O'Riley plays Radiohead opinions

Posted by: Dan M on 12 December 2003

Does anyone have True Love Waits - Christopher O'Riley Plays Radiohead? Any good? I was thinking
of picking it up tonight. Being a later Radiohead fan, am I likely to find it annoying?

cheers,

Dan
Posted on: 12 December 2003 by Bhoyo
I've heard a lot of it, and rate it highly. Do you listen to From The Top on NPR? O'Riley is excellent on that, and he often plays some of his Radiohead stuff. His Nick Drake is not to be missed either. You can sample some of it online. Sorry, but I don't have the URL.

Davie
Posted on: 12 December 2003 by Dan M
Thanks Davie - I'll see if I can get it my local Borders tonight (along with the Nick Drake stuff). I'm not familiar with 'From the top', but I was aware O'Riley played on NPR during transitions -- I just have to figure out when that show is on.

cheers,

Dan

[This message was edited by Dan M on SATURDAY 13 December 2003 at 00:55.]
Posted on: 15 December 2003 by Bhoyo
Hey Dan

From The Top is young musicians playing short classical pieces live, acompanied by O'Riley. He also chats with them before and after playing. It's a lot more fun than it sounds from my description! In my area, the show broadcasts around noon on Saturdays.

I'm not sure if any of the Nick Drake stuff is on an album. I'd love to know what you think of it.

Regards,
Davie
Posted on: 17 December 2003 by Dan M
Hi Davie,

I've listened through True Love Waits a few times now, and I think it's a grower. At first I was a bit put off by his treatment of stuff from Kid A, perhaps because I enjoy that album so much. However, I quite like the treatment of tracks from OK computer and The Bends -- perhaps the more melodic nature of that material lends itself to this treatment better. OTOH, "like spinning plates" on I Might Be Wrong is essentially a piano transciption, and sounds amazing. O'Riley's treatment of songs from very varied albums seems to "normalize" the material and this is a good thing for a compilation. The album seems to improve to me on successive listens. So, I'd say overall it's an enjoyable album, but no a "must have."

Your thoughts?

Dan

p.s. I'm dropping my LP12 off at Audio Alternative on Saturday - how did your service work out?
Posted on: 17 December 2003 by Bhoyo
Hey Dan

I haven't heard the entire album, but your assessment seems on the money. The material I've heard online and on the radio has been exciting and intriguing. O'Riley excels at bringing out and developing the melodic line - something that Radiohead themselves rarely do. Do try to hear his treatment of Nick Drake's River Man; it's a thing of beauty

Rick at Audio Alternative is a true gent and a pleasure to deal with. However, through no fault of his, my LP12 experience has been a disaster! Ask him about the whole sorry saga on Saturday.

Davie
Posted on: 18 December 2003 by Peter Litwack
One of my clients gave me a copy of this recently and I like it a lot! Of course, I like Radiohead, and solo piano, so I was already pre-disposed.