STRANGE NEW FLESH

This is part of a really cool vein of music that includes a group called Tempest (with Allan Holdsworth and Ollie Halsall on guitars) and, of course an earlier incarnation of a few members of this band, which was simply called Colosseum. The great liner notes that come with this cd are filled with a remarkable bounty of other band names and personnel that seemed to have touched this band in some fashion or other: John Mayall, Rick Wakeman, Cozy Powell, Gilgamesh, National Health, Thin Lizzy, Whitesnake, and many more.

Frequently compared to Weather Report and Mahavishnu Orchestra, their music has a bit more gutsiness and progressive flavor than either of those two great (GREAT) bands. Band leader Jon Hiseman is an incredible drummer in an original style, and Gary Moore shreds on this like few other guitarists of the era could. Don Airey plays some great and varied keys. The production on this re-master is flawless. A few songs into this cd and I was thinking to myself "Where the heck has this fantastic music been all my life?!" It just felt so right to me. It felt like home. I was in love...

Look, you have to hear this stuff to believe it. I can't explain it to you in print. And you get 13 (!) previously unreleased tracks, including the complete BBC In Concert session from 1976. This is primo stuff. One of the most highly-rated albums in my collection. Highly recommended to progressive rock/jazz fusion fans. ESSENTIAL. Essential.