The Renaissance Zone

Just for a bump, I wonder what Renaissance would have been like if Annie and Michael had not fallen out in the late 80s and 90s.

*bump*

Edited by rogerthat - February 27 2018 at 09:31

I try very hard to be objective with my reviews, Ken, but ASFAS is one of those albums that resonates with me on almost a mystical level. Kind of like the way Days Of Future Passed by the Moody Blues does, for example, so an objective review would be very difficult. I'll just say that it's a very special album to me. Those who feel the same vibes as I do while listening to ASFAS, will (hopefully) know what I mean.  Whew! I just got captured by a capcha. Glad I copied this one!

Edited by SteveG - November 03 2017 at 07:30

If I was to actually review ASFAS, I would probably view "Opening Out" as a missed opportunity in the band failing to take the song further into a long progressive piece similar to something like "Can You Hear Me?" from Novella. I understand that the band was going in a shorter song direction on ASFAS, but I still hoped that the band would branch out on the song in concert one day. Sadly, they never did as witnessed by the nearly identical, albeit excellently performed, live version found on Land Of The Raising Sun.

Edited by SteveG - November 02 2017 at 14:18

I will add that Northern Lights works both on its own and in the context of ASFAS

iluvmarillion wrote: kenethlevine wrote: SteveG wrote: Perhaps they confused the track listing and thought that She Is Love was actually Northern Lights. At least I hope so.  could be...the other two picks were "Day of the Dreamer" and the title track, so they got those right.   There's an art to producing a good 3-4 minute song which can survive on its own and make it onto a singles chart. Phil Collins is really good at it. Yes got it right only a couple of times over a long career with "Owner Of a Lonely Heart" and "Wonderous Stories".  Renaissance is best at their longer songs and as stated "Day of the Dreamer" and the title track are the outstanding numbers on the SFAS albums. The shorter songs on the album work in my opinion, but only in the context of the other songs that play out. "She is Love" is good orchestral interlude which leads into the opening acoustic guitar chords of "Northern Lights" and NL is a good lead in to the title track. There is a little bit of everything in the SFAS album, as opposed to Novella, which is the reason I prefer to the other album.

Whilst I agree that Renaissance are better at writing long pieces, in this case, Northern Lights was a top 10 single so it's not accurate to say it only works in the context of the album. Indeed, I have mentioned up thread that my wife who has no clue about Ren or prog rock per se had heard Northern Lights. I guess your perspective on Northern Lights is informed by your appreciation of their work as such and you don't understand what was so special about it vis a vis their long pieces that made it succeed. But that's the thing, it doesn't have to be very special, just infectious and Northern Lights has a very catchy guitar riff. Most Ren songs don't have a great rhythm hook but this one does.

kenethlevine wrote: It was really do or die at that late date for Renaissance.  Although it met with new success in the UK, it seemed that this was almost entirely on the basis of the single, so the name recognition wasn't achieved.  In the US, I don't think they gained a lot of new fans - if they had, it probably would have been on the back of Northern Lights, which flopped as a single stateside.  the allmusic guide gave it 4 or 4.5 stars and said it was as ill timed as any record could have been, and pulled in a few too many directions.  Interestingly, they flagged "She is Love" as one of 2 or 3 recommended tracks.  Did they listen to it????

Perhaps they confused the track listing and thought that She Is Love was actually Northern Lights. At least I hope so. 

In the excruciatingly short conversation I had with the late great John Tout, he said that Warner Bros. put big money behind ASFAS and really tried to break the band both in the US and UK/Europe. Tout also said that the group gave their best and it shows. She Is Love was a disaster but the rest of the album was brilliant, IMHO.

Edited by SteveG - October 31 2017 at 13:11

SteveG wrote: I thought that Jekyll and Hyde from Azure D'or, while not a great song, was interesting because the band did not ape Northern Lights. Ok, J&H is not a prog song either, but at  least it sounded different.