RAIN DANCES

The first Camel album i ever heard was Snow Goose, back when it was initially released. I quickly discovered their first two LPs and later acquired Moonmadness, and always considered them to be one of my favorite bands. When Rain Dances came out, i was pleasantly surprised, and the sophistication of this album has continued to grow on me over the years. Camel took a big shift in direction on this album, but being a BIG King Crimson & Hatfield & the North fan, i was stoked to hear Mel Collins & Richard Sinclair join the line up. I never thought Ferguson or Latimer had strong or particularly recommendable vocal chops, but Sinclair on the other hand -- for being equally laid back and smooth as Latimer -- has such distinction in his voice and provides a cool overlap to the Canterbury scene.

That they took a jazzy & even more ambient shift was no problem either. This was a big shift for them and i don't think it was as commercial a shift as other reviewers think. Many of their classic hallmarks of spacy, jaunty rock were still there, as evidenced by Skylines and Metrognome. Ahhh, Metrognome -- one of the best prog-rock songs of the era. I think it fully stands up to Lunar Sea from Moonmadness as an all time Camel classic, and it even synergizes further with the Sinclair/Collins additions. And i think that Sinclair is a better bass player than Ferguson as well, technically AND stylistically. Their mellow tunes are also complex and beautiful on the LP. Tell Me is a mellow masterpiece. Highways of the Sun seems like a bit of pop treacle at first, but the bridge reminds you just who is playing!

I think that this was their last, really strong, progressive album, though Nude has several moments, but obviously by the reviews, Rain Dances is an underrated album and undeservedly so. Snow Goose is really nice, but it certainly is not as complex or majestic as Moonmadness! If you are going to bother with Camel, Moonmadness and Rain Dances will give you the best of all Camel worlds.