CANTERBURY SCENE

The first two tracks from Nottingham, 1990, are 'For Richard' and 'Nine Feet Underground' and, as another reviewer stated it does sound a bit out of place to hear these epic tracks so early into a set but nevertheless they sound utterly brilliant and not a beat is missed. These tracks really do set up the DVD and put you in the right mood for what you are about to see and hear. That is, some utterly perfect (Ca)nterbury Scene) prog by what I consider to be the very best players of such.

The excitement is amped up as we find ourselves with a front row seat in Trenton, New Jersey, USA for the next part of this medley.(Thanks for that, Easy Livin). A welcome sight to this stage is Geoffrey Richardson and his trusty viola! It doesn't take long until we we are treated to hearing him play. It's one of the reasons I became such an instant fan of Caravan. I did not know what a viola was back then, age 20 and not a fan of progressive Rock either. I was new to it all when a friend put a cassette into his machine and told me to listen. We sat there silently as this fantastic viola sound took me on a journey like no other. With David Sinclair's keyboard solo on 'The Dog The Dog..' well that was enough for me. I realised I had literally never heard such perfectly arranged and presented music in my life and all I wanted to do was hear more and fast!! And so began a life long love for all things 'Canterbury' and especially Caravan and Camel.

Getting back to this video, the next section after the wonderful 'Medley' (which contains some of my favourite tracks, featured from the 'Blind dog At St Dunstan's' album, a much dismissed or overlooked album though not by me as I simply love it!) We are now given the treat of some rather old and classic performances by the fresh faced young lads, and it is worth the DVD just to have these performances to rewatch & archive. Here we are treated to 'Magic man', 'Place of my own' and the great classic that is 'Golf Girl' .

In my opinion this DVD is a worthy addition to any Caravan fans collection and also would be a great first DVD of theirs to own. OK the quality is pretty poor in terms of video compression and all that tech stuff, but, more importantly the audio for the most part sounds good to great and there's no drop outs or hiss or anything.

In conclusion, A Great DVD! If you see it up for sale somewhere, grab it!

Replete with amazing ideas, 'Gazeuse!' is perhaps Gong's enticing reply to Soft Machine's increasing fusion pioneering and is an album that proves with certainty just how much musicianship, vision and novelty had been going on within the so-called Canterbury Scene. The music on here is driven and recognizable, focused and confident in itself, but also relentless and masterful in its execution - just embrace the dynamic jazz-rock sound of opening track 'Expresso', with its vibraphones and masterful interplay between Holdsworth's guitars and Malherbe's angular saxophone playing. The shorter track 'Night Illusion' is a guitar-driven composition with an overtly nocturnal feel, while the excellent 'Percolations' suite offers an ambient, percussion-loaded sound that gets really dreamy, spacey and tranquilizing in the first part, then anxious and unhinged in the second. Noteworthy for the use of mallet percussion instruments like the vibraphone, the glockenspiel, and the marimba, this is a signature track for Pierre Moerlen's Gong. Side two has Holdsworth's 'Shadows Of', an intense piece with gorgeous flutes and an all-around excellent drumming, followed by the quirky, groovy fusion piece titled 'Esnuria' and the closing track 'Mireille', originally a Magma song, that offers a quieter finale to an otherwise energetic, loud and prominent jazz-rock record. 'Gazeuse!' is nothing short of excellent, mesmerizing, and essential...

Caravan was one of the leading acts on the so-called Canterbury scene. But, out of all the Canterbury bands, Caravan was easily the most "accessible" and the best known. Their music almost defiantly neglected the complexity and goes more for a majestic, organ and acoustic based sound drawing on medieval influences as much as lush baroque tricks.

Caravan released their eponymous debut album in 1968, an album influenced by jazz and psychedelia. Their second album, "If I Could Do It All Over Again, I'd Do It All Over You" released in 1970, starts their classic period. The album is influenced by classical and jazz with traditional English influences. Their third album, "In The Land Of Grey And Pink" from 1971, is generally considered their greatest masterpiece. It's probably their most progressive album, which became a prog rock classic. Their fourth album, "Waterloo Lily" released in the following year, marks a clear step towards jazz. Their fifth album of 1973, "For Girls Who Grow Plump In The Night" marks another change, with a more symphonic approach of the band. We can say that with "For Girls Who Grow Plump In The Night" ends their classic era.

