Peter Clarke - Monty on the Run (Monty Gets Orchestrated 2011)

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Peter Clarke Specialist
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Duration:
7:21
Released:
31/07/2011
All-Time charts position:
124
Score:
94%
Story

Out of respect for the original composer and composition, I was never going to take any liberties with this remix. My addition is the teaser/intro - Let's just hint at the tune and wrap 2 distinctive bits of melody from different parts of the original around the moody orchestra.

 

Tempo(s)! The original was in the region of 190BPM (a tempo that neither orchestra instruments or normal human performance can live with - I have played it back at 190 and it just turns to mush).

The Majority of the tune is at 150BPM but the opening bars from the original dragged like a mother at 150. So, the remix uses 2 seperate tempos 170BPM in the opening bars from the original and again, when the intro is revisited later in the tune. I broke out of the bass rhythm just as the tempo change arrives to de-emphasise the change. Hopefully, it works and the changes feel subtle.

 

I always felt that this piece deserved a full-on orchestra arrangement with seperate string, brass & woodwind parts and then on the other hand, Rob's original is a lively piece that is

really driven along by the bass and drums. Thus the choice to mix traditional orchestra with a full kit & bass.

 

…and that bit about 2/3rds of the way through the orchestra part always screamed 'Egypt' at me….

 

The second part was always going to get a guitar thrown in there - The Fender Rhodes piano matched up really well with the bite of the Rickenbacker bass and that sort of dictated

the style of the break.

 

The return of the violin in the finale was to add more colour & texture to the end and I felt it should be an 'Alternative Duelin' Banjos'

 

Overall I'm happy with the outcome of my first serious attempt at a remix - I monitored the final balance / mix through speakers not headphones SO…

 

*** IT SOUNDS BETTER THROUGH SPEAKERS THAN HEADPHONES ***

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7+ minute tour de force through Monty on the Run. Brilliant!
COOL!!!! Love it, best version I have heard!
Great version - takes me back.......
Superbly arranged. But the instruments do not fully convince me. And the mix lacks a bit on the bass side imho. Great effort nonetheless.
Great
Loved this from the moment the video was posted. Any chance of a higher bitrate version though?
I like this one, hope there's auf monty & impossamole remixes to come
Rondo Veneziano!;-)
Very good Monty Remix!
This is mental. In turns it evokes, victorian horror, funky War of the Worlds sci-fi, slapstick comedy, then, out of the blue a mad 70's car chase. Loves me some rhodes.
Its great reminds me so much of 70s ensemple orchestra like geoff love and such which I love very well done remix
Great remix with a nice intro twist!!!!, Welcome on board...
Very good. Enjoyed every second of it :)
I'm liking this!!!! Liking it lots!!!! Powerful and keeps the feel of the original. Top Job!!
Awesome remix! Great tempo and would sound perfectly in place on many a game in 2012!
Such a fantastic remix, great arrangement :)
Great! Very good ideas and clever use of complex elements, both musical and sonical. I really like the solutions. The only downside for me is the lead guitar but that's no biggie.
Great classical version!
Rondo' :) nice
Great imagination, fits perfect, awesome sound... Buuuuut... I think the bass is weird :D
Awesome :)
Yay!
Greately arranged, very atmospheric
Smooth. Somehow I happen to like this arrangement way more than the metal or techno covers.
Absolutely FANTASTIC!
This piece of master music track makes you dance while listening to it.
Review by Poppykuk
31/07/2011

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AM new to site but have always loved this tune - takes me straight back to the 80's! Have listeren to other Monty's this is the best remix out there!
Review by LaLa
08/08/2011

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I really like C64 Orchestra's version of Monty from their album RUN 10, so I was looking forward to listen to this one. I was not disappointed at all.

I was not disappointed despite the fact that this is not a pure orchestral version. Luckily, all the additional drums and synths that appear in this version really work to its advantage.

Its style cannot really be summed up, so let's just say it's eclectic. If you're looking for pop-orchestral a la Rondo Veneziano - it's in here. If you're looking for a Hammond-organ-heavy 70s prog rock - it's in here in the middle section.

My only complaint here is the somewhat flat mixing. It needs a bit more oomph, a bit fuller sound. Okay, I do have another complaint, too: sometimes the tempo changes are a bit abrupt. And the instruments (like guitars) sound too synthetic. Well, that was 3 complaints, but whatever…

All in all, quite a trip, quite an effort, quite a remix!
Review by Musoman
10/12/2011

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I've heard many renditions of this particular C64 anthem and in my opinion, Chris Abbot has held the Monty remix crown for a long time. This little beauty, however, resets the bar.

The original is here in full, nothing left out, nothing missed, nothing misinterpreted. The orchestral instruments weave together brilliantly even if the samples are not as authentic as some I've heard. In the first half of this remix, we get a little closer to The Devil's Gallop which Rob Hubbard admits to being influenced by in his original. I love the way the brass crescendos parp parp in from the background and the melodramatic feel the strings give in the early bars.

In the second half, we go back to an 80's underground club with the driving bass and Fender Rhodes licks, but no Hammond that I can hear. The whole feel of the break has a bit of a Supertramp thing about it and now the end guitar riffs remind me even more of Dire Straits, (from RH's home town). Brilliantly arranged and executed and would have been three reds but for the flat mix. Perhaps the arranger will warm it up and resubmit it.

Overall, an excellent remix
Review by grin
28/11/2020

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That's how I imagined I guess… If I close my eyes I hear something like that, maybe a tad bit less percussion. 😊 Enjoyed nonetheless.