FALLEN DREAMS AND ANGELS

"Fallen Dreams and Angels" were released in March 1994 and was followed by the longest tour the band has ever done to date, with 30 concerts. They did for example visit Poland for the first time and the fans there went totally nuts for the band. This release contains only 4 songs, but in return this is 4 of the best songs PENDRAGON has ever produced, especially the song "The Third World in the U.K.", but all the tracks are first class. By the end of the year, in December, they also got their well deserved recognition when they was granted three Awards from the "Classic Rock Society" in England.

Yes, another 5 star recommendation from yours truly here! I don't have this on cd yet, but I did tape it from a friend's cd a few years ago. Only four tracks here, but again, each one is of tremendous quality. 'The Third World In The U.K.' opens here, and is another mini epic. Nice piano from Clive here, and beautifully understated guitar from Nick. Excellent rhythm changes make this song truly progressive, and then the nice quiet piano finishes the piece again. Very good. 'Dune' is, for Pendragon, a very short and almost commercial song, set at a brisk tempo yet still melodic. The band are very tight here, and there is none of the usual long instrumental passages here, but still a fine song. 'Sister Bluebird' is my favourite on this cd. Classic Pendragon here; a slow, thoughtful start reminds me a little of 'Breaking The Spell' before the middle of the song brings in a splendid guitar solo. Lovely playing here from Nick, and then, as the end approaches, the whole pitch of the song changes, and Clive Nolan makes the goosebumps rise with a brilliant keyboard backdrop to the finale. Superb! Finally, 'Fallen Dreams And Angels' itself appears. This is another finely crafted song, in the romantic vein, and is instantly catchy and appealing to the casual listener. Although it is only an E.P. I recommend it strongly.

Pendragon has used his fans to release some EP's when the band was too lazy (Nick's own word during a concert) or too busy (especially in the case of Clive) to release a full album.

But honestly, with the four songs featured here clocking at over twenty-five minutes, it is really a mini-album we are facing. Nothing like the short and useless "Red Shoes". Each song is fully into Pendragon's tradition.

Their (short) flirt with some disco-ish sounds during the Kowtow era is (hopefully) behind. Of course, you do not need to look for anything revolutionary. Just a return to their roots, which are wonderful melodies, mellow vocals. Just beautiful and peaceful music.

There won't be any masterpiece on this EP. All tracks can be categorized in the good song range. "Fallen Dreams And Angels" being the most commercial one : catchy and poppish.

"The Third World in the U.K." is probably the most elaborate song sitting on this EP. Over seven minutes of the most emotional music. Above average lyrics as well.

"Dune", is a great pop-rock song in Pendragon's tradition. It IS pure joy and happiness, as most of their songs. A great and catchy melody is the strongest feature here.

"Sister Bluebird" is a romantic prog ballad that reminds me "Sister Jane" form Tai Phong. A wonderful guitar break will raise this song to the very valuable level of Pendragon's good ones.

None of the four tracks featured on this EP, can be called an easy number. Each will have something on its own, that will fully justifies its EP appearance. Of course, there won't be any "Alaska", "Black Knight" nor "The Last Man on Heart".

A good collection of very nice songs that were just a bit short to fit on an album. Thanks to these EP's, they won't be lost at least !

Three stars.

This mini-album by Pendragon is actually a very good one. The 4 songs are more or less equal in quality though very different. The first song is Pendragon at its best. A great composition. Dune is more of a ballad sounding very nice with great guitarwork of Nick Barrett. Ten years ago I liked Sister Bluebird best of these four, it's still very much ok but it's overtaken by the last song: Fallen dreams and angels to me is right now the best of the four, but I repeat: they are all very good. The fans should absolutely have this one: 4.5 stars

One of those must have EP´s released by Pendragon. Although it has only 4 tracks, they are all very good and clocking at 25 minutes, it is really worth buying it. Besides, it does have my favourite ever Pendragon song, the beautiful Sister Bluebird. Of course there are more elaborated and stronger Pendragon´s tunes than this one, but it is my best remembered song ever. I loved the soaring guitars, the moving keyboards and, most of all, the impassioned vocals. Sister Bluebird is one of their most poignant tracks ever.

