1000 Prog Albums Over 46 Years: 1966-2011

1973 - continued

#161

Spectrum
Billy Cobham

A review by Mellotron Storm:

There's no question that Billy Cobham is one of the most talented and influencial drummers on the planet. I had high hopes going into this one that it would be another "Birds Of Fire" shred-fest. Not quite, although the first song delivers big time in that style. Jan Hammer, his old MAHIVISHNU ORCHESTRA band mate helps out, while Tommy Bolin doesn't disappoint on guitars. We also get some bass, sax, flugelhorn, trumpet and flute to round out this mostly jazzy sounding album.

"Quadrant 4" opens with heavy, fluid drumming while Bolin comes in with some intricate melodies. A fuller sound 1 1/2 minutes in. This is so impressive. Ripping guitar after 3 minutes as the bass continues to throb. "Searching For The Door/Spectrum" opens with intricate drum patterns before we get to "Spectrum" which is very jazzy with plenty of keys from Hammer, as well as flugelhorn and flute. Guitar 2 1/2 minutes in. The drumming is incredible!  Sax after 4 1/2 minutes with liquid keys a minute later.

"Anxiety/Taurian Matador" opens like the last song with the first part taken up with Cobham's complex drumming skills. The second part kicks into gear quickly. This is another jazzy tune with some great keyboard and guitar solos trading fire as Cobham does his thing. "Straths" opens with 2 minutes of spacey atmosphere. Nice touch. Drums then come in sounding so amazing. The guitar in this one is excellent as well. Great tune.

"To The Women In My Life/Le Lis" opens with piano before the second part arrives which is light, uptempo and jazzy. Alto sax, trumpet and congas all chip in. Hammer offers up some moog as well. "Snoopy's Search/Red Baron" opens with experimental sounds and ends with percussion. The second part features a nice drum/bass rhythm as keys then guitar join in. Great sound 5 minutes in. A must have for MAHAVISHNU ORCHESTRA fans but I'm sure you already know that.

#162

Zarathustra
Museo Rosenbach

A review by Finnforest:

While Italian prog has won my heart in a big way I have noticed something. It seems that some of the most acclaimed titles are not my favorite ones. My only theory is that some of these bands like Museo Rosenbach and New Trolls seem more influenced by English groups (notably Purple and Tull). I find that far less appealing than the small bands that perhaps had little travel outside of Italy and therefore have a more pure, local/regional sound. "Zarathustra" is certainly a respectable album made by talented folks, especially the drummer Giancarlo Golzi.

The album consists largely of heavy organ-driven rock. It's a loud, heavy, Ritchie Blackmore/Jon Lord lovefest with obligatory mellotron here and there. It mostly is satisfied with rocking out and doesn't provide the unique flavor of albums/bands like Metamorfosi, Balletto, Semiramis, or Cervello, just to name a few of the better heavy albums. "Della Natura" is definitely the one that did work for me here, with some awesome nuanced playing and the cool chorus part. The relatively poor sound on the BMG cd probably doesn't help matters much; the quiet parts are very hard to hear without turning up to the point where the loud parts will blow the windows out. The vocalist is pretty good with a rough edge without being as annoying as the Trolls vocals. “Zarathustra” is a good album, just not a masterpiece in my opinion, but I'm in the minority.

A review by Mellotron Storm:

It's like this band was made for me. The ever-present mellotron and organ, combined with rough but excellent vocals, are all arranged perfectly. This album cries out "Classic"! The tone is set on the first song "l'ultimo Uomo". Soft vocals signal to your curiousity, and before you can prepare yourself you are sent sprawling by crushing riffs."Il Re Di Ieri" starts eerily, again with soft vocals come in but this time your prepared for the bursting forth of the organ and drum assault.

The vocals here are sensational and this is one of my favourite parts of the record. The short "Superuomo" is a wondrous instrumental with some great drum work. "Il Tempio Delle Clessidre" is similar to "Superuomo" only longer and better. Outstanding! "Degli Uomini" has a similar eerie start to it as "Il Re Di Ieri" as some very good guitar and vocals come in, heck everybody is going at it and then there is a quiet interlude. When the vocals come back gently you would think Peter Gabriel is making an appearance. Check out the way these guys play together on the instrumental "Della Natura" mind-numbing! The last song puts the spotlight right on the vocalist and let's just say the spotlight isn't really needed. Masterpiece!

#163

For Girls Who Grow Plump In The Night
Caravan

A review by AtomicCrimsonRush:

The Canterbury darlings of the UK had a stellar year in 1973 releasing arguably one of their finest albums and following up soon after with a tour resulting in the amalgamation of performing with a symphony orchestra their new compositions. "If I Could Do It All Over Again, I'd Do It All Over You" certainly began what would be known as the classic period of Caravan, and then followed up by the quintessential "In the Land of Grey and Pink". The marriage of English folk whimsy merged with classical jazz was a trademark sound for the band, and the music matured with "Waterloo Lily" in 1972, a much more jazz oriented album.

