Richard Harris sings nearly talks sometimes this song so emotionally and that is the reason that I Iove his rendition of it Donna Summers disco version is also wonderful as well.
The Song had many Movements like a Classical music, and full metaphors and Remember that Donna Summer was Operatic Train and she had the Great Giorgio Moroder doing the Keyboards and Orchestrations and Richard Harris performed his as a Classic Train Actor with a great Orchestration- both version has it own Life
Each version of this song leads to such a different emotional place. Harris sings with a sense of desperation, as if he's trying to avoid the next nuclear war or something. There's a lot of tension there. Donna Summer conveys melancholy and reminisce early in the song but somehow it ends up being upbeat and inspirational. Somewhere is a music appreciation class that figures in all of this! Of course it's also very cool to see a mom and daughter share this kind of thing together. It's pretty adorable.
Richard Harris - there will be another song for me, and I will sing it... I will take my life into my hands and I will use it.... Regret, longing, yearning, desire for the past, acceptance, letting go, all expressed in that middle part
According to Jimmy Webb his first girlfriend, Susie Norton, worked in a building across from MacArthur Park. He would meet her and have lunch in the park. All the images he mentions in the song are actual things he saw while in the park with her.
The song Macarthur park has been recorded by so many great artists. I love all the versions of this song. Richard Harris Donna Summer The three degrees The four tops and Andy Williams. All awesome versions of this song And I'm sure there are many more that l haven't heard.
The Donna Summer version is such an epic, tour-de-force studio production that should only be heard through a quality hi-fi stereo system powering big floor-standing speakers.
The name of the tune is "MacArthur Park." However, if you listen closely, you can hear Richard Harris saying "MacArthur's Park." No matter how much the producer tried, he could not get Richard to stop adding the possessive "s" to the name. They finally gave up!
Richard Harris played the role of King Arthur in the motion picture version of 'Camelot'. You should check out 'How to Handle a Woman' or, 'Camelot' (a duet with Vanessa Redgrave).
That song by Richard Harris has been my favorite recording for more than 50 years. To think Jim Webb composed and arranged that LP, A Tramp Shining, when he was about 23 years old is mind blowing, puts him up there with Orson Welles' Citizen Kane at genius territory. Harris always said he was an actor with no formal singing training, so he approached singing a tune the same way he acted a character in a movie or a play, from an actor's point of view. Trivia: he sang McArthur's Park, with the possesive 'S' before Park, instead of McArthur Park, as written by the composer. Also, Harris had to give his Phantom V Rolls Royce to Webb when he lost the bet that A Tramp Shining would NOT get into that year's Top Ten. Blessings from San Juan, PR 🇵🇷.
What great information Luis! We love to read more information on these amazing artists and Jim Webb. How funny Harris had to give up his Rolls Royce! Probably a bittersweet bet to lose. He had a great voice with a very emotional quiver that is admiring
Nice to see a tramp shining appreciation. I’m 21. When I got into vinyl records, the first obvious spot to get records is thrift stores. Tom Jones, Engelbert Humperdinck, etc., I picked up A Tramp Shining and feel in love with it immediately. I’d have to say Lovers Such As I is my favorite tune. Jimmy Webb is a genius.
@@c.j.wilkerson9112 Agree with you, 'Lovers Such As I' is a great song, pure, lovely poetry. Glad that you, being so young, can appreciate such a beautiful musical work.
Thanks for the great reaction!! i have been following Donna since i was in JR High in 1976 when she first appeared on US charts. The story behind this is that her producer Georgio Moroder was looking for an older song for her to cover and really liked Richard Harris's version but wanted to update it for the dancefloor. He recorded all the instrumentation and Donna Listened to it once, then went into the Studio and sang it in one take. They did a second take for backup but never used it as the first one was flawless. I was lucky enough to see Donna live about 10 times and she would often start her shows with this song. Try to find the 6.5 minute version which has the second verse and more of Donna's amazing vocals!
