Pink Floyd: A fan's point of view

Since I’m a huge fan of the Progressive Rock genre from bands like; Rush, early Genesis, Van Der Graaf Generator, and the Annie Haslam-era of Renaissance and having an iPod filled with obscure and the big giants of Prog, the band that got me into the genre of Prog was the Floyd and the Post-Barrett era of Floyd was one of the best that I really get a huge kick out of.

As we approach the Floyd reissues on September 27th, I've been a huge Pink Floyd fan since 1996 far beyond anything I could sink my heart into. Space, Haunting, Deep, Heartfelt, and Sonic Sound that would have my blood veins pumping of the Syd Barrett and the Post-Barrett era of Pink Floyd from The Piper at the Gates of Dawn to The Wall. The first Pink Floyd song that got me into them, was Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2). I first heard the song on the radio when I was 11 years old, and I thought to myself, “now that’s one hell of an anthem! Who is this band?” It was the Floyd. When I was in Elementary School, my music was top secret.

I was into real good music like; The Beatles, David Bowie, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, and The Who. So it was a hush-hush for these bands to keep it a low profile while some of the people at school and at camp were into bullshit music like; No Doubt, Salt-N-Pepa, TLC, Mariah Carey, Green Day, U2 and all that lovely-de-love crap, it made me want to puke. Anyway, my Mom bought The Wall for me as a surprise after I finished up Elementary and headed towards Junior high I played the whole album and that was where I became a Pink Floyd fan.

There was this darker side of isolation, hallucination, loneliness, and aftershock that the Floyd had embarked on. Then the three albums after my love of the Wall were; Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here, and Meddle. Dark Side had become like a huge mentor for me during those High School years where it lets you know that the World isn’t a safe place between greed, betrayal, war, empathy, and death. Songs like Brain Damage/Eclipse, Time, The Great Gig in the Sky, Us and Them, and Money, was like something exploded out of nowhere and the flaming fire that was run by gasoline made me realize there’s no stop sign there.

Right about there, I went through their catalogue trying to look at what treasures I was looking at inside the chest. I would listen to the Ummagumma live version of Careful With That Axe Eugene with Roger’s high pitch scream that would flood the room as Set The Controls For the Heart of the Sun and Pigs (Three Different Ones) were my obsession.

Although they dealt with political issues of the big business and corporate greed, the space rock sounds were the Floyd’s sound in their early days. The atmospheric music of the keyboards shows that they were making music for not just progressive rock, but the future and the 21st century to allow the music to go beyond where the listener to see where the Floyd was taking them. The ‘70s Floyd surely was cup of tea and coffee and really became my baby and seeing where the lyrics were taking the listener and dealing with the issues I’ve mentioned and how time stands still.

While I was in my Senior year, I did a project on why Dark Side of the Moon stood the test of time. It was an easy project for me to do back in 2003 and I’ve made an A+. I was describing how the music and the structures that the music had encounter. My friends were blown away when I did that including my English teacher as well. Some of them wanted to know how they could have done a better project in what I’ve done, I said, “Practice man, Practice.” (My Jeff Bridges Dude style came in, folks)

As I am in College, I feel the music of Floyd inside me, it felt like the emotions that prove to me I could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Now we are in this Post 9/11, Post Kartina, Post Ike and now approaching Hurricane Irene, I feel that my political brain has just knocked on the door and said, “It’s time to smear the shit written all over the Graffiti wall!” There was tension, bringing dead soldiers from Iraq in a casket, I remember watching the towers being hit by terrorist on the TV in High School and asking myself, “What the hell did we do wrong here?!”

“Can’t we all just get along?! I’m sick of the fucking killing and the murdering is going on here.” The Floyd’s music was there to comfort me and there was no one like Pink Floyd that dealt in where we are right now, the New America. People were protesting against wars and saying to Bush and FEMA to fix the god-damn levees, felt like the door had been open. You think that The Beatles were the soundtrack of our lives; well The Floyd was like the soundtrack of our lives.

