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WELCOME TO THE SHOWBarclay James HarvestCrossover Prog2.91 | 67 ratings |
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![]() I have always been of the opinion that Barclay James Harvest's best albums have been those where the producer has managed to impose some authority over the band's sound to develop a very coherent and cogent album from the motley of songs presented for consideration and recording. We have Norman Smith's influence on their early masterpiece "Once Again"; Rodger Bain's influence on the heavier sound of "Everyone is Everybody Else"; Elliot Mazer's on "Time Honoured Ghosts"'s Americanish mellow sound; Pip Williams's on their pop masterpiece "Victims of Circumstance". And so, it's no coincidence that I attribute the success of "Welcome to the Show" to Jon Astley and Andy MacPherson's production. What the production team has done is to forge the very unique BJH sound and thread it throughout the songs on this album so that, like all their other best albums, the listening pleasure intensifies with each listen until the album becomes like an old friend - always pleasant to have around and listen to. The band obviously responded to their influence, turning out some impressive performances on a very strong set of songs. It was to be a pinnacle they would never again climb. The album is rich and varied, combining the pace of rocky numbers such as "Cheap the Bullet" and "Psychedelic Child" with slower numbers very reminiscent of the early BJH such as "John Lennon's Guitar" and "Shadows On The Sky". My particular favourite is John Lees's "Origin Earth, a pretty love song set in the far future, the space travelling protagonist having fallen for a picture of the long-lost mother earth - very whimsical!. Whilst there are no anthemic songs in this collection, the album's overall strength and coherent feel go to make it a true classic. I consider "Welcome to the Show" as second only to "Time Honoured Ghosts" in the band's albums' ranking: praise indeed!. The reissued version of 2006 includes three bonus tracks; all live recordings, including one of "John Lennon's Guitar", which is quite different from the album version in that it has one of John Lees's excellent extended guitar solos to close out the track. However, for maximum pleasure the album should be heard in its originally conceived perfect form.
alextorres2 |
5/5 |
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