ACROSS THE UNIVERSE

I can hardly belive that this nice treat of an album (entirely dedicated to cover Beatles songs) is going almost unnoticed, so here I am trying to be fair with it. And being fair I must also pronounce the already traditional warning: this is not progressive stuff stricto sensu, but rather a likable-for-proggers-too record, like many ones we love are.

Being this more like a candy box than a concept album, Iet's go and taste some sweeties: Important as openers are in giving the first impression, 01 Here Comes the Sun assumes the well-known accoustic charm of Harrison's original with virtuosism and innovative changes in pace and signature. Then 02 Golden Slumbers Medley goes for every proghead's throat with a tastefully symphonic rendition of a staple in every McCartney's concert. Also, if you look for improvisational skill and oriental flavor, you will find that in 04 Norwegian Wood.

Of course, there's the weak and the unnecessary too, but, who's perfect? 03 Dear Prudence misses the harmonic strangeness of Lennon's own original, and 14 Octopus's Garden is just puerile. Compensating for that, there's the outside Beatles fandom lesser-known 10 I'll Follow the Sun, a moment of pure McCartney-style nostalgia.

Well, what are you people waiting for? Go for it!