My music love of Progressive Rock has still keep me growing and while some of them say Pink Floyd’s overrated, they can go fuck themselves. Since it’s been 15 years and my love of the Floyd’s music train hasn’t stop chugging and I still realize how much affection that Syd Barrett plays an important role in their music. His madness and destruction shows how much they love Syd before he went crazy. I have a soft-spot of the Floyd’s later days including Momentary Lapse of Reason and The Division Bell, but it wasn’t the same without Roger Waters and dealing Syd’s destruction was not there. Now does that say I hate them? absolutely not.

Since there’s been a drawing of a line in the sand on whether they prefer Syd or Post-Syd era of Floyd really has people deciding where to jump to. I still can’t jump out of the boat and feeling some sadness of Syd’s life as he was the heart and soul of the band (no doubt about it!) They all cared for him and the songs that dealt with his life still struck a chord with me in my life as you can hear it on Shine On You Crazy Diamond.

There’s a lot of structures and walking the yellow brick road for me where to go to. Why the Floyd still stood the test time? I think its because not just the music, but dealing with what we’re going through and what’s it like to live in this new world that we’re living in right now, the human race of hell, and the regret of not being there to support your friends, family, and loved ones. The Floyd are one of the best bands to come out of the ‘70s and let me say there is no stop sign for the music to grow on a new generation.

Pink Floyd are one helluva band that would make your mind blow away.

Update....

Fellow Bloggers, I will be taking a HUGE long break from writing reviews for September because of school next week for me at HCC (Houston Community College). So I'm not saying I'm finished with the blog, I'm taking a break and concentrating on my studies and also looking forward to the Pink Floyd reissues that are coming out in late September.

So I will be Blogging again in October.

See you around,

Zack

Titus Groan - Titus Groan

How would you describe Titus Groan? A psychedelic version of Jethro Tull or homage to the raga-rock pioneers Quintessence? How about all of the above? If the answer is yes, well you’ve come to the right place at the right time for this. The band was named after the gothic Gormenghast trilogy by English writer and poet Mervyn Peake and their music was a touch of obscure prog-raga music from the 1970s and it was one of those unearthed bands who had a bit of a small following including as an opening act for ELP in the fall of 1970.

The band was formed out of the ashes of Jon in the summer of love in 1967 and according to the liner notes by Marco Rossi, they released two singles from the EMI label to keep it private that its quite impossible if the songs existed. Before they released the album on the Dawn label in 1971, they released a maxi-single which has been released as bonus tracks by the good people at Esoteric Recordings, but the songs that could have gotten them into the top charts in the UK, faded into the darkness.

It’s hard to describe about the band’s music as from the first notes of the opening track. It Wasn’t For You, which has a psych guitar solo and jazzy horn section that is almost straight out of Chicago Transit Authority (Chicago’s first album) as the 11-minute epic Hall of Bright Carvings, which is the highlight of the album, starts off as a middle-eastern rock sound before becoming a psychedelic freak out section that is a reminiscent of Jefferson Airplane meets an English version of Buffalo Springfield.

The music becomes very interesting after the first two tracks. First, there’s the dooming sound of Jethro Tull on I Can’t Change with a mourning flute work that could have been used from the Stand Up and Benefit sessions and then on It’s All Up With Us, is a heartfelt tribute to their childhood days in Manchester with a upbeat melody that is very much Beatle-sque.

Meanwhile, the closing 6-minute track, Fuschia, is raw volcanic rock finale. Mixed in with some early reminiscent of Barclay James Harvest’s first album and some fierce guitar work combining with some eerie bass lines and Nick Mason like drum work is quite breathtaking and yet disturbing.

Now we’ve come to the Maxi-Singles. They come into the picture like a breath of fresh air – the country rock tinged touch of Dylan’s Open The Door Homer, the Folk Rock beauty Woman of the World, and the Pete Townshend-sque strumming roller coaster sound on Liverpool.

