The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey

Guy Farley

One of the more exciting young and upcoming composers today is Guy "Land of the Blind" Farley. His latest score is to the film The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey released straight to DVD. Directed by newcomer Bill Clark it stars Tom Berenger and Aran Bell, was made for the younger generation, and is a somewhat typical heartfelt holiday story with a happy ending.

The title, as far as purchasing Christmas music is concerned, could be quite misleading to the potential buyer. This is not filled with holiday music like Miracle on 34th St. Having said that, it isn't completely devoid of Christmas music either. The opening track "Jonathan Toomey" not only offers the two main themes of the soundtrack but a very nice rendition of the traditional "Deck The Halls". Flute and then oboe give us the first theme followed by the second which is delicately offered on the piano leading into "Deck The Halls" before a positively wonderful conclusion with the trumpet, horns and chorus. This would be one track to download for your Christmas selections on your MP3 or compilation CD. The other track is "Christmas Joy" which is also "Deck The Halls", a small sampling of original Farley Christmas music,a hint of "Joy to the World", and his themes. (Soundclips).

Don't ignore the remainder of the CD either. Farley, unlike some of his contemporaries, is filled with wonderful melodies. They warm your heart. Even the country western tracks "Life in the Country", "Old Blue", and "Country Style" are nice and easy to listen to especially for a hard core fanatic classical listener. "Leaving Town" has that quirky sound that sounds like Thomas Newman. There is cartoon like music in "The Dare". "Home from the War" and "Soldiers in Tragedy" reference the traditional "Yankee Doodle Dandy" before he bursts into one of the main melodies.

Programmed correctly this could be a perfect CD listen to with that special person around the crackling fire in the fireplace. This reviewer has listened to two of his scores so far. In my book he's two for two!

Thomas L. Kiefner - December 19, 2007