PROLOGUE

Renaissance

Symphonic Prog

3.77 | 559 ratings

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Hector Enrique like
Prog Reviewer

After their first two albums, Renaissance underwent a profound metamorphosis with the stellar arrival of singer Annie Haslam and a complete change in line-up for "Prologue" (1972), the band's third album. Focusing its efforts on combining elements drawn from jazz, folk, rock, classical music and oriental influences as its musical background, Prologue does not seek to stray into the intricate and labyrinthine paths of the dominant progressive rock of those years, but rather takes things slowly and travels along a clear path, sustained by luminous instrumentation.

From the refreshing jazz nuances of the eponymous and excellent "Prologue" and the classical academicism of "Kiev" (the only track sung by bassist Jon Camp), the album flows without haste, but steadily, with John Tout's immaculate piano guiding the melodies, backed by Haslam's endearing yet powerful voice, which takes centre stage in the marine setting of the crystalline "Sounds of the Sea", in the harmonious melody of the folkie "Spare Some Love", and in the heavenly warmth of the delicate "Bound for Infinity".

Departing somewhat from the general mood of "Prologue", the final section reserves a place for experimentation and versatility with the avant-garde and changing "Rajah Khan", starting with Rob Hendry's saturated opening guitar arpeggio, the orientalised and changing atmosphere woven by Jon Camp's solid bass, Terence Sullivan's percussion, guest Francis Monkman's synthesizers and Haslam's humming. Surely the most progressive track on the album.

Once the album was released, the band's composer and musical director Michael Dunford took over the guitars from Hendry for subsequent works and, as the title "Prologue" presciently suggested, Renaissance's golden age began.

3.5 stars

Hector Enrique | 4/5 | 2025-8-16

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