But the EP has more than just that. Third World In The UK is another fine mini epic that has been unjustifiably forgotten by most fans. It is another of Nick Barrett´s great achievements and I´m waiting to see it featuring in a live DVD in near future. It certainly would help to bring some attention this very underrated gem.

The other two songs, June and the title track are simpler, acoustic, tunes that show the group´s soft side and are very good too. Sure those two are not as symphonic as those I mentioned before, but the great keys and tasteful arrangements made them sound more elaborated than I initially thought they were when I first heard them. Beautiful!

Highly recommended

More of the same

This EP offers us four tracks very much in the same style as the material on The World and The Window Of Life albums. Like on those full length albums, we have here a selection of quite well written, well recorded and well produced songs all with the typical Pendragon sound. This means the distinctive vocals of Nick Barrett and his long, sustained guitar solos as well as the always pleasant keyboards of Clive Nolan. None of these songs are bad at all, but also not particularly remarkable in any way. Anyone who has heard the band's full length albums from around this time knows just what to expect of this EP.

Of the four songs, Sister Bluebird is the only one I had heard before (on the Concerto Maximo live DVD). It is a good Pendragon song, but hardly one of their better songs. Third World In The UK is, I think, the best song of this EP with very nice guitar and keyboard work as well as a strong vocal. Dune is the worst song here and features a very poppy sound that I find quite hard to stomach to be honest. It is simply too lightweight and light-hearted for my taste. Finally, the title track is again a much better song in typical Pendragon fashion. I enjoy this EP to some degree, but it hardly leaves any lasting impressions.

If you are a major fan of this band, adding this EP to your collection is undoubtedly a very good idea. But for the more casual fan, however, I would say that having the full length albums (or most of them, at least) is quite enough.

Therefore, quite naturally, this is recommended for fans and collectors but not so much for anyone else.

Without question mid-90's were not only the most prolific and inspirational Pendragon era,but instrumentally the sound of the band was at its most balanced due to the tight line-up.So Nick Barrett's company released a 25-min. EP just a year after ''The Window Of Life'',the title of which was ''Fallen Dreams & Angels'', released again on Toff Records and featuring an excellent cover artwork.

From the very first notes you will be sure to face another unique Pendragon experience.Melodic Neo Prog with an emphasis on atmosphere and a great balance between pleasant instrumental passages and vocal-based arrangements.The sound follows the vein of ''The Window Of Life'' or ''The world'', softer passages with an almost ballad atmosphere are blended with sweet Barett guitar solos and Nolan's talented and inspired work on organ, synthesizers and piano with these great background keys and smooth symphonic moods.The light GENESIS and PINK FLOYD influences are still there, always wrapped under Pendragon's personal approach.The compositions flow again in a slow-tempo, but what the heck, this is Pendragon's music after all, far from complex textures but deeply personal and highly atmospheric.

You will not lose a whole different music dimension if you do not purchase this work, but be sure to face some well-crafted, elaborate and grandiose in its own way musicianship if you ever do.Strongly recommended...Pendragon were here to stay...3.5 stars.

The Fallen Dreams and Angels EP presents a collection of four songs in a slightly less complex vein than the material on The World or The Window of Life, but at the same time are more or less within the same general style as those albums. I suspect the songs in question were placed on an EP as opposed to a full album because, whilst pleasant and listenable, they're not really of the standard of the full album pieces, though they are charming little samples of Pendragon's poppier style as it existed in the 1990s despite that. Pendragon fans will want to get these for completeness; be aware that some editions of The Window of Life include these songs as bonus tracks, so if you're a cost-conscious sort who doesn't already own that album that might be a good way to get them.

Review Nº 592

Pendragon have been around for more than forty years now, coming to the scene a few years after the likes of Marillion and Pallas. Band's leader Nick Barrett has taken care of most of the music all these years, and tied the band together. Starting with music in the line of aforementioned bands, Pendragon has gone through more or less gradual changes in style from album to album, usually with good results. They have almost the same line up ever since 1985, with only some small adjustments, something rather odd in the current music industry. In the early days, they even teamed up with Marillion, as a supporting band in many concerts of Marillion. So, this is a very interesting band with a great career.

