PAINT A PICTURE

Well, I need to make that connection because I am afraid if I only make a review of this 1973 album that I knew only in recent years, I would tend to rate it higher to compensate my 'mistake' for not knowing the band for such a long time. I also want to avoid the 'halo effect' because of the feeling of peacefulness enjoying vintage record like this.

Composition-wise, nothing really spells out from this debut album of Fantasy. Each composition revolves around song approach where the music was most likely composed on top of previously written melody as typically pop song. In fact there are many pop elements in the music even though the music is much more to psychedelic prog. I may refer the music is in the vein of Procol Harum even though they are not precisely the same. But don't get me wrong, I do enjoy spinning this album especially with its vintage sound and simple composition. All of the ten tracks provided here have good to excellent melody as this is a song-orientated album.

The opening track 'Paint A Picture' (5:24) lays down the overall tone of the album nicely with an atmospheric opening using long sustain keyboard as background of vocals. It moves in soft to medium tempo. The key of the song is on vocal harmonies backed with long sustain organ / keyboard work. The electric guitar sometimes provide its solo. It's a psychedelic music, really. 'Circus' (6:18) is a nicely composed track with bass guitar providing the role of beet keeper combined with drums. The electric and acoustic guitar become a rhythm section that overlays keyboard sound. The interlude of the song is nice, exploring organ work backed with solid bassline and electric guitar fills. 'The Award' (4:52) brings the music back to mellow style with nice guitar work. The tempo is slow to medium. 'Politely Insane' (3:27) sounds like an unfinished pop song.

'Widow' (2:12) is a nice mellow track with catchy melodies and very nice acoustic guitar work accompanying vocal line. 'Icy River' (5:53) brings the music into much upbeat style at the opening part followed with a break using acoustic guitar work and organ sound. 'Thank Christ' (4:06) sounds like a ballad. 'Young Man's Fortune' (3:41) brings the music in upbeat mode with organ and guitar as main instruments on top of solid basslines. 'Gnome Song' (4:19) is a nicely composed song in dark nuance using a combination of piano and catchy acoustic guitar work accompanying the vocal line. The acoustic guitar work is excellent. The album concludes nicely with an ambient organ work that remarks the intro of 'Silent Mine' (4:39). The concluding track is an organ-driven composition.

Overall, this is a good album and will favor you if you really love vintage music. Composition-wise there is no complex track offered here, but I am sure you would enjoy the album. Keep on proggin' .....!

Peace on earth and mercy mild - GW

A rather unknown and much sought-after album in the past,''Paint a picture'' pays a tribute to the albums which established the early-70's UK Progressive sound,next to the likes of BARCLAY JAMES HARVEST and, mostly in this case,CRESSIDA.That means that this is carefully-performed well-orchestrated rock music with Pop-Psychedelic elements, but also delicate guitar playing,symph-like keyboards and a heavy amount of vocal arrangements.Similarities with CRESSIDA are undeniable.So,FANTASY deliver mainly song- based tracks with clear and sensitive vocals and tried to mix the British Psychedelic sound with a somewhat Orchestral Rock approach,obviously based on the strong use of keyboards,mainly Hammond organ and mellotron.The album is rather soft and flows nice and easy from track to track,additionally it contains some very good and memorable moments.However, while CRESSIDA belong to the early British Prog movement entering the 70's,FANTASY presented the same thing three years later,when progressive rock had already worn better-sounding clothes.

Totally unoriginal yet undoubtfully pleasant and enjoyable,''Paint a picture'' speaks to fans of the afore-mentioned prog pioneers,along with early CARAVAN or even GENESIS.Recommended.

"Paint A Picture" opens with soft vocals and organ, then a fuller sound comes in before a minute. Guitar before 3 minutes when the vocals stop. It settles right down with organ to end it. "Circus" is one of those songs I was talking about that just does it for me. It's kind of catchy and vocal-led early as the organ pulses. Guitar around 2 minutes after the vocals have stopped. Great sound when the vocals return after 3 1/2 minutes. Nice organ 5 minutes in followed by guitar.

