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TRUST

Saga

Crossover Prog


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Saga Trust album cover
3.81 | 201 ratings | 20 reviews | 20% 5 stars

Excellent addition to any
prog rock music collection

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Studio Album, released in 2006

Songs / Tracks Listing

1. That's as Far as I'll Go (4:36)
2. Back to the Shadows (5:16)
3. I'm OK (5:36)
4. Time to Play (3:31)
5. My Friend (3:19)
6. Trust (5:44)
7. It's Your Life (4:10)
8. Footsteps in the Hall (3:25)
9. Ice in the Rain (5:01)
10. You Were Right (4:05)
11. On the Other Side (4:56)

Total Time 49:39

Line-up / Musicians

- Michael Sadler / lead vocals
- Ian Crichton / lead & rhythm guitars
- Jim Gilmour / keyboards, lead vocals
- Jim Crichton / bass
- Brian Doerner / drums

Releases information

Artwork: Balázs Pápay

CD Inside Out Music ‎- IOMCD 246 (2006, Europe)
CD + DVD Inside Out Music ‎- IOMSECD 246 (2006, Europe) Bonus DVD with Making Of documentary

Thanks to ProgLucky for the addition
and to projeKct for the last updates
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SAGA Trust ratings distribution


3.81
(201 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music(20%)
20%
Excellent addition to any prog rock music collection(45%)
45%
Good, but non-essential (27%)
27%
Collectors/fans only (5%)
5%
Poor. Only for completionists (2%)
2%

SAGA Trust reviews


Showing all collaborators reviews and last reviews preview | Show all reviews/ratings

Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by Melomaniac
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars Everyone has their opinions about which albums from this Canadian band are good and which are not. I will start by saying that, in general, I love Saga's albums from the first up to Heads or Tales, Behaviour being the album where, for me, things started to get a bit less interesting. Wildest Dreams and Beginner's Guide... I really don't like, Security of Illusion was good, Steel Umbrellas is, in my opinion their worst effort, Generation 13 I found amazing, The Pleasure and the Pain, with it's heavier side and session drummer (I was never too fond of Negus' drumming, except on Generation 13 where he shines brightly) was also very good. Full Circle was ok, House of Cards was great, Marathon was good, and Network I really like (again, Negus shines by his absence, Christian Simpson did a great job behind the kit).

Which brings us to Trust...

Enter new drummer Brian Doerner (formerly of Helix). He is, without a doubt, the best drummer Saga ever had, and I sincerely hope he'll stick around for a while. Trust is their best album since House of Cards, and among their top five from all time. You can find Gentle Giant influences in here, especially in songs like Footsteps in the Hall and On the Other Side. Saga managed to go back to their early style and still sound fresh with Trust. Only one song I find less interesting, which is Time to Play. Every other song is, simply put, Saga at their best. Only downfall : the album is too short !!!

4 and a half stars.

Review by Menswear
PROG REVIEWER
5 stars When the going get tough, the tough gets on going.

Man, is it me or Canadians bands seems to live longer than many other bands? Triumph, Rush, Gowan, Harmonium, Uzeb and Saga are good examples. They seems to grow unfatigable even after 25-30 years of good services. Gotta be that hockey and maple syrup....

Saga was to me an attractive band 'artwork' speaking. I thought the firefly logo was a catchy trademark and the LP covers fascinated me as a kid. But their songs...hmm, not a close as Rush. With time, I understood they're not playing the same leagues, nor the same crowd. Saga is more on the friendly side with an evident 80's sound, but this time, it's been hyped up on something!

This is not brain teaser by any means, but it's not fast food on the other hand. Saga can be surprisingly good musicians and songwriters; many times I've cranked up the volume thinking: 'Woo, this rocks!" And it does rocks. Against all odds, this is a very decent record.

Like Kansas, Toto or Styx, Saga has tremendous feet stomping potential: good (Mega Man style) guitar solos, catchy catchy catchy choruses, Gentle Giant winks and satisfying keyboard textures.

If you're looking for ONE simple but good, intelligent entertainment, Trust is a very good value. Most of the songs are pleasant and it's varied from rock to prog.

And to me, it's been a long time that I've had a soft spot for the 80's feel!

Review by lor68
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars In the vein of the best melodic albums by Styx (a band which is closer to their spirit and sense of melody as well) and sometimes resembling also the mood of Kansas, the present new issue by Saga is not equal to their best album of the nineties ("Generation 13th"), but it's worth checking out at least! First of all the production is excellent as usual, but especially this time the work of synths is executed with the greatest care for detail, by means of the best technological devices. Beyond our imagination, this "Trust" is one step closer to the best proto-type of such an important sound engineering. Therefore their singer Michael Sadler has recently become well aware of the importance of his role: his vocalism implies that their melodies must be supported by his strong interpretation!!