When you listen to the three tracks, you can tell how obscure and different in what the band was coming. Liverpool, is a strange track with its melodic twisted vocal harmonies and the sound of the Question of Balance-era of the Moody Blues, this song would have been the love theme song for HBO’s Deadwood. It’s a shame to see where Titus Groan would have gone to if they had sticked around, but their sole self-titled debut album is like a nice hot cup of tea served with some LSD biscuits to come with it and enjoy the ride.

Heavy Glow - Midnight Moan

After releasing The Filth & The Fury last year that sort of brought the sound of Psychedelic Hard Rock to grab you by the throat and making you scream and shout, ‘70s retrospective rock trio, Heavy Glow have decided they have scored another touchdown and looks like they decided to give it a huge juice and powerage to bring it to an explosive shockwave of mind-boggling proportions. Midnight Moan is one of those albums that the trio decided to give it a real tug for all of its glory for moving into the sounds of Zeppelin, early Floyd, Sabbath, and fierce reminiscent of High Tide’s Sea Shanties that qualifies the energy and fierce electricity of the golden-era.

Jared Mullins vocals and guitar playing has certainly come a long way and his sound brings a Iommi like sound on the guitar while bassist Joe Brooks psych fuzz bass lines will remind listeners of Geezer Butler and Jack Bruce and drummer Dan Kurtz brings a lot of the ingredients for his drum work throughout the entire album and here they bring the force like a blazing fire flaming the gasoline. This is an album that should really get filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino to get the band to do a film score for one of his upcoming films and make it a mind-blowing movie set to wonderful ‘70s rock like no other.

That mentioned, such explosive tracks will get your blood vessels going like the train chugging blues metallic opener Lose My Mind and the psych garage rock fuzz warmth of hell on Slave Drive. Meanwhile, get exercised and pumped up for the lukewarm haunting atmosphere on Today is Technicolor (One Step Closer) which could have been used in Lars Von Trier’s controversial film Antichrist as All My Children goes into the realm of Zeppelin’s second album as Jared Mullins takes the guitar into Jimmy Page-sque roar into town and makes it deal with greed and betrayal.

They aren’t just a rip-off band to say they messed up this or that, just the way they got it right and the sound of these three men make you realize that something’s going on here as you put them in the studio and finding out that the roller-coaster ride has only just begun. Thus, the swirling whirlpool of terror of fierce obscure proto-prog hard rock comes in handy on Collide and the homage to Black Mountain’s In The Future-era with a bluesy feel on Purgatory Blues.

More of the haunting beauties come in handy are Smithereens in which it makes it sound like a sequel to Stone Temple Pilots Big Empty as the closing 7-minute track, Diggin’ A Ditch sees the band going thru the realms of Doom Metal in a fierce and wonderful tone as Joe Brooks rises in to shine to take turns as he brings sneering bass lines to help Jared out and lets him know that he’s with him all the way.

It may have some music lovers scratching their heads to decide whether they want to put them in the category either in Prog or Doom Metal, but here’s a little warning, play this Motherfucker loud and you will be completely blown away. It’s a must have who admires High Tide, Mighty Baby, early Zeppelin, Wolf People, and Black Mountain.

Cryptex - Good Morning, How Did You Live?

Taken their name from the controversial best-selling novel, The Da Vinci Code and a trio from Germany has a very strange combination of Metal, Ragtime, Gospel, Folk, Classical, Psychedelic, and Steampunk Prog is starting to receive some attention in their homeland. Yet their debut album is often, theatrical and a heavy experience from start to finish and the album, Good Morning How Did You Live? Is one of the most bizarre yet mind-blowing debut albums to come out this year so far.

The band considers Lead Vocalist, Keyboardist, Bassist Simon Moskon whose voice will remind listeners of James LaBrie meets Biff Byford with an attitude; Guitarist Martin Linke has a strong combination of Kirk Hammett, Adam Jones, and John Petrucci as drummer Ramon Fleig plays the drums like a fierce machine gun that is about rattle the windows like an explosive earthquake. It took me about three listens to understand about them and not to mention mime make-up and the 1890s Victorian portrayal that was featured in the new issue of Classic Rock Presents Prog, but there are some music moments to treasure like looking through the looking glass to understand the band’s sound.

