CD REVIEW - A Witch is Born (Original)

[Mike]

A Witch is Born [CD] by Alex Sanders © 2009 Cold Springs Co.
UK 3 Tracks $12.55 (U.S.) 3 Tracks Running Time: 39:02

The Initiation 24:42 The Legend of the Goddess 5:19 The Great
Rite 9:01

More than 40 years ago, in a move which was controversial even then,
the undisputed leader of the Alexandrian sect of Wicca (and highly
disputed “King of the Witches”) decided to bring the religion of Wicca
to the masses. To that end, he made appearances in various public
venues and made a recording (in a single take) of an Initiation
ceremony. It was released as a record in 1970 and has pretty much
disappeared from the public view and mind.

A new version of that record has been done by Alex's former wife,
Maxine, with the assistance of modern-day members of the Alexandrian
sect, and the deletion of the original narration. This is NOT that
disk. This is a reissue of the original record. As you listen to it,
you can hear many indications which show that it has not been
remastered, but rather was made from an original LP record. There is
a certain level of noise which undoubtedly results from scratches and
imperfections in the original LP.
This was an unauthorized reissue which may explain why it was simply
transferred from LP to CD.

As I listened to the first few minutes of “The Initiation” I had
goosebumps like I have not had in years. Part of that was hearing the
voices of Alex Sanders and Stewart Farrar. Another part of it was
caused by the background music, which is Wagnerian. It tends, at
times, to almost overwhelm the spoken parts, which is a shortcoming.

Without a doubt, this is a recording which holds a prominent place in
the history of Wicca in general, and the Alexandrian tradition in
particular. The only thing which could have made it better would have
been if the ritual had been filmed...but the chances of that would
have been nil at the time and they haven't gotten much better in the
intervening years.

For the past four decades this has been the only available recording
of an Alexandrian First Degree initiation (albeit, not a complete
recording) in existence. As such it has served as a valuable resource
for those wishing to learn how to pronounce some of those REALLY
unfamiliar words they have read in the books. Unfortunately (or
fortunately, depending upon your point of view), it is not made clear
that this is not a complete initiation ceremony, so there are those
who have used it as a template for initiating others, and claiming
Alexandrian heritage. True Alexandrian initiates would spot the
shortcomings, but others might not.

Despite these shortcomings, if you are interested in historical
recordings from the early days of Wicca's public existence, this disc
belongs in your collection. There is a paucity of recordings
available which record the actual voices of early proponents of Wicca,
so I welcome the availability of this recording.

Is it a must have? Probably not. But if you have the spare cash, and
a desire to experience (even if it is second hand) an Alexandrian
initiation, add this recording to your collection.

I don't know of any other recordings of actual rituals (unless you
count LaVey's “Satanic Mass”) which are available. But if there are
any others, this could be a good time to dig them out, remaster them
and make them available to the community.