"For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night" ushered in all of the previous styles with a distinctive symphonic sound. Some of the band's best material features on this such as 'Memory Lain / Hugh Headloss', an incredible piece of showmanship. Pye Hastings sounds as dynamic as ever on vocals and guitar, and the keyboard work of Sinclair is incredible. 'Hoedown' is another highlight; the violin prowess of Richardson is always masterful and incredible John G. Perry on bass with Coughlan's drums are a force in themselves.

Certainly a drawcard of the album is the full orchestra that is used and this became one of the live experiences captured perfectly on "Caravan and The New Symphonia" that same year. Other highlights include 'The Dog, the Dog, He's at It Again' which became a favourite over the years. It has a great lead break and the melody is memorable with fun lyrics; "my mother said that I should stay out of bed but I know that I like it in there, legs and thighs, hello's and goodbyes and you're there".

'Surprise, Surprise' is another outstanding track as is 'C'thlu Thlu' which is one of the darkest and best things they have done. The huge epic at the end of the album is a typical suite of songs on most Caravan albums in the early years called ' L'auberge du Sanglier / A hunting we shall go / Pengola / Backwards / A hunting we shall go (reprise)'. It is a fantastic album with some of the most incredible music including brass, violins, woodwind, all played virtuoso by the orchestra, along with Caravan. The sound is full and lush providing compelling music that is highly revered in prog history.

A review by SouthSideoftheSky:

“For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night” is better by far (pardon the pun) and is definitely my favourite Caravan album.

The addition of a violinist to the line up was a fantastic idea, and the sound here is rich and full (it's actually a viola and not a violin, but I can't tell the difference). The warm acoustic instruments; the viola, the flutes, the acoustic guitars, together with the sweet vocals contrast very well with the electric guitars, the organ and the electronic keyboards. The violin is sometimes played in a folky way (think Fairport Convention), and sometimes in a grand symphonic way (think Kansas).

The melodies are often very sweet and lovely, but on the other hand, the music sometimes rocks quite hard! This is definitely Caravan's hardest rocking record, something not often associated with the Canterbury Scene. This balance between the soft and sweet vocals and melodies and the harder guitar riffs is also very appealing. This album has a bit of everything and yet it flows perfectly from start to finish.

Yet another thing that I appreciate is the relative absence of silly and whimsical songs like ‘Golf Girl’ and ‘Love To Love You (And Tonight Pigs Will Fly)’, I never could get into those songs. Sure, there is ‘The Dog, The Dog, He's At It Again’, but it doesn't stick out as much as the two other ones I mentioned (both from the “In The Land Of Gray And Pink” album). Besides, there is an excellent instrumental break in ‘The Dog, The Dog, He's At It Again’.

Caravan's best and highly recommended!

#164

Brain Salad Surgery
Emerson Lake & Palmer

A review by AtomicCrimsonRush:

This is one album you must hear before you die; three words sum up the peak of prog excellence bar none: 'Brain Salad Surgery'. Forget what it means, forget the concepts, forget the innuendos throughout, and the infamous H R Giger cover, instead simply put on the head phones and sit back to be treated to some of the best prog you are likely to hear. It starts with the 'Jerusalem' track that is as bombastic as any ELP track. 'Toccata' follows and is one of the greatest instrumentals. The keyboards are played with such a fury they seem to strip the wallpaper off the walls. Emerson revels in his world as he thumps the keyboards with virtuoso playing.

'Still you turn me on' is the romantic ballad that was always present to garner and appease female fans, a mainstream song with appeal. 'Benny the Bouncer' is the satiric jaunty little ditty laced with black humour that always seemed to be a part of early ELP albums.

Virtually every moment of ‘Karn Evil 9’, this multi-movement suite, is awe inspiring. Rarely have a band been so precise, so in sync, so brilliant than this track. It moves through a series of impressions in the same way as a classical piece is structured. The first impressions are often found on best of ELP compilations and for good reason, but its great to hear this track in its entirety. Like the astounding 'Tarkus', it is a long, highly complex example of virtuoso playing and showcases in particular Emerson's incredible talents. It's frenetic pace transfixes from beginning to end of the first impressions. It slows in the 2nd impression so that we have room to breathe within the wall of sound that is at times suffocating, but then picks up the pace again in the 3rd impression with Lake's vocals dominating. There is a huge finale with a robot voice that seems to explode. The headphone sound zooms in and out from left to right and then fades out. This track is one reason the album often sits proudly at the top of prog rock album lists as one of the greatest.

A review by SouthSideoftheSky:

Still... You Turn Me On

What to say about this classic Prog album? Well, firstly, it is a masterpiece! Secondly, while a masterpiece it is not perfect. The first half of the albums suffers a bit from being put side to side with the epic Karn Evil 9 which is clearly the centrepiece of the album. Still, the first side holds up rather well too.

The album starts with Jerusalem, a great traditional hymn reworked in typical ELP fashion. Toccata is a highly experimental classical piece re-arranged by Carl Palmer. This is probably one of the most experimental things he and the band ever did. Greg Lake also gets his place to shine, of course. This time it's Still... You Turn Me On. This is not Lake's best song ever, but it is a good one. Benny The Bouncer injects a bit of humour into the music.

