PRISONERS ON THE LINE

Three and a half stars. This definitely is Magna Carta's most accomplished work after Lord Of The Ages. The majority of Side one is made up of the Prisoners On The Line conceptual piece, great narration from Robin Ellis. Magna carta were always keen on narratives on ther more epic progressive releases but they definitely chose a winner with Ellis who begins the ' Soliquay' after ' Overture' The musicianship comes together on this release as a focussed and cohesive sound' Wild Horses' has some great bass work from Roy Babbington. ' Ain't no Turning back' homes in on our thoughts of a lifetime, nostagia and leaving it behind.' Faces Of London' is a wonderful track, dreary and depressing with Chris Simpson working his fine voice to a cloudy overcast, grey mood.' When You Fall' has a rollicking " I Told You So" feel to it and I am pretty sure Emil Zjhbz handles the vocal department on this one. Robin Ellis more or less concludes the suite with ' Soliquay 2'

The second half of the album is another patchy composition of tracks but their quality holds up much better to give a more consistent feel to this 1978 release. Songs like ' Idle Wind' and the beautiful ' In Tomorrow' ensured that Magna Carta had not given up the ghost yet. Highly recommended.