"Cunning Stunts" is the sixth studio album of Caravan and was released in 1975. The line up on the album is Pye Hastings (vocals and electric and acoustic guitars), Dave Sinclair (piano, Fender electric piano, organs, Mini Moog and Freeman String Symphonizer), Geoffery Richardson (viola, acoustic and electric guitars, Western concert flute, flute and night-shift whistle), Mike Wedgwood (vocals, bass and fretless bass, congas, Moog brass and string arrangements) and Richard Coughlan (drums and percussion). "Cunning Stunts" also had the participation of Jimmy Hastings (brass arrangement and conduction).

Despite "Cunning Stunts" still remains an impressive work. This is arguably their most uninspired material to date. The effort is certainly far from a total loss, but nowhere nearly is creative as all their five previous studio efforts. However, it shows that Hastings' love towards the most accessible, but well written and well established melodic material has not only increased through the years, but actually transformed him into a first rate composer. Nevertheless, it will be a big mistake to mention Hastings alone. In reality, he isn't even responsible for the majority of the compositions all over the album. The songwriting is more or less equally spread between him, Sinclair and new band member bassist Wedgwood.

"Cunning Stunts" has seven tracks. "The Show Of Our Lives" is a nice, mellow and pleasant opener. The bass guitar is strong and melodic, the vocals and harmonies are accomplished and the guitar adds just the right amount of beautiful playing over the top with some nice guitar soloing by Richardson. "Stuck In A Hole" is one of the most fun, energetic, and moderate tracks in the band's catalog. It's a fun, happy song that sticks in your brain while also featuring great playing and that semi-boogie rhythm. "Lover" is a gentle ballad with a nice guitar work that does finish off with some very lovely violin. It's less enjoyable than the previous two songs, just sounding like a standard mid 70's ballad without much distinction. "No Backstage Pass" is a pretty contemplative medievalist number with introspective and painful lyrics. This is a great song with its catchy upbeat chorus. It eventually ventures into a bit of jazz odyssey with some great soloing paired with a flux vocal. "Welcome The Day" is a great song with a funky Floydian groove. It sounds like its right out of the mid 70's Floyd songbook, with some nice and simple lyrics. Following the two slow previous songs it picks up the pace of the album, which is most welcome. "Dabsong Conshirto" is divided into: "The Mad Dabsong", "Ben Karratt Rides Again", "Pro's And Con's", "Wraiks And Ladders", "Sneaking Out The Bare Quare" and "All Sorts Of Unmentionable Things". This is the main piece on the album that was written by Sinclair. Whilst quite different of his previous opus "For Richard" from the "If I Could Do It All Over Again, I'd Do It All Over You", it does allow to confirm that Caravan is a very much underrated band. This is clearly the best track on the album, a real tour the force of the band, carrying many of the trademarks of them. It's at the same level of the suites performed on their previous albums. "The Fear And Loathing In Tollington Park" is a jaunty little acoustic folk guitar exercise that closes the album gently.

Conclusion: "Cunning Stunts" is another great Canterbury progressive release from Caravan mixing all the right elements throughout. Its songs range from more pop orientated (side A) to the side long epic "Dabsong Conshirto" which shows the more progressive side of Caravan, which is the main reason why I rate this album with 4 stars. Vocals are picture perfect with great harmonies and thoughtful backing vocals. The reason why I like "Cunning Stunts" is that it still carries all the main trademarks of classic Caravan. It's true that it isn't as good as the five previous studio works, and despite not belonging to Caravan's classic era, it's still worth purchasing. So, in summary, "Cunning Stunts" isn't Caravan at their very best but this is still a very beautiful album that is worth to be part of your prog rock collection.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

1. "Aubade" (1:51) the addition of guitars, courtesy of newcomer John Etheridge, is a game changer for this band--as demonstrated by this opening duet between Etheridge and Alan Wakeman, another newcomer. Sounds like the PAUL WINTER CONSORT to me. (4.375/5)