Then there is the massive three-part epic Karn Evil 9. This is a true masterpiece of progressive rock and in my opinion by far ELP's very best work. Every fan of progressive rock needs to hear this one.

Absolutely essential album! 

#165

Måltid 
Samla Mammas Manna

A review by Mellotron Storm:

4.5 stars.  At the end of the liner notes they wrote "Remember-joy is contagious!" Lets just say that this band has made a lot of people smile over the years. I laughed right out loud a couple of times while listening to the insane vocals. I'm sure they are singing some funny lines too, but it's all sung in Swedish. I had a hard time finding this cd but thankfully I finally got it and it was well worth the search. As a side note the Zeuhl band UPPSALA (great band) named their band after the city that guitarist Coste Apetrea is from. They met him and another Swedish guitarist while on vacation and were so affected by this meeting that they thus named their band UPPSALA and even named a song after the two guitarists. Like they said "Joy is contagious", they caught something special from that meeting anyway. Another side note is that the drummer (Hasse) has been the percussionist for the FLOWER KINGS for a long, long time.

The first song "Dundrets Frojder" really embodies what this band is all about. This is also my favourite song off of the album. It features a catchy, uptempo melody with keys and drums leading the way. The guitar is fantastic! The tempo picks up as these crazy vocals come in. It gets heavy before 7 minutes with some excellent drumming followed by mellotron. Nice. Scorching guitar late, on this the longest track.

"Oforutsedd Forlossning" features funny vocals and light drums. The sound gets louder as the guitar comes in.  "Den Aterupplivade Laten" opens with odd sounds before we get a melody. The piano reminds me of GENESIS as the soundscape does have a symphonic flavour. Nice piano to end it. "Folkvisa I Morse" is a short and catchy folk song. "Syster System" has these hilarious vocals with piano and drums.

"Tarningen" is a great uptempo track with outstanding piano, drumming and guitar. "Svackorpoangen" is led by piano and theatrical vocals. "Minareten" is bright and uplifting for 2 minutes before settling down as we get some more lunatic vocals. There is a fantastic sound the rest of the way until the mood changes after 7 minutes. The final song "Vaerelseds Tilbud" is made up of mostly piano melodies. This is like the polar opposite of UNIVERS ZERO, it's bright, fast and catchy, but most of all it will make you smile.

#166

Ashes Are Burning
Renaissance

A review by AtomicCrimsonRush:

"Clear your mind maybe you will find, That the past is still turning, Circles sway echo yesterday, Ashes burning, ashes burning..." Renaissance's "Ashes Are Burning" is their masterpiece. The title track is one of the best examples of Annie Haslam's high 5 octave range. The lyrics are evocative of dreams or reflections of how things used to be and how they could be. The folk prog atmosphere borders on a Celtic flavour at times due to the musicianship and vocal techniques. One may be reminded of early Fairport Convention or Pentangle at times, especially due to the content and female soprano vocals. Annie has a pleasant, sweet voice that always feels uplifting to the spirit and she is a survivor of the male dominated prog scene of the 70s. Curved Air would spring to mind as another. This album features some of Renaissance's most endearing and most popular works.

'Let it grow' is quintessential to Renaissance with a nice melody and a pretty musical framework. The rhythm is executed with acoustic flourishes mixed with piano arpeggios and scales. 'On the frontier' is a lot more progressive with some innovative time sig changes with bass solos and a prodigious piano workout.

The final track, 'Ashes are burning' is brilliant, clocking in at 11:24 as a mini epic with a ton of piano and acoustic work. A vibraphone compliments the soundscape beautifully with a tapestry of interwoven piano lines and Annie's enchanting voice. The lyrics are equally alluring and takes the listener to a far away place with lush green meadows and tall trees, and a neon purple sky; "Travel the days of freedom, Roads leading everywhere, Come with me now and show how you care, Follow the dying embers, Cross on the paths that they lay, Breath of the past the earths yesterday..."

The music has the power to transfix images with its delicate nuances, and progressive symphonic orchestration. Annie's pulchritudinous angelic vocals on the album are enticing enough, but the lyrics are mesmirising making this album an instant classic.

#167

Radio Gnome Invisible Vol. 2 - Angel's Egg
Gong

A review by AtomicCrimsonRush:

“Angel's Egg” encapsulates the high strangeness known and loved about Gong. This is definitely one of their best albums and notably features some of the weirdest tracks of the band's repertoire. Gong are surreal cosmic adventurers who always strive to produce the wackiest spaced out music on the planet. They accomplished it here. They have notably been referred to 'an invisible ideological empire' more than a band and it is easy to see why. The concept of this album takes on the same themes as “Flying Teapot”. The pot head pixies are back as is Zero the Hero, and the jazz fusion and Eastern influences abound. It is all rather absurd and the music works better listening to it as a whole album rather than individual tracks.

