. It's nothing but the new score - without Mercury and Caballé - and that's practically karaoke paradise. All you have to do is be able to sing like Freddie Mercury or Montserrat Caballé. How hard can that be? This is more than just an upgrade to a better, more definitive version of an already wonderful album. It is an audio documentary of how that album was made. The discs are housed in a very posh book-style case. The brief essays are informative and not just giddy mushy anecdotes for the fans. It is printed on sturdy slick paper. The presentation is wonderful. For those who miss the original photos, they are included along with others we've probably never seen. Some people have complained about the cover artwork and wondered how something that "cheap and tacky" wound up as the cover art (to an album they probably won't buy, anyway). I might not be as smart about art as Sister Wendy or the late Robert Hughes, but I'm pretty sure the splashy, vibrant cover art is an homage to Spanish painter and sculptor, Joan Miró (April 20, 1893 - December 25, 1983). He was born in Barcelona.

dopo tanto tempo mi sono deciso e l'ho preso. avevo la musicassetta, ma con il tempo si è logorata. Ottimo album, con grandi voci, bei brani, ottimi arrangiamenti, che oltretutto per me è speciale per i ricordi che evoca. Ottimo prodotto, esemplare perfetto.

クィーンの音楽だけでも最高ですが、クラシック最高のソプラノとの融合は迫力があり気分爽快です。

Men det är för mycket besvär med att klaga på det. Men ändå tråkigt.