THOSE WHO ARE ABOUT TO DIE SALUTE YOU

The boom occuring in Britain in the 60's resulted in many a terrific band and even more outstanding pieces of music. From America the blues took hold of the Is,es and rock'n'roll became a british affair, dominating the development of music throughout the 1960's. That is my opinion, anyway. Firmly rooted in the blues bands started exploring the boundaries of the genre, expanding it's sound and eventually inventing both progregssive music and hard rock. Cream were probably the leader of the pack, alongside John Mayall, at least when discussing the progressive blues scene. There were other bands aswell, of course. Led Zeppelin, for instance, or Black Sabbath even, who despite being honoured with being the godfathers of metal, still recordeda debut containing alot of mainly seld written progressive blues numbers.

Colosseum was one of these bands and their bluesroots are obvious for anyone. Their approach is somewhat different though, than the bands previoulsy mentioned. First of all the horns are very dominant, making the music very rich, and then they merge genres without effort, it seems, making the music a strange but very appealing brew. Maybe it is their name but I feel there are notes dating back from the ancient world all the way up to the present. Maybe I am raving now.

The albumis pleasant enoughbut really not that amazing. Though I enjoy listening to it and comes back every now and then, I feel the music making not all that big an impression. It is well played and arranged but basically it is progressive blues. Behind all the horns, amazing organ et al the foundation is built around mainly standard blues, though written by the band. It might seem I'm not that keen on the music but I am. Like I said, it is pleasant, grooving and kicking but not so much more.

My favorite track is "Beware the ides of March", with it's warm atmosphere and amazing interplay. Being an instrumental they manage to paint a picture of the death of Julius Caesar, as I interpret the music. Dramatic, pompous and daring. Exraordinary and a hint for the future.

Conclusion: The first album by Colosseum is a progressive blues album and as such it is pleasant and enjoyable. If you want more progressive music than blues, go for the next album - Valentyne suite. This is a great beginning for a short lived band, making great progressive music in a blues/jazz setting. Great but not an outstanding album in any sense of the word.