2. "The Tale of Taliesin" (7:17) piano arpeggi and symphonic rhythmic accents from drums and bass make this feel like a prog piece from a long-lost ELP-CAMEL collaboration. A three-part suite, upon hearing the fiery electric guitar work throughout the mid-section of this song is just weird (despite Allan Holdsworth's indomitable presence on Bundles): not the Soft Machine I think of when I conjure up the essence as my brain categorizes it. Interesting and well-made; it's very proggy (which is, in my opinion, quite a departure from the Jazz and Jazz-Rock Fusion explorations of the previous eight albums). (13.5/15)

3. "Ban-Ban Caliban" (9:22) establishing itself like a train starting up from a standing/loading position, this song has a foundational rhythm track that seems massive: like a blunt force projectile that has relentless and insidious power. Sax takes the first solo, then John Etheridge's soaring guitar. The song's power and drive is so like that of Jean-Luc Ponty's "Egocentric Molecules" (which is much more familiar to me) from his 1978 masterpiece, Cosmic Messenger that it adds fuel to my theory that Jean-Luc must have been a voracious devourer of music new to the Jazz and Jazz- Rock Fusion world and that he was not at all shy about borrowing ideas from others. Bass player Roy Babbington and drummer John Marshall even gets some shine in the third quarter before keys and rhythm guitar try to step in--but the rhythm section's momentum is simply too much for any interlopers or intruders. Monster song! (18.875/20)

4. "Song of Aeolus" (4:31) the sound of winds, bleeding over from the weather system that was the decay of "Ban-Ban Caliban," this song slowly establishes itself as a slow, emotive guitar-led song that foretells all guitar-centered New Age music of the next 20 years--especially that of Ray Gomez, Hiram Bullock, and Paul Speer. Beautiful if more Adult Contemporary/Smooth Jazz that Jazz-Rock Fusion. (9/10)

5. "Out of Season" (5:32) what starts out as piano and acoustic guitar duet that sounds a lot like the "New Age" music work of David Lanz and Paul Speer--even moreso as the song develops and the other musicians join in--as John Etheridge adds a track of electric guitar to the mix. Again: pretty and emotionally-engaging but a far stretch to call this either Jazz-Rock Fusion or Progressive Rock. (8.875/10)

6. "Second Bundle" (2:37) layered and looped keyboard experimentation that recalls some of the work Ratledge and Jenkins had done with their Terry Riley inspiration. Sounds nice. (4.4375/5)

7. "Kayoo" (3:27) another Five "D.I.S."-like display of percussion play from and for John Marshall. This one has a more defined transition to full-on drum kit play: John exhibiting more Billy Cobham-like skill at presenting "song" and "melody" than on previous solo attempts. Still, however, not a song that really stands well on its own. (8.667/10)

8. "The Camden Tandem" (2:01) John Etheridge's machine gun guitar spews forth a spray of notes to try to match/keep up with the snare play of Mr. Marshall. In the second half he pauses to inject some blues notes, chords, and scales before the two go off into machine gun territory again. (4.375/5)

9. "Nexus" (0:49) a bombastic lead in to . . .

10. "One over the Eight" (5:25) a funk jazz tune that Roy Babbington and John Marshall lead the band into so that Alan Wakeman can blow on his ultra-cool reverb sax. Etheridge and Jenkins's support is strongly aligned with what the funk requires as Wakeman kills it with his sax. If only Sanborn, Kenny G, and Najee had this kind of support crew--this kind of songwriting--and this kind of presence! What a great song! Makes me want to jump and dance till the cows come home! (9.75/10)

11. "Etika" (2:21) another acoustic guitar composition--this time performed on two guitars, over two tracks, by John Etheridge tout seul. I like the transition into John McLaughlin territory in the second half of the song. Well done! (4.75/5)

Total Time 45:13

The new members have helped The Soft Machine to usher in an entirely new and quite different sound. Here they have taken on a much more symphonic mantle manifesting a sound that is much more aligned with progressive rock than their old Canterbury or even Jazz-Rock Fusion leanings.

A-/five stars; another mixed bag of materiel that has some very new-feeling elements at use (including entering/pioneering the Adult Contemporary/New Age world as well as crossing over into more generic prog territory) but of a very high quality of compositional and performative maturity.

