THE WHISPERING OF THE WORLD

Those who enjoy the "rock meets classical" kind of occasion are in for a treat with this new release by Pete Jones. He fell in love with the Fazioli grand piano of the Fieldgate studios, where he has filmed several promo videos, and then decided to record his new album there. For that purpose, he brought in a string quartet, and Welsh composer Ian Lawson wrote the scores orchestrating Pete's demos of the songs. Rob Reed, of Magenta fame, contributed supervising the sessions.

Don't expect complex structures in rhythm and instrumentation, this is an entirely song based affair, just accompanied by the crystalline charm of the strings accentuating the lyrical themes, which are, according to Pete: "the appreciation of nature, dealing with depression, good times spent with those we love, and coming to terms with both losing those close to us and our own mortality and place in the universe."

I have long run out of ways to describe Pete Jones, as this multi-instrumentalist, singer, composer, continues to deliver wonderful albums under the name Tiger Moth Tales, as well as also being keyboard player with Camel and Francis Dunnery's 'It Bites'. Normally Pete records his albums at home, providing all the instrumentation himself, but this time he went for a different approach and instead based the album on a grand piano. He, of course, also provided some other bits and pieces, and he was assisted by Rob Reed (Magenta) with guitar and bass, while distinguished Welsh composer Ian Lawson created musical scores for a string quartet.

This is not bombastic prog, but rather is music that has been crafted and honed, and to be perfectly honest is simply beautiful. With a piano always the base, we find Pete at times somewhat melancholy, others joyous, and it was somewhat surprising to discover just how many songs sound influenced not only by classic Genesis, but also by Broadway. Take "Sweeter Than Wine" for example, it may sound at the beginning as if it could be from 'Wind and Wuthering', but it soon sounds as if it should be performed in a theatre somewhere. The feeling is even stronger on opener "Taking The Dawn", as after the violin which brings us in, there is the feeling that this is a lost Disney classic as it just has that feel about it. With so much of the album being acoustically based, there is a definite vibe about it, and a feeling of total class. There is little room for Pete to hide, and both his musicianship and vocal talents are on clear display for all to hear. It is an album which I can play all day, and indeed have been, and I find something new each and every time. The themes of the songs are of nature, memories of time spent with family and friends, plus deeper themes of depression, bereavement and coming to terms with mortality. The production is so strong that it feels as if he is in the room with the listener, and this together with the lyrics makes this an incredibly personal album, as if he is sharing his soul with the one person listening to him. Wonderful.