This album is the second in the “Radio Gnome Invisible Trilogy”, and it is the best. We are transported to Planet Gong, via a Flying Teapot, and the allegorical tale of life and the idiocy of our heroe’s quest begins: a quest that is never ending but nevertheless essential in finding the meaning of that perfect life. Steve Hillage is excellent as guitar extraordinaire and he is complimented with Allen, Malherbe, Blake, Howlett and Moerlen. A special mention must be made of the sultry vocals of Gilli Smyth as she croons 'Prostitute Poem', a nice break from all the lunacy and mayhem. Gong recorded this by hanging microphones from trees and the atmospehere is present throughout. Highlights include 'Other Side of the Sky', 'Flute Salad', showcasing Malherbe's incredible flute, and 'Oily Way', 'Inner Temple' 'Love is How Y Make It' and the rocker, 'I Never Glid Before'.

The album was voted as Gong's best by Mojo magazine readers and it is easy to see why. Coming in at second was “Camembert Electrique” and then “You”. In any case Angel's Egg is quintessential Gong and one of the best albums of 1973.

A review by Sean Trane:

In this chapter of the greatest trilogy ever written, one finds Zero The Hero looking for ways to spread the good words taught to him from Planet GonG through this Radio Gnome Invisible, and he meets all sorts in that quest.

Angel's Egg sees two new members replacing Frenchmen Trisch and Moze: Pierre Moerlen and Mike Howlett and now the classic GonG line-up is present. However, unlike the previous Flying Teapot and the following You, the tracks here are fairly short (except for the opening track that clocks in at 8 min) barely exceeding 5 min at best.

Side 1 starts with a rare but superb almost-instrumental that is proof, if need be, that Gong is masterful in all areas including jazz-rock Canterbury style. All other numbers are very typical GonG athmospheres and climaxing in the Prostitute Poem where Malherbe answers so greatly to Gilly Smyth - delightful and dare I say Orgasmic. Only the drunken pub tune Givin My Luv sticks a bit out but it is short and can be easily skipped.

Side 2 starts with the real treasure of this album: it is the Flute Salad - Inner/Outer Temple suite only to be followed by concert fave Oily Way. Malherbe shows that he also masters the flute and the climaxes created are not only orgasmic but cosmic. Moerlen gives us a peak on future Gong music by putting in his great vibraphone playing in one of the last track. Many different facets of GonG are present in this album making probably their most impressive one ever.

Again for years the superb artwork sleeve had not been sufficiently respected, often suppressing most of the heavenly blue innerfold of the album. Charly Records via their subsidiary Victor label again released a mini-lp reissue (cat# 61173, pricey but superb and essential for the understanding of this epic) and adjoining for the first time a booklet explainig the story and lyrics. However the extra track of previous reissues is absent, but it was not really adapted to the album. 

#168

The Six Wives Of Henry VIII
Rick Wakeman

A review by Warthur:

I've made a good faith attempt to get into Rick Wakeman's solo work, but I have to say that - aside from this album - it all leaves me completely cold. Rick is an excellent keyboardist, but an extremely poor editor; if he were more careful about which compositions or elements of compositions he allowed to make the final cut for release and which he held back for more work, he'd be making less releases but I think the overall quality would improve.

The circumstances behind the recording of this album are a case in point: made at a time when he felt that his own creative contributions were being sidelined in Yes, the album gave Rick an outlet for his own compositions which he couldn't find in his band work at the time. It's pleasant enough listening, though to be honest I don't think it's the amazing masterpiece it's often proclaimed as. Perhaps it's overestimated somewhat simply by comparison to the rest of Wakeman's solo catalogue, which is far more variable in quality. Three and a half stars.

A review by Sean Trane:

Outstanding stuff as Wakeman should've stuck to this one and never more disgress from Yes. This is a showcase for all the synthetisers from the era from the Mellotron to the Moog to the Hammond and everything to do with KB. This is where Rick became the Wizzard and the major success got to his head and started wearing stardust sprinkled capes and the whole "shabam" and quickly became pompous.

But still none of that on this album, as the six tracks (all instrumentals) are incredibly head-twisting (even some 30 years later), and strangely enough, as one could fear for such albums reflecting the technology of the the era, the music has not aged badly, quite on the contrary. But is this not the primùe quality of excellent music. Wakeman's keyboards are hovering, fluttering, nose-diving twirling around your ears like you were simply not on this planet anymore.

The only Wakeman solo album I still own as I got rid of all the others fairly quickly and I finally gave up in the early 80's.

#169

Photos Of Ghosts
Premiata Forneria Marconi

A review by AtomicCrimsonRush:

Virtually every moment of “Photos Of Ghosts” is awe inspiring. Rarely have a band been so precise, so in sync, so brilliant than this album. Each track moves through a series of impressions. 'Il Banchetto' is the standout track and is a long, highly complex example of virtuoso playing that showcases in particular Premoli's incredible talents. It's frenetic pace transfixes from beginning to end, the metrical patterns of Cioccio's drumming is phenomenal. It slows in the middle section so that we have room to breathe within the wall of sound that is at times suffocating, but then picks up the pace again in the last impression with Cioccio's vocals dominating.

‘Celebration’ is a great single featuring very catchy melodies and happy organ sounds throughout. The atmosphere on each track is captured by the use of sparse orchestral arrangements, featuring primarily Pagani's woodwind instruments and Premoli's organ phrases and the jagged guitars of Mussida. The minimalist feminine flute is played to perfection and drifts along so sweetly it augments the ambience of the entire album.

