Waiting For The Sun (78)

Six Wives of Henry VIII (73), Journey to the Center of the Earth (74), Myths and Legend of King Arthur (75), Lisztomania Sndtk (75), White Rock Sndtk (76), No Earthly Connection (76), Criminal Record (77), Rhapsodies (79), 1984 (81), The Burning Sndtk (81), Rock n' Roll Prophet (82), G'ole (83), Cost of Living (83), Black Nights in the Court of Ferdinand IV (84), Silent Nights (85), Live at Hammersmith (85), Creepshow II Sndtk (??), Country Airs (86), Crimes of Passion (86), The Gospels (87), Family Album (87), Time Machine (88), Zodiaque (88), Heritage Suite (??), Sea Airs (89), Private Collection (??), Suite of Gods (89?), Night Airs (90), Phantom Power (90), African Bach (91), Aspirant Sunrise, Aspirant Sunset, Aspirant Sunshadows (91), The Classical Connection (91), The Classical Connection II (??), 2000 AD Into the Future (91), Softsword (91), Wakeman w/ Wakeman (92), No Expense Spared (93), Classic Tracks (93), Greatest Hits (93), The Official Bootleg (94), Light Up the Sky (94)

Sea Airs (1989) contains the type of music that represents the good side or best of what is called "New Age" music. It is part of a piano trilogy (Country Airs, Sea Airs, Night Airs), and is very pleasant, almost soothing stuff. You can relax or study to it or whatever... Nothing spectacular, just an imaginative and musically successful disc from The Rick Wakeman New Age Collection. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about the release A Suite of Gods (1988?), also part of Rick's New Age recordings. This almost intolerable music is a Tenor Opera sung in English (badly) by a Ramon or Remedios or somebody. At any rate, I just can't find much of any redeeming quality in this album. For me, it ranks (reeks) at the bottom of all of Rick's vast output. Perhaps if you "dig" this type of music especially, you might not rate it as Rick's worst (but again, it's not that good within the genre, either). I love Rick's work (even many "undervalued" ones like the recent Classic Tracks (1993). I just can't stomach A Suite of Gods, and wanted to warn Rick fans: BEWARE!... -- James Warren

Rick Wakeman, keyboardist extraordinare, has had a quite prolific and varied solo career. Most are familiar with his first, and possibly best, the Six Wives of Henry VIII. Recorded when he was in Yes, it showcases his ability as a keyboardist, writer, and arranger. His second and third releases are also considered classics of his repetoire, but denounced by some as being too "pretentious," since they use full orchestra and choir. Journey to the Center of the Earth is based on the Jules Verne novel of the same name, and was recorded live. It mixes instrumental tracks, vocals, and narration to form a grand concept album. One weakness felt by some is Wakeman's poor choice of vocalists. Arthur, while similiar in scope, is a studio recording. It is musically strong, recounting tales of knights and such. Some great keyboards here. Lisztomania is the soundtrack to a film by Kurt Russel, starring Roger Daltry. It is a rock opera about Liszt. White Rock is the soundtrack to a film about the 1976 winter olympics. This is one of his stronger efforts, made up of all instrumental keyboard type pieces. Great minimoog jamming on the title cut. In '76, his group was called the English Rock ensemble, and was pared down from a full orchestra to standard rock instrumentation plus a few horns. No Earthly Connection is a strange album. It is supposed to be about the universality of music, or something like that. It's kind of strange, and musically kind of cheesy. However, in '77 saw him return to Yes and return to form. Criminal Record is one of his best releases, helped by Alan White and Chris Squire. Six pieces having to do with criminal justice, it showcases Wakeman at his best. A great keyboard album. His swansong with A&M records, Rhapsodies, is a mixed bag. It has some great uptempo keyboard songs (including his version of "Rhapsody in Blue"), and a couple nice piano ballades, but also included are some cheesy/goofy pieces that you'll want to skip over. Since it is a two album set, he should have put the best cuts onto one record. Would have made it much better. Throughout the '80s and '90s, he has put out many things ranging from concept albums, modern rock, new age keyboards, and solo piano. Here are descriptions of most of these albums, by a few different people:

