RACE TO THE END

I remember that the video of this song was shared in JON ANDERSON`s Official Facebook Profile in 2012, at the time of London`s 2012 Summer Olympics. I forgot about this song and video since then until now when I realized that this single was included in the Prog Archives `s discography database and it was without a review. I listened to this song again, so I write a review about it.

"Race to the End" is really a re-make of VANGELIS`s main theme from his soundtrack album for the "Chariots of Fire" film from 1981. The original musical piece`s name in that album is "Titles", but it is widely known as "Chariots of Fire" when played in the radio. It was a very successful instrumental musical piece for VANGELIS when it was originally released as a single in March 1981.

Jon Anderson`s version of "Titles" has lyrics written by him and the song was re-titled as "Race to the End" to be released in this single as a tribute from Anderson to the Summer Olympic Games. It is a good version which is very similar in the musical arrangements and playing to Vangelis`version, with Anderson doing a very good job for it with keyboard player Christophe Lebled. It really sounds like Anderson could have simply added his vocals to Vangelis`s original 1981 instrumental recording. This 2012 version was recorded in France and California in July 2012.

The original video done for this single (which is available on youtube) shows scenes with several athletes who participated in different Summer Olympic Games during various decades (Usain Bolt, Nadia Comaneci, Mark Spitz, Yelena Isinbayeba, among the few I could remember by seeing them in the video). It is a good video.

In the US, Vangelis's 1981 single "Chariots of Fire - Titles" was a big hit, reaching #1 on both the Cashbox and Billboard charts in 1982. It was one of 24 number-one instrumentals in the 60-year history of the Billboard Hot 100. It was also a top-ten hit in several other English-speaking countries.

As familiar as I was with "Chariots of Fire - Titles," and despite my interest in Jon Anderson's music, I never knew until today, while preparing this review, that Anderson wrote lyrics for the song, which in its vocal version is known as "Race to the End." A number of recordings of the Vangelis-Anderson composition were released in 1982, including one by Melissa Manchester and another by Vangelis's former bandmate Demis Roussos.

Since "Chariots of Fire" was the theme of a movie about the 1924 Olympics, it's been associated with the quadrennial games, and Anderson apparently released this version in connection with the 2012 Games. (His interest in the Olympics is also reflected in the title song of Yes's Going for the One (1977).) "Race to the End" is a download-only single with no b-side.

This is a well-composed, well-performed song. It's unlikely to be mistaken for progressive rock; it's not progressive, and it's definitely not rock. But it fits the Prog Archives criteria for three stars: "good, but not essential."