Tracks such as ‘Mr. 9 till 5’ shift metrical patterns throughout and climax with the huge wall of sound that is essential PFM. There is a wonderful blend of guitars, violins and Hammond, Mellotron and Moog synthesiser building to a crescendo. The sonata form structure is powerfully realised with the bombastic vocal arrangements.

PFM have produced some stunning pieces such as ‘River of Life’ that begins with the beautiful acoustic vibrations of ‘Mussida’, a real beauty that meanders like a flowing stream. The flute and harpsichord chime in like fish in the sea dancing in the waves. The new directions of each track keeps the metronome ticking with changes in time signatures and that ever pounding bass of Piazza. Each track is masterfully executed and charged with high emotion making this one of the best examples of Italian prog.

A review by Conor Fynes:

In the Italian progressive rock scene, there are few grails as holy as PFM's 'Per Un Amico', an album which has since gone on to be considered not only to be among the best of Italy, but among the best prog rock of all time. Once discovered by Greg Lake of ELP, the band was given the opportunity to thrust out on to the international scene, whereas they had previously had most of their fanbase locked within their own country. As was likely one of the best business decisions that the band ever made, they made an album mostly in English, ironically a language that none of them were fluent in. Rerecording much of 'Per Un Amico' and adding a few new surprises along the way, Premiata Forneria Marconi had made an album that could finally introduce them to the global community. Although 'Photos Of Ghosts' is typically thought of as 'Per Un Amico' with English lyrics, there is more that has been done to refurbish this album than simply that, and although I am sure that many would tend to disagree, 'Photos Of Ghosts' results as an even more successful album than 'Per Un Amico', fixing some of the issues I had with that album, and giving a fresh new look on the music simultaneously.

As one might expect, the lyrics and new vocal performance tend to be the worst thing about 'Photos Of Ghosts'. As one can tell by the often garbled Italian accent, the vocalists struggle through the alien English language, and some of the passion that filled the vocals in the original has been lost in translation. Had this been the only thing that had been changed for 'Photos Of Ghosts', the album would be fairly unnecessary and I would tend to reccommend this record only to diehard fans of the other. Potentially the biggest thing that PFM has improved with on 'Photos' however is the sense of flow. Although the music was incredible on 'Per Un Amico', it did suffer from a lack of flow, as if the tracks were spliced together seemingly at random. The uncomplimentary fashion in which the album was structured robbed it of any perfection it may have otherwise had, but with 'Photos Of Ghosts', it really feels as if measures are taken to ensure a smooth listening experience. Instead of moving onto 'Generale' for the second track, PFM follows up the English rendition of 'Appena Un Po' with a song from their debut, 'E Festa'; aptly titled 'Celebration' here. Having a very moving and slower piece being trailed by a more upbeat and melodic number is ten times more effective than the jazzy breakdown that haphazardly followed on the original. Things like this make the album move along as a masterpiece would, and it really makes the music shine the way it should have on the original.

There are also some added nuances to the music, a sense that the album's sound was tweaked before rereleasing. It must have been a good experience for the band to look back on their existing music and try to improve things they may have regretted in hindsight. The nuances are entirely fresh perse, but it does make the music sound a little more up to date than 'Per Un Amico'. The music of course is warm, lush, and takes quite a few tricks from jazz and classical music. 'Per Un Amico' is widely considered a masterpiece for a reason, but it feels as if the tunes are even better here, save for the rather weak vocals. 'Photos Of Ghosts' may be a remake, and while it is not a legitimate album when compared to 'Per Un Amico', I feel it does provide a more fulfilling listening experience. Issues have been fixed, and much like a patch, Premiata Forneria Marconi have touched up their album and created an album I can more safely consider a masterpiece. 

#170

Contaminazione
Il Rovescio Della Medaglia

A review by Finnforest:

Forget the Concerto Grosso, this is the real deal.

Il Rovescio Delle Medaglia (RDM) were formed in late 1970 in Rome and became a very popular live act in the early '70s Italian scene. After two albums more in the rock realm than prog they added keyboardist Franco Di Sabbatino in 1973. This move, along with the collaboration of Argentinean composer Luis Bacalov was the double spark they needed to fuel one of Italian prog's most beloved titles, "Contamination," I believe a reference to the melding of classical music with rock. Bacalov should ring a bell for Italian fans as he helped New Trolls with their "Concerto Grosso" prior. But with RDM he would create an album that would blow that previous work out of the water.

In fact, beyond just Italian prog, “Contamination” is sometimes cited as one of the best, perhaps *the* best example of classical music with progressive rock. The stunning baroque arrangements are seamlessly tied to the RDM sound and are amazingly natural and unforced. Even an English version was floated in an attempt to break the band wider. The well received work in the magic year of Italian prog ('73) should have lent a brighter future but their impressive live stage sound system was ripped off that year and apparently this development took the wind from their sails. The core group folded soon thereafter as yet another of Italy's promising acts faded too soon.

