The Forgotten Tales

The Forgotten Tales
Compilation album by
Blind Guardian
Released16 April 1996
RecordedSweet Silence Studios
Twilight Hall Studios
Karo Studios
Central Studio
GenrePower metal
Length45:32
LabelVirgin
ProducerFlemming Rasmussen
Kalle Trapp
Piet Sielck
Blind Guardian
Blind Guardian chronology
The Forgotten Tales
(1996) 		Memories of a Time to Come
(2012)
Singles from The Forgotten Tales
  1. "Mr. Sandman"
    Released: 7 February 1996

The Forgotten Tales is the first compilation album by German power metal band Blind Guardian. It was published in 1996. The cover artwork was created by Andreas Marschall [de]. "'The Forgotten Tales'" contains several cover versions of popular songs, including "Mr. Sandman", "Surfin' U.S.A.", and "Spread Your Wings" as well as alternate versions of the band's previous works.[1] Remastered and re-released on 15 June 2007, with bonus tracks and videos.

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic link

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Mr. Sandman" (The Chordettes cover)Pat Ballard2:09
2."Surfin' U.S.A." (The Beach Boys cover)Brian Wilson, Chuck Berry2:23
3."Bright Eyes" (Acoustic version)André Olbrich, Hansi Kürsch4:20
4."Lord of the Rings" (Orchestral version)Kürsch, Marcus Siepen3:55
5."The Wizard" (Uriah Heep cover)Ken Hensley, Mark Clarke3:16
6."Spread Your Wings" (Queen cover)John Deacon4:14
7."Mordred's Song" (Acoustic version)Olbrich, Kürsch5:16
8."Black Chamber" (Orchestral version)Kürsch1:15
9."The Bard's Song – In the Forest" (Live)Olbrich, Kürsch4:11
10."Barbara Ann/Long Tall Sally" (The Regents/Little Richard covers)Fred Fassert/Enotris Johnson, Robert Blackwell, Richard Penniman1:43
11."A Past and Future Secret"Olbrich, Kürsch3:47
12."To France" (Mike Oldfield cover)Mike Oldfield4:40
13."Theatre of Pain" (Orchestral version)Olbrich, Kürsch, Mathias Wiesner4:15
Total length:45:32
2007 Re-release Bonus Tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
14."Hallelujah" (Deep Purple cover)Roger Greenaway, Roger Cook3:18
15."Beyond the Realms of Death" (Judas Priest cover)Rob Halford, Les Binks7:02
16."Don't Talk to Strangers" (Dio cover)Ronnie James Dio4:49
17."Mr. Sandman" (Video)Pat Ballard 
18."The Bard's Song" (Video)Olbrich, Kürsch 
2019 Re-release Bonus Tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
14."All the King's Horses"Kürsch, Siepen[2]4:09
15."Dream a Little Dream of Me" (Ozzie Nelson cover)Gus Kahn, Fabian Andre, Wilbur Schwandt3:22
16."Don't Talk to Strangers" (Dio cover)Ronnie James Dio4:49
17."Beyond the Realms of Death" (Judas Priest cover)Rob Halford, Les Binks7:02
18."Hallelujah" (Deep Purple cover)Roger Greenaway, Roger Cook3:18
19."In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" (Iron Butterfly cover)Doug Ingle3:37
20."You're the Voice" (John Farnham cover)Chris Thompson, Maggie Ryder, Andy Qunta, Keith Reid4:44

Lineup

Guest musicians

  • Mathias Wiesner – effects (tracks 1, 4, 11–13), bass (track 6)
  • Michael Shüren – piano (track 2)
  • Piet Sielck – backing vocals (track 2), effects (track 8)
  • Otto Sidenius – organ (track 5)
  • Jacob Moth – acoustic guitar (tracks 5, 11)
  • Billy King – backing vocals (tracks 5–6)
  • Thomas Hackmann – backing vocals (tracks 5, 10)
  • Ronnie Atkins – backing vocals (track 5)
  • Rolf Köhler – lead vocals (track 10), backing vocals (tracks 6, 10)
  • Kalle Trapp – lead guitars (track 10), lead vocals (track 10), backing vocals (track 10)
  • Aman Malek – backing vocals (track 10)
  • Stefan Will – piano (track 6)

Personnel

  • Ralph Kessler – mastering
  • Andreas Marschall – cover paintings
  • Dirk Zumpe – photos
  • Flemming Rasmussen – recording (tracks 1, 5, 7, 11), mixing and engineering (tracks 1, 5, 11), producing (tracks 1, 5)
  • Piet Sielck – recording (tracks 2–4, 7–8, 12–13), mixing and producing (tracks 2–4, 7–9, 12–13), engineering (tracks 1–3, 6, 12)
  • Kalle Trapp – recording, mixing, producing and engineering (tracks 6, 10)
  • Henrik Vindeby – recording (tracks 4, 7, 8), engineering (tracks 2, 12), assistant engineering (tracks 1, 5, 11)
  • Blind Guardian – producing (tracks 3–4, 7–9, 12–13)

Charts

Chart (1996) Peak
position
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[3] 36
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[4] 41

References

  1. ^ Popoff, Martin (2018). Queen: Album by Album. Voyageur Press. p. 108.
  2. ^ "All the King's Horses". YouTube. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  3. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Blind Guardian – The Forgotten Tales" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  4. ^ Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005 (in Japanese). Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.