TALES FROM A BOOK OF YESTERMORROW

A one-album Italian project,led by ex-Arti E Mestieri keyboard wizard/producer Beppe Corvella,who had created several one-shot projects around the time.Tower were actually a trio,featuring female vocalist Paola Mei and drummer Elio Rivagli and Crovella's aim this time was to marry song-oriented material with Classic Progressive Rock.Their only album with the bizarre title ''Tales from a Book of Yestermorrow'' was released in 1994 on Vinyl Magic (owner of which is Crovella himself).

The album opens with the long ''There Is Music Left To Be...Write!'',an excellent Symphonic Rock piece with great melodies,nice performance by Mei and heavy doses of organ and mellotron- choir by Crovella,definitely a highlight of the album.''Ann'' is a more straight romantic piece with extremely sensitive vocals but certainly some great and intricate work by Crovella on organ,synths and piano.With ''The box'' the quality drops,Tower sound like a bad DEEP PURPLE clone with no guitars and a female singer and what saves the track is the obscure middle part drenched with the mellotron sound.With '' Sailing Too Long'' my intial suspicions were a fact,the band now sounds a lot like mid-80's ZAUBER,decent Classical-influenced Prog buried under cheap synth parts and typical 80's-sounding production,while the chorus seems like taken from a musical.''For A Moment Of Love'' is a very good follower,actually a grandiose ballad,opening with mellotron and offering a very good performance by Mei.''In My Life'' recalls the worst side of ZAUBER or the sound of the Italian Prog bands during late-70's,an accesible yet melodramatic ballad with bad-sounding keys.The album will close with its only instrumental track ''Rondo'',a personal moment of Corvella filled with piano,organ,synths and mellotron with plenty of Classical,Fusion and Jazz influences.

What was the aim of Corvella under this project is interpretated to what most of the prog bands were trying between mid-80's and early-90's.To combine somewhat complex instrumental prog passages with fairly commercial sounding choruses and structures.The result this time is decent most of the time but not even close to the meaning of real progressive rock.Anyway,this one comes recommended to fans of Neo/Symphonic Rock with strong hints of commercial music.