"Contaminazione" is apparently a story of a man's obsession with the music of Bach. It begins with light strings panning back and forth in your speaks with spectacular choral voices. "Ora Non Ricordo Piu" starts with trippy synth effects and warm, pleasant vocals. There are more of those choral waves of sound before the band comes out of the gate with a heavy guitar riff. As they bound along there are wild synth digs spicing it up. The bass is awesome, lively and easily heard. "Il Suono del Silenzio" reprises the heavy main riff as the vocals flow. I know things are getting nuts when I have to pause the CD to keep up typing. The first real strings hit at this point and they sound just incredible. Totally alive, vibrant, well-recorded. As soon as they appear there is a blast of synth, then piano, then harpsichord all at once signaling this will not be a laid back affair. The band comes back with organ to the fore in their rock section. The track winds down with the main riff and vocal reprise.

"Mi Sono" starts with gorgeous violin as soft as a feathered bed over easy vocals. Suddenly the mood gets darker with tom-toms and building operatic choir, then it eases for more strings. Then all subsides for a Malmsteenish classical-tinged electric solo, very cool but too short. The track drifts to fading keyboards at close. "Lei Sei Tu" starts with a fast harpsichord (I think) run to lightly backing guitar bends and attentive drumming. Majestic strings break in pulling the mood straight up! Then the harpsichord/drums return with vocals.

"La Mia Musica" begins with gorgeous classical piano and then floats lovely, delicate vocals over you. Halfway through organ and strings commence and you feel like you're in the middle of some great cathedral in Europe 200 years ago. A great vocal tops off this standout song. "Johann" is a short trippy montage with vocal and distant guitar. "Scotland Machine" begins with a band and some synth freakouts followed by organ, harpsichord and mellotron. The band jumps in with spirited well conceived rock parts. It's all so much more sophisticated and satisfying than the Concerto Grosso.

"Cella 503" is a foray of delicious classical acoustic guitar soon joined by electric and then horns and strings in response. Just fabulous! (Ladies and Gentlemen, put on your gush-protection suit at this time.thank you.) The rock picks back leading to some great gothic BLASTS of organ that will rattle the walls. The title track is a short sojourn of flutes and woodwinds whippering away. "Alzo un Muro Elettrico" goes a bit Purple/Tull with the main riff but stops half-way through for a brief break.

"Sweet Suite" is next, ouch, the name is a bit corny! A very quiet, moody keyboard for the first half. The second half is a reprise of the heavy rock in the previous track with a nice strings ending. Finally we reach "La Grande Fuga" with the strings from the previous track descending into muscular electric guitar leads and organ flashes. From that point the band charges forward towards a fitting grandiose ending to this super album.

An essential title for fans of classical music and Italian prog fans. I award 4 solid stars because of the incredible marriage of the two main styles rock and classical. I've never heard it done so well. Perhaps I should have lit up the fifth star but it kills me when I have to do that. Often the attempt to mix classical and rock can be disastrously cheesy or annoying, here is it joyous and musically satisfying. This is one of many titans that makes the Italian scene competitive with the UK/German/French scenes in a creative sense, if not in the commercial sense.

#171

Tubular Bells
Mike Oldfield

A review by AtomicCrimsonRush:

One of the albums you must hear before you die that lives up to the hype. “Tubular Bells” remains one of the best debuts for an artist in music history; a man had a dream and pursued it vigorously and Oldfield's almost obssessive attention to detail on this album is staggering.

It begins with the trademark theme that was later used as atmosphere for the chilling “The Exorcist” movie. Then the guitars kick in and the awesome bass lines, all played by the great man himself. The track gets into weird territory about 16 minutes in and transports the listener to another realm. The sound is incredible and even though it is bombastic, it is so endearing and intelligently crafted it hits the listener right between the eyes.

It seems to mesmirize with every listen with hypnotic effect encapsulating all that is great about prog rock; the wierd off kilter time signatures, the lengthy sections of overture, the use of a variety of instruments, and the melody that haunts with every listen. Oldfield introduces each new instrument which is compelling to listen to. It is almost a lesson in music as one hears each instrument chime in including Mandolin, glockenspiel, up to the Tubular Bells sound itself. So familiar has this theme become it brings with it instant recognition par excellence.

Oldfield triumphs on this album and it has been sequelled numerous times, but this is the essential CD for instrumental music. Beautiful, haunting, compelling and played with musical virtuosity.

A review by Ivan_Melgar_M:

I always smile at the perspective of an almost unknown 19 years old MIKE OLDFIELD going from label to label asking to release his album with only two 20+ minutes tracks and answering the question. Who plays with you? With a laconic: "I play almost every instrument."

After many expected rejections he found Richard Branson who with his new label (Virgin Records) was willing to support the ambitious project and catalogued it with the V2-001 number, the first album ever released by Virgin Records.

But it's even funnier to imagine all those guys who rejected him, pulling their hairs when William Friedkin bought the rights for "The Exorcist" and the album reached the United States being N° 1 in the charts even before officially in the market.

But let’s go with the album.

