SHORT STORIES

Jon & Vangelis was a musical project formed by the lead singer of Yes Jon Anderson and the famous Greek electronic pioneer musician Vangelis, in the 80's. But this wasn't the first time the two had worked together. The first meeting between them took place in London, in the 70's. Vangelis was to be the natural replacement for Rick Wakeman on keyboards, on Yes, when Rick left the band after the release of their sixth studio album "Tales From Topographic Oceans". It would never happen especially due to personal reasons of Vangelis. However, the role went to the second choice, the Swiss keyboardist Patrick Moraz. Still, Jon Anderson has participated already, in the role of vocalist, on albums of Vangelis like "Heaven And Hell", "See You Latter", and played harp on the album "Opera Sauvage", too.

The pair worked together from 1979 to 1991, producing four original studio albums, "Short Stories" in 1980, "The Friends Of Mr. Cairo" in 1981, "Private Collection" in 1983 and "Page Of Life" in 1991.

So, "Short Stories" is the debut studio album by Jon & Vangelis and that was released in 1980. Jon Anderson was the author of the lyrics and performed all vocals and the music was all composed by Vangelis which performed all instruments, keyboards, synthesizers, piano and electronics. Beyond them, "Short Stories" had also the participation of Raphael Preston on acoustic guitars with some small contributions as a guest musician.

Originally, the vinyl version had ten tracks, but the CD version has only eight tracks. I have both versions but I'll review the eight tracks version. The first track comprises the first song "Curious Electric". It's a superb and brilliant opener for the album. This song begins to create the perfect musical atmosphere along the entire album created by Jon and Vangelis. On this track Vangelis is simply brilliant and this song is, in my humble opinion, one of the best compositions ever written by him. The second track comprises the second and third songs, "Each And Everyday" and "Bird Song". These are two beautiful love songs which are performed together such as a single one. These are two completely different songs from the previous one because here we have the music of Vangelis providing the musical ambient to Jon Anderson's voice, while on "Curious Electric" is the opposite. In other words, Jon Anderson provides the vocal ambient to Vangelis' music. The third track comprises the fourth song "I Hear You Now" which was also released as a single. It's another love song, very beautiful and melodic and it's also very delicate and vibrant at the same time. This song represents the perfect harmony between the two musicians which is, in my point of view, the main hallmark of this album. The fourth track comprises the fifth song "The Road" which is the only track to feature an additional musician Raphael Preston, who contributes with acoustic guitars. The song is very pleasant and contributes for one of the best and most beautiful musical moments on the album. The fifth track comprises the sixth song "Far Away In Baagad" and the seventh song "Love Is". Despite being performed together, these are two completely different songs. "Far Away In Baagad" always reminded me strongly the debut solo studio album Of Jon Anderson "Olias Of Sunhillow". It's an incredible song with beautiful and mysterious melodies and also with a great keyboard work. "Love Is" is the opposite. It's a nice and mellow love song but it's also at the same time to much sentimental and bore. This song represents for me the lower point on the album. The sixth track comprises the eighth song "One More Time". It's a very simple song with very beautiful and charming atmosphere created by Jon Anderson's voice. It's the type of the song that in the future would be adopted by the duo. The seventh track comprises the ninth song "Thunder". Despite be the shortest song on the album it has some beautiful and interesting musical moments. It's very short but very nice. The eighth and last track comprises the tenth song "A Play Within A Play". This is a sublime and dreamy song that represents with "Curious Electric" and "Far Away In Baagad" the three highest moments on the album. It's a song that starts slowly, it grows until reaches the climax and in the end it returns and dissipate slowly again. This is a great ending for the album.

Conclusion: I know this album since it was released and I always loved it. Of the four albums of them, this is the best, the most progressive and the only one where the communion between the incredible voice of Jon Anderson and the beautiful music of Vangelis is almost perfect. I'm one of those who think that the voice of Jon Anderson and the music of Vangelis make a perfect wedding. I don't share the idea that Anderson doesn't seem an integral part of the duo because on this album he only sings about the rules of Vangelis. I don't care if the music was composed by Vangelis and Anderson only sings his lyrics. In my humble opinion, here we can clearly see the both worlds and the perfection between them. "Short Stories" is a very beautiful album, well balanced, uniform and cohesive. In the end we may say this is almost a perfect music work. So, I've no doubt in saying this is a great addition to any progressive collection.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

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