Thank you for that back story Kelly, what a great piece of information. Donna is INCREDIBLE! It doesn't surprise me that she did it in one take. She has a mastery in singing and talent. We will definitely listen to the longer full version :)
Great reaction! You listened to Donna’s short edit version of the song. The long 8min has the same theatrical lyrics. 🙏🏼Please do more Donna live clips . Especially from her VH1 TV show. “Dim all the lights” , My Life, & last dance” are some highlights. Thanks.
I'm so glad you did a comparison video of the two songs. I wish more people did that. One thing that could be added is that Richard Harris's original version was a big radio hit in 1968, played a lot, so when Donna Summer came out with her disco cover of it ten years later, everyone recognized that it was a cover and loved it even more because it reminded them of a song that they had all loved years before.
Richard Harris did a live version of this on a chat show back in the 70s. To say it was..extreme is an understatement. During the instrumental break he threw himself to the floor and rolled around, thrashing.
Thanks again ladies!! Yeah, that is the way shortened version of Donna's version. You should hear the MacArthur Park Suite. That's just a 17 minute dance-a-thon that mixes in two other songs....One of a Kind and Heaven Knows. Love it! Thanks again ;)
@@generationgapreacts LOL! Seriously. And have a drink and get into the dance mood hehe!! I can only imagine what the experiences would have been like in the clubs during that time. It was all about dancing your butt off, freedom and having experiences of a lifetime. Oh the many drugs were quite helpful I'm sure! LOL!!
Yes it was an experience especially when Donna came on, listening to this and her other songs with the sound systems they had back then in the discos and the DJ’s mixing them was an incredible experience. It was crazy and and the dance floor was like a subway car during rush hour. something unfortunately we’ll never see again.
@@nkcbrazil I know, it makes me so sad 😢 I wish I was a part of that myself and I think it's great that you were able to live it for those of us who missed out. Such great memories you have I'm sure 🥰👍
Love the original, love Donna's version of it (espcially the longer version obviously) but my absolute favorite is the live version of The Three Degrees. They pretty much copy the original version, but it's haunting and just gorgeous. But vocally Donna's version is unmatched
"Our Day Will Come"...Ruby the Romantics vs. Isaac Hayes In Isaac's version (the long version, a little over 9 minutes), the monologue set-up for the song gives it a much deeper meaning. Forbidden interracial relationship mixed in with the military draft. To this day, still one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard.
Donna Summer totally owned and embodied that song; you should listen to the extended version of the song! It was a MONSTER hit for Donna back in the 70s!
So did Harris with his version of the song. I would say they were both the same yet also two different songs to an extent. Both beautiful in their way. I like the original better myself, but I really like The Four Tops version!
Jimmy Webb wrote the following songs: 01. MacArthur Park - Donna Summer, 1978 02. Wichita Lineman - Glen Campbell, 1969 03. MacArthur Park - Richard Harris, 1968 04. Worst That Could Happen - Brooklyn Bridge, 1969 05. Galveston - Glen Campbell, 1969 06. Up, Up And Away - The Fifth Dimension, 1967 07. All I Know - Art Garfunkel, 1973 08. Honey Come Back - Glen Campbell, 1970 09. By The Time I Get To Phoenix - Glen Campbell, 1967 10. Where's The Playground Susie - Glen Campbell, 1969 11. Crying In My Sleep-Art Garfunkel, 1977 ............................to name a few. Would you kindly react to "Crying In My Sleep" by Art Garfunkel? It's an overlooked but beautiful song.
In his old age, Richard Harris was best known as the original Professor Dumbledore, in the first couple of "Harry Potter" movies. Sadly, the actor died and had to be replaced. He had a long, successful career in films. One of his films, "A Man Called Horse", was remade with Leonardo DiCaprio as "The Revenant".
He was the best Dumbledore in my humble opinion. He really did capture everything I imagined when first reading the books as a child. I will have to watch that movie, didn't know it was remade recently with a different title.
