This is something that I’ve been meaning to post about for a while, but I was waiting for a special occasion to really emphasize its coolness and since it’s a brand new year, I think it’s finally time. Christopher Lee, also known as Scaramanga, Dracula, the Mummy, Saruman, Count Dooku, and the voice of Death in any Terry Pratchett property that isn’t a book, is also a big heavy metal enthusiast! Over the course of his career, he has recorded no fewer than five metal albums. Most of them are collaborations with the Italian symphonic power metal group Rhapsody (sometimes called Rhapsody of Fire), but he has also recorded with the group Manowar. One of his most recent albums is a concept album about Charlemagne, of whom Lee is apparently a descendant, and man, it’s pretty damn cool. Here’s a promo!
Word has it that Lee is planning a sequel to his Charlemagne album which is due out this year! I really need to track these albums down, because they sound amazing. Before I wrap this up, I simply can’t resist posting this clip of Lee singing “Choose Your Poison” with Alan Arkin in The Return of Captain Invincible (music by The Rocky Horror Picture Show‘s Richard O’Brien/Riffraff!).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8W2fkhfFPc
One last Christopher Lee metal tune awaits you just below the cut!