SUN

This album didn't sell well, the band had a lot of trouble getting anything released at all, and it seems this are still cursed by the voodoo of music business nowadays. I saw Taï Phong live in Vincennes only a few hours after receiving the infamous Sun album, and I was already enough in love with it to show my joy when they started playing "Now I know". This is a very melodic song, one of the least "mellow" tunes in an album that is indeed filled with this kind of production. Of course it doesn't mean it's any bad. "Sister Jane" is definitely presented here in a "definitive version" which ties in with the current lineup's version (where there are several singers, all female this time). My girlfriend loves "Rainy night in Saigon". And she usually HATES prog. And I also fall for "Fly away". I discovered Taï Phong less than a year ago, and this is definitely one of my favorite albums from their collection. 4.5 stars, I'll round it to 4 stars because I think Khanh Mai should really work on less mellow songs. I'd also love him to start writing in French, it can be done, and maybe it'd help the band's popularity in France.

For your information, they're currently at work on "Le retour du samouraï", their 5th album.

So they're back. I quite liked their "Last Flight" album, but this time ? Well, it's no disaster, after all, we're not talking about life of 70s Symphonic Prog band in desperation of 80s, are we ? But it's not a big win either. But this was to be expected. Album released after so much time would either be killer, or big nothing. There is nothing Prog, it actually remind me more calm (without "power" element") version of Asia. Backed with Symphonic sound (strings), but songs are extremely simple. So even it can be nice, easy listening music, it's not strong stuff (on the contrary), so

2(+), for pleasant music, but not much more.

A long 21 years after "Last Flight" failed lift-off, TAI PHONG reformed, admittedly with only 2 long time members. While "Sun" is not really a prog album, it retains enough of their trademark sound - high pitched male vocals, appealing harmonies, occasionally soaring lead guitars and varied keyboards - to be worth a listen or two.

The 2 lengthier tracks would be of most interest; even if not exactly epic, they each have two parts in deference to a time when suites were de rigeur, and they appear to have been well thought out. Vocals are predominant and the instrumental breaks don't flex as they did during the band's heyday, instead expounding upon the vocal themes effectively. "Rainy Night in Saigon" is well arranged and incorporates a children's choir without sounding sappy. "Now I know" is more upbeat and dramatic but in a similar vein.

A couple of ballads are also noteworthy, these being "Everything's Wrong" and the lovely and languid "Fly Away" that closes the disk. These manage to encapsulate some of the qualities that made TAI PHONG darlings of the slow dance in their day. Unfortunately, they criminally re-recorded the one legit hit, "Sister Jane", in a ghastly apparition which sullies its legacy a bit. I mean, have another go at it by all means. But don't call it a "definitive edition", no matter how good you think it is. And it isn't. Apart from the so-so "Last Friend", the rest is perhaps slightly below the level of "Last Flight", which is to say entirely dispensable.

While "Sun" doesn't come close to eclipsing the mid 1970s offerings by TAI PHONG, it does thoroughly avoid casting a shadow on the band's history in the eyes of those who care. 2.5 stars it is, rounded up.