1984: This is a conceptual album based on the novel of the same name. One of the tracks features vocals by Jon Anderson, and the lyrics are, as below, by Tim Rice. The music has a "rockier" edge than Cost Of Living, but there is no shortage of Wakeman's lead and chord work on keyboards. Features full orchestra on some cuts. Vocals provided by Chaka Khan and Jon Anderson, a few instrumental. One of his better '80s output.
Cost Of Living: This effort seems to somehow bridge the gap between the earlier symphonic, conceptual works, and the later, keyboard-rock releases. The music contains snatches of vintage Wakeman, with dramatic keyboard passages, and wall-of-chords. The lyrics are by Tim Rice, and reflect his background in composition for theatre/musicals. The CD concludes with a narration of Thomas Gray's "Elegy - Written In A Country Churchyard" over a keyboard background, and makes for a compelling ending. In conclusion, anyone who enjoys Wakeman's work will probably enjoy this CD.
Black Knights At The Court Of Ferdinand IV: Featuring the operatic Italian vocals of Mario Fasciano and the multi-keyboards of Wakeman, this work is quite reminiscent of much of the Italian progressive music of the seventies. The keyboards are much in the forefront, with echoes of Wakeman's work on Six Wives ... and ... King Arthur... coming to mind, with a more digital sound, on certain tracks. Parts of the CD also sound like PFM-meets-Tangerine Dream (I kid you not!). An excellent piece of work that should not disappoint Wakeman-philes.
Night Airs: The final work in his trilogy of solo piano excursions, providing conclusive evidence of Wakeman's virtuosity on the piano. All the tracks are very well developed, with a strong nod to classical composition techniques, mixed in with melodic rock influences.
Family Album is a simple, new age album. The pieces are named after all the members of his family (wife, mom, dad, kids, pets). They are based around piano, with simple synth orchestration. One piece (NIna) would later be re-done with lyrics as "The Meeting" from the AWBH album.
Phantom Power "The music on this CD was composed and recorded especially for a 1990's relaunch of the 1925 Universal Screen version of "Phantom Of The Opera"...operatic rock to fearful ballads, covering the spectrum of moods that encompassed the 90 minute epic," (quoted from the liner notes) describes the music on this CD quite well. There are tracks with vocalists, and short instrumental tracks, all of which are dominated by the melodic keyboard work of Wakeman. It is similar in spirit to the recent Freudiana soundtrack by Eric Woolfson and the Alan Parsons Project, and at times is reminiscent of mid-to-late-period Mike Oldfield, a la Five Miles Out and Islands.
The Classical Connection: Fusing the concepts of his piano solo trilogy with his past, Wakeman presents virtuosic piano arangements of many of his classics, augmented by the spare guitarwork of David Paton. Including many of his "hits," such as "Catherine Of Aragon," "Merlin The Magician," and a couple that I cannot recall seeing on earlier releases, such as "Elgin," this is the latest offering from Wakeman on the UK Ambient label.
Aspirant Sunrise/Aspirant Sunset/Aspirant Sunshadows/Classical Connection II/African Bach: the "Aspirant" series consist of more...er...meditative music, gentle compositions featuring keyboards and piano. Classical Connection II is a follow-up to the first one, and features piano with minimal accompaniments, except on a couple of fully orchestrated tracks and also includes a version of "Birdman Of Alcatraz" from Criminal Record. African Bach features vocal-fronted keyboard rock, similar in style to the 1984 and Cost Of Living releases, but seemingly more aggressive.
The Private Collection: As the title implies this is a collection of Wakeman's music. However, only two of the titles are from releases that I know, while the remaining seven are new to this CD. The music varies between fully orchestrated and symphonic pieces, such as "The Battle" from Journey To The Centre Of The Earth, to solo piano pieces, a couple of which are in excess of 10 minutes apiece. This collection sums up much of what Wakeman has been involved in during the eighties, and is a fine addition to the collection of anyone who enjoys high-quality, technically brilliant, keyboard music.
2000 A.D. Into The Future: Features a Roger-Dean'ish cover. To quote the liner notes "...is a collection of virtuoso digital and analogue keyboard playing...and was originally conceived for a series of futuristic films...." The music does convey that theme fairly well, and is at times similar to others in the genre, such as Yanni, without the latter's tendency towards sameness. One of the tracks even sounds as if it were inspired by Mark Shreeve!
Softsword (King John & The Magna Charter): Based on music composed for the grand finale of a UK Dickens Festival. This CD features regulars Chrissie Hammond, Stuart Sawney, and David Paton. The music, as usual, features the keyboard pyrotechincs of Wakeman, and combines the symphonic aspects of his earlier works with dramatic vocals. Five of the eleven tracks are instrumental.
Wakeman With Wakeman/A World Of Wisdom: The collaboration with son Adam is well crafted keyboard rock along the lines of 2000 A.D., while World Of Wisdom features tunes sung by comedian Norman Wisdom set to the music of Rick Wakeman, perhaps of most significance to Wakeman- collectors.
Crimes Of Passion: A somewhat obscure 1986 soundtrack. Most of the tracks are instrumental, and have Wakeman accompanied by Tony Fernandez and Rick Fenn (of Mason/Fenn fame). Musically, this release is not one to blaze new trails in the jungle of keyboard rock, but is, ultimately, listenable, comparable in style to 1984, Cost Of Living, etc.
Rock 'N' Roll Prophet: "It takes an album of music such as this to really know who your friends are...," an appropriate observation under the circumstances. The combination of a steady beat, bass, and vocals seem to indicate an attempt to make a dance album, and on that basis, this is a reasonable piece of work, I suppose. However, coming as it does from Wakeman, this is more of a curiosity, or to be less charitable, an aberration. The music has its moments, but I would personally recommend this only to inveterate Wakeman-philes. The CD reissue has four bonus tracks, all instrumental, recorded in 1993, which are more along the lines of the recent works such as 2000 A.D. and the like, and do rescue this CD to some extent.
Classic Tracks: This is a German release featuring a re-recording of three prime Wakeman tracks from the seventies. They are "Journey To The Center Of The Earth" (just under 32 minutes in length), "Catherine Howard," and "Merlin The Magician." Wakeman plays keyboards with all the flourishes and solos that harken back to his glory days, accompanied by four, relatively unknown, American musicians. The contemporary interpretations are pretty energetic, and manage to maintain the spirit of the older compositions, and should be quite acceptable to anyone who enjoyed the originals.
Suite of Gods: A bit of Wakeman new age stuff with a pretty good opera singer. It took me a while to get used to the bombastic singing on this, but other than that, it's pretty good, although not one of my most listened to Wakeman discs.
No Expense Spared: A weak follow up to his first album with his son Adam, who is a decent keysman in his own right. Basically Rick let his son write most of the stuff, and it tends to be a bit more in the straight pop/rock type vein, although Rick does grace the disc with many of the solos. Personally, I'd say get this one near the end of your collection unless you've heard and liked Adam Wakeman's solo stuff (Soliloquy I think his album is). It is NOT like the first WwW disc which in my opinion kicks serious ass.
Greatest Hits is a two disc recording, basically re-recordings of older tunes. They differ from Classic Tracks in that everything is instrumental. Disc one is his versions of various Yes tunes, while disc two are some of his best known works, like "Journey," etc. Great, lush, keyboard album, IMO. It blurrs the line between progressive and new age, so if you don't like that, stay away, but a definite must for all Wakeman fans.
Time Machine is a slick rock production. It features a few different vocalists. The tracks with Ashley Holt can be unlistenable (why does Rick keep using this guy?), but three of the tracks feature Tracey Ackerman, a great female vocalist. Modern, uptempo rock with some good keyboard action sums this one up.
Silent Nights is another more accessable album. Features mostly uptempo rock vocal tracks, with a few new agey instrumentals to balance things out. Not bad for this type of thing, but a couple of tracks are on the cheesy side.
Live at Hammersmith is obviously a live recording, from 1985, with the same bandmembers as on Silent Nights. However, all the pieces are from Six Wives, Journey, and Arthur. I think it's a great live recording, with updated renditions of his classic pieces.
The Official Bootleg is a two disc recording of the tour. It features selections from Journey, Arthur, Six Wives, a couple from the WwW studio albums, and a couple rock covers. Great keyboard artistry from father and son, backed up by Tony Fernandez and Alan Thompson. Solos galore.
Zodiaque is a simple new age album, with 12 pieces based on the signs of the zodiaque. I really like this disc to relax to. It is made up of simple synthesizer arrangements, with electronic percussion ably provided by Tony Fernandez. All instrumental.
Heritage Suite: The prolific keyboardist emerges again, with a collection of piano compositions, in the style of Country Airs and Classical Connection. The pieces herein vary from the upbeat to the introspective, with scattered riffs that recall passages from his solo works from the seventies. The concept underlying this release is the inspiration that Wakeman has drawn from the natural splendour and cultural heritage of the Isle Of Man, a place which he calls home.
Light up the Sky is a four song EP. The first two are vocal tracks, which are nice and upbeat. The third and fourth are instrumental, and I like the fourth one in particular, "The Bear." Shows echoes of his glory days, and shows he's still got it. -- Alan Mallery, Ranjit Padmanabhan, John Santore

[See Strawbs, The | Yes]

Blitzkrieg (71), Mother Universe (72), Cosmic Century (73), Stories, Songs, and Symphonies (74), No More Love (77), Charline (78), Blue-Eyed Boys (79), Frauleins (80), Ssssssstop! (81)

Wallenstein were one of the seminal bands of the krautrock movement of the early seventies, who adopted a more symphonic approach, with music led by the fast and furious keyboards of Jurgen Dollase, accompanied by the percussive talents of Harald Grosskopf, both of whom are legends of the German prog scene. their first four releases Blitzkrieg, Cosmic Century, Mother Universe, and Stories, Songs, And Symphonies, constitute the pinnacle of their work. They drifted towards a slightly more commercial approach on subsequent releases. The music on these CDs varies between the early space-rock style of German bands such as Amon Düül II, albeit with a greater degree of refinement, on Mother Universe, to full-blown symphonic rock, on Blitzkrieg.

