Riverdance On Broadway Soundtrack CD

Bill Whelan worked for twenty years as a composer, producer, and arranger (his credits include work for Kate Bush, Hothouse Flowers, Van Morrison, and U2, among others). He achieved international recognition for RIVERDANCE in 1997.

Here Whelan incorporated a variety of ethnic musical traditions as well as modern and choral music, and the hypnotic, rhythmic hard-shoe Irish dancing for which RIVERDANCE is famous. This release, a document of the show's revival in 2000, features six new songs and adds African traditional music to the mix.

AUTOGRAPHED COPIES AVAILABLE AS OF 15th DECEMBER 2004!!!Tsidii Le Loka (Rafiki in the Lion King on Broadway) is a spectacular regal presence that truly imparts a new African feel (most evident on the new song "Amanzi") to a tried-and-true show.-M.T.S.The phenomenon has now gone Broadway, and composer Bill Whelan--who's done for his native Irish folk music what Freddie Mercury and Queen did for Italian opera--has raised the musical stakes considerably. Whelan's familiar, amped-up take on the Chieftains is supplemented here by harmonically brave a cappella refrains and even the fusion-minded use of Spanish guitar and flamenco rhythms. Whelan has written six new songs for this production, which features vocals by Brian Kennedy and Tsidii Le Loka (who has appeared in Broadway's The Lion King as Rafiki). The album thus presents the most comprehensive and up-to-date version of the evolving Riverdance phenomenon. Whelan is what many critics hate most--a consistent crowd pleaser. -Jerry McCulley

Principal cast includes: Bill Whelan, Brian Kennedy, Tsidii La Loka.

Engineers include: Andrew Boland, Richard McCullough.