R.S.V.P.

Richard Sinclair is one of the best bass players in prog-rock. You can notice his brilliant bass lines in records he made with Caravan, Hatfield & the North or Camel. He is also a very good, underrated singer, but maybe that has not been fully appreciated as much of the music he has recorded with those bands was instrumental. In the first 90's he recorded two very recommendable solo albums, but it's really sad that they were almost gone unnoticed. Maybe that was because as a solo artist he was going independent, so not much promotion was done. Maybe because his music was not "fashioned" at all (nothing to do really with neo-prog). The first one ("Caravan of Dreams") is really good, with some tracks being recreations of old material (such as the superb "Didn't Matter Anyway"). "RSPV" has again contributions from old friends, such as Andy Ward, Jimmy Hastings, Kit Watkins, Hugh Hopper or Pip Pyle. And some outstanding material: "What's Rattlin'", the incredible "My Sweet Darlin'", "Over from Dover" (both with a delicious bossa-nova flavor), the proggy "Out of the Shadows" or the nostalgic "What in the World". There are plenty of elegant jazz arrangements here, but this record is also very song oriented. This is music to enjoy with no hurry, and really pleasant if you are open-minded.