THE SNOW GOOSE (RE-RECORDING)

I must admit I am not terribly fond of Camel as a band. I find most of their music pleasant and orderly, but maybe a tad too orderly .. too docile to be hanging out at the wild prog party. I have all of their early albums on LP's, but I haven't listened to the Moonmadness and Mirage for years .. just not stimulating enough to justify the bother of pulling the records out of the jackets.

The Snow Goose stood out. I play it regularly, an especially enjoy the live version. My only problem with the original 1975 (or 76) Snow Goose was its somewhat syrupy delivery of somewhat trite melodies, which diluted the merits of their solid musicianship.

I didn't expect Camel to re-record the Snow Goose, but I am glad they did. Because they surely fixed the "little problems" of the earlier versions. The music sounds distinctively edgier, more assertive, and not trivial at all. The Snow Goose has evolved from what I'd call "symphonic pop" into "borderline modern classical", which is a big deal for me :)

For someone who likes this kind of music, it may be a good investment to get this new version, even if you have the 1970s one (s).