'Fallen Dreams And Angels' is a mini album or EP of Pendragon with only four songs and was released in 1994. 'Fallen Dreams And Angels' was released after 'The Window Of Life' Pendragon's live tour. Three of the songs were written during and after their 'The Window Of Life' live tour while the other song was recorded for the second SI compilation disc. Later, all four songs were released on their fourth studio album 'The Window Of Life' as four bonus tracks.

The line up on 'Fallen Dreams And Angels' is the same of their three previous studio albums 'Kowtow', released in 1988, 'The World', released in 1991 and 'The Window Of Life', released in 1993, their second, third and four studio albums, respectively. So, the line up on 'Fallen Dreams And Angels' is Nick Barrett (vocals and guitars), Clive Nolan (keyboards), Peter Gee (bass guitar) and Fudge Smith (drums).

As I mentioned before, 'Fallen Dreams And Angels' has only four tracks. On all tracks the music and lyrics were written by Nick Barrett. The first track 'The Third World In U.K.' is a very rock oriented song, in which the band finds the right balance between the progressive rock and the traditional power rock. It's a track with a real stunning keyboard solo by Clive Nolan, which makes of it truly a great song. This is probably the most elaborated song on this EP with over seven minutes of great music, indeed. It shows clearly and unequivocally the basic musical structure of a Barrett's song. It runs so that first the piano reveals a somewhat ascending chord sequence to encouraging the listener into the mood of the song and on the musical ladder line. This is an excellent true mini epic progressive song, full of rhythmic changes that open the album beautifully. The second track 'Dune' is a great ballad. It's a song written in the Pendragon's best tradition. This is a song with a great and catchy melody full of joy and happiness. On 'Dune', we have an absolute delightfully cute with a keyboard melody that sounds like an accordion, a head of a verse, followed by the chorus, then the same again and again. This is the kind of songs where you can embark in a balloon to fly in the air and you can feel free to travel around the world. So, this a song very enjoyable to listen to and that makes us feel happy and free. The third track 'Sister Bluebird' is a song in the same vein of Genesis' songs, very melodic and with guitars that sound like Steve Hackett. This is a very romantic progressive ballad, with some wonderful guitar performance and nice keyboard work, which soon became as one of the greatest songs on this EP. The song is the smaller brother of 'The Voyager', a song of their third studio album 'The World'. It begins something like that, and that leaves to an almost waiting for the transition to something bigger with new melodic and harmonic changes from the basic musical idea, with several guitar solos and keyboard hymns, where the truly clarity of the music isn't never disturbed. The fourth and last track is the title track of the EP, 'Fallen Dreams And Angels'. This is a song that many of us know from the SI compilation, disc 2. It's a track with great compositional structure, great vocal work and a very nice keyboard sound that makes of this song as one of the highlights in all Pendragon's musical career. This is a fine song, in the romantic vein, which is instantly catchy, pleasant and appealing to any kind of listeners. However, I know that many of you think that we are in presence of a simple and merely commercial and poppish song. I'm sorry, but I must disagree with you. Sincerely, I'm absolutely convinced that we are in presence of a true prog typical Pendragon's song, probably with a small touch of Marillion.

Conclusion: 'Fallen Dreams And Angels' is a very good Pendragon's mini album or EP. Its four songs are more or less equal in their quality level in spite of we may say that they're, somehow, a bit different songs. Clearly, we are dealing here with four leftover songs from 'The Window Of Live' sessions. So, it isn't really surprising that their quality levels are practically at the same level of all other songs of that studio album. Despite this is a mini CD, 'Fallen Dreams And Angels' became as one of my favourite Pendragon's studio albums with 'The World', 'The Window Of Life', 'The Masquerade Overture', 'Not Of This World' and 'Pure'. For some reason, this mini album makes me play it over and over again, with a great pleasure. I don't know why, but maybe the very relaxing compositions and its good lyrics are responsible for that. The fact is that 'Fallen Dreams And Angels' remains as one of my favourite Pendragon's albums.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)