Songs like the Theatrical New Wave of British Heavy Metal-sque opener Hicksville Habitus and Itchy Feet and the jazzy 1920s straightforward feel Dance of the Strange Folk offer the flashback scenery of the silent film music scores as if Charlie Chaplin was dancing to this music as if it was his theme song when comes on the screen as they flow with fierce guitar playing and lashing some ‘70s Glam Rock into the mix that might have them listening to Bowie’s Aladdin Sane while going like a flaming gasoline fire eruption.

In taking a huge pat on Pete Townshend’s back of The Who’s music is the jumping roller-coaster journey on Free Ride while they go into a Futuristic wacky reminiscent of Hawkwind’s earlier days of Space Metal on Bagheera. Touching the deeper waters of the Acid Folk sound of the obscure sounds from the English Countryside on It’s Mine and the Australian outback to a soaring angelic mourning of Gypsy’s Lullaby that has a spaghetti western feel to serve as an Italian dish to dine in and enjoy.

Camden Town sounds almost like it was left off Pure Reason Revolution’s Hammer and Anvil with moog and guitar dueling it out while Leviathan has more of an homage to Dream Theater and Tool performing together with a vengeance and duking it out to see who is the greatest Progressive Metal band to come out of that time period. Linke really knows his love of Tool on Most Loveable Monster as he pays tribute to Jones with a half sneering guitar and half acoustic sliding blues before going into the war zone to fight for bravery as the band goes to town with a metallic punching grindcore sound.

The outro works itself with a gospel rockin’ clapping beauty that feels as if we are inside the mind of the Slaves and hear them singing while working in the hottest part of the afternoon and doing this song for freedom and sending peace to stop discrimination that sends a heartfelt closing like no other. Good Morning is not a great album, but it’s an okay album to really show how they are going to be receiving cult status in Europe.

And if you don’t know about theatrical steampunk prog, this album might be worth checking out and sink the shark teeth’s out for a wonderful mind-boggling journey you will embark for a long, long time.

Dotma - Sleep Paralyses

There’s something out of the ocean in the realms of the Symphonic Metal genre. Already having two Promo CDs for about two years, The six-piece band from Finland are the next answer to Tarja and Amberian Dawn, Dotma made it very clear that they wanted to make their debut album, Sleep Paralyses, almost like a combination of Gothic and Prog Metal with a fantasy storyline that is straight out of the Knights of the Round Table-era or out of the Lord of the Rings trilogy with an orchestral metallic crunch.

With wearing all black and almost looking like their paying tribute to the female fronted prog metal bands that might have made it quite clear that they are not going to rip off their heroes, and proved to the metal scene that they weren’t going to rip them off, they are going to do it their way with a mighty punch like no other. Like giving birth to a newborn, this album clocks in for about 51-minutes and if you’re ready to take those extra time, fasten your seat belts because it’s going to be a long night.

It’s hard to say about singer Johanna Lesonen, but her vocals sound almost like Sharon Den Adel meets Heidi Parviainen and there is some operatic momentum into her voice including songs like the shredded guitar powder keg opener Legend of Blackbird and her duet with Vladimir Lumi on Reborn is something that could have been used for Wagner’s symphonic rock metallic operatic version of Rheingold. But the sound is fierce, acoustic, classical, and emotional featuring some heartfelt melodies on the soothing orchestral beauty Indian Fall, the views of a dystopian world on Whispering and the haunting power metal epic, The Cave, makes Sleep Paralyses a much better album, rather than picking a track off the album.

While Johanna’s voice is mind-blowing, the band members deserve a lot of credit to work on this album, because there not just A band, but the band to prove they can bring the power and the force for her voice to shine like a diamond. And with a militant machine gun sound on the drums done by Joonas and lead and rhythm guitar sounds between Leo Saarnisalo and Niko Kalliojarvi, they bring the tension and fierce energy to come with it.