Blitzkrieg was one of the monsters of early German prog. With the possible exception of Amon Düül II and Can, they may be one of the first truly progressive German bands I know of. Blitzkrieg leads off true to its name with the wild 10-minute "Lunatic," a driving piece of slashing guitar and cascading electric piano arpeggiations with some fantastic drumming by Harald Grosskopf and lots of phase-shifting to give it that extra-spacy feel. Truly mindblowing. The other three tracks showcase Jurgen Dollase's superior piano playing with occasional injections of mellotron. Bill Barone's electric guitar scontributions give it some raw rock power, and overall I believe this to be one of the classics of German prog. Highly recommended to all. Mother Universe shows Dollase stretching out on a greater variety of keyboards (organ, clavinet), but suffers overall from a surplus of vocals, mostly by bassist Jerry Berkers, who sounds something like David Bowie with a sore throat. Still, they manage to shine on the instrumental passages of "Braintrain," "Dedicated to Mystery Land" and the title song. "Relics of Past" is a lovely ballad. Cosmic Century began the first in what seemed an endless series of lineup shifts: Berkers quit to go solo (he had one LP, Unterwegs to show for it. Haven't heard it.), his replacement being Dieter Meier, later of Swiss electronicians Yello! Also added during this period were Achim Reiser on violin and Dollase's brother Rolf on flute. I haven't heard this one. Meier and Rolf Dollase quit. Meier was replaced by Jurgen Pluta. The resulting quintet recorded Stories, Songs and Symphonies, an ear-pleasing collection of songs mixing chamber music (piano, violin) with Barone's bluesy guitar and a rock rhythm section. A little bit of mellotron and synth is used, but very subtly. The emphasis is on Dollase's gorgeous piano playing, which is neatly complemented by Reiser's violin. The two long tracks, "Your Lunar Friends" and the title song, are the focal points of the album. The other songs, save three short neo-classical pieces at the end, are lighthearted tunes reminiscent of Caravan. Dollase's pleasing baritone graces all the vocal tracks. After Stories..., Barone, Grosskopf and Reiser left. A new guitarist and drummer were added for No More Love, the first professionally produced (by Dieter Dierks) Wallenstein album. The difference in sound quality is immediately evident. The sound here is a lot less subtle than on previous albums; Dollase uses a lot of synths, clavinet and string- ensemble, even organ on one track, while new guitarist Gerd Kloecker is multi-tracked most of the time. Vocally, the emphasis is on strident harmonies, a bit like a cross between Yes and Rush. Best songs: "Backstreet Dreamer," a high-energy prog-rocker, the title song with its varying moods, and "On An Eagle's Wing," the first half of which is a hot synth/guitar jamming duet. The other songs are more melodic, "I Can't Loose" [sic] being the best of these, the corny rocker "JoJo" the worst. Worth it for the hilarious Hipgnosis-esque cover-art alone, No More Love is sadly supposed to be their last good album. For 1978's Charline, the entire previous line-up was sacked, a new one installed, with Dollase the only original member left. Reportedly the style changed to light, commercial FM radio rock a la Toto, Journey, etc. I'd advise stopping at No More Love.

Wallenstein are one of the better symphonic bands from Germany. Their best is supposed to be Blitzkrieg but I haven't heard it. What I have heard are Mother Universe and Stories, Songs and Symphonies. Led by keyboardist Jurgen Dollase, Wallenstein serve up a fiesty dose of symphonic Prog ala Novalis though less spacy. There are plenty of fiery guitar solos and, of course, ample doses of swirling organ, synth and mellotron. The vocal sections aren't much to write home about (or here, either) but the long instrumental passages are very nice. Two four minute songs but the rest are in the 6-8 minute range. Stories, Songs and Symphonies is similar but with more focus on violin, piano and electric guitar. There's a classical bent to a couple of the songs, namely the three part, six minute "Sympathy for Bela Bartok." Of these two albums, Mother Universe is probably the better introduction to Wallenstein, but I reckon Blitzkrieg would be even better. Drummer Harald Grosskopf would later go on to Ashra.

[See Ashra | Kistenmacher and Grosskopf]

Queen of Saba (72)

Walpurgis' sole release, Queen of Saba, is a typical representative of the German underground scene from the very early 1970s. Overall, the sound is somehwat similar to Jane though this is a bit more dated sounding. The first few songs are short with pretty bad vocals singing about love and the hippie "we can live together" ethic prevalent during that era. The album improves with the later songs when they hit the seven and ten minute guitar jams that define the "krautrock" scene. There is a bit of added dimension to the music as there is some congas and flute in addition to the usual bluesy/psych guitar assault. There is also a few brief acoustic guitar solos though it's usally present as a rhythm instrument. Also, Jurgen Dollase of Wallenstein guests on keyboards. Really, if it wasn't for the singing this wouldn't be a bad representative of the German underground vibe but for now I'd recommend Jane or German Oak instead.

A Dream Within A Dream (81)

Comparable to Galaxy.

[See Galaxy]

Wapassou (75), Messe En re Mineur (76), Sallambo (77), Ludwig (78), Genuine (80), Orchestra 2001-Le Lac D'Argent (86)

French progressive rock band with instrumentation oriented around a keyboard/ violin/guitar/drums (in that order of prominence) setup. They play what is often described as a spacy-progressive rock, and have to date released six albums, including one with the aid of an orchestra. Their best is probably Messe En Re Mineur, which is a single 40 min. track on two sides of an LP.

Sort of a chamber progressive band, who's early albums featured no percussion and were sort of like a more melodic version of Univers Zero (albeit quite a bit earlier.) Their best is supposed to be Messe En Re Mineur Since this is the only one I have, I haven't been in a rush to get the rest. Can be quite mesmerizing at times, though.

Interesting French symphonic progressive with lots of violin. Most feature side-long compositions, and a very strong classical influence (Bach, etc.) The band consists of Freddy Brua (keyboards), Jacques Lichti (violin) and Karen Nickerl (Guitars). Only the last album features a drummer. Some vocals on the first album, but the rest are nearly all instrumental. Their first album is different from the rest, with sort of an Art Zoyd-ish feel, but very substandard. The last ..Lac D'Argent is a much more polished album with an instrumental pop feel, beautiful stuff, but very different than the others. Best places to start are Messe En Re Mineur or Ludwig.

I have their self-titled first album from 1975. Essentially, the band consists of keyboards, violin, and female vocals in French. Various guest musicians contribute occasional oboe, flute, or other instruments. Due to the lack of drums and bass, and the prominence of the violin, the band has a dreamy "chamber ensemble" feel. If the writing were a bit more inspired they might have been an excellent band. Unfortunately, the music fails to be very involving. Messe En Re Mineur is said to be their best so I'd look there first.

For A Knave (??)

Paul Ward was a member of the UK electronic duo Quiet Point. This is his first solo release, on the Surreal To Real label. For a Knave falls within the framework of electronic music, but is powered by strong rhythm and bass, comparable at times to Tangerine Dream's better soundtracks. The music is very melodic, and makes for upward of an hour of well constructed electronic rock.

Warhorse (70), Red Sea (72), Vulture Blood (83)

A Deep Purple spinoff with Nick Simper on bass. As with Deep Purple, there is a lot of Jon Lord style organ. Personally, I think Deep Purple does it much better.

Vulture Blood is a compilation.

[See Deep Purple]

Warm Dust (??), And It Came To Pass (70), Peace For Our Time (71), Dreams of Impossibilities (72)

Prog. W/Paul Carrack.

Kylyn (79), Kylyn Live (??), To Chi Ka (80), Dogatana (81), Talk You All Tight (??), Ganaesia (??), Lonesome Cat (82), Mobo I (83), Mobo II (83), Mobo Club (85), Mobo Splash (??), Ooka-Ranman (Mobo Live) (??), Concerto de Aranjuez (??), The Spice of Life (87), The Spice of Life Too (88), Kilowatt (89), Romanesque (??), Pandora (91?), O-X-O (??)

