RENAISSANCE

I consider this album to be one of the most innovative and best albums ever. What gender does this album really belong to? It encompasses everything from prog rock to psychedelic rock and touches of grunge and metal. It opens with the dramatic and painful "The Sky Cried/When I was a boy", which has one of the best intros ever with it's classically fused organ and guitar that cuts through like a knife. Other highlights are "Thoughts", "Paradise" and the unforgettable "Faceless People".

This is Vanilla Fudge's greatest work and a milestone of psychedelic rock. Martell's playing has obviously had a great influence on grunge guitarists like Jerry Cantrell and Kim Thayil. Carmine Appice proves here that he is one of the greatest drummers and also a talented songwriter. Mark Stein is the cornerstone of the band and it's very soul. His voice is eclectic and very expressive while his organ playing is excellent and very progressive. He writes three songs alltogether and all of them are stunning. A true bard who made Vanilla Fudge just what they were-a Rennaissance band. Sadly, they never could follow up this masterpiece and although they pulled a few nice efforts with "Near the Beginning" and "Rock 'n Roll", none of their latter works can be compared to this one.