Shadowfax (US/ Crossover Prog)

^ link busted - use this one: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shadowfax_(band)

^ Stll busted, try this:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shadowfax_%28band%29

a little redundant, but hey-ho.

I've known this band since their first debut album in the late '70's. 

Not a good fit for crossover but excellent for symphonic.  (Strictly talking about Watercourse Way, somewhat .)

Their first album is one of those overlooked masterpieces of progressive music..  They went off the radar screen for a while but reappeared with an album on the Windham Hill label a short few years later.  They redid a few tracks from the original, quite well, I might add.  I've still got the LPs (vinyls for some if that's the term you know, they were called records back then). 

The album cover on the original was excellent, though the last time I tried to dig it up, it wasn't available on the internet.   This was their most hard hitting one I've heard so far.

Excellent mellow music on Watercourse Way and their Windham Way albums, occasionally in the earlier stuff but that was the focus of the latter.  But back to the music for the original, it's an obscure gem.  The later stuff much less so impressive, but excellent mellow music that doesn't fit perfectly into the mold of '80's new age music even though they re=did a few track from WW. 

Chuck Greenberg, I think died a while ago, and then the band was retired, so to speak.  I still haven't tried or found much of their later music.  I'll admit I haven't been looking too hard for it.  They seemed to be headed back in a more progressive direction with Dreams Of Children, but that was the point where I quit following them.  Still on my agenda to explore the rest.

Footnote:
Watercourse Way was re-released by Windham Hill in CD and LP format without the original cover art, sadly WW was not released with the original art, but the the WH standard format art at the time.


Edited by Slartibartfast - July 22 2009 at 22:04

Any New Age albums listed in the PA are only here because the band/artist also did 100% Prog albums. If Shadowfax only did New Age albums then the band will not be listed; if the first album is Progressive Rock then they have a chance of being added.

This cover Brian?

Watercourse Way is in the styling of Tubular Bells. Both are new age, both rock.

Shadowfax has been firmly placed in my record colelction's jazz fusion section since the late 70's, and even the Indo jazz fusion sub-section. Beware if they are included you may find them in the jazz Rock Fusion section of PA.

Blowin Free wrote: I wouldn't say Indo, but I agree, they can really get into the Jazz-fusion section.

Dean wrote: This cover Brian?

Ah, you found it. 

The first album has some elements that good new age music may have borrowed from.  If new age = boring crap, you will find nothing of the sort on their debut. 

Dick's absolutely right, the first one is a good fit for JRF and the ones that I am familiar with do have some similarities to Oregon.




Edited by Slartibartfast - July 23 2009 at 04:18