LAST FLIGHT

"Flight" is TAÏ PHONG's 3rd album from 1977 and was aply titled as it was the last album recorded by this original band. Although I suppose you would say that this album is definitely more accessible than their first two brilliant albums, "Last Flight" also shines in its own light. Gone is the obvious "YES" and "PINK FLOYD" allusions, but is replaced with more of a Canterbury feel (aka CARAVAN) and AOR Prog (aka 10CC). TAÏ PHONG were Jean- Jacques Goldman (vocals & guitars), Khanh (vocals & guitars), Michael Jones (bass, vocals), Pascal Wuthrich (keyboards) and Stephan Caussarieu (drums). It is really sad that these guys did not really become as big as was their music and all the TAÏ PHONG albums are fantatsic and unique in color and texture. 2 longer songs on this album are very recognizeable as "Tai Phong" "Last Flight" and "Farewell Gig In Amsterdam" which are given lots of room to be explored and carry a very classic progressive feel to them. Overall "Last Flight" is a fun album to listen to and essential if you are a fan of TAÏ PHONG.

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Posted Sunday, November 21, 2004 | Review this album | Report (Review #33172)

I wonder why they have released this record only 3 years after their previous one. Or this is a posthumous album? OK, this is another TAI PHONG album, but you won’t find the words like “different” or “challenging” in this review. “Last Flight” proves that this band was one of the first to ring in the Neo-prog bell (this fact only strengthens my sympathy to them). If you already have first two from them , get this one without hesitation. I haven’t heard “Sun” (2000), but pretty sure that nothing have changed there as well. YES met FLOYD, and they’ve got a baby. Yes, a baby – there were no clones in those times :) .

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Posted Sunday, August 5, 2007 | Review this album | Report (Review #131817)

I discovered "Tai Phong" in 1975 thanks to their very good debut album. But it seems that the band produced most of their best songs with this album. The follow-up "Windows" was weaker in terms of compositions and this one is just a poor album. As the cover could already indicates.

Just listen to "End of an End". The pity is that it is the opening song. If this one is just as bad, the worse can be expected from the others. At times vocals are pretty bad. Whatever you may like Goldman or not (but he is not singing all of them).

There won't be many highlights on this album. "Farewell Gig in Amsterdam" sounds to jazzy to my ears to be attractive. But the problem is more global. Actually, most of the songs are useless and when you listen to "Sad Passion" you just can be glad that it lasts for less than four minutes. Awful.

It is very painful to listen to this album from start to finish. I am desperately waiting for something outstanding but it seems hopeless. Their symphonic oriented music of their debut is totally forgotten. Just boring jazz stuff for most of it like "Thirteenth Space".

My last hopes reside in the title track "Last Flight". Almost ten minutes. Finally, some true symphonic moments. Mainly on the guitar. But these short breaks can't make a good album. This song is a mix of some "Yes" oriented parts combined with dull moments. Just an average song actually. Vocals are pretty poor. And forget about "How Do You Do" which is another uninspired song.

I am afraid that I can only use the one star rating for this "Last Flight". Don't bothe rwith this album. It is totally useless.

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Posted Friday, October 19, 2007 | Review this album | Report (Review #145980)

The Vietnamese-French combination known as TAI PHONG was cursed by their early success due largely to the single "Sister Jane" from their first album. While it was an effective pop ballad with progressive arrangements and sold very well, it insisted upon itself for the next few years, with several mediocre clones appearing on 45 and the "Windows" album, resulting in a musical schism between these and their symphonic progressive epics. By the time of the aptly titled "Last Flight", the band had lost their ability to write and perform effectively in both realms. Instead we are subject to undistinguished late 1970s rock reminiscent of SUPERTRAMP, CITY BOY or KAYAK. Through the course of this thankfully brief exercise, a few passages stand out here and there, particularly on the two longest tracks, courtesy of Michel Gaucher's tenor saxophone and Pascal Wuthrich's jazzy piano, but the overall effort is rather unrewarding. As for the shorter tracks, well, they aren't "Sister Jane" wannabes but are otherwise just as banal, with the best probably being the Asian sounding "Thirteen Space" or the sappy closer describing the birth of the singer's daughter in somewhat cloying and egotistical terms that are thankfully eclipsed by the overall novelty of the perspective. Like many swan songs from the time period. "Last Flight" was ultimately not the last word by the band, but it signaled their crash landing as a commercially viable band, while prog fans won't salvage much from the wreckage.

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Posted Sunday, July 3, 2016 | Review this album | Report (Review #1584632)

I discovered TAÏ PHONG in 2020 with their self-titled album. As a french I was really pleased to see a band from our country able to compete with the international prog scene. This is the last album with Jean-Jacques Goldman before he began his successful career in the 80s. I love most of the songs ... (read more)

Report this review (#2579028) | Posted by FCM_99 | Thursday, July 15, 2021 | Review Permanlink

This is not the best album of the band and the transition towards the pop-rock world is perceptible at several levels; the line-up is different than on the two previous albums, the first sign of the fracture being guitarist, singer and keyboardist Tai Sihn leaving the band (and with him a part ... (read more)

Report this review (#488047) | Posted by Music By Mail | Thursday, July 21, 2011 | Review Permanlink

Tai Phong's last album before a long haitus (which they then did the excellent Sun album). This album is not as strong as it's predecessors (both masterpieces to my ears) but it still contains some excellent moments. The title track "Last Flight" is just as good/solid as anything they did ... (read more)

Report this review (#279295) | Posted by progbaby | Saturday, April 24, 2010 | Review Permanlink

This album seems heavily underrated. I find it better than the second Taï Phong album because it is richer in melodies. The only low points are the side closers ("Sad Passion", "How do you do"), which are a little overlong pop songs, but I find that the melodies are still entertaining. "Thirteen ... (read more)

Report this review (#222216) | Posted by guillaumeh | Sunday, June 21, 2009 | Review Permanlink

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