Secondly, the remarkable guitar job performed by Ian Critchon is able to increase all the credits of Saga, among the several new melodic pop progressive bands of the world (Styx, Enchant, Collage and so on), because these latter often miss the impact of the harmonic guitar parts invented by Ian. Of Course Saga has always performed a melodic and commercial pop progressive music genre, which is far away for instance from the mood of some experimental progressive rock bands such as Glass Hammer, After Crying, A Triggering Myth, relatively speaking; nevertheless the goal of Saga has been successfully achieved once again, thanks also to their clever arrangements!! Besides the special effects inside That's As Far As I'll Go", the pleasan t melodic ballad "My Friend" and especially the impact of "On the Other Side", one of the best tracks, are quite memorable. At the end I could remember their job, after their pretty chorus within "It's Your Life", but above all the "interlacement" of the melodies created by their synths will stand alone as the best "trademark" of Saga ever.

The best album for your lightest and relaxed moments!!

Score: from 3 to 4 stars

Review by debrewguy
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator
3 stars Some may think they know what the contents will be when you pick up a Saga album . Pomp Rock with dashes of AOR and or Pop depending on the time period.

However, on their best releases, the group manages to forge a sound all their own that is more than that, and hard to describe. It's easy to identify, yet, there are always additions, changes, aspects that are muted or mutated from one album to another.

So what's the overview on this one - heavier, not just guitar-wise, but also in the keyboard sounds. If it wasn't for the fact that it wasn't released in 2006, I'd have no problem being convince it was released in the 80s, during the heydays of Arena Rock. And a good Arena rock album it is.

Trust, the title song, reminds me of mid period Rush with the big guitars, and the swooshing synths in the back. Footsteps in the Hall bring them back to songs like How Long & Compromise. That's As Far As I'll Go, the album opener is probably the most symbolic song as far as the whole package goes. Gilmour's keyboards, Crichton's guitars, Sadler's soaring vocals.

It's not that Saga has covered new ground here. And they have put out more interesting albums. But in a career spanning 16 studio albums over 30 plus years, I'd dare anyone to name more than a few acts that have been as consistent, and have regularly delivered albums that their fans consider band classics.

And so, while I give it a 3 only, I admit that the Saga fan will find much to enjoy here. And if you're just starting to get into their collection, this one won't disappoint.

Review by SouthSideoftheSky
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Symphonic Team
3 stars Back to the shadows?

Trust seems to be a popular album here on PA, and it is indeed another good Saga album, but in comparison with the two albums that surrounded it - 2004's Network and 2007's 10.000 Days - Trust is actually a less good album in my opinion. This album does indeed feature all the usual Saga trademarks - some of which I like a lot and some of which I don't like very much. The typically catchy songs are occasionally just too catchy for me here; too cheerful and superficial to be fully enjoyed. The overly anthemic and repetitive chorus of I'm Ok, for example, is hard to stomach. Such generic words are just not worthy of that kind of display. I liked the previous Network and even more so the follow-up 10.000 Days, two albums that were slightly darker and more serious. I also think that especially 10.000 Days was also more progressive than Trust is.

The 11 tracks on Trust are rather short, even by Saga standards, the longest being the title track of just less than six minutes and the shortest is just over three minutes. This leaves less room for solos and instrumental workouts. There are some nice quirks in some of these songs for sure and some songs towards the end are even slightly Gentle Giant-like, buy personally I prefer the Neo-Prog and Prog Metal leanings of the other two aforementioned albums. Still, there are some very good songs here and there is no sign of the band losing any power despite going on and on for years and years, constantly making good albums.

Trust is indeed yet another good Saga album that is bound to please the Saga fans and many fans of progressive Rock in general, this reviewer included. This is not among Saga's very best and next album would, in my opinion, be an improvement over the present one. Three stars, but "that's as far as I'll go"!

Review by b_olariu
PROG REVIEWER
3 stars 3.5 stars for sure

Saga was and is one of my fav bands ever, I have a soft spot for them , that's why I still buying their albums since 2 decades ago when I've first encountered their music. Trust from 2006 is another worthy album from their vast catalogue, maybe not as shining brilliant as their classics, but a fairly good album in Saga style. They developed over the yeras their own brend of music, combinig complex progressive parts dominating by excellent guitars and keyboards with catchy melodic parts, that made them fampous world wide. Well, this album stars with the great opener That's As Far As I'll Go, the best tune from the album with unique excellent deep voice of sadler. The album is perfect progressive/art rock release, where each musicians even don't really sine, they done a great job. This is typical Saga album, no less no more. I like what I've heared here as on every Saga album, I do considered that they don't have weak albums, only some periods in their career were more great and inventive then others. Love this band for years Trust desearve 3,5 stars for sure. Great band

Review by FragileKings
PROG REVIEWER
4 stars "Scratching the surface. You better come up for air. A new experience to get you there."

