THE SNOW GOOSE

Camel broke out on the prog scene with 1974's "Mirage", but commercially the band saw its greatest success with this album, the essentially instrumental musical rendition of Paul Gallico's 1940 novella of the same name. There is quite a bit of background controversy surrounding the album due to the choice of concept. The band had considered doing a concept based on Herrmann Hesse's "Siddhartha" (the same book Yes based the seminal "Close to the Edge" on), but eventually settled on the anti-war short story with a theme of friendship. Gallico however would threaten litigation on the band, being an ardent anti-smoker who was opposed to a band named after the cigarette brand, and had an album whose cover was based heavily upon the company's packaging. R.J. Reynolds even was financing Camel's tours at the time.

The threatening of legal action against the band merely resulted in the album's planned lyrical content being omitted, with some copies of the album cover having the font on the band's name changed so that it wouldn't resemble that of the cigarette company's. "The Snow Goose" would be released in April of 1975, and would be Camel's best charting album in the UK, being certified silver by the BPI and topping at #22 on the album charts in the UK. It even cracked the Billboard 200 album charts in the US, showing just how much mainstream musical tastes have changed. In 2020 the notion of a fully instrumental album having mainstream appeal would be laughed out of the building, but the 1970's were a different time. The band would hit the apex of its commercial success when they played the album in its entirety with the London Symphony Orchestra at a fully-packed Royal Albert Hall later that year, a performance which would be recorded by the BBC and included on the band's live record two years later.

Critically, "The Snow Goose" has been met with acclaim. Prog magazine rated it the 31st greatest progressive rock album in 2014, higher than "Mirage". Musically, it is the first time we see the "softer" side of Camel, a band which up to this point had made a name for itself on the back of fast-paced, action-packed instrumentation. Indeed, this is an album which has more in line with the Canterbury scene, something which tends to polarize many prog listeners. There really is no way to single out any single song on this album, as it is certainly intended to be listened in one piece. Throughout the course of this album there are some absolutely beautiful musical motifs, especially those seen on the title track and "La Princesse Perdue" near the end of the record. Between the pastoral guitars and sinister interludes, the band does an excellent job at creating an atmosphere while making good use of orchestral arrangements. Some wordless vocals appear on a few tracks, but I still feel this album should be classed as instrumental.

I feel like much of the appeal in this album lies in the emotions it evokes. This is one of the few albums I've shed a tear listening to ("La Princesse Perdue" wins the award for making a grown man cry), and it's arguably the most easy-listening Camel record of their discography. With that said, I don't think it's a good introduction to the band, and I can see listeners being put to sleep by the lack of fleeting action that was seen on the previous two LPs. I don't consider this to be Camel's best work by a longshot, and I suppose that the commercial appeal of this album was buoyed by its appeal to the politesse of the British people. By no means is "The Snow Goose" a bad album; it's by all means listenable and I have found myself coming back to it a few times, but I don't consider it to be essential material absolutely worth listening to in the way "Mirage", "Moonmadness" or even later works such as "Rajaz" is. I would go even as far as to say "Rain Dances" is better.

In conclusion, I do think everyone should give this album a listen at least once. There is a unique appeal in the sound of this album, and I can definitely see this album being a favorite of someone who enjoys Canterbury. Notable tracks include the title track, "La Princesse Perdue", and "Rhayader Goes to Town". The band would often play excerpts of this album at live shows which largely based upon the latter. I would say I was the most bored in the latter two thirds of the album, around "Flight of the Snow Goose", which is where the album tends to get more experimental.

FINAL RATING: 4.0/5

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