CICLOS

I am generally very wary of these albums that rob , steel and dress up the classic composer especailly the well known classic. I generally disapprove of this and if you are to read my reviews on some of the most shameless groups Trace and Ekseption , you will see this clearly. It always seemed that a category of progressive musicians always suffered from not being accepted by the so-called "Higher Culture Circles" (Classical and artistical circles) and tried to force the doors open by sticking some (rather clumsy) orchestrations and/or re-working the classics.

Although this sole album by Canarios (an evolution of spanish pop band los Canarios) is full of those flaws , the high rating I give should hint you that there is much more than the re- working of Vivaldi's Four Seasons. Sure there are moments when the ridiculous is followed by the sublime when the overheard chorus/reprise of Four Season's main theme is slowly changed to a driving prog rock with choirs (sometimes ala Carmina Burana - reminding you of Magma). This double vinyl is now on a single Cd and is a great value for money but also artistically. There are some real weird moments where an old blues song ending seems atrocious in such a finely crafted album , but on the whole this is a very odd , curious but ultimately rewarding acquisition.

The fact that this album exists at all is a bit of a wonder, since it was recorded in 74 during the closing years of Franco's fascist dictature and Spain's progressive period was not really to start until the death of the dictator. Maybe the fact that these guys hailed from the touristic Canary Islands helped, but the production of such an ambitious album was obviously too expensive , so much that I cannot see this being done without some official help. Just an educated guess by my many childhood vacations throughout Spain in the 70's and the striking contrasts of then-relatively-rich E C countries and the poor , rural , dictatorial Spain of those years.