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FUCHSIA II - FROM PSYCHEDELIA ... TO A DISTANT PLACE

Fuchsia

Prog Folk


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Fuchsia Fuchsia II - From Psychedelia ... To A Distant Place album cover
3.93 | 23 ratings | 2 reviews | 13% 5 stars

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Studio Album, released in 2013

Songs / Tracks Listing

1. Melancholy Road (4:23)
2. The Girl From Kandahar (4:25)
3. Lost Generations (4:16)
4. Fuchsia Song (4:14)
5. I'll Remember Her Face, I'll Remember Her Name (3:43)
6. Rainbow Song (5:19)
7. Crossing the Big C (4:51)
8. The Waves (3:21)
9. Piper At The Gates (4:31)

Total Time 39:03

Line-up / Musicians

- Tony Durant / acoustic & electric guitars, bass, lead vocals, composer

With:
- Tracy Wan / violin
- Lidia Bara / violin
- Emily Duffill / cello
- Jo Bara / cello
- Suzy Toomey / accordion
- Lloyd Gyi / drums, percussion
- Isabel Durant / backing vocals

Releases information

CD Sound Practices ‎ (2013, Australia)

LP Fruits de Mer Records ‎- crustacean 82 (2017, UK)

Digital album

Thanks to mbzr48 for the addition
and to projeKct for the last updates
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FUCHSIA Fuchsia II - From Psychedelia ... To A Distant Place ratings distribution


3.93
(23 ratings)
Essential: a masterpiece of progressive rock music(13%)
13%
Excellent addition to any prog rock music collection(65%)
65%
Good, but non-essential (17%)
17%
Collectors/fans only (0%)
0%
Poor. Only for completionists (4%)
4%

FUCHSIA Fuchsia II - From Psychedelia ... To A Distant Place reviews


Showing all collaborators reviews and last reviews preview | Show all reviews/ratings

Collaborators/Experts Reviews

Review by kenethlevine
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Prog-Folk Team
4 stars Obscured by the obscure, beneath the vault of unlikely one off releases, stoically lies the vault of unlikely sequels to those unique denizens. Among those, few could rival this 2013 effort by FUCHSIA, on which only original leader Tony Durant remains. The 1970s version offered an appealing folksy take on Canterbury, and its followers were few. The CD re-releases probably did more to advance the steps towards reformation than any fan groundswell, as many became aware of the group for the first time. Since most sequels suffer by comparison, and 40+ years had passed, what could we expect? Not a lot, right?

Yet here we have one of the more fulfilling comebacks I can remember. I don't know how Durant has done it but he has managed to incorporate the acoustic whimsy and vivacious strings of that long ago chestnut and modernized it without plasticizing it. The songs are more instantly appealing as befits the modern era, but the themes are more serious, with an unanticipated immediacy. The arrangements are less airy than those of long ago, reflecting a density that permeates our lives with time and responsibility. No more ditties about flying kites! One of the most enjoyable aspects is Durant's insistence in taking his time throughout this release; you either take your time too or you will miss out, and that's a life lesson I think.

The best tracks here are the first 4, all brilliant, tackling all manner of modern subjects, from urban alienation in "Melancholy Road" to the clash of women's basic rights with religious extremism in "Girl from Kandahar" to isolation amidst ultimate connectivity in "Lost Generations", all arranged sympathetically There is even an memoir of sorts in "Fuchsia Song", one that anyone old enough to look back through a smoky lens can appreciate. Still, it's probably "Rainbow Song" that not only attaches both eras but ties a chromatic bow around them. The final piece, "Piper at the Gates", is also noteworthy, including a searing guitar solo as Durant explores individual and combined legacies in the face of change.

This eminently enjoyable and, we can now say, long overdue, release does not so much fill in the gaps between where Mr Durant was and where he is, but instead includes us all as passengers and participants, whether we began our journey in wartime, boom time, the psychedelic era, in the internet age, or anywhere in between. Highly recommended..

Review by kev rowland
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Honorary Reviewer
4 stars Last year I came across the debut Fuchsia album, from 1971, which had just been reissued and given lots of love by the wonderful Fruits de Mer Records. I fell in love with it, wrote a review, but never expected to hear any more. I mean, this was a band who released just one album more than 40 years ago. Imagine my surprise when I was contacted a few months ago by singer, guitarist, bassist and composer Tony Durant, who wondered if I might like to hear the follow-up? Yes there was a second album, subtitled 'From Psychedelia To A Distant Place', which was released on CD in 2013 and then in vinyl by F de M in 2017. Tony was the only survivor from the early days, and he now lives in Australia so is nearly a neighbour to me, but in many ways, this is very much a sequel.

The feel of Canterbury is still there, strings very much a key part of the overall sound, elements of ISB, loads of acoustic guitar but also enough electric to provide cut through at the right times, but at front and centre is Tony's voice and some wonderful tunes. It took me a long time to work out exactly who Tony was reminding me of, apart from his own work of course, and that is the mighty Ashley Hutchings. Like Ashley he is a master of whatever genre or style he is playing, and whatever song I am listening to is the one I favour most ? which makes it really hard to write a review I can tell you! I don't know how long Tony has been in Sydney, but this is a fully idiosyncratic English album, and if someone told you that this was recorded straight after the first one then it wouldn't take much persuasion. That the songs are also new as opposed to ones being dusted off which were written all those years earlier shows that Tony has lost none of his skills over the years.

At the end I only really have one question, and that is given this was originally came out in 2013 and would have been boosted by the vinyl reissue a few years ago, can we have the third now please? This is class music, which drips with quality and substance, full rich oak as opposed to the plasticity and false nature of so much music in the world today. For lovers of prog folk, who wish for the psychedelic naivety, which is often missing these days, and also for anyone who just wants to relax into something very special indeed.

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