"The Award" is my favourite tune on here. The vocals almost quiver and we get some vocal melodies too. It moves me for some reason. "Politely Insane" opens with strummed guitar then it kicks in quickly with vocals. "Widow" opens with melancholic guitar as reserved vocals join in. Piano and what sounds like violin too. "Icy River" has a good intro then it settles when the laid back vocals come in and the organ floats. "Thank Christ" slowly builds as strummed guitar and vocal melodies join in. Vocals after a minute. Mellotron in this one too. Nice guitar late. "Young Man's Fortune" kicks in quickly. I like the guitar before 3 minutes. "Gnome Song" is mellow with fragile vocals then mellotron. Drums after a minute. The tempo picks up with guitar. "Silent Mine" opens with organ and drums as reserved vocals join in. A drifting track really.

A good album with some really good songs. 3.5 stars.

Overall, this is still a good album, and I very much enjoy listening to songs such as Paint a picture (average song driven by vocal harmonies over a texture of acoustic guitar and Hammond), Circus (beautifully played all through, with well crafted dynamics, a decent guitar solo about 2mins into the song and great vocals), Politely Insane (Fantasy almost turning hard prog with this little uptempo gem), or The Widow (short sad song with acoustic guitar, cello and piano forming a nice background for the vocals melody). The second half of the album is much more ordinary than the first half, and at parts it gets quite boring (e.g., Thank Christ, Gnome Song).

3 stars, well deserved.

Ultimately, "Paint A Picture" is a great album if you like The Moody Blues, Barclay James Harvest, or Genesis: for you will certainly be a masterpiece. But it could be a better album without flaws that I have highlighted.

Although I think its reputation has been artificially boosted by its long period of unavailability, it's still a charming enough album which fans of the sound of the early prog scene will find delightful. At the same time, you can see why it may have been overlooked at the time - the prog scene had already moved on from the early incarnations of the genre that Fantasy harken back to (such as The Moody Blues, Family, and Genesis's Trespass, Bowie's 1969 album). I certainly wasn't too impressed by them initially - but I find that repeated listens reveal hidden depths which can be easily overlooked amidst the charming exterior.

I´m not saying that the music is bad. Not at all. First of all they are all very good musicians and they had a superb singer in the person of Paul Lawrence. The guy has a great voice. The instrumental parts are very well performed (with good use of the obligatory mellotron. although less than desired), and the production is excellent. There are several good cuts like the heavy MB´s influenced Politely Insane, Unfortunalty there are other not as interesting tracks too, boring even, but none is crap. The overall feeling is that the band was a late arrival in the pop-symphonic-psychedelic bandwagon of the late 60´s.

So, in the end, the feeling is pleasant, but nothing special ou memorable. However, if you like the aforementioned bands, you shold check this CD.

The album opens in dramatic style with the title track "Paint a Picture". The song features the magnificent distant-sounding rock organ, together with emotionally uplifting vocals and a gently rising crescendo of sound which puts the listener in an ebullient mood and makes a perfect introduction to what is a marvellous album. The second song on the album "Circus" continues in considerable style with some echoey-sounding vocals, intricate guitar playing and powerful drumming backed by the beautiful symphonic sound of the Mellotron. Track 3 "The Award" features plaintive-sounding vocals combined with a gentle melody which gathers in intensity as the song progresses. The song is another memorable addition to a fine album. Track 4 "Politely Insane" is an upbeat and uptempo number which chugs along joyfully at an impressive pace with some strident guitar chords. In a pleasant contrast of style, the next song "Widow" is a brief, gently melodic lament, as the song title implies, and nicely fits into the album as a whole. Track 6 "Icy River" is another memorable number with plenty to keep the listener entertained, including heavenly vocals, the ever-present sound of the powerful rock organ and some skilful and melodic guitar leads. Track 7 "Thank Christ" continues in similar fashion with a feel-good, uplifting sound and featuring some stylish vocal harmonies. Track 8 "Young Man's Fortune" is a real powerhouse of a song, featuring a throbbing rhythm section and sonorous organ playing. The album returns to a mellower mood in the first half of the penultimate number "Goblin Song", coming to life in marvellously-uplifting style for the finale. The final song "Silent Mine" features a religious-sounding organ combined with ethereal vocals to produce a very memorable conclusion to a superb album as a whole.

This melodic masterpiece of an album deserves pride of place in any Prog-Rock enthusiast's music collection. It's an album of contrasting styles which never fail's to maintain the listener's interest. A classic example of early-1970's English Symphonic Prog at its best.