Bloody Good Pirate Tale

In 1922 Rafael Sabatini wrote the novel Captain Blood, about the sharp-tongued doctor -turned -slave -turned -pirate Peter Blood. It was made into a movie in 1935 starring Errol Flynn, and countless adaptations have been made based on the epic story. Sabatini himself wrote two additional novels featuring the witty Irishman.

Earlier this year another adaptation was released, this time in radio drama form. Jerry Robbins and Colonial Radio Theatre are all ready well known for their astounding renditions of the classics, and this one will not disappoint you either.

For those who do not know the story (and I was one who did not prior), Captain Blood is about a doctor who generally keeps to himself during the Monmouth Rebellion in the 1600's. He is falsely convicted of treason for helping an "enemy" soldier, and is sentenced to slavery on Barbados. His medical background gives him some clout with the government, so he's able to avoid the torture and mistreatment of the slaves. He and a small circle of comrades do manage to escape the island however, commandeer a ship, and decide to become pirates. What you find as you move through the story is Blood is the most gentlemanly of a pirate you would ever come across I imagine.

The acting was quite a feat for this small band of actors. Many took on multiple roles, and I really didn't realize this until listening to the end credits. In their roles they needed multiple accents as well: English, Spanish, and French. It was flawless, and Jerry Robbins did an outstanding job as the Captain. Now, I've met Jerry in person- and I tried very hard to recognize his voice during the production. I couldn't do it.

The music is magnificent as well. I come from an orchestral music background, so I would like to think I might know what I'm talking about (you'll just have to hear it for yourself if you'd like to challenge me, hehehe). The music for this production fit perfectly. Epic novel, epic music. During the battle scenes between ships, I found myself always thinking of the battle scene in Les Miserables- it had that same feel.

Along with the music, the rest of the sound effects were right on as well. Walking around on the ship, galloping horses, cannons going off, sword fights... this production has everything to make it complete. All you have to do is sit back, close your eyes, and complete the picture in your head.

Captain Blood is 7 hours long and on 6 CD's. Published by Blackstone Audio.