JULIAN JAY SAVARIN : WAITERS ON THE DANCE

Me and this album has been going through the years together like an old couple and just as love fades the fire could rekindle, given the right time and effort. The stormy passion of our first time together was replaced by lukewarm affection for some years but then something happened. I returned and found something completely different, a Cosmic reunion that sort of caught me off guard.

On the surface this album has Always provided the things I love the most about early progressive music. There's the Hammond organ, obviously, and it comes in abundance. The glorious Power of the ever so Mighty organ strikes down like the hammer of the Gods. Then there's the fuzzed out guitar, the sort of dry drum sound and great bass playing. To top things off the singer, lady Jo Meek, offers great passionate vocals. Oh, and then there's the sci-fi or fantasy lyrics. Just amazing.

But then I sort of grew tired of it. I now know that I did not spend as much time listening to all the songs as I did with the opening, Child of the night 1&2. Now there's a song, ef ever there was one. Dramatic and climatic with an organ that simply overwhelms you. Now, the years passed and listening to the album seemed less important. But then I picked it up again and to my surprise I found it was way better than I remembered.

Apart from the amazing opener the remainder of the album is really outstanding. The music shifts and turns but retains the overall feel. I will not go through every track but "Dance of the golden flamingoes" is really Worth mentioning. It is by far the heaviest track on the album with a brutally simple but effective riff played by the guitar. It's got some of that groovy sound of London in the early 70's but not without a serious amount of prog. The ending "Soldiers of time" leaves the listener in a desire for more but from what I can gather Julian Jay Savarin never made another album, which is a shame.

If you are into early 70's prog rock with fantasy lyrics, demanding but not that overly complex, this album is a real treat. Earthy, powerful, emotional, dramatic, surging and passionate. Great stuff and one of my favorite albums. My love for it endured and grew over time. Top stuff.