Various Artists, Mythos, Balligomingo, Enigma, Delerium with Sarah McLachlan, Secret Garden, Yanni, Jim Brickman, Eva Cassidy, Eight Others - Pure Moods, Vol. IV

More potpourri than unified high concept, the fourth installment in the Pure Moods series nevertheless provides an interesting collage of acts associated with techno, ambient, alt-pop, and New Age genres. For some listeners, that means the transition from the rhythmic mystical-ethereal vibe of the first four tracks (from Enigma, Mythos, Delerium, and Sarah McLachlan and a splendid piece from Balligomingo) to a trilogy from New Age romanticists ( Secret Garden, Yanni, and pianist Jim Brickman) may seem a little disjointed. Ditto for the segue from George Winston's impressionistic 1980 solo piano piece, "Sea," to a Steve Reich-like minisymphony from Moby). And the concluding Afro-Celt Sound System track, a spirited, mandolin-driven piece with Peter Gabriel on vocals, is a stylistic island unto itself. Still, most fans of easy-listening contemporary music (particularly the adventurous ones) should find this an agreeable assortment of music from artists who infuse their craft with stronger-than-usual spiritual and emotional subtexts. --Terry Wood Amazon.com

Nice Gift

I purchased this as a gift and it arrived in a very timely manner and the person loved the gift. January 12, 2008

I'm glad i bought it

It took me til the 4th one to finally break down and by a pure moods cd but i'm glad i did. there are only 1 or 2 songs that i'm not thrilled with but sometimes i'm even in a mood to hear them. i'm more inclined to buy others from the series now. My favorite songs are "november" and "shadows in silence" October 2, 2007

Another Great Edition in a Great Series.

You got to hand it to Virgin Records. The PURE MOODS sreies of discs has been extremely sucsessful. They have been able to allow mood music gain a very wide audience without being too Way Out New Age or too commercial. This is the fourth disc in the series and it scores big like the others ( although #2 is my favourite). This disc has eighteen tracks, and a lot of them are under four minutes in length. But that does not mean they are filler.

A lot of reviewers gripe that the series is losing its edge and is catering to public appeal. Any compilation will never satisfy everybody. Criticisms range from "heard these songs before" to "too much piano" to "the same old artists". Remember this is music to put you in a certain mood of relaxation or peace or whatever. It is not to be taken too seriously. I for one enjoy having this music playing whether I am resting, working or enjoying company with friends.

There are some stunning tracks. I love the first four songs which set a great mood. I know SILENCE by Delerium and Sarah McLachlan is on many chillout albums but it is still an amazing performance and her vocal is overwhelming! If I do have a mild criticism of the album, it is that from Track 5 onwards the music does seem stripped down apart from one or two exceptions. Maybe a different playing order would have helped. Tracks 5-9 are pleasant to listen to but do tend to be similar in arrangement and tempo. Track 10 livens things up with Yann Tiersen's LA VALSE d'AMELIE but it is a short track. The Moby track on the other hand is too long and monotonous and sems very out of place here. The next track, however is a gem. Rachel Portman's theme from Chocolat is very beautiful and delicate. This and SILENCE are the two tracks I listen to the most. The album does sag until near the end. McLachlan's ANGEL is a little dull. Seems like it has been on the radio a lot but I do not listen to radio so it is new to me. B-Tribe's version of SHE MOVED THROUGH THE FAIR is just wrong. Coming from Ireland, I have heard so many wonderful versions of this song that could have been included. This track has a vocal that seems to drag the whole song down and the music seems to merge different musical elements without sucsess. THIS LOVE and RIVER OF STARS could be the same song. However the former is too long. Thankfully the last track lifts the spirits. WHEN YOU'RE FALLING has the Afro-Celt Soundsystem perfoming with guest vocalist Peter Gabriel and it adds a much needed oomph to close the album. This great song had the worst possible luck in succeeding because the very original video had to be pulled soon after it was released in August 2001 on account of the horrific events on 9/11. I will not go into any detail but you will find the video on You Tube and you will understand why it is rarely shown after watching it.

Hope to review the other mood albums soon. Times are listed below with song title listed first:

1. November - Mythos 4.58
2. Purify - Balligomingo 4.14
3. Shadows in silence - Enigma 4.19
4. Silence - Delerium feat. Sarah McLachlan 6.34
5. Song from a secret garden - secret Garden 3.31
6. One man's dream - Yanni 2.45
7. Devotion - Jim Brickman 3.36
8. Fields of gold - Eva Cassidy 4.42
9. Garden of eden - Govi 2.54
10. La valse d,Amelie - Yann Tiersen 2.00
11. Sea - George winston 2.41
12. God moving over the face of the waters - Moby 5.45
13. Main titles from Chocolat - Rachel Portman 3.08
14. Angel - Sarah McLachlan 4.28
15. She moved through the fair - B-tribe 5.00
16. This love - Craig Armstrong feat. Elizabeth Fraser 6.18
17. River of stars - Paul schwartz 4.03
18. When you're falling- Afro-celt soundsystem feat. Peter Gabriel 5.14

P.S. Check out some British Chillout compilattion albums if you can. There are some amazing artists that you do not hear about in the USA like The Beloved, Kinobe, Groove Armada, The Chemical Brothers, Royksapp, Everything But The Girl, Goldfrapp, Zero 7 and many others. March 31, 2007

Very happy

I use this cd for my yoga practice, it's wonderful.
Highly recommend. January 16, 2007

Another Editorial Review

"Apparently the only mood that matters is one of pensive melancholy. Nearly every track on this addition to the series is set in a minor key. Some are played solo, like George Winston's new age relic 'Sea.' Some are crammed with odd instrumentation, as in the briefly startling last section of Yann Tiersen's 'La Valse d'Amélie.' Some have entire orchestras sawing away. There are ambitious works like Moby's 'God Moving Over the Face of the Waters,' whose attempts to marry grandeur and minimalism are somewhat undercut by the monotony of a cymbal sample repeated too predictably. There are vocals, the best being the late Eva Cassidy's breathtaking treatment of Sting's 'Fields of Gold.' And there are yawners, such as Yanni's 'One Man's Dream,' which he may, in fact, have recorded while asleep, or 'This Love,' sung by Elizabeth Fraser of the Cocteau Twins over a groove that suggests the tread of a drugged somnambulist, and Govi's 'Garden of Eden,' which sounds way too much like 'Chim Chim Cheree' to take seriously. And yet, all of it creates the same gray impression -- which, of course, is the point, in which case credit must be paid to those who selected and sequenced these performances. Will upcoming installments offer some variety -- a hap-hap-happy compilation, for instance, set in major keys, with handclap rhythms and smiley vocals? ~ Robert L. Doerschuk, All Music Guide November 6, 2006

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