Love the way you guys reacted to both versions. I had forgotten about the orignal Richard Harris version which I enjoyed back in the late 60's, (even though it was really my parent's music). I particularly liked the jazzy part or the song. I do prefer Donna's version though because it was released when I was in my early 20's and this was another one of those songs that would get everyone up on the dance floor. How I miss those days! Thank you both - you're doing a great job.
Oh, Richard Harris! I loved him back in the day, and yes, he was in Harry Potter, but also Camelot and don't forget Gladiator (he was emperor Marcus Aurelius). This song will always be his, in my opinion.
Pero la canción la hizo popular y famosa gracias a la gran interpretación que realizó Donna Summer y fue número uno en USA 🇺🇸 POR Donna Summer ❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥
I swear to God, mom looks like she graduated yesterday, with all respect. I was supposed graduate in 1982, but I left early to join the US Marine Corps. I graduated MCRD in San Diego, 1981. You're both so beautiful, and I love your videos
Same here! I felt a story unfolding with Richard and it ebbed and flowed through different emotions. Very much my style. Mom prefers Donna but she loves disco so it makes sense!
Hmm, when I think about it, I did probably hear Donna's version before the original, that I found later. Those versions have probably different intentions, so it may be unfair to compare them at all. I've enjoyed them both (just like the "Dancing In The Dark" versions by Bruce Springsteen and Amy Macdonald - two seperate songs)...
Just checked a song, that I was reminded of by this, and really, it was just a year before (1967). It's the first time, that I thought, they have common ground! Have they? ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-aEIiJyHaoBA.html Keith West - Excerpt From A Teenage Opera (1967)
Richard Harris was nominated for Best Actor in 1963 in the film This Sporting Life. Richard plays a Yorkshire Coal Miner turned Rugby Player. Also one year earlier Richard co- starred with Marlon Brando and Trevor Howard in the 1962 version of Mutiny on the Bounty. And the Musical Lerner n Lowes Camelot around 1966-67. Our single mom Carol loved Broadway Musicals so I heard Camelot all the time growing up in San Diego. Julie Andrews played Guinivere on Broadway and Vanessa bRedgrave played Queen G in the film version. Richard also was nominated much later for a movie called The Field. “This Sporting Life” is on RU-vid if you want to see Richard age32-33. I saw him with my Mom Carol in Camelot in 1984 here in San Diego. Amazing Actor film and stage. !!
great song done very well by both richard and donna, now when it was released nobody would take the song on richard did and was successful with it, to me it came across like a period drama piece, then my disco queen donna did it in 78 and wow a transformation to disco anthem, there are video performances for both on youtube, the best donna version is from belgium proms... any version under 6 mins is cut short
Richard Harris played King Arthur in the Film Version of the Musical Camelot about three years earlier. And he played the role hundreds of time on Broadway after Richard Burton left the production to make a film. Also a live stage version of Camelot on HBO around 1984-85. So he could sing. He sang it on The Tonight Show and it rocketed up to No 1.
You can see at once why the song - particularly the original - is the subject of both derision and a kind of perplexed delight. JW sets out to write a baroque pop epic reminiscing on the end of a past relationship, but - he sprinkles the lyric with utterly incongruous details and puts a strained metaphor at the centre. Then he writes an instrumental section based on the Pearl & Dean commercial. Then, to top it all, he gives the song as a fait accompli to a guy who's really not a very good singer!
Great Reaction! Jimmy Webb is one of the great American songwriters of all time. If you want to do another comparison of his music then check out "Galveston" by Glen Campbell (pop hit) ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-HhKZLhxFFUY.html&ab_channel=GlenCampbell-Topic vs how it was originally sung by Jimmy Webb ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-UaMf6ydI-YI.html&ab_channel=DrinkingStar Glen's version was a huge hit during the Vietnam War era and I don't know if many ever heard what it was suppose to sound like. Jimmy's video is a tribute to the soldiers...very moving and the video to watch.
We love that! We want to dive a bit into songs that were covered by multiple artists, not to compare them but to see how each artist took the song and made it uniquely theirs. I would love to check out the song Galveston!
Jimmy Webb is an amazing and talented songwriter. He wrote 3 songs released by Glen Campbell (whom I would like to see some reactions to his music) - By the time I get to Phoenix, Wichita Lineman and Galveston. He also wrote - Up up and Away recorded by The 5th Dimension; The worst that could happen, released by The Brooklyn Bridge; including this song which was first released by Richard Harris, best known not for his singing talent but as an academy award winning actor.
Hi ladies , both versions are great in their own right and could see you both enjoyed each of them as well (mum getting into the go go mode showing the youngin how it’s done 😀) if you ever get chance to listen to state of independence by Donna summer it was written 1 of my favourite singers Jon Anderson (and Vangelis ) I’d suggest watching jon Anderson & Todmobile it’s a great live version really worth a watch I think 👍
Thank you for your great reaction to Donna and the respect you gave her. You have to listen to Donna's version of Andrea Bocelli's Con Te Partiro. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-BKwUNILu2P8.html
I'm very partial to the Donna Summer version... the ending with the brass playing is phenomenal and her vocals are unmatched. No disrespect to those who like Harris' version better, but it's not the same for me.
I was in a Brass & Baton corp. this was one of our sets, took this and a few others to a National Championship- Millers Blackhawks, Aug.1976 Miami Beach *- And Bundeenee didn't do but one single insane action, I'd been around Gators my whole life but never once had chance to wrestle one, I was approx. 15 ft from an approx. 8 ft. Gator and I was darn sure not to pass up this opportunely. It was a far bigger Wuss than I ever thought, maybe a bigger one is needed for a real battle.
I always prefer an actor singing to a singer acting. Donna Summer’s version is very good but I prefer Harris’s especially because it’s part of the 2 great Jimmy Webb/Richard Harris albums. Jimmy Webb’s songs are always terrific.
Richard Harris played King Arthur in the film version of the Lerner and Lowe musical. Look up Jimmy Webb's explanation for why this is about there is far less metaphor than u would've thought
Richard talks/ speaks of the song …. Donna is about her voice !!! Another interpretation is about how a man speaks his soul … how a woman just want to dance and dominate 😅
You ladies mentioned “orchestra-esque”. As it happens the song is considered in the “orchestral pop” genre. Jimmy Webb wrote the song because his break-up from his girlfriend at the time was in MacArthur Park in LA Calif.
Great reaction. Shame you listened to the radio edited version of Donna's version.. The 6 minute 25 seconds is the best, there are so many layers to it. I enjoyed hearing both your feedbacks.
Richard Harris- epic singer- you should listen to "Their are too Many Saviours on My Cross" and "Slides"- The whole SLIDES album is worth a listen. Richard Harris is the Burt Bacharach and Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass period. Barbra Streisand reigned as Queen andf there was theatricality to music- even with The Who- Tommy,, Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Weber -Jesus Christ Superstar and so on...
Greetings my friends!!....You are the right person to make this amazing reaction video and give us your opinion about this incredible singer...In 2017, the music world was shocked by the bursting onto the scene of a 22-year-old singer named Dimash Kudaibergen, who performed on the famous Chinese competition show for professional singers called “The Singer”... It was just it was necessary for this young man to make his first appearance, making a cover of one of the most difficult songs in the world, a famous French composition called "S.O.S. D'un Terrien En Détresse", to be considered from that moment on as the best singer in the entire planet....No one in the musical field had ever seen a human being, being able to reach vocal ranges above 7 octaves and several semitones, that is, all 88 keys of a digital piano, which reaches a little more than 7 octaves and as if that weren't enough, sing the more than 12 languages...Since then all kinds of experts (Vocal coachs, singers, musicians, analysts, singing teachers, youtubers, reactors, etc.) have dedicated themselves to reviewing their presentations to try to understand how someone can sing this way...The incredible thing is that that presentation in China was in 2017 but what Dimash has done in these 5 years is to further improve his wide vocal range, which is currently practically above of the 8 octaves... The Covid pandemic stopped his concerts worldwide, all with tickets sold in just seconds, via the internet, but at the same time it ended up catapulting him to the top of popularity worldwide...Anyway, since I think you are one of those reactors who have not yet met this impressive singer, here is the link of that presentation in China in 2017, with the song S.O.S. and I would like you to mention my name as the person who recommended him to you...You have to be prepared because your channel will explode with an avalanche of views, comments and new subscribers....I leave you one more recent video than the others, so it does not have the same number of views as the previous ones, which have millions of views, but it is a more complete video, with an intro, subtitles in several languages and with the improved quality of audio and sound....ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-bDX3FhmyNac.html
You picked the wrong Donna Summer version. The longer one has the bridge: " There will be another song for me For I will sing it There will be another dream for me Someone will bring it I will drink the wine while it is warm And never let you catch me Looking at the sun And after all the loves of my life After all the loves of my life You'll still be the one I will take my life into my hands And I will use it I will win the worship in their eyes And I will lose it I will have the things that I desire And my passion flow like rivers through the sky And after all the loves of my life Oh after all the loves in my life I'll be thinking of you And wondering why..." She kills it.
This is the Donna Summer version you should also react to: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-rnU5E69nLnA.html There is a different, somewhat revised version of this piece for the 12", but the one I linked about is the correct version from side four of LIVE AND MORE how it was initially released, and is what you should listen to. Enjoy...
There's a hilarious spoof of Richard Harris singing this song on Canada's SCTV, where Dave Thomas plays him singing this song on a dance/music show called Mel's Rock Pile! Also, my personal opinion it's a great song and Harris' performance is very dramatic. However, I suspect Jimmy Webb was indulging in substances when he wrote it.
You know who does a remarkably beautiful version of this? Liza Minnelli. It's a medley with another tune called "Didn't We" and it is so touching it will make you weep hehehe "MacArthur Park/Didn't We" I think is the title.
Slightly off topic, but there are quite a few clips of Harris and his best friend Peter O'Toole, on various chat shows, explaining a few of there drunken adventures, well worth a watch!
Great reaction, ladies: Someone down below said that the sound isn't the greatest. It would be a great help to your channel to find out why. I was 12 years old when this song moved up the charts. I thought the lyrics were goofy at the time but then I grew up. Donna did a pretty good job. I'm not a big fan of hers but I do like, 'I Feel Love' . There is a web site that is a tribute to everything that was WABC during their finest years. In 1998, they started doing a poll every year for the top 77 songs of all time (their frequency was 770 on the AM dial). From then until now, MacArthur Park by Richard Harris has been on that list and near the top. I had the 'A Tramp Shining' vinyl album and now have the CD. All Jimmy Webb songs, I think and very good. I see that you have been doing reactions for only a few weeks. I don't know how you do it but generally, people don't take requests unless you are contributing financially. I watch one streaming channel and used to get quite excited when they were doing a 60s or 70s live stream. It turns out that there are many people who want to hear Megadeath, AC-DC, Metallica, Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden and such bands and they have a way of getting their music played to the chagrin of the people who came for the music suggested in the video title. The reactors are young and don't know the years the songs were done or whether they were even hit songs so their live stream gets hijacked. It would be great to have a channel that really reacts to stuff one won't hear anywhere else. I get the feeling that your mother knows a lot of the good old stuff. I have songs that would make you two leap high into the air and click your heels together whilst high-fiving each other on the way down. It would be wonderful to be able to contribute song ideas for your channel. Take care and I hope you two have a lot of fun doing these reactions.
I know that I learned my lesson in Life ... There is nothing worse than Soggy Cake ... Unless of course you are Dunking it in Milk ... But Rain-Soaked Cake (Ugh!) is the Worse ... So that is why ... today ... If there is even a Hint of Rain, the first thing I do is run outside Grab the Cake and Bring it inside ... Even if I am wearing my Best Pair of Striped (Streye - pud) Pants ... October 12 2022 (2126 hrs)
