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The Piano Guys: 2 - an album guide
With millions of YouTube subscribers, video views and inventive classical crossover tunes coming out of their ears, it's no wonder The Piano Guys' second album is eagerly awaited… here's our track-by-track guide
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1. Begin Again
Taylor Swift made the song famous, but The Piano Guys kick off their second album with this cello-led rendition of the US singer's hit Begin Again. They also performed the song exclusively for Classic FM in a fantastic stripped-back session earlier this year.
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2. Rockelbel's Canon
Taking inspiration from Pachelbel's Canon in D, The Piano Guys put their inimitable spin on this most classic of classics.
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3. Mission: Impossible
The Piano Guys enlist the help of fellow YouTube hit-gatherer, violinist Lindsey Stirling, to tackle this crazy interpretation of the Mission: Impossible theme. Make sure you check out the high-concept video that accompanies it, too.
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4. Lord Of The Rings
Howard Shore's music for the Lord Of The Rings movies have become a firm favourite with classical audiences, but they'll be treated to a brand new interpretation here. One particularly witty YouTube commenter has even dubbed it 'The Celloship of the String'.
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5. Berlin
This is a Piano Guys original work, rather than an arrangement of an existing piece or song, and features sounds created by nothing but a cello and a kick-drum. It's quite something, as you can imagine.
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6. All Of Me
Written by Piano Guys pianist Jon Schmidt (not in this precarious picture), this solo piano piece became an online sensation over a year ago when it was first posted. Hundreds of cover versions later, it's now given its full forearm-piano-smashing debut on record. A huge for one instrument.
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7. Just The Way You Are
Another radical reworking of a modern pop song, this time taking on Bruno Mars' hit 'Just The Way You Are'. Slowing it down and stripping it back takes the song to a very different place indeed.
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8. Waterfall
Piano Guy Jon Schmidt is fast becoming a prolific and fun composer for solo piano, and his piece 'Waterfall' is typically intricate and accessible at the same time.
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9. Charlie Brown Medley
Jazz pianist Vince Guaraldi's music for the Charlie Brown TV shows has become legendary in its own right, and The Piano Guys couldn't resist taking those brilliant piano themes and giving them their own spin. Actually, this is definitely the most faithful of all the Piano Guys re-imaginings.
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10. Me and My Cello (Happy Together)
This cover of The Turtles' 'Happy Together' is a rather sweet ode from cellist Steven Sharp Nelson to his instrument.
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11. Twinkle Lullaby
Well, if it was good enough for Mozart, it's good enough for The Piano Guys. Here's their own rather pretty little take on Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.
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12. More Than Words
Taking Extreme's hit 'More Than Words' as a starting point and throwing a little bit of Bach's 'Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring' into the mix for good measure, this is another song that debuted online and quickly went viral.
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13. Can't Help Falling In Love
Seemingly everyone's recorded a version of this song at some point, but with The Piano Guys you know it won't be quite the version you're expecting… Not a curled lip or leather jacket in sight!