And add Keyboardist Harri Koskela and bassist Aapo Lindberg, you’ve got one hell of a weekend to sink your lion’s teeth to have a big giant steak over! They work like drill sergeants especially on the 10-minute epic mini rock opera, Kingdom of the Sky as they duke it out in the ring as a boxing match to see who can win the best instrument or vocals to win the grand prize, but they’re all winners while the final track, Memory Worth Dying For is a Prog Metal at its finest with some soaring organ sounds, fierce guitar lines, and moving bass lines as Johanna carries a calm after the storm on her vocals, while the last 3-minutes becomes a medieval metallic dance movement in various stages of epic proportions.

It’s their beginning into the Symphonic world and one hell of a debut from the metallic world of Finland, but if you love Within Temptation, Amberian Dawn, and Nightwish, you probably need to buy this album and you can see where the influences that Dotma pay a huge homage to the big three of the Female Symphonic Metal scene.

IO Earth - IO Earth

Since I’ve started the blog site back in 2008 and been listening to old and of course, new bands that want to take the music to a new level, they really sound amazing and breathtaking. That and this new band IO Earth who was formed by childhood friends Dave Cureton and Adam Gough have wanted to make something that was new, fresh, and would definitely take your breath away. And with their sole self-titled debut album already in the can, let me just say this is quite amazing!

IO Earth’s debut album is like going on a magic carpet ride and taking the sounds of middle-eastern sounds, opera, rock, classical, and new age music is quite astonishing and would surprise listeners with a crowning achievement that is right tip in your alley. While this is a double album, it’s almost like a science-fiction concept album in three variations: Water, Earth, and Air.

Now I bet when they were young kids they spent a lot of time listening to Camel, Pink Floyd, Pallas, Mike Oldfield, Marillion, and Yes as well to create a mesmerizing journey filled with mind-boggling guitar layered sounds, ambient keyboard sounds in the realms of Richard Wright’s Division Bell-era and mix them up and you’ve got yourself one hell of a weekend and not to mention some explosive vocal arrangements and electronic sounds of the future that is almost out of this world.

While Dave Cureton and Adam Gough are the brain child of IO Earth, the band considers Dave’s brother Richard on Drums, Jason Reynolds on Sax, Steve Trigg on Horn & Trumpet, Christian Nokes on Bass, Louise Graggins on vocals, Claire Malin on vocals, and Steve Balsamo on vocals. The team on here is one of the best and they deserve a huge pat on the back with the talent and working together as to see how they were going to see where the direction they were about to go in and knowing that this would be an amazing project they will remember for years to come.

I can’t decide which tracks to pick are one of my favorites on the album like Dark Side of the Moon, it’s the whole thing from start to finish, but I decided to pick three pieces that really completely blew me away the first time I heard it. There’s the homage to Mandalaband’s haunting sound with the Egyptian rock operatic sound on Eeee with an acoustic guitar and piano setting the soaring beauty that Dave does to create the tension of the composition while it becomes a mind-boggling frenzy time change movement that would send a shiver down your spine.

The jazzy atmosphere that Steve Trigg does to make you feel it’s a smoky night on Smoky Wood that has a melodic touch to it as Claire Malin’s angelic voice who sounds like Heather Findlay, would bring a tear to your eye. Elsewhere, Loops reminds me that it was left off the Kid A sessions that Radiohead had done with a fierce bass line reminiscent of The National Anthem, haunting piano grooves, and fierce sax and electronic boundaries that would make you think, “Damn this is spot on!”

IO Earth’s debut album is spot on. It’s not a masterpiece, but they are just getting started and showing the music can move into various formations. Maybe one day they could write a film score sometime in the future. A must have for Prog listeners and you need to buy this big time!