"Tubular Bells" is not the best album in the music history, the most complex or the most spectacular, don't misunderstand me, it's a fantastic record and I believe a masterpiece, but the real merit is in "MIKE OLDFIELD" who had the courage to pursue a dream and wrote this incredibly weird album despite all the risks that the project would carry.

Part one is probably the best known by the people because the repetitive introduction created the perfect atmosphere for "The Exorcist", the interesting fact is that it's not really a repetition of the same section over and over, it's more like successive variations over a same theme, because each time he comes back to the original chorus, he adds a new instrument or a chorus, it's an excellent arrangement that introduces us to his world.

After a few repetitions, suddenly comes the explosion, out of nowhere a distorted guitar solo takes the listener by surprise then everything becomes really complex and it's hard to follow the radical changes. About the 16th minute everything gets weirder, a bass solo announces the unexpected and long final section when the perfect pronunciation of Vivian Stanshall starts to announce one by one each instrument that is added to the equation until the track reaches the climax with the tubular bells, simple and brilliant way to close part one.

Part two starts more calmed and even pastoral, the music flows gently giving Mike the chance to prove his versatility in some unusual instruments for Rock like Bagpipe sounding Guitars, Mandolin and Glockenspiel, but again he has something totally unexpected reserved. About the 8th minute the wonderful dissonance starts and again out of nowhere some haunting voices that I would describe as Klingon Opera join the band, it's shocking but at the same time full of passion, strong and dramatic, even if the listener doesn't have the slightest idea why is anything there, you don't need to understand it, as it was made to be enjoyed by the adventurous listener.

But again a radical change comes, a calmed section only interrupted by short explosions of metallic guitars that prepares us for the even more unexpected final. An almost Baroque organ solo changes as magic into "The Sailor's Hornpipe" (Better known as the Popeye theme), sounds a bit odd in the context of the album, but the reality is different, originally this section was even weirder, because Viv Stanshall provided a comic narration (in his Bonzo Dog Do Dah Band style) as tour guide showing the listener around the Manor House where the album was recorded, but this was obviously too strange even for Richard Branson.

I simply love this album from the first to the last note, but as I said before, even more important than the music itself (which as I also said is outstanding), the trascendence of this album goes way beyond in the fact that he dared to release it.

Five solid stars despite all the contradictory opinions I read over the years, at the end, this is my review and I rate it as I feel it. 

#172

Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy
Return To Forever

A review by Warthur:

Husband and wife team Flora Purim and Airto Moreira left Return to Forever after completing the wonderful “Light as a Feather”, and on “Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy” Chick Corea adjust the band's sound accordingly, more or less removing the Latin influences brought to the table by those two performers and instead going for a more straight-ahead heavy fusion album.

The Mahavishnu Orchestra appears to be the primary influence, and whilst Bill Connors doesn't quite manage to attain the furious speeds on his guitar playing that John McLaughlin does on “The Inner Mounting Flame”, he certainly gives it his best, and his interplay with Chick's electric piano is a highlight of the album's sound. As noted by other reviewers, the influence of other fusion traditions such as the more jazzy end of the Canterbury spectrum creeps in here or there, but otherwise this is a fusion album firmly rooted in the tradition of Mahavishnu, Weather Report, and Miles Davis, with a sound that at points risks becoming generic but is saved by the exceptional musicianship on show.

A review by Sean Trane:

RTF's first overhaul is a major one, and it can be seen this way: the first line-up was more of an early Weather Report, with Farrell's sax and flute as Wayne Shorter, while the second line-up with the appearance of a fiery guitarist can be seen more of Mahavishnu Orchestra-type of group. But the shuffle goes well beyond that: Gone are Purim's disputable vocals, while Farrell's always delightful flute also disappeared (taking away some of the sweet evocative passages from RTF's music), but the light bossa nova rhythms of Airto Moreira are replaced by the ex-Miles & Santana drummer Lenny White, whose drumming is much closer to Cobham (first era of MO), thus reinforcing the parallel I made just above. So with only Corea and Clarke remaining from the original line-up, the group also welcomed previously unknown Bill Connors on guitar, which showed a strong affinity to McLaughlin's fiery style. Recorded in NY in the summer of 73, the album again developed a bird theme artwork for an aerial gatefold sleeve.

Red hot jazz-rock or torrid fusion, such is the choice. The album opens on some cosmic sounds announcing the title track, but soon the track reaches cosmic speed with White's fluid and furious drumming, Connors' soaring guitar and Corea's amazing piano. The Clarke-penned Cosmic Rain is a very funky track, where Stanley doesn't hesitate to outdo every other bassist (jazz or rock) in terms of technicity and virtuosity, even using some fuzz bass ala Canterbury, well supported by Corea's Fender Rhodes. Captain Mouse is probably the album's best-known track with Corea's Rhodes ruling from its 200 MPH start to its much quieter middle section (he soars to stratospheric heights, while adding the odd organ lines over Connors' funky guitar lines. Mothership continues the 1000°C fusion with mind-blowing soloing, even if some of Chick's synth sounds could've been better advised. The two-parts Space Circus starts on an echoed Rhodes over sound effects for an intro, before the group gets mega-funky (not just Clarke, Connors is brilliant, White frankly at home and Chick his usual self. The closing game Maker is well in line with the rest of this fiery fusion-esque torrid jazz-rock, a Rhodes-drenched slow starter that gradually builds up to reach speed of light with Connors's incendiary guitar between Carlos, John and Larry.