1. "All White" (6:06) opening the album with a very serious, very heavy jazz commitment, the music develops as something that could come off of one of Miles Davis' Second Great Quintet albums or one of Herbie (Hancock) or Wayne (Shorter)'s solo side projects. Though Hugh Hopper's bass is rather dull with its near-metronomic riff repeating over and over, Phil Howard's drumming is quite satisfactory. Mike Ratledge holds down the middle ground more as a mirror and reinforcement for the rhythm section (until the very end) while Elton Dean commands attention with his continuous play of his sonorous soprano sax. Interesting. (8.75/10)

2. "Drop" (7:42) water drop sound effects paired up with delay and echoing organ (Mike Ratledge) and Rhodes (Elton Dean) noodlings make this, to my mind, a further exploration or variation on the Terry Riley-inspired opening and closing sections of Third's "Out-Bloody-Rageous." In the third minute the rest of the band starts to join in and try to establish a syncopated quick-step motif within which Mike continues soloing à la Herbie Hancock while Elton Dean steps in with his kazoo-sounding "saxello" for an extended stream of electrified nasal fuzz play. Interesting. (13.125/15)

3. "M C" (4:57) an introductory barrage of echoing and reverberating electric piano runs is then greeted by Phil Howard's free-form drumming. In the second minute the quartet seems to want to try to pull something together but each musician seems to be, for whatever reason, reluctant: as if standing on the sidelines, watching one another while holding space with ramblings from their own instruments, waiting for the signal to gel and jump into a forward- moving direction. Despite its pervasive feeling of indecision and neutrality, I find myself liking this song quite a bit; it's like a lineup of race horses, caged in their starting gates, waiting for the gun to go off. (But it never does!) Very cool! Great way to end Side One! (9/10)

4. "As If" (8:02) by now I'm getting the distinct feeling that Elton Dean thinks that he's in charge--that this is his album as the "lead" instruments over the top of the relegated-feeling support of the "rhythm section" are overwhelmingly his. On this one it's the alto sax for the first five minutes before Roy Babbington's bowed double bass gets some extended shine (over Hugh Hopper's steady, hypnotic bass line). John Marshall's drumming stands out for its crisp, prominent sound, as well as for his quickness and decisiveness. Yet, despite the sharing of the spotlight, it definitely felt like Elton Dean's song--his decision to give newcomers Roy and John some time to "introduce" themselves. (13.25/15)

5. "L B O" (1:54) an eruption of drumming like something we've heard from Tony Williams and Billy Cobham. Though John Marshall is an impressive drummer, this is not a very winning solo. (4.3333/5)

6. "Pigling Bland" (4:24) a mellower, more-melody-driven near-Canterbury-feeling song in which the rhythmatists are allowed to shift and move, stop and start--and it works really well beneath Elton Dean's saxello soloing: giving the song a very interesting and engaging foundation and, perhaps, pressuring Elton to play something a little more melodic than he normally does. Cool speed shift and new motif for the last minute. I love the Nucleus effect! (9.25/10)

7. "Bone" (3:29) bowed double bass, bubbling electric bass, waves from cymbal crashes, and deep thrumming organ drone notes precede the introduction of some creepy spacey organ notes and "distant" piccolo/ocarina "jungle" noises. The feel here is both early Vangelis and early/proto World Music--perhaps even something inspired by the soundtrack to Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. Though I wish it could have developed a little more, I do like it. (8.875/10)

Total Time 36:34

Definitely not as bad an album as many reviewers want to claim: though I am glad the band did not choose to continue to forge a path through the dark woods of avant garde "free jazz," there is a lot of authentic jazz experimentalism going on in these songs--which is admirable for what feels like its genuine sincerity.

B/four stars; a solid collection of experimental jazz/Jazz-Rock Fusion tunes and études that connote advancement and progress for this band. This album result is not unlike some of the experimental albums we all know and lament that were released but we wish had been left in the artists' private libraries yet we also recognize were necessary for the artists' progress. Think Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Miroslav Vitous, Joe Zawinul, Tony Williams, Toto Blanke, Jan Hammer, John McLaughlin, Jan Akkerman, and many more and the experimental "duds" that they published (as songs or albums) but which served as stepping stones in their growth and development. That is what this album, Five feels like for me.