He's one of the best guitarists I've had the pleasure of hearing. Most of his stuff is fusion. Just about all of it is really hot. I have all of his domestically-released (US) albums, and the Japanese release of Mobo (it has an extra 20-25 minutes of music on it). I'd suggest either Panorama or Mobo Splash as a starting point. Spice of Life and Spice of Life Too both have Bill Bruford and Jeff Berlin on them...the second has Peter Vetesse as well. He's also played with the likes of Wayne Shorter, Patrick Moraz, Tony Levin, Alex Acuna, Lenny White, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Michael Brecker, Omar Hakim, Steve Jordan, Marcus Miller, Sly Dunbar, Robbie Shakespere, and Peter Erskine. The caliber of this roster should say something about the caliber of the musician. Other than the albums listed above, Mobo and Kilowatt are probably the next best.

I have his Spice of Life album and it is excellent fusion. Kazumi plays electric guitar, while bass and drum chores are handled by Jeff Berlin and Bill Bruford, respectively. There is a high degree of musicianship on this masterpiece. The style is probably closer to David Torn's Cloud About Mercury than to Mahavishnu Orchestra or Tribal Tech. Watanabe uses space between the notes very effectively and there is more than a hint of Eastern influences on some songs. At times, Kazumi's guitar is a fiery blend of exotic spices while other times he weaves an absorbing atmospheric texture of sustained notes mixed with brief runs. Excellent fusion and highly recommended.

The Second Day (75) Damburst (76)

Damburst seems to be some sort of concept album about a struggle between man and nature. The band that made the album is named Water, and they include among their personnel ex-members of the old 60's proto-prog band Sandy Coast. Also, they include a harmonica player, unusual for a prog band. The gentle flute playing, churning string-synths and sustain-filled guitar-solos on tracks like "Sail away" remind me mostly of Camel. There are also some more mainstream rock pieces, but they aren't really offensive enough to make me skip them, though most of them aren't especially exciting or distinctive. The vocals are occasionally memorable, resembling Roger Daltrey on "Damburst II". Not a record to get enthused over, but not bad. -- Mike Ohman

Labyrinth (81), Frames of Mind (82), , In Time (85, with Coco Roussel), Azure (89), Sunstruck (90), Thought Tones Vol.1 (90), Early Solo Works (91, comp. of first two)A Different View (91), Sampler (91, comp.), Thought Tones Vol.2 (92), Wet Dark and Low (92), Circle (93), Kinetic Vapours (93), Holographic Tapestries (95)

Ex-Happy the Man, Camel keyboardist who has been quite active in the field lately, producing a number of albums close to the electronic/new age side of Happy the Man. Try Labyrinth, some of which is on the Early Solo Works CD.

Kit was the main keyboard player in Happy the Man. Later he joined Camel for an album and a tour. Since then he's released several solo albums. All his albums are very different, some great, some fairly disappointing. The two Thought Tones albums are ambient releases of processed industrial noise (yawn!). A Different View is an album of very straightforward classical pieces (mostly Satie), nothin' special. Azure is a very low-key new-agey album with some nice moments and interesting compositions, but I think maybe too mellow for most readers. All of the the others are fair game: Frames of Mind features one side of vocal tracks and a second side of sequenced electronic sounding stuff. In Time is probably the best, most upbeat, and the one I'd recommend for starters. Sunstruck is good too, but has a few very mellow tracks in the Azure vein. Wet Dark and Low is fairly upbeat and is quite good. If you're still confused, get Sampler - it's very inexpensive for the CD and contains over 70 minutes of music.

Kit Watkins' 1989 solo release, Azure, showcases his compositional ability with a wide variety of synths and assorted machines. The music tends toward that of contemporary keyboard musicians such as David Lanz, but has a much more sophisticated, adventurous approach, including every prog-head's delight, odd time signatures.

[See Camel | Happy the Man]

Assembly (85)

An independent LP only release Assembly offers up a brilliant smorgasbord of blistering fusion, instrumental rock, and clever electronics, all played very tight, driven by Watson's guitars and synths, with drums by Dave Webb, and other musicians guesting. Very rare and out of print five long tracks, each with a slightly different focus, plus the multi-part title opus.

As an avid collector, I have had the opportunity to sample a mind-numbing quantity of progressive music over the last several years, ranging in quality from the abhorrent to the sublime. Once in a while, I even stumble across a real gem. Of the few "real gems" I've discovered, Ken Watson's Assembly LP is one of my all-time favorites. Thankfully, Larry Kolota at the Kinesis label has seen fit to reissue this difficult-to-find album (only 600 copies of the original LP were pressed) on CD, complete with 20 minutes of bonus material that is equally and unequivocally excellent. In addition, the CD boasts superior sound quality (thanks in part to Bob Katz at the Digital Domain, who performed the honors of digital mastering) and new cover artwork. In the past, Ken's music has been described as killer jazz-rock fusion and more than once, likened to that of the Dixie Dregs. Although not entirely inaccurate, I think that both assessments are more than a little misleading. While there is definitely some jazz influence as well as a surplus of hot fretwork, the material really does not fit anywhere within the mold of the fusion label. Neither would any of the compositions (or arrangements) be mistaken for those of Steve Morse. If forced to make a comparison, I would have to say that Ken's style falls closer to a mix of Kenso, Happy the Man, and Zamla Mammaz Manna. An impressive composer and guitarist who doubles quite effectively on keyboards, bass, and percussion, Ken plays most of the instruments on the recording. He is accompanied by two drummers (David Webb on the tracks from the original album and Craig Riches on the bonus tracks), both of whom work miraculously well in the demanding and highly-original environment created by Ken's compositions. Also featured on a few of the LP-derived tracks is Terry Morgan, a keyboardist (also the CD's recording engineer) who contributes some mean Mini-Moog solos as well as an original composition. In addition, Buddy Stewart plays a sprightly bass on the CD's first cut and Greg McPhereson contributes a jazzy piano introduction to one section of the multi-part title track. But what really stands out, even above the top-notch musicianship, is the quality of the compositions. Rhythmically and harmonically complex and varied yet remarkably easy to sink one's teeth into, Ken's compositions transport the listener through an ever-enjoyable roller coaster ride that is as comfortable as it is exciting. When played at a sufficient volume, you are practically guaranteed to feel as though you've traveled somewhere magical and returned just in time to put the disc back in its jewel box. If your hunger for great music puts you in the mood to make a wonderful new progressive discovery, I can't recommend this disc highly enough!

Ken Watson's Assembly is probably the best CD I purchased in 1994. Weighing in at over 60 minutes, the disc is a combination of reissued material from 1985, plus 20 minutes of new material, and is all instrumental. When you compare Ken Watson to other guitar virtuoso's like Eric Johnson or Ronnie Montrose you immediately realize the primary difference: Ken's chop's are easily as good as any of these other guitar heroes, but compositionally he writes circles around them. This is by far the most well balanced album I've heard in years, and considering that almost all of the instruments are played by Ken himself (he adds live drummers - hooray for no drum machines!) this is even more incredible. Typically I find that albums by a single musician tend to be relatively flat - all of the music tends to sound the same stylistically. Not so with Assembly, which incorparates several different moods and styles without appearing contrived. The influences and sounds have been pointed out in the previous reviews (Happy the Man, Kenso, etc), but I'd add that even if you usually shy away from instrumentals you should give this a listen. Buy this disc - you won't miss the vocals! I'd like to thank Larry Kolota for finding this and reissuing it. It would be a crime for music of this caliber to lost under the mass of mediocre neo-progressive clones immitating the old masters. We definitely need to support independant artists like Ken Watson if we want to continue to hear music of this quality (Read Ann Rayn's The Fountainhead if you want to understand my fears of mediocrity taking over the world). -- Jim Watts

