Once, there was a troubadour whose songs told stories about Country Churchyards and houses with Satin Green Shutters, about Lonesome Cowboys, Spacemen and Strippers, and about the devil cheating the Lord in a game of chess for the souls of humanity played on a Spanish Train. In those years, that troubadour's songs were simple, straightforward and enchanting, both musically and lyrically, and he published albums fittingly entitled "Far Beyond These Castle Walls," "Spanish Train and Other Stories" and "At the End of a Perfect Day."
Then, he was discovered. And while (initially) his lyrics at least maintained their poignancy (see "The Getaway"), his music suddenly joined the flood waves of overproduced pop. But just before that point, in 1979, he released what many to this day consider his masterpiece; the album most pointedly embodying the tradition in which, if interviews he gave at the time were to be believed, he saw himself. Supported by the better part Alan Parson's "Project" (minus Parsons himself and Eric Woolfson) - guitarist Ian Bairnson, bassist David Paton, drummer Stuart Elliott and keyboardists Mike Moran and Andrew Powell, the latter of whom also served as the album's producer and conductor - he put together a collection of 12 songs in turn seducing, stirring and soothing the listener's soul. There are soft songs of love and loss like "I Had the Love in My Eyes," "Something Else Again," "It's Such a Long Way Home" and "Quiet Moments." There is the heartrending fairy tale of the "Girl With April in Her Eyes." There is De Burgh's bow to the era's "save the earth" movement, the rallying cry of "Just in Time". There is the sequel to the ghastly game of chess in "Spanish Train" (to which the song's lyrics expressly make reference), the dramatic story of "The Devil's Eye" gazing back at you from your TV screen. And there is a troubadour's look at "Old-Fashioned People" wishing to be carried back to the times and places that they knew.
But the album's piece de resistance is its title track, an (especially considering the time of its release) epic, nine-minute long tale retelling the story of Richard the Lionheart's crusade; beginning quietly but rising to dramatic heights as the enemies face each other over Jerusalem, and yet, ending on a quiet, pensive note. True, the song's lyrics reflect enormous bias and are, at the very least, historically debatable; and the mere fact that the story is told from a crusader's point of view doesn't do anything to change this, for those who participated in the crusades knew better than to underestimate Saladin or put him down like this - the version we're getting here is the propaganda spread throughout Christian Europe in support of the campaign to "free" Jerusalem. But ultimately, I don't think this part of the song represents the point that Chris De Burgh wants to make. Rather, the song's most important lines are those of the last, reflective verses, which are well worth considering, particularly these days:
"What do I do now?" said the Wise man to the Fool,
"I have spent my whole life searching, to find the Golden Rule,
Though centuries have disappeared, the memory still remains,
Of those enemies together, could it be that way again?"
Then the Fool said "Oh you Wise men, you really make me laugh,
With your talk of vast persuasion and searching through the past,
There is only greed and evil in the men who fight today,
The song of the Crusader has long since gone away ..."
The album's last song, "You and Me," is a short, gentle farewell: "The time has come for me to take my bows and leave the stage," De Burgh sings, and promises to return and again take his audience "through the ancient halls and stories of the past, and the many ways of loving." Well, return he certainly did, but would that he had remembered the rest of his promise as well! Alas, that was not to be the case. But even for those of us who think he later sold out, there are still his first four albums - and particularly this one - to turn to for enchantment, comfort, and exceptional storytelling ...
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This album deals with morality to a great extent. The album's title track, "Crusader" is by far the best song on the album. It is written almost as a ballad telling a simplified version of the Christian side of the taking of Jerusalem from Saladin by the Crusaders under Richard "the Lionhearted" Planagenet. It compares the ideals of the Crusaders to the ideals of mankind today. If you are a Muslim, you may find it insulting to the history of your religion, but it is really a beautiful song otherwise.
The rest of the songs on the album are good, though only "The Devil's Eye" and "The Girl With April in Her Eyes" deserve singling out as notably good.
Crusader was the first album by Chris de Burgh that I ever heard, back in 1979, and I was an instant convert. While I love much of his early work, Crusader stands out by being consistently superb - it is very rare for me to find an album on which every song is worth listening to time and time again! From the poetic storytelling of the title track (historical accuracy aside, it is a wonderful piece of art to transform such a great story into a song), through to the Gaelic background vocals in 'Carry On', from the homesickness evident in 'Such A Long Way Home' to one of the best love songs ever ('Something Else Again'), the whole album is a tour de force. Anyone who is remotely interested in anything that Chris de Burgh has ever released should own this album!
About 22 years ago I heard the title track of this song on the radio, upon it's initial Irish release. That afternoon I rushed out bought it (on vinyl, of course) and I can say that few other albums have influenced me more. This is classic DeBurgh on a BIG scale. All the songs have their own strengths in melodic construction, lyricism, storytelling, emotional content, wonderful arrangements, and solid song writing which make it stand out with the best of this artist's work. A wonderful exposition of a delightful imagination. As a diehard original Irish fan, I have never been as fond of DeBurgh's later, more commercial work. But even had his style not evolved as it did, Crusader would still be one of my favorite albums of all time. Love at first listen! Highly reccommended for all Romantics and lovers of great music.
Exceptionally Poetic! There is no equal. This is not just music... Chris Du Burg's music ferments your senses, meshes your emotions... is an entry into an Ineffable and fragile deminsion where music travels under the skin... warming your bones one moment, chilling them the next.
