SPRING

And with that proviso, we look at this fascinating one off album from the progressive English band Spring from 1971. One of few the early seventies bands that built it's musical foundations on the prog hallowed mellotron. Even the three bonus recordings present on this album, that were the initial songs recorded for their follow up album prior to the band splitting up, also feature the mellotron heavily, with more piano and organ brought in to build up the sound.

So, is the album Spring any good? That depends on how much one appreciates combining of the mellotron with mellow , but always simmering music. There are some dramatic moments on Spring with lyrics worthy of either Peter Sienfeld and Keith Reid, but the tone of the album is reflective and relatively quiet when compared to the more dynamic "From the Wicthwood Sounding" bonus tracks.

But the band, with four out of the five members playing the tron on different tracks, make this one off album seem almost essential to an early prog fan. Heavy 'Chas Cronk' style basslines and deceptively simple sounding drumming that has metronomic precision courtesy of future Dire Straits drummer Pick Withers. The band's rich soundscapes that feature everything from mellotron horns, flute, string, and even tympani, are marked out by a clangy electric guitar supported by the sweet tones of a beautifully strummed acoustic 12 string, which makes the music sound very much of it's time.

However, Spring has one endearing quality that almost all early seventies progressive rock band's lack. A modern, almost timeless, sounding vocalist that brings to mind echos of Peter Gabriel mixed with Cat Stevens.

For prog fans, 3.5 stars seems right. For prog fans who love mellotron, it's easily 4 stars. This review is for dr wu23, for inadvertently reminding me of why I got into prog in the first place.

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