Ken Watson's Assembly was easily one of the best CD reissues of 1993. The CD contains the original 40 instrumental minutes of the original Assembly album, plus an addition 20 minutes of bonus material from a planned second LP that never materialized. On this album, Ken Watson plays guitars, most keyboards and some percussion. He is joined by David Webb (for the original LP music) and Craig Riches (on the bonus material) on drums. Both are excellent foils for Watson's guitar and keyboard work. A few friends help out with some extra work on a few tracks; most notable is Buddy Stewart's bass on "Skeletons in Armor" and Terry Morgan's keyboard work on "Yuppie Jazz" and sections of "Assembly Parts 1-5." Assembly is an album of progressive fusion that is not readily comparable to anyone in particular, with a couple of exceptions. The opening "Skeletons in Armor" is not unlike some of Scott Henderson's work with Tribal Tech or the Players session with Jeff Berlin, Steve Smith and T Lavitz. "Next X" is the most recognizable, as Watson shows off his fondness for Happy the Man. In fact, in some ways, Ken Watson's Assembly seems a guitarist's alter-ego for Happy the Man, with the jazzy styling and use of counterpoint (listen to the clavinet, bass and guitar at the final parts of "Assembly," with Morgan even turning in a killer mini-moog solo a la Kit Watkins in "Assembly Part 3." "Yuppie Jazz," written by Terry Morgan, made me think of Chick Corea's Elektric Band at double speed, at once a humorous poke at contemporay fuzak and a showcase of daunting chops. The three bonus tracks only enhance an already fine album. Great stuff and definitely recommended, particularly to fans of Happy the Man, Kenso and other bands in that style. -- Mike Taylor

Where Are We Captain (76), New Atlantis (77)

Moonwind (??)

One shot electronic duo, who recorded a relatively popular album Moonwind that got rave reviews from the new age press. Sort of like a sickly sweet cross between early eighties Tangerine Dream and Kitaro.

The LP release of this British synth duo's work vanished quickly with the demise of Audion, but now the CD is available, with a long bonus track. This is prime electronics, influenced in equal parts by Tangerine Dream and Pink Floyd.

[See Dyson, John]

A Candle For Judith (71)

[See Tractor]

Concerto For Electric Guitar and Violin (78), The Human Condition (87), Under the Soft (91)

Former violinist with Curved Air. He split in 1973 and formed Wolf, recorded three albums (Saturation Point, Canis Lupus, Night Music), then returned to Curved Air for their last three albums. Wolf's sound overall was more of a direct rock sound, with violin driving, and a touch of fusion, and as great as they sounded at the time, today the three Wolf albums sound very dated, and I wouldn't recommend them except to completists, especially at their Japanese import prices. In the Post-Curved Air period, Way has released several albums, each very different: Concerto For Electric Violin and Synthesizer was a classical oriented piece with Francis Monkman (also ex-Curved Air) The Human Condition is a series of very classical pieces performed with Opus 20 (a chamber orchestra). It wasn't until his latest Under The Soft, that he came back to an instrumental rock setting; this is an exceptional album driven by Violin and synth, with strong and soaring melody lines and brilliant arrangements. This one is highly recommended.

Darryl Way made his fame with Curved Air and his own band, Wolf. I've heard a couple of tracks from these bands and they are very good. But the only Darryl Way CD I own is Under the Soft. Yawn. This CD borders on new age in many places. Way plays violin and keyboards, with guitars by Pete Haycock (of Climax Blues Band fame; he has a very good guitar album on IRS) and drums by Stewart Copeland. The writing is weak and the arrangements are boring. The violin is also buried in the mix. There is no intensity to Way's playing. I've heard one cut from his Canis Lupis album which was far superior to this work. I picked this up at a used CD store and it's going back in trade for something else.

[See Curved Air | Trace | Wolf, Darryl Way's]

We All Together (??)

Psych.

Weather Report (71), I Sing The Body Electric (72), Sweetnighter (73), Mysterious Traveller (74), Tail Spinnin' (75), Black Market (76), Heavy Weather (77), Mr. Gone (78), 8:30 (79), Night Passage (80), Weather Report (81), Procession (83), Domino Theory (84), Sportin' Life (85)

One of the original fusion bands to break out of Miles Davis's classic Bitches Brew line up. With Wayne Shorter on sax and Joe Zawinul on keyboards, Weather Report were probably the most successful at blending jazz and rock into a truly unique format. The most accessible would probably be Heavy Weather with the classic Zawinul tune "Birdland," which was later popularized by The Manhattan Transfer. The album also features bassist Jaco Pastorius. Earlier albums are more experimental, and to me, is where the band really shines. Shorter was the strongest writer of the duo and his haunting soprano sax always brought an air of mystery to the music. Zawinul's writing dominated later albums (post 8:30) and the music suffers for it. One half of I Sing the Body Electric is live and is fantastic. Ralph Towner is also featured on the Shorter penned "The Moors" to good effect. Other great albums are Tail Spinnin' and Mysterious Traveler. I don't recommend anything after the live 8:30.

Many consider them among the best fusion bands. I have a few of their albums and would say that Heavy Weather is their best album, but I Sing the Body Electric has a more progressive feel to it.

[See Caldera | Davis, Miles]

Fully Interlocking (68), Theraphosa Blondi (69), I Spider (70)

Features Dave Lawson of Greenslade.

I heard the title-track of I Spider once. Lots of churning Hammond organ, otherwise totally unlike Greenslade. Dave Lawson's vocals don't seem quite as...er...strained as they do in Greenslade. Pretty good early prog, if this track is representative. -- Mike Ohman

[See Greenslade]

Weed...! (71)

Underground w/ blues vibe and acid guitar.

Tarot (73)

Space psych, from the Kosmische Musik label and featuring members from many bands on that label.

Weidorje (78)

Weidorje featured Bernard Paganotti (bass,vocals) of Magma and Patrick Gauthier (keyboards) of Heldon, along with Alain and Yvon Guillard (Magma's horn section), Jean-Philippe Goude (keyboards), Michel Ettori (guitar) and Kirt Rust (drums). Their sound could be characterized as an instrumental Magma circa Üdü Wüdü. They were together for several years in the late 70's, but only managed to produce one self-titled album. The Musea CD reissue has two long bonus cuts which were destined for their second album which never came to be. This is an essential album for all fans of the Magma school.

An offshoot from Magma, Weidorje's sole release carries on in the zuehl tradition but even more into the fusion realm. As with Zao, if you prefer instrumental work and are curious about the zuehl school of musical thought, then this band and Zao are good places to start. I actually prefer Zao over this band but only by a small margin, as both are top notch. With Weidorje, the emphasis is more on keyboard interplay. The sax is still there and guitar has been added. And, like the Zao, the fusion groove is hot. The voices are used as instruments and no words are sung.

This glorious one-shot Magma offshoot is every bit as awesome as its impressive lineage suggests. Bassist Bernard Paganotti had already proven himself worthy of the title of bass monster on Magma Live, among other albums. But this late 70's band he led frees him from the benevolent dictatorship of Christian Vander and reveals him as a first-rate composer and bandleader (which came to full fruition in his latest band Paga). With Weidorje, his 16 minute "Elohims Voyage" expands on the Üdü Wüdü philosophy, and is bursting at the seams with classic monster riffs and brilliant melodic tension. The twoPATRICKGAUT keyboard players (Patrick Gauthier and Jean-Phillipe Goude) really flesh out the arrangements and add a healthy dose of jazz fusion. Sort of a midpoint between Magma and Zao.