Saga was another one of those bands I had only marginal interest in that appeared on late night music video TV. The chorus of the song was catchy and memorable, but like Yes, Genesis, Glass Tiger and a few other bands that were not despicable pop bands like Culture Club and Wham, Saga was actually just a mild respite from top forty pop drivel while I waited for a new video by Accept, Scorpions, Iron Maiden, or any other metal band that might have a video slotted in just before the closing credits of the show. So, I was very surprised to learn on PA that Saga was not only a distinguished neo-prog/crossover prog band with a long history but also the guys were fellow Canuckleheads (Canadians).

It's always a challenge when picking up a band for the first time to choose the album that is going to be worth the money and get me interested in the band. I read the reviews on PA, check out samples on Amazon and iTunes if possible, or go to YouTube, and then make my choice. For Saga I decided the album that would most suit my taste was this one: 'Trust'.

Have you ever seen the Australian comedy movie 'Strictly Ballroom'? A young hot shot dancer with some fancy steps wants to turn the ultra conservative Ballroom Dance Association around. He hooks up with an unknown Spanish immigrant woman whose father teaches them how to dance the Pasa Doble. The result is this couple add something completely new and unheard of to ballroom dance, shocking some while thrilling others.

'Trust' reminded me of that movie because regarding the song length and structure, this album looks by all means to be a traditional rock album: 4 to 5-minute long songs, verse- chorus-verse-chorus, etc. But the music is like the fancy steps in the Aussie flick. Keyboards dance with neo-prog flair all over the album while guitar with hard rock and even metal sensibilities takes turns with the keyboards to show off fancy finger steps. Though the drumming is not exceptional and the bass nothing outstanding, the music on this album is as good as any bona fide neo-prog or even symphonic prog band might produce. It's just shorter and often quicker, licks and tricks darting in and out of the song like a bat out of hell hunting locusts. There's a wonderful duel and duality between the keyboards and the guitar, and vocalist Michael Sadler's voice holds the songs together with liquid smoothness. It sounds like commercial rock, but with something that goes beyond your top forty rock output.

I haven't yet picked out any non-interesting tracks, but the ones I enjoy the most right now are 'That's as Far as I'll Go,' 'Back to the Shadows,' 'I'm OK' (for the music), 'Time to Play,' and 'Trust'. But as I listen through the rest of the album for nearly the tenth time I still find I am enjoying most of the songs, usually for the music. What could have been an arena rock album is delightfully neo-prog in many ways. I am now looking at which of Saga's other albums will be worth purchasing. With 34 years and 22 albums of history, there's bound to be some great music to discover.

Review by TCat
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Collaborator / Retired Admin
4 stars "Trust" would be Saga's 17 studio album and was released in 2006. This was during a time when Saga's albums were kind of hit and miss with some of them being really good and others seeming to lack something. This might make them sound like they are inconsistent, but they really aren't at this point. Sure they had their classic albums of the 70's that almost everyone loves, then they had the mediocre and not so great albums of the 80's where they tried hard to fit in to the popular sound, but could never really break into the super-stardom they were searching for. Then they released their masterpiece in 1995, "Generation 13" and ever since then, they have had their ups and downs as far as the quality of the music on their albums. "Trust" is one of those that sits in the really great album category, but not a masterpiece of prog. However, it is one that should be considered one of their best.

Michael Sadler is one of those sometimes over-the-top pomp singers and has the voice for it. The problem is, the band's style doesn't fit well with mainstream radio pop. They are much too talented for that. On the other hand, with Sadler's voice being unique and with Ian Crichton and Jim Gilmore having their own unique styles, the large quantity of songs and albums can start to get a little blurry and unfortunately don't have a lot of emotional variance, which has always been the band's biggest problem. But if you can get past that, the music is quite stellar on this album with only a few mediocre tracks, but with some really well-written songs that this time around end up moving the prog needle to the positive side of the spectrum several times. All of the musicians, including Sadler, give their share of memorable performances. The other thing that sets this album apart is the fact that it is the first album to feature new drummer Brian Doerner, formerly from the metal band "Helix", and this does bring a new level of excitement to the overall sound. He would end up staying with the band until 2012.

So, the band's spirit on this album seems to be much higher and it is apparent on most of the tracks like "Back in the Shadows", "Trust", "You Were Right" and "On the Other Side", among several others. The instrumental sections don't sound so worn out this time around, but it seems like the old spirit and enthusiasm is back. Sadler also tries some new effects with his vocals along with harmonics and that also helps set this apart. There is even a great ballad that stands out here called "My Friend". But there are a few weaker tracks that seem more like the more recent albums were the band (especially Sadler) seems bored like on "I'm Okay", "It's Your Life" and "Ice in the Rain". I think the problem on those tracks is the lack of melodic hooks in the vocal melody more than anything, and the band has suffered with that throughout their history. Luckily, these aren't terrible here on this album and are more of the exception than the rule for this record.

