wheelinil | Carbondale, ILLinois United States | 03/06/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I stumbled on this album on cassette in my college days. As it combined one of my favorite books with one of my favorite performers, (Richard Harris is, to me the quintessential "King Arthur", before "Dances With Wolves" he was, "A Man Called Horse", & how inscrutably charming is his "Prof. Albus Dumbledore?" -- Merlin must be proud!) I took it home & soon played it often. So much that I've gone through at least 3 copies on cassette. I no longer dared hope to find it on CD since most sources don't even list it at all, I'm ECSTATIC! To describe the music is not my forte, but I can tell you the music & spoken elements combine in a way that soothes while also challenging the heart & soul! The only drawback is that this is an abridged presentation,so some beautiful parts aren't there, but what is is sublime! Go Get It!"
VERY moving
Nicholas Sterling | Austin, TX USA | 09/05/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Many years ago this was my introduction to The Prophet, and it brought me to tears. The musical score and Harris's reading bring Gibran's incredible metaphors to life. When I feel like dipping into a spiritual calm, nothing works for me like this CD. I have given out several as presents. As another reviewer mentioned, this was produced quite a while ago, so don't expect contemporary style, but it works. If you have read the passage which begins "Life is indeed darkness," wait until you hear what Harris does with it!"
I used it in my Wedding!
Richard S. Smith | Los Angeles, CA United States | 01/13/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"And it brought the audience to tears. Richard Harris doing a spoken
word "dramatic interpretation" of The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran. Does
it work? Yes, in a big way. This recording dates back to the 70's so
the orchestration may come across a bit dated, but having this
available on CD is a real find. Highly recommended!"
WOW!!
Justin Allen | Cadiz, KY | 07/02/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I am a 15 year old that loves poetry. The cd is one of the greatest things that I have EVER heard! This whole album is totally amazing. Kahlil Gibran wrote beautifully, the music that is composed is perfect and Richard Harris' voice and way of speaking captures the essence that Gibran would have been proud of. Very well done. Worth 10,000 stars!"
Good, but lacks poetic force of Paul Sparer reading
T. Davison | AZ USA | 09/19/2008
(3 out of 5 stars)
"I bought this CD, thinking I was buying a digital version of the highly poetic reading of Kahlil Gibran's "The Prophet," read by Paul Sparer, produced by Random House in 1996.
My mistake. The Richard Harris recording is pretty good, though it lacks the poetic force of the Sparer reading.
Richard Harris' recording sounds (not surprisingly, given Harris' career) like a self-conscious Shakespearian play, or a long, musical (yes, there is music, lots of it, some quite church-ish) sonnet. [And this comes from a guy who loves the Noble Bard, having completed a degree in English Lit...] Having listened to the Harris recording several times, I think it will gather dust quickly on the shelf. Even though Gibran's masterpiece is read word-for-word, I found the nearly constant blending of music with the words intrusive to the point of distraction.
Ultimately, I feel there is too much going in the background--both the Shakespearian overtones and the music--for the voice of the artist--Kahlil Gibran, remember him?--the great Lebanese writer?--to come through.
I still hope that Random House re-releases their version."