[See Cruciferius | Gauthier, Patrick | Goude, Jean-Phillippe | Guillard, Alain and Yvon | Magma | Paga]

Pandora's Garage (92), Primitive Earth (??, w/Walter Whitney), Critical Path (??, w/Joe Venegoni)

American Frippoid guitarist whose album Pandora's Garage is a nice blend of ideas and styles, sometimes low key, sometimes upbeat, but definitely not Rock. Very experimental at times, like Heldon maybe. Recommended.

[See Delay Tactics]

Renascenca (??)

Neo-prog fans may be interested in Wejah's Renascenca which has been described to me as sounding like Pallas.

Creation (84)

Fronted by the vocals of Gitta Lowenstein, whose voice evokes memories of Annie Haslam, and accompanied by the melodic fretwork of Gerd Heuel, the result is a work that sounds like Renaissance with a more active guitarist. The backing is provided by flowing keyboard chords, in a manner that recalls another obscure German band, Epidaurus. The standout is the final 10+ minute track that is a microcosm of melodic, symphonic, progressive rock. All in all, very melodic piece of work that should appeal to those who like their keyboard sounds to be full and their chords to be minor.

German progressive folk-rock band with female lead vocals. When listening I am sometimes reminded of Camel, other times of the Japanese Mr.Sirius, and yet other times of some of the german symphonics like Epidermis. Anyway, it's a very solid album that most readers would enjoy, a lot of powerful guitar, organ, plenty of instrumental stretches. English vocals.

Creation is a decent, though not outstanding, Prog/Psych release from this early '80s German quintet. The music eases back and forth between the (sometimes heavy) Progressive and Psychedelic realms. The female vocals are in English. Gitta Lowenstein will remind you quite a bit of Annie Haslasm. The music is dominated by Gerd Heuel's guitar though organ, piano, mellotron and synth are also heard. Some of the guitar leads help lend the Psych aura to Werwolf's overall sound while the keyboard work keeps the band with a Prog perspective. Some songs (e.g., the instrumental section of "Way to Paradise") will remind you of Solaris from their 1990 album. Other times, you'll hear traces of Pink Floyd, the trademark heavy guitar of the "krautrock" style, and some West Coast flourishes. As a whole, though, I'm reminded of bands such as Earth & Fire and Sandrose, with their European stylings and femme vocals. The lyrics are Werwolf's attempt at calling for world harmony. As with most such lyrics today, they are dated and sometimes rather trite, but well-meant. Some people have a hard time getting past Lowenstein singing about "The Journey to the Land of the Flying Pigs" but I always get a grin, though I have no idea what the song is supposed to be about. There are two instrumental and two vocal songs in the five minute range, and two songs longer than eight minutes with vocals and extended instrumental passages. Fans of Earth & Fire, Sandrose, etc., would probably enjoy this album a great deal, but if you're new to the progressive scene, there are many other bands you should explore first..

God-Sex-Money (92)

Fans of intense and bombastic symphonic synth: this is your wet dream. Michael West presents us with five songs of non-stop, high-intensity keyboard pyrotechnics, produced by Mastermind's Bill Berends. West's attacking arsenal is a battery of Yamaha, Roland and Oberheim synthesizers, aided and abetted by sequencing software for the Commodore 64. Berends, who also helps out with some bass work and sequencing, knows how to present this upfront music and uses his experience to full effect with West's music. Falling somewhere between the melodic, solo keyboard work of Covenant's Dave Gryder and the intense presentation of Mastermind and Golgotha, West delivers titles like "Cunnilingus," "Supreme Military Dictator" and "God-Sex-Money" (interjected with a humorous quote of "My Favorite Things" from "The Sound of Music") with a high sense of drama, furious sense of pace, and with enough breathing room to *just* prevent a serious case of whiplash. Just check out the intense 5G assault near the end of "Overture from Physical Love"! The aggressive drumming of Daren Shaltis is the perfect foil for West's keyboards. The writing, however, is a bit linear and could use the input of additional musicians to increase the diversity. Some solos, such as the "trade-off" at the end of the title tracks, and some parts of the 15 minute closer, "I Know You Know," run on too long while deciding which path to next follow. Mainly, though, I'd like to see a guitarist added for diversity. Geez, what if West joined up with Mastermind? You'd better run for cover.... -- Mike Taylor

Jack-Knife (79), Caught In The Crossfire (80), King's Road 1972-1980 (87), Wetton/Manzanera (with Phil Manzanera) (87), Battle Lines (94, aka Voice Mail), Chasing The Dragon (95), Akustika: Live In Amerika (96), Arkangel (97)

John Wetton, an exceptionally talented bassist/vocalist/songwiter, is perhaps best known to the general listening public as the voice behind Asia's "progressive pop" hits of the '80s. To many (but not all) fans of progressive rock, however, that is an era best forgotten. Instead they would harken back to what many consider the glory days of the mighty King Crimson, between 1972-74, in which Wetton's distinctive vocals and thunderous bass brought a new, sharper and weightier sound to that band's output over the course of two studio allbums (Lark's Tongues in Aspic, Starless and Bible Black) and one live recording (USA). This period in King Crimson's history is considered to be their best as a live-performance unit, a fact attested to by the release (and wild popularity) of a four-CD boxed set of their concert work during this time (The Great Deceiver).
Others would point to the late 70's, when Wetton fronted UK along with progressive legends Eddie Jobson, Bill Bruford and Allan Holdsworth on their debut album (UK), and with Jobson and Terry Bozzio for their sophomore (Danger Money) and live (Night After Night) albums.
Fans of Mogul Thrash, Family, Roxy Music, Uriah Heep, Bryan Ferry, Wishbone Ash, Atoll, Brian Eno, Gordon Haskell, Pete Sinfield, Peter Banks, Bill Liesegang and Steve Hackett may call attention to his contributions to those artists' work, either as a full-time band member or guest musician.
What is less known, and rightfully so, is Wetton's solo work. Even the most ardent detractors of Asia's output would be hard-pressed not to find some redeeming qualities in their music when compared to his solo debut, Jack-Knife, and it's sucessor, Caught In The Crossfire. These albums, which are both thankfully out of print, can only be described as absolutely wretched attempts at pop fame. The songwriting is pathetic, the arrangements are pathetic, and the playing is deeply uninspired. So much so, in fact, that I remember clearly thinking that I had be listening to another artist other than Wetton when I first heard "Eyesight to the Blind," a single from his debut. Apparently a lot of other people felt the same way, and it's safe to assume the commercial and critical failure of these albums led Wetton to cofound Asia. (Those with a masochistic sense of curiousity should check out his 1987 release King's Road 1972-1980, a compilation of his work with King Crimson, UK and his solo work from this period. The five tunes from his solo discs ruin an otherwise tight, solid listening experience.)
In 1987, with Asia's future uncertain, Wetton resurfaced with a promising partnership with Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzanera on Wetton/Manzanera. Many prog fans probably remember the extreme disappointment they felt when finding this album to be yet another clunker, filled with light pop tunes and undistinguished playing. Nowhere could Wetton's thick, monstrous bass be heard, nowhere could Manzanera's shimmering, silvery leads be heard. Even the vocals, Wetton's signature even at his worst, were lame. What could have been a shining moment was instead a dreadful embarassment. I remember taking this album to a record trader the same day I bought it. (Again, masochists take note: This album is scheduled to be rereleased as One World in early 1997.)
After briefly rejoining and touring with Asia around 1990 (only to leave again soon), Wetton again tried the solo act route with Battle Lines (released as Voice Mail in Japan). This album was a left-field surprise: not exactly a triumphant return to his progressive roots, but certainly not a pure-pop washout, either. The singing is very strong, the production is state of the art, and the songwriting hovers in that same area as Asia's did (progressive/pop), yet it does not sound at all like Asia. It also features King Crimson leader/guitarist Robert Fripp as a guest muiscian on a few tracks. Wetton followed this with 1995's fine effort Chasing The Dragon, a live-in-Japan concert recording of his best work with King Crimson, UK, and Asia as well as his better solo stuff. Following so closely on the heels of Battle Lines, many fans began to herald the "return" of the mighty John Wetton. Indeed, there did seem to be a sense of renewal in Wetton's work, and there were even rumours of a UK reunion with Jobson.
Meanwhile, Wetton released Akustika: Live In Amerika. As the title clearly states, this is yet another live album, which may seem like a holding pattern to some, but it's all-acoustic format lends a fresh perspective to the songs (most of which are the same as those featured on Chasing The Dragon). The warm, intimate and light approach to this type of music may not appeal to some, but I enjoy it. Certainly, Wetton's audience is appreciative, at least.
Wetton also recorded a new studio album in '96 with Robert Fripp, Steve Hackett, Bill Bruford and other progressive musicians, entitled Arkangel, which is slated for an early 1997 release along with his official biography, "My Own Time." The buzz on this record is good, and is fueled in no small part by Wetton's announcement late in 1996 that he will be headlining the 1997 Progressive Rock Festival in Los Angeles. My hunch is that Wetton may have a few surprises for those of us who gave up on him as a progressive artist and serious musician. As the Asia song goes, "Only Time Will Tell."