Pallas - XXV

Sequels might have mixed feelings among avid filmgoers and music lovers. Take a look at what Queensryche had done with Operation Mindcrime II set 18 years after the events of the first album and fans have sometimes embraced it while Dream Theater made a second part of the Metropolis composition and turned it into a steampunk 1920s rock opera. But for Neo-Prog pioneers of the ‘80s, Pallas decided that it was time to release a sequel set after the events of The Sentinel to create a wonderful story-line in the realm of science-fiction and dystopian world that has gone horribly wrong.

After Alan Reed, the original singer of Pallas left the band last year due to creative differences, the band enters a new singer name Paul Mackie and the result here on their new album, XXV is an amazing concept storyline and prog at its best. Paul’s voice has kept the sound of Pallas growing strong and even though he’s been in the band for a good while, he keeps his voice to the strong forces like no other and the twist here is that this is an album that could be one of the most surprising albums to come out of this year so far.

From the album’s opening yet soaring yet pounding crunch of Falling Down to the guitar and organ powerhouse that would give you goosebumps in the realms of the Momentary Lapse of Reason-era of Pink Floyd with Crash and Burn that has almost a Roger Waters meets Neil Peart lyricism beauty of the Cold War that places into the core of explosive reactions on what is going in the modern world that we are facing in. Something in the Deep sees keyboardist Ronnie Brown paying homage to the atmospheric sound of the early Tangerine Dream-era with dreamland passages that sets the aftermath of what has happened to the beautiful world that was peaceful now is in hell.

The haunting Monster takes the listener into a dark and yet hidden passageway with a fierce guitar introduction that Niall Mathewson brings to set the sneering Fripp-sque sound that sends chills down your spine and look into the darker views of hell ala Dream Theater Scenes From a Memory-era style! The 6-minue epic, The Alien Messiah is a fierce composition with heavy guitar sounds, disturbing climatic instrument duels, as the band give a chance to go full throttle while XXV part one a rumbling electric structure with keyboards and spooky vocalization that Mackie does in a double tracking sound to give that dark sound on the views of the modern world that have a rock operatic way.

Pallas have shown that they can go a little bit heavy metal as you can hear it on the fierce and menacing approach on Young God with Mathewson’s guitar playing goes into the realm of Kirk Hammett as Mackie sings like the Phantom of the Opera and feeling the lyrics as something that he punches through the gut as he sings his heart out as Sacrifice shows them into an AOR approach as they pay tribute to Rush’s Signals-era with more of the fierce guitar sound that is breathtaking as Mathewson’s playing is dynamic and jaw dropping to get you ready for the big approach.

The moody and spookiness of Blackwood and the Celtic New Age rock beauty Violet Sky comes into together as one like a diamond in the rough with its acoustic finger picking guitar layered sound while the lyrics deal with how do you survive without struggling as makes it a very dramatic piece to the number as the final track of the second part of XXV is almost like an epic film score in an orchestral scenery in an underwater sequence set to beautiful music as Ronnie Brown takes his keyboards on a twisted yet wonderful amazing journey with his sound to the listeners as Mackie singing. He gets it and hitting the notes pitch by pitch and sound like a glorified wall of sound that makes the bricks explosive.

Since 2011 is a great year for Prog, this is an album that really will strike the listener’s ears to buy all of Pallas catalogue. And they have hit it at the right place at the right time. And even though I’m not crazy about the ‘80s neo-prog scene, this is a wonderful album and the music itself has taken it step by step that is like a sci-fi rock opera for the final cut. This has got to be almost the best prog album of the year for 2011 and you need to buy it.

Caravan - In The Land of Grey and Pink [Deluxe Edition]

“In the land of Grey & Pink where only boy scouts stop to think/They’ll be coming back again, those nasty grumbly grimblies/And they’re climbing down your chimney, yes they’re trying to get it/Come to take your money isn’t it a sin, they’re so thin?/ They’ve black buckets in the sky, don’t leave your dad in the rain/Cigarettes burn bright tonight, they’ll all get washed down the drain.” Sings Richard Sinclair of Caravan as he describes the Tolkien-sque fantasy story line in the quirky resemblance of Whimsical humor.

