G4 less one guy!
Nse Ette | Lagos, Nigeria | 05/30/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Jonathan Ansell is a 26 year old tenor from the UK. He used to be a part of UK classical quartet G4 whose debut CD topped the UK album charts.
"Tenor at the movies" is his solo debut, released a few months ago, and as its name implies, features songs made famous at the movies. I had never heard of Ansell until recently when a friend played "Now we are free" for me. While not as great (in my opinion) as the original by Lisa Gerrard (from one of my all time favourite movies, "Gladiator"),it is still a haunting beauty, and I was curious to find out what the rest of the album sounded like.
If you like Il Divo (which I do), then this will be right up your alley. Other standouts to me are "Parla piu piano" ( from the Godfather; I love the weeping Cello), and "Race to the end" from "Chariots of fire". Now, I never knew that there were lyrics to those two, but what do I know.
Well, there is no need to go into a track by track description as, like I stated, the songs are cinematic remakes done to showcase his sweeping tenor voice. Much like Il Divo, G4 were an assembled band (they finished second in UK reality show X Factor, the same show that gave us Leona Lewis), and I usually give such acts a wide berth, but I was really taken by his voice, much like I was by Il Divo's. It would be interesting to see what Ansell comes up with next. His album has already hit #9 in the UK and topped the Classical charts there too, so he's off to a good start."
Much better as a solo artist
Michelle A. Brooks | Las Vegas, NV USA | 03/04/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"As much as I loved G4, Jonathan was the stand-out from day 1. I always got annoyed when one of the other three members would sing with him.
I was so happy when Jonathan announced his solo deal with Universal! This album is definitely worth waiting for. I had not heard most of these songs before, but I love them all now! This will be a CD I'll be playing for a long time...I cannot wait to see what he comes up with next!"