FLY FROM HERE - RETURN TRIP

I thought Fly From Here was fantastic when it was released in 2011. Other than the inclusion of a bonus track and an extended version of one of the original songs, the real difference between the original and this 2018 version is that Trevor Horn's vocals have replaced those of Benoît David. Other modifications have been made, but the contributions of Steve Howe (guitar and vocals), Chris Squire (bass and vocals), Alan White (drums), and Luís Jardim (percussion) have not been altered, although they are mixed differently, and in a few cases, different takes seem to have been used. Keyboardist Geoff Downes re-did at least some of his 2011 parts, but I don't think I could tell you which ones.

Horn's vocals aren't as good as David's, but they're OK, so, it's hard for me to rate Fly From Here - - Return Trip as if it's an entirely different album from the original. I awarded the original Fly From Here four stars a couple of years ago, but have since decided that it deserves five. I'm giving Fly From Here - - Return Trip just three stars and rationalizing it the following way.

First, older is not better, even in a genre which many of its adherents consider to be forty years past its peak. Of course, this isn't a case of old vs. new; really, it's just two versions of the same album - - and yet one was indeed released six or seven years earlier than the other. Considering Fly From Here - - Return Trip on its own merits, never having heard the original, I'd award five stars. But Return Trip isn't sufficiently different or definitive to consider as a separate work. Five Prog Archives stars means "essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music," and, as I do consider this work a masterpiece, five stars is appropriate for the original Fly From Here. Three stars indicates "good, but non-essential." I'm considering Fly From Here - - Return Trip not essential because of the availability of the original. If the 2011 Fly From Here were to go out of print, I'd probably have to consider changing my rating here. Luckily, given how cheap it is to keep digital albums in print, this doesn't seem likely.

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