SKY 3

'Sky 3' saw keyboardist Steve Gray's entry in Sky's line-up in replacement of Francis Monkman. This factor lead to the instillation of a slightly (yet clearly) jazzier feel into the band's sound. Not that the classcial touch got missing; on the contrary, there's still pretty much of it. The brief opening and closing themes, the evocative 'Connecting Rooms', and the beautiful rendition of Haendel's 'Sarabande' (ah, those heavenly classical guitars,... and that harpsichord,... and those magnificent synth layers...) are awesome samples of Sky's stylish symphonic facet. Yet, you can tell that the repertoire, as a whole, gives more room to jazz fusionesque (and sometimes funky) ambiences. Just to mention a few examples, 'Chiropodie No. 1', 'Meheeco' (a spectacular piece, full of exotic Mexican-like nuances), 'Sister Rose', and the delicate ballad 'Hello'. Gray's role is more subdued in comparison to that of Monkman's in the first two Sky recordings. Though he does solo every now and then, it is clear that he is more comfortable creating layers and chord progressions while his two guitarist partners come to the fore most of the time. Fry, as always, exhibitis his excellency on drums and some tuned percussion devices, and Flowers does a damn great job on his precise bass lines, and occasionally, contrabass (once again, I have to mention that magical piece titled 'Meheeco'). These guys are serious musicians (Willliams is not only classically trained, but also has gained worldwide recognition for his infinite finesse on the nylon strings since the late 60s), but they can always find a way to show off their amusing side: the most blatant case is Flowers penned 'Dance of the Big Fairies', a tuba-based number where the acoustic guitars, piano and harpsichord travel from circus merry spirit to Baroque to Greek folk dance - this only shows you that prog can also be fun and genius at once! Of all Kevin Peek numbers (he's the most proficientwriter in the band), 'Westwind' must be the most accomplished one, and a definite highlight of the album, indeed. The aforementioned 'Sarabande', 'Meheeco' and 'Connecting Rooms' (the latter, an exquisite 3-part mini-suite penned by drummer Fry but with the guitar and keyboards alternating the leading role) are, in my opinion, the other album's peaks. All in all, an excellent addition to any prog collection: it's true that Monkman's special magic is gone, but again, Sky remains a very creative band.