Overall, this is one of the lesser known Saga albums that shouldn't be passed up as readily as some of their others. It is an enjoyable record and the old spirit seems to be back more often on this record than on some of the others. I would rate it up there with one of their best, and as such, it gets a 4 star rating. It rises above the norm for the band more times than it doesn't.

Latest members reviews

4 stars Saga is good at getting on a roll and putting out albums with similar themes such as their Chapters songs and the consistent album covers with the "Bug" on them and then suddenly breaking it up and doings something different as they did with then previous album "Network". While the album is okay ... (read more)

Report this review (#2936868) | Posted by Sidscrat | Saturday, July 1, 2023 | Review Permanlink

4 stars 2006's 'Trust' was my introduction to Saga, coming across the album cheap, and having heard of the band before, I thought it'd be worth checking them out. I'm glad I did. From the opening moments of the first song, I knew this band were something slightly different. Best described as some ... (read more)

Report this review (#1785515) | Posted by martindavey87 | Friday, September 22, 2017 | Review Permanlink

4 stars If you are searching for a disk will capable to reach success between the old and new progressive fans... one choice with chance to make your satisfaction completed, is the album TRUST from the Canadian band SAGA,album release in 2006. This album is fully of heavy,neo and symphonic prog sple ... (read more)

Report this review (#796285) | Posted by maryes | Saturday, July 28, 2012 | Review Permanlink

4 stars More a variety of songs, some containing classic SAGA material in the On the Loose Period, others going into Radiohead territory, then Tool territory, some Neo Progressive as well. Everything is well written and performed. Michael Sadler's voice holds up. New drummer Brian Doerner of heavy me ... (read more)

Report this review (#221621) | Posted by SMSM | Wednesday, June 17, 2009 | Review Permanlink

3 stars About ten years ago, I had more or less given up on this band. "Pleasure and the pain was probably one of the absolute worst (if not THE worst) effort a group or artist I had ever liked ever did come up with...ever. Yes, I am rubbing it in. But a few years later it seemed they had recovered and ma ... (read more)

Report this review (#158505) | Posted by sanjuansueco | Sunday, January 13, 2008 | Review Permanlink

3 stars Musically, you can't fault this album. All the current members of Saga are very, very good musicians. I particularly love the piano parts that flavour this release and the vocals are also very striking. But I can't make up my mind if I really like the album yet. It is actually the first Saga a ... (read more)

Report this review (#114558) | Posted by scarista | Thursday, March 8, 2007 | Review Permanlink

4 stars Wow! The undisputed masters of 80's pop-prog are back in high form! (Please don't mistake this for Neo-Prog) This music is like a window into a forgotten world - the imagined worlds of Jules Verne, George Orwell, Aldous Huxley, H. G. Wells, Fritz Lang. It is an echo of the Saga's best years, w ... (read more)

Report this review (#83626) | Posted by EMinkovitch | Thursday, July 13, 2006 | Review Permanlink

4 stars Finally a Saga album that has not let me down. I love the first four, the debut thru Worlds Apart but after that have not heard anything that rivaled those album til now, though 1992's Security of Illusion and 2001's House of Card were getting close. The production on this album is absolutely ... (read more)

Report this review (#79372) | Posted by zx2781 | Friday, May 26, 2006 | Review Permanlink

5 stars I have to admit this is the first Saga album i buy in a long long long time. I've heard the new crop of albums ( Full Circle, House of Cards, Marathon, Network, Chapters Live) but none of them made me actually take my credit card out and actually buy it like Trust did. The album is already a ... (read more)

Report this review (#78413) | Posted by V for Victory | Wednesday, May 17, 2006 | Review Permanlink

5 stars Well here we go again fellow Saga fans a new release from the masters of Canadian prog. Another inspired offering from my fellow countrymen who have been heartfully adopted by Germany.This album could easily be called "Covering all the Bases " ,which they do very deftly ,unabashedly bringing i ... (read more)

Report this review (#77879) | Posted by nordwind | Friday, May 12, 2006 | Review Permanlink

4 stars Well, what do you know!? This is actually the first Saga album in more than fifteen years that I actually like. I was a huge Saga fan in the early eighties, had all their LPs, saw them a couple of times perform live, but gradually my enthusiasm died with every album that was less progressive and ... (read more)

Report this review (#76699) | Posted by | Sunday, April 30, 2006 | Review Permanlink

4 stars Well, what to say about this masters with almost 30 years of trajectory. There is his new one, and I trusted them inmediatelly since I know "Trust" was the title of the record, because I know SAGA is warranty. And in fact, this album was risen from all the saga history to become one only modern a ... (read more)

Report this review (#74864) | Posted by | Thursday, April 13, 2006 | Review Permanlink

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