[See Asia | Atoll | Family | King Crimson | Mogul Thrash | UK]

Wha Ha Ha (8?)

Bizarre synth-rock from Japan on the Recommended label. -- Mike Ohman

Ho Hum (71)

Melodic prog.

Japanese progressives, complex yet accessible, powerful guitar with nice keyboards and symphonics used appropriately. Reminds me of Gerard sometimes. Vocals are in japanese and english. English lyrics are incomprehensible.

[See King's Boards]

Venusian Summer (75), Big City (77), Adventures of Astral Pirates (78), Streamline (78)

Drummer for the electric fusion era of Return to Forever.

[See Return to Forever]

An Electric Storm (69), White Noise (75), 2 (75), Reentry (80)

(also go under the name of David Vorhese (SP?)). At least 3 albums, first has a bunch of ears on the cover and is top notch stuff. Maybe Curved Air meets Heldon. Other two albums are bogus and well worth avoiding.

Ignis Fatuus (95)

This band from Norway combine many elements from the past and present. White Willow is reminicent of early Genesis or even the mellower parts of Änglagård but bringing in more of a Renaissance period sound with their two classically trained vocals (the third song titiled "Song" sounds right out of a Renaissance festval). VERY impressive singing in both English and Swedish that is very hard to find today. Ignis Fatuus is a collection of various recordings made between '92 and '94. These recordings features TONS of lush Mellotron along with Moog, cello, flute and even sitar! -- Phil Slatterley

White Willow is one of the latest Scandinavian bands to fit into the broadly progressive rock realm. Ignis Fatuus is a beautiful and sublime blend of folk, classical and renaissance musics in a gothic matrix, with seemingly few rock elements. White Willow is based around a core set of members and numerous guests. The main musicians are Jan Tariq Rahman on Mellotron, mini-moog, Fender rhodes, clavinet, various synths, crumhorn, recorders, sitar and a variety of other instruments; Tirill Mohn on violins; Audun Kjus plays flutes, whistles, Humbran pipes and sings; both Sara Trondal and Eldrid Johansen are the primary vocalists; Jacob C. Holm-Lupo is the guitarist, playing a variety of acoustic, classical, 12-string and electric guitars; Alexander Engebretsen is the 5-string bassist. "The Drummer" (which is how he is credited in the nicely produced CD booklet) is a drummer who desires to make his name as a jazz musician and thus is anonymous here. Finally, a dozen guests contribute cello, choir and vocals, guitar, bass or percussion. First in line of the dozen tracks on Ignis Fatuus is the six and one-half minute "Snowfall." An understated yet warming song, "Snowfall" sets the mood for the entire disc. Leading off with the dual vocals of Trondal and Johansen over Mellotron, their delicate duet soon gives way to acoustic guitar, flute and brooding cello, which is, in turn, followed by a quiet, simple but very effective mini-moog passage, with warm, rounded tones. In the same vein as "Snowfall" is "Lord of Night," which is augmented with bass pedals and synthesized organ. The brief "Song" is a renaissance-styled vocal piece with a tenor solo and four-piece choir. Other titles indicative of the overall mood of Ignis Fatuus are "The Withering of the Boughs," "Lines on an Autumnal Evening" and "John Aee's Lament." Occasionally, Rahman changes the mood briefly, quickening the tempo with the organ solo mentioned above or with the mini-moog solo that ends "The Withering of the Boughs." Indeed, it is often Rahman who guides the song with one or more of the many keyboards at his disposal. His solos are melodic, tasteful and very effective within the framework of each song. Each solo is enveloped within the other instruments such as recorder, classical guitar and crumhorn, and glazed with Trondal's ethereal vocals. Comparisons of style can not be readily made. Occasionally--only occasionally, and particularly when supported by the bass pedals--Rahman's keyboard work reminds of Tony Banks, while the crumhorn and recorders reminds of Gryphon. The guitar and overall feel of "Cryptomenysis," particularly the beginning, is somewhat reminiscent of Landberk (as is the gothic air of the album), yet the folk influence dominates. The lyrics are an important aspect of the subtle but definite gothic aura of the album. References to gravestones and fairies, snows and mists, as well as many references to the dark (the moon, "nocturnal spectral beasts," the night) add netherworld qualities to the already somber music. Ignis Fatuus will not be for everyone. Fusion freaks will find it too boring, while symphonic fans will find it lacking in layers of lush keyboards. Quiet and reflective, White Willow's music will appeal to those who enjoy gothic and folk elements in their music. If you are one of those, I recommend Ignis Fatuus highly. -- Mike Taylor

Ignis Fatuus is exquisitely gorgeous music; the closest comparison I can think of is Landberk's Riktigt Äkta. If that doesn't help, think delicate and ethereal, but definitely progressive (i.e., this is not New Age twaddle). The composition and playing are marvellous and subtle yet still intense: nothing here will pound you over the head saying "Listen to us, can we ever PLAY!", but after a number of listens, you will be saying to yourself, "...can they ever play!." -- Greg Ward

Ignis Fatuus features a beautiful blend of folk, classical and rock music. Their instrumentation goes beyond the usual rock format to include classical guitar, flutes, horns, violin, cello, sitar and sublime classically trained female vocals (in English). Sustained use of acoustic instruments insure a certain softness to a sound which only occasionally shows its rock elements. The result is melancholic music inspired by medieval folk themes with the addition of an electric and symphonic touch that evokes The Court of the Crimson King. -- Paul Charbonneau

Stress (77), Tsunami (79), Stress (80)

[See Lockwood, Didier | Magma]

Hard and Horny (69), Tombstone Valentine (70), Fairyport (71), Wigwam (72), Being (73), Live Music From the Twilight Zone (75), Nuclear Nightclub (75), Lucky Golden Stripes and Starpose (76), Dark Album (78), Rumours on the Rebound (79), Light Ages (93)

With the talents of Jim Pembroke and Pekka Pohjola, Wigwam are a classic of the Scandanavian progressive scene. There is some great interplay between all the musicans. The music is dominated by piano and organ. There is somewhat of a Canterbury feel to the music, though it is unmistakably Scandanavian in nature. It gives you the feeling they were doing this to stay warm! :-) Fairyport has a great jam called "Rave-up for the Roadies" which includes a guest appearance by well-known Finnish guitarist Jukka Tolonen and makes this album a great starting place. Being is also recommended. A must have of Scandanavian progressive.