Side One: 1. "Nettle Bed" (4:47) a solid and suitably-nuanced, complex, oddly-timed composition which features Mike Ratledge's synthesizer as the main soloist. The main motif cycles around and around just a few too many times before it begins to annoy (despite John Marshall's attempts to liven things up). (8.75/10)

2. "Carol Ann" (3:48) a song that reveals that the band still possesses some of that "old" capacity for creating soul- melting earworm melodies. Mike and Karl on synthesizer and electric piano, respectively, while Roy adds some great melodic bass lines and John . . . sits out. Gorgeous; ascendant into the absolute highest realms that the Canterburians ever achieved. A perfect song to illustrate how unnecessary it is (or ever was) to have to noodle and layer impressively in order to make memorable, likable, and/or beautiful music. (9.3333/10)

3. "Day's Eye" (5:05) a more jazzy song that seems to be founded on a variation of the chord and melody structure of the previous song. Here we have bass, saxes, Canterbury "buzz-saw" organ, electric piano support, drums, and, early and later, excellent baritone sax. Like many reviewers, I much prefer the more jazz-aligned bass playing style of Roy Babbington over the nebulous one of Hugh Hopper. (9.125/10)

4. "Bone Fire" (0:32) seems to be a continuation from the previous (two) song(s), differentiated only by a barely- detectable key shift. (4.625/5)

5. "Tarabos" (4:32) another song in the obvious straight-line recording tape from "Carol Ann" on, this one features some processed oboe or soprano sax over a typical revolving cycle of a Mike Ratledge Canterbury theme. I still can't tell if it's a sax or oboe as we enter the final minute of my third headphones listen to this song--which is pretty extraordinary. My biggest complaint is the same one from the album's opener is the tedium created by the endless repetition of that main cycle--which is why I love the extended "end coda" feel of the final minute. (8.875/10)

6. "D.I.S." (3:02) a percussionist's solo which sounds like a Westerner playing around with the Japanese and or Chinese (or Gamelan) instruments available to him in a Zen Buddhist garden. Interesting but something that perhaps should have been left to John's own private library. (8.6667/10)

Side Two: The Penny Hitch Suite: 7. "Snodland" (1:50) dreamy Harold Budd-like floating electric piano arpeggi paired with wind chime play turns into . . . (4.5/5) 8. "Penny Hitch" (6:40) a minimalist arpeggio of an organ chord that is slowly woven together with TRAFFIC-like bass line, ballad rock drum support, and long-sustained processed (and muted) saxophone notes. Hypnotic but stumbles for its limitation to but two chords that only alternate every minute or so. (8.875/10) 9. "Block" (4:17) in this section of the unbroken flow of the suite Mike's synthesizer tries to match and emulate Karl's saxophone (and Roy's bass) lines! Then he takes over the lead as the band matches his new found fire and intensity. (8.75/10)

10. "Down The Road" (5:48) yet another attempt to stretch a simple yet-catchy drum and bass loop out to make an entire song--a trick that the great bassist John Lee and Donald Byrd's mid-1970s songwriters, Larry and Fonce Mizell, were prone to fall prey to. Not a bad song, just dull and doing little to climb out of its mediocrity. (8.75/10)

11. "The German Lesson" (1:53) 12. "The French Lesson" (1:01) the two songs that rather seamlessly flow one into the other remind me very much of some of the old silly stuff from the band's first two albums only this time filtered through the Terry Riley-imitative synthesizer delays and looping found in Third's "Out-Bloody-Rageous"--sounds and stylings that would become the realm of German artists like Rodelius, Cluster, and Dueter. (4.375/5)

Total Time: 43:15

B+/four stars; an excellent display of the evolution of a Canterbury band who thought it was playing jazz (albeit, a very British form of jazz) turning into more evolved jazz-rock Fusion musicians.

It is incredibly rare and impressive at the same time, for a person to wait literally a half a century to finally figure out the truth about their origins, a reality that has even intrigued my maternal mother's authenticity for decades, until her passing revealed the veracity of her plight. Something Central and Easter Europeans have been bedeviled with after the upheavals of two cataclysmic World wars. Needless to say, this is a revelatory epiphany of sorts, a final and peaceful reckoning that deserves on its own a standing ovation.

Jakszyk was born in 1958 in London, the son of Irish singer Peggy Curran and an unknown American airman (now we know its Glen Tripp). At 18 months of age, he was adopted by two European refugees Polish Norbert Jakszyk and his French wife, Camille. The young boy grew up in a childhood best described as unhappy; his adoptive parents' nationalities led to an unsettled home life. He explained, "There was a lot of confusion ? English was a second language for both of them, so although I could understand them both, they often couldn't understand each other ? it led to all sorts of daft misunderstandings and rows." Jakszyk was frequently in conflict with Norbert, although the two would reconcile later in life. In 1977, he tracked down his birth mother Peggy, who had settled in Arkansas; he and Peggy would eventually meet in 1984. Jakszyk would later reconstruct his complex family history in an extended radio piece, "The Road to Ballina". The instrumental "Ode to Ballina" opens up this album in mournful respect, piano and fluted Irishness combine with melancholia as Caroline Lavelle plays the cello as if a deliverance. Before moving into vocal territory on "Somewhere Between Then and Now", this set of songs are a deeply rooted personal set of declarations that merit perhaps more than usual attention to the lyrics, therefore I urge fans to consider reading the words throughout, to better empathize with the artist. Starting out pastoral and bucolic with a twist in the English style of Prog-Folk, the jazzy, sunshiny pace rapidly accelerates into the passionate stylistics the man is famous for. Jakko can sing beautifully and most convincingly, as well as playing exceptional guitar lines, that shy away from overt gratuitous displays. Gavin Harrison supplies his usual world-class syncopation on the next few tracks.

Paternal relationships can often be complicated, even in good times, as emotions do not always appear voluntarily, from both parties really. It's not easy being a father and neither is it being a son. There can be layers of pent-up guilt and aching regret, and 'an armoury of questions' on "How Did I Let You Grow So Old", as poignant elegy to the male interface as humanly possible. It's frankly emotive to the point of suffering. Norbert makes a cameo appearance that really seals the deal. Here once again, the smoky piano enhances the vintage veneer of history, a hushed voice exuding a multitude of feelings. The guitar/voice duet is stunningly pulled off, the forlorn cello adding age into the equation of meaning. Legacy track.

Love songs, you ask. Partnerships are not easy either, as some of us know full well. Often, romantic souls rely on parallel circumstances that provide a foundational comfort . On "This Kiss Never Lies", Jakko found that relief within the Irishness of her mother, so it should not come as a surprise that Louise Patricia is from Northern Ireland, and you know, the thin fine line between mother and wife becomes apparent. Musically and lyrically, this is one of his loftiest achievements, a perfect tune in a myriad of ways, heartfelt, honest and genuine, three attributes currently vying for top spot of disappearing species on the verge of extinction. He found the love of his life.

An electric guitar-led Reprise of "Ode to Ballina" acts as a change of pace intermezzo , and as such is a perfect foil to live it up a tad on "I Told You So", a more affirmative testament to the courage of fighting for resolution, never surrendering to despondence. Ian Mosley keeps the tempo pulsating and fresh, as if a renaissance of sorts is about to occur.

"Get A Proper Job" was something that must have stuck in the artist mind, when declaring as a teenager, I want to be a musician often brought about verbal thunder and lightning or maybe a volcanic eruption. Hungarian drummer Zoltan Csorsz of Flower Kings and Lifesigns repute handles the brief percussive banter. It doesn't last long, but neither did their relationship between son and father at the time.

The title track is not only the proggiest here, it's also the most significative of the story as we all discover who Glen Tripp really was. Django Jakszyk (son of Jakko) is on bass and Gavin shoves him along for the ride. Lest we forget that just because Jakko enjoys playing with Fripp, he still mans a wild guitar on his own merits and his display here matches his lead vocalist prowess, which were never in doubt anyway. Talk about salvation. An absolute corker of a track.

It took me multiple decades to realize why this particular artist had such a hold on my psyche, and the clue was there all along in the title of his solo album: The Romantic Glee Club. Yes, I am proud to admit I am and always will strive to be a hopeless romantic. His finest moment yet. Bravo, Jakko.

5 Ancestry trees