Since its release in 1971, In The Land of Grey & Pink remains one of the most essential works that Caravan has released and has been a favorite for fans and music lovers to enjoy the Canterbury pioneers to take the listener to a wonderful and embracive journey they are about to embark on. That and this wonderful 2-CD deluxe edition including a DVD featuring a new 5.1 stereo mix done by Porcupine Tree’s Steven Wilson, who’s been working really hard on the King Crimson 40th anniversary reissues and Jethro Tull’s Aqualung for the fall of this year, it provides a wonderful surround sound and experience that you’ll never forget.

When you hear the new 5.1 surround sound and the new stereo mix that Mr. Wilson has done, you will be completely blown away and have your breath taken away. Hearing the title track is very different from the original version (the rhythm guitar section comes in front while Richard’s voice comes in between Pye’s guitar sound); there’s also the Beat Club footage that the band perform to promote the album including the fuzzy version Golf Girl and a never-before-seen performance of Winter Wine that was cut before they were about to be on live TV.

Now the new stereo mix and 5.1 sound is marvelous, but this is a question that you might ask me and yourself, “Why this album stood the test time?” and, “What’s the best Caravan album to start off with that will get me going?” Well if you want the evidence, this here is a perfect way to start your journey into the Canterbury sound and feel like you have embarked on a whimsical adventure after listening to the first or third time that you have embarked on.

You have to love David Sinclair’s Hammond organ sound and the way he uses a Mellotron to give a jazz and psychedelic feel structure solo of the comedic touch on Golf Girl and goes at it to take turns on the mind-blowing 20-minute composition Nine Feet Underground while Pye Hastings doesn’t do any noodling on the guitar, but lays the beat down and has a sense of humor on the upbeat melody Love To Love You (And Tonight Pigs Will Fly). And then there’s drummer Richard Coughlan who brings the power and energy on the drums for Caravan as David’s younger brother, Richard who plays bass almost like in the realm of Paul McCartney, has a terrific voice and shows that he can really go for it and take the music to the next stage.

Then we get to the bonus tracks that are featured on the first and second disc of the reissue. We have different versions of Love To Love You and an alternate mix of Nine Feet Underground. However, on Frozen Rose and an early take of Aristocracy which would later be on their fourth album, Waterloo Lily shows that the band needed to make a small antidote for Grey & Pink while the soaring organ/piano melodic touches of jazz-psych-pop comes back in full crooning sound of Pye Hastings scatting on It Doesn’t Take a Lot.

And of course, the BBC sessions they did for Sound of the Seventies and the late John Peel who championed the band in the late ‘60s for his Sunday concerts in March and May of that year they were promoting the album and makes you feel that you are there at the sessions having a nice cup of tea and eating some biscuits while enjoying the beauty of Caravan’s music to tap your toes and clap to the beats they would do on their instruments.

Surprisingly, while the album and the new stereo mixes stands like a new diamond that has been freshly cleaned and repaired that will have fans blown away and know that Steven Wilson understood the album and how he gives a wonderful remix that would have fans enjoy the music to embrace it. And while they would draw a line in the sand to decide whether or not the album needed a new remix or not, it doesn’t matter, this was needed a full restoration and Wilson was up for the job to go through the multi-tracks to find what was left hidden underneath the analog tapes.

However, the most wonderful moment is the extended version of Love To Love You that features an unheard ending that was cut off due to time restraints as Jimmy Hastings gives his flute a time to fly into the heavenly sky and it remains one of the best unearth tracks. And while some people might prefer the original version, this new ending is breathtaking and you could see how Hastings, Pye’s older brother, deserves a lot of credit. Caravan was about family, not giant rock stars, but they proved they could be a pretty damn good Canterbury band in the psych-progressive movement in the underground era.

This is a fine treatment that the good people at Universal has done with the 40th anniversary Deluxe Edition CD-set of Prog’s magnetic bands to come out of the late ’60s, if anyone who wants to get into their music, this is it!