Wigwam is back after fifteen years with a new studio album (Light Ages) and continues straight from where they left in '78. This is a very strange reunion because it's just as if they never disbanded but continued to do the same stuff and even improved themselves during the fifteen-year-gap. As good a place to start listening Wigwam as any, and a promising start (or continuation) for the future of this cult band.

I only have heard Nuclear Nightclub, which is only sporadically progressive. On the whole, it's mostly a vehicle for the quirky songs of Englishman Jim Pembroke. Save the vocals, this is not unlike some of Kevin Ayers' work. Best songs: "Kite" and "Simple Human Kindness". Most progressive: "Pigstorm," an instrumental, and the spacy "Bless Your Lucky Stars," which might as well be (the vocals are phase-shifted beyond comprehension). -- Mike Ohman

Wigwam's existence as a band was divided clearly in two periods: first with Pekka Pohjola and Jukka Gustavson as creative forces. The second period (Nuclear Nightclub and since) with guitarist Rekku Reckhardt and Jim Pembroke. Pohjola and Gustavson left the band after English tour about 1975, Gustavson for religious reasons and Pohjola for his solo carieer. Wigwam's first albums were heavily influenced by Beatles (Hard and Horny), The Band and Stevie Winwood. First progressive album was Fairyport. Being was almost totally Gustavson's vision. -- Sasha Mäkilä

[See Group, The | Gustavson, Jukka | Made in Sweden | Pembroke, Jim | Pohjola, Pekka | Tasavallan Presidentti | Uni Sono]

Pleasure Signals (78)

Danny Wilding (guitar) and Pete Bonus (flute) joined by their friends for a pretty decent fusion effort. Their friends just happen to be members of Brand X, plus a few other decent chaps. Pleasure Signals would fit not too uncomfortably in the Brand X discography, somewhere around the Product or Do They Hurt? era. Use of the flute and Wilding's guitar style are about all that serve to differentiate. The LP was also famous for the picture disk version. Find one and find out why.

Seasons (71), Morning (72)

Underground; organic explorations w/ acid guitar. Seasons is hard-rock/prog, like Deep Purple with flute. Morning features lots of mellotron and is much more progressive. -- Mike Ohman

Symphinity (77)

An Australian band that evolved out of Sebastian Hardie, they only released one LP, Symphinity. Windchase is another symphonic progressive masterpeice with the emphasis a little more on the mellifluous guitar leads of Mario Millo punctuated by Tony Banksian keyboard-wall-of-sound.

This Australian band, half ex-members of Sebastian Hardie, played a energized progressive-fusion rock that at times reminds me a lot of Santana. Good stuff, but tends to be a little underdeveloped. Lots of good stretches, though. By the way, these guys sound nothing like Sebastian Hardie.

[See Millo, Mario | Sebastian Hardie]

Windflower (??)

Alaskan folk-prog with Mellotron. -- Mike Ohman

Across the Circles Edge (92)

Neo-prog band from Ireland, with a sound not unlike others in the sub-genre, although the Genesis influence is not so overt and immediately apparent. Their first CD Across The Circle's Edge is on the SI Music label, and is very typical of the other bands on that label. A good band, hopefully their second outing will show a bit more brilliance and originality.

Lessons Never Learned (92)

As far as I know, Wisehammer's 1992 cassette release of Lessons Never Learned was their only release. If you like Terraced Garden, you'll like Wisehammer. Carl Tafel of Terraced Garden contributes on this release with his guitar, vocal and e-bow work. They remind me of Steve Hackett, Spectral Mornings-era, with a bit of Robert Fripp thrown in. Being from Canada, you can hear a bit of Rush and Saga, during the melodic parts. Nothing to comple. A bit jazzy and bluesy at times. -- Ray Martell

Cry For The Moon (92)

Metal/prog sound.

Cosmos and Chaos (93)

A Cleveland area band that fits snugly (albeit quietly) in the present American prog rock scene. The band on Cosmos and Chaos is a three-piece, consisting of a drummer, guitarist, and keyboardist. Don't let the lack of a bassist turn you off; these guys are really worth listening to. Only one song has vocals, which have a Ian Anderson-type feel. There are some etudes for classical guitar or piano, which are really nice. Half of the songs are 2 or 3 minutes long, the others are around 6-8. Most songs, particularly the longer ones have many themes and time changes in them, but it's not overdone.I hear hints of Yes, Rush, Djam Karet, and others, but you wouldn't say, "Oh, there just like _____." The talent is there, and the music is very enjoyable. Check them out. -- Doug Maynard

Trips and Traume (71), De Jesusspilz (71), Bauer Plath (72), Live 68-73 (73)

Folk prog.

[See Witthüser, Bernd]

Lieder Von Vampiren, Nonnen Und Toten (70)

Folk prog.

[See Witthüser and Westrupp]

Carrycroch (78), Second (79)

French spacey fusion band that put out a couple of LPs and a couple of singles in the late seventies. Pretty nice music - nothing totally impressive, but very much in the French style that Carpe Diem exploited to full potential.

Canis Lupis (73), Saturation Point (73), Night Music (74)

Band featuring former Curved Air violinist Darryl Way, future Marillion drummer Ian Mosley, future Soft Machine guitarist John Etheridge, and future Caravan bassist Dek Messecar. Excellent and ripping prog rock with a violin lead. Very classical and sort of a cross among Curved Air, Cressida, Spring, and classical bands like mid-period PFM or Trace, ELP, etc.

Darryl Way originated in the classically oriented progressive rock group Curved Air, and, with his band, Wolf, generated three releases. Saturation Point and Night Music are the second and third. The lineup featured some of the future luminaries of the prog rock scene, including John Etheridge (later to Soft Machine), Dek Messecar (who would go on to Caravan), and Ian Moseley (later to Trace, Marillion) providing the basis for Way's often frenetic lead violin. The music was in a mold similar to Curved Air with a large percentage of instrumental passages on their second release, Saturation Point, released in 1973, and moved to a slightly more refined style in their last Work, Night Music, with some of the musical interludes similar to mid-period Caravan.

[See Caravan | Curved Air | Soft Machine | Way, Darryl]

Unleashed (91), The Chase (92), Year of the Dog (94)

One of the finest Celtic rock bands from to come along in the past few years, Wolfstone plays a high-energy blend of Scottish folk music and progressive-edged rock. Unlike a lot of rock-n-reel bands, who go for a coarse sound (e.g. The Pogues), Wolfstone places a premium on musicianship and melodic richness. The obvious comparisons would be Fairport Convention and Songs in the Wood-era Jethro Tull, but they're a lot harder-hitting than Fairport, and a lot more traditional than Tull. Several folks have said that Wolfstone sounds like Kansas playing traditional Scottish folk tunes. A little tough to imagine, but the comparison is apt, especially on their original instrumental compositions, like "The Howl" Although all of Wolfstone's albums are solid, the real way to experience their music is to go and see them live. These guys tour regularly in the UK and in North America and it's definitely worth going to see them. They have a massive stage presence, with seven musicians (one drummer, one bassist, two guitarists, one keyboardist, one fiddler, and one piper/flautist/whistler), and they really put out much more energy