Recommended Music

“Jonathan Livingston Seagull”
by Neil Diamond

Neil Diamond has said the score for JLS is the greatest music he has ever written, and I – for one – agree. Diamond’s music is the perfect companion to Bach’s soaring book. The movie? … not so much. GN

“Observation from Flight 285 (in ¾ time)”, “Tighter,” and “The Great Airplane Strike of 1966”
by Paul Revere & The Raiders

Okay. Confession time again…

Even though I was born in England and lived most of my life in Canada, I LOVE the American group, Paul Revere & the Raiders. I’ve loved them since the first time I heard their music in 1965, and I still love them today.

Revere & his original lead singer, Mark Lindsay, split back in the seventies. But both of them are still on the road, some 52 years after they began (take that “newcomer Rolling Stones”).

Over the decades, Paul & his Raiders sold more than 50 million records (big CDs) and during that time, three of them just happened to be about flying.

Though he’ll hate to admit it, Hal Bryan even went so far as to buy a copy of the Raiders’ “Something’s Happening” CD just so he could play the first haunting song listed above.

Yes, I’m a fan (short for fanatic,) but these are some pretty nice songs. Watch out for them at the next garage sale. GN

“Open Skies (from Der rote Baron)”
by Reamonn

As previously mentioned, this exquisite song plays over the closing credits of the 2009 German film, Der rote Baron. Never released as a single, or on a CD, it is nevertheless one of the most beautifully touching songs about flying I have ever heard. If you missed it above, you can hear it on YouTube.

“So They Say”
by The Soul Attorneys

This Montreal group had a big hit with this inspirational song and I’d heard it several times before I realized the chorus contained the words, “They haven’t flown where we’ve flown.”

So true … and so beautiful. GN

“Battle of Britain March”
by Various Artists

From the movie of the same name. The Battle of Britain March has taken its place as a standard, right alongside the RAF March Past & The Dambusters Theme. GN

“The Dambusters”
by Various Artists

You may not know its name, but I guarantee you’ve heard this music. Because the theme from The Dambusters is played at just about every Remembrance Day celebration. It’s become one of the “standards” performed by military bands – and quite rightly so. Because The Dambusters Theme, like the movie and book it represents, is the stuff legends are made of. GN

“RAF March Past”
by Various Artists

The same holds for the RAF March Past. If you’ve been to a military aviation event, anywhere in the English-speaking world, you’ve heard this theme. GN

“Reach For The Sky”
by Various Artists

I’ve already disclosed my bias, but to my mind, the theme from Reach For The Sky, with its’ lyrical, then bold, multi-themed content, is simply the most beautiful music ever to grace an Aviation film. Period. GN