This was a demo featured in a 1996 Total Guitar (UK guitar magazine) CD by guitarist Chris Goulstone. Unfortunately the magazine spelt it 'Coulston' which I put at the beginning of my video, until Chris advised me of the correct spelling.
I love Wagner's Ride of the Valkyries and think that Chris has done a great job adapting it for a full-on guitar workout. Sort of what you might imagine someone like Joe Satriani doing. (If you are interested in sixties guitar workouts of classical music, see my videos of Love Sculpture doing Sabre Dance, Farandole and Mars).
The magazine noted it 'is demo of the month..because the arrangement is so strong and well thought out. Subtle it is not, but what it loses in grace and mystique, it makes up for in humour and confidence.....Chris gets his sound by putting his 1981 Squier Strat through a 1972 watt Marshall head, whch in turn is processed by a Palmer speaker simulator, but instead of going to direct to tape, he used a 4x12" speaker cabinet with Celestion G12s'. Chris said that he could run the Marshall flat out and control the overall volume without affecting the tone.
The line up for the track is:
Chris Goulstone - guitars and programming
Paul Martinez - bass
Dave Charles - drum overdubs
I put the track on a compilation CD and have listened to it over the years and love it. I thought it deserved to be heard and have made this slideshow video. I only had a thumbnail photo of Chris to make the video so have added some aerial shots of various planes which I hope fit in (an Apocalypse Now type vibe!). I would love to see a video of Chris performing it live!
Just google Chris Goulstone to find his website and youtube channel. He has played with artists such as Goldfrapp and Hugh Cornwell of the Stranglers. He also does soundtracks for TV and films.
Comments are invited.