Strangely enough, Connors will quit the group to pursue a solo career (a very confidential one to say the least, as he remained obscure forever) to concentrate on his acoustic playing, which might astound more than one expert since it was on electric guitar that his works were most stunning, his style hovering between McLaughlin and Larry Coryell. Nevertheless the album he recorded with RTF is simply the best of the group, even when including the previous line-up's two albums. HOTSG is an astounding record that inspired itself on the early MO albums such as Birds Of Fire or Inner Mounting Flame, without being a carbon copy either. Undoubtedly the best RTF album, no matter what people will say about ADM's future admission and the famed but over-rated RW album.

#173

Solar Fire
Manfred Mann's Earth Band

A review by SouthSideoftheSky:

Should it be played backwards, Manfred?

Manfred Mann's Earth Band more or less kept getting better and better with each new release. “Solar Fire” was the first in a long series of very good albums released by the band in the 70's. It begins with an excellent Bob Dylan cover in ‘Father Of Day, Father Of Night’. As usual with Manfred Mann's Earth Band, the cover is very different from the original. Obviously, it is a progified version of the Dylan number. The rest of the album's material is self-penned, some tracks by Mann alone, others by him together with other band members and one by Rogers/Slade without Mann. It has always surprised me why Manfred Mann's Earth Band relied so heavily on cover songs (particularly in live performances), when they evidently were capable of producing great songs like these and the ones on subsequent albums.

“Solar Fire” is not my personal favourite Manfred Mann's Earth Band album, but we can find here some of the band's very best and perhaps most progressive self-penned material. With the exception of the short instrumental, ‘Pluto The Dog’ - which easily is my least favourite track here - the material on “Solar Fire” is pretty strong. Songs like ‘In The Beginning, Darkness’ and the title track are highly melodic.

It is a bit odd that ‘Earth, The Circle Part 2’ comes before ‘Earth, The Circle Part 1’ on the album. Do they want us to play the album backwards perhaps? Maybe they did this to reflect the chronological order in which they were written? Or they did it as a joke? Or maybe it is just a simple typing mistake? We will probably never find out. But whatever the reason these tracks are very good.

#174

A Passion Play 
Jethro Tull

A review by AtomicCrimsonRush:

“A Passion Play” is a curio of Jethro Tull that divides many listener’s opinions; some say a masterpiece others say it is puerile nonsense. Anderson is a theatrical poet and side 2 is where the album really divides listeners with the story of the Hare That Lost its Spectacles. It is basically a mix of a strange commentary that attempts Zappa like humour. It blends with chaotic fairytale music that may sound pretentious like a childish theater prank laced with humour. Some may shake their head in dismay and ask what were they thinking? Anderson admits that the album is definitely for Jethro Tull addicts and not for the average listener.

It is a Tull tale with bunnies, stillettos, ballerinas and greasy old men. The press absolutely creamed this release and it received bashings from tabloids worldwide. They didn’t get it. It did not help that this release was sandwhiched between the masterpiece “Thick as a Brick” and the great “War Child”. Anderson found out that releases such as “A Passion Play” are not worth the effort but this is a definitive original approach and deserves recognition or its bombasity. It became important and infamous over the years for these reasons.

A review by Mellotron Storm:

I guess you could compare this to "Tales From Topographic Oceans" in the way that there's so much controversy about it. Both are very over the top, so there's this love/hate thing going on from TULL fans. Critics were very hard on this album, so hard that Anderson announced he would stop touring. He would tour again of course (about a year later) but it showed how much Ian disagreed with their assessment. He must have felt some sort of retribution by the fact it went number one in the USA.

Like "Thick As A Brick" this is a concept album only this one deals with a man after he has died. We get two side long suites. "A Passion Play (Part 1)" has sort of a strange intro until it kicks in before 1 1/2 minutes. It settles with whistling after 3 minutes, vocals follow. Acoustic guitar then piano join in. A change before 6 minutes as it builds. Great section! Unfortunately we're back to the previous soundscape too soon. It picks up around 9 1/2 minutes then flute leads around 12 minutes as the bass throbs. Vocals are back. Another great section after 14 minutes until before 18 minutes. It ends in a laid back manner.

"A Passion Play(Part 2)" opens with spoken words as a story is told to light classical music for over 4 long minutes. A calm after 5 1/2 minutes with reserved vocals and acoustic guitar. Organ and drums join in. Excellent sound 7 1/2 minutes in with sax then electric guitar. It then sort of meanders along. The organ 14 minutes in is good then the song picks up with vocals. It settles 18 minutes in with strummed guitar. A fuller sound 19 1/2 minutes in which is much better. It ends with reserved vocals and piano. Very much hit and miss with more misses. The laid back sections feel uninspired to me. Maybe if I was into concept albums my feelings would be different, but to rate this just on the music alone it's barely 3 stars.