DELANE LEA STUDIOS 1973

This 'live in the recording studio" recording sessions recorded at the celebrated De Lane Lea U.K. recoding studios for radio broadcast on an unstated radio station in 1973, was performed right on the heels of Renaissance finishing their second studio album containing the mark II "Annie Haslam" lineup.

Recorded in the company of both friends and family, the group seems usually enthusiastic and performs the material from Ashes are Burning technically perfect, which they do well without any orchestral support.

This album stays close to the Ashes are Burning numbers and includes a live version, for the first time that I'm of aware of, the beautiful melancholy At The Harbor. Another rare gem includes another rarely performed live song, Prolouge's Sounds of the Sea which the band executed flawlessly.

AAB starwarts include the evergreen Can You Hear Understand? along with the killer closing track with Andy Powell reprising his lead electric guitar role that contributed to the studio version. British folk stalwart Al Stewart also adds backing vocals this epic closer.

My only and really subsequent complaint regarding this album is that it seems to be "booted" from what has now become common practice to re-issue source tape copies after the original owners of the producing radio stations have folded and become public domain. The sound quality is a bit thin but passable as is common from masters originating from this type of source tape, and as usual, has a louder than normal level of type hiss on a couple of songs.

As there are no copyright or copyright pending notations in the liner notes, this is probably the case.

The tape is also mastered from what sounds like a multi generation that has some loud extraneous noise for few seconds near the coda of Ashes are Burning.

Not a bad album per se, but there are of course other 'live in the studio albums' that are much better like the now out of print Renaissance At The BBC. If you see the BBC Sessions album for a good price, grab it and run like hell.