STARDUST WE ARE

I have a friend named Steve. He and I worked in college radio together, in the 1970s prog tidal wave days. In the 1980s, he was the best man at my wedding, and I was at his. Somehow Steve stayed in touch with the prog genre in the 80s and 90s when radio moved away from it, before the Internet made it so easy to stay informed. We both obtained home Internet service around 1999, and began chatting via email. Sometime in 2002 he recommended that I should buy Stardust We Are, saying it was a terrific achievement by The Flower Kings, a Swedish band that was unfamiliar to me.

So I ordered Stardust We Are on CD in late December 2002. It showed up just in time for our weekend road trip in January. The son of my wife's cousin was getting married in Richmond VA, about a hundred miles south, in early January. I was to be the wedding photographer, and our youngest daughter was to be the flower girl. So on an ice-cold Friday night we rolled down I-95 to Richmond in two cars, checked into a fine hotel just downhill from the state capitol building, and attended the wedding rehearsal at the University of Richmond Chapel. We used two cars because my daughter and I had to stick to the event schedule, and my wife and our other kids did not.

After the wedding ceremony, and the reception on Saturday night, we decided on the spur of the moment to visit my relatives in Hopewell, about 35 miles away. After that side trip, we headed home at about 11:30 at night, a drive of about 2.5 hours. The kids were sleeping in the van. I remembered that I had new music to audition, and no slumbering passengers to disturb. I pulled out Stardust and began listening.

Wow, what a recording. There are some fascinating tunes here, full of the energy, pomp and wonder that marks top quality prog. Lots of swings back and forth between major and minor modes, another strength of good prog. I listened to the title track, a 24 minute tour de force, three times on the way home. The central vocal segment absolutely shines, conveying that sense of wonder very brightly. Overall the composition is tight, a surprise for a long song, and very enjoyable. The Kings nailed it.

Other highlights:

Circus Brimstone, full of madness and humor.

Poor Mr. Rain's Ordinary Guitar, an acoustic guitar instrumental duet, gentle and charming. The Man Who Walked with Kings, an instrumental featuring a simple, light-hearted acoustic melody transitioning to hot soaring electric guitar, almost precisely what Genesis would have done in the Gabriel era. A great companion for After the Ordeal.

Church of Your Heart, dominated by harmony vocals, grand to the max.

Another very welcome surprise: various melodic themes from the title tune worked their way into many of the other tunes on Disk 2. Pipes of Peace is a standout, Tomas Bodin on church organ revisiting the vocal highlight of Stardust. This was probably developed for possible inclusion in Stardust, but it stands very well on its own.

I also especially enjoy the smooth jazz of Don of the Universe.

There are weaker tunes included, yes, but few compared to the highlights. I give this album 4 stars, because I think 5 would be warranted only if there were no weak tunes.

On my iPhone: Pipes of Peace, Don of the Universe, Different People, In the Eyes of the World, Church of Your Heart, Poor Mr. Rain's Ordinary Guitar, The Man Who Walked with Kings, and Circus Brimstone. Stardust omitted only because the file is so darned big!

For the same reason I have not included Close to the Edge or In Held Twas In I or Supper's Ready or Tubular Bells or Awaken on the iPhone, all epic songs that I admire greatly. Stardust joined that list on that late-night drive in 2003.

Thanks Steve.

I have since picked up most of the Flower Kings releases. This CD remains their strongest work IMHO.