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SITE RATING:  4/10 SITE REVIEW:  A very brief "highlights" LP from 1972, Douglas Gamley's stolid direction manages to get the job done, but the added orchestration (is that a pair of oboes bursting out during the Overture?) and generally listless performance by the London Philharmonic doesn't inspire much affection.  Tenor Ian Calley posesses a smooth, creamy texture and sure pitch in his tone, both of which I found beguiling, even with his overcooked rolled "R's" which vibrate enough to cut down trees.  The London Philharmonic Chorus are the weakest member of the combined forces, with strident, Wagnerian attacks, and a poor, muddy mix which heavily favors the disunified altos and diminishes the sopranos to a distracting degree.  Soprano Norma Burrowes sounds very young on "I Know That My Redeemer Liveth", even younger than her then twenty-eight years of age, with a bright, bird-like tone which hasn't matured into it's full bloom yet.  Other than the two soloists, and their single numbers, I couldn't find much to recommend about this deservedly out-of-print recording, with generally leaden tempos, heavily blocked singing, muddy sound, and a strident attitude by the chorus that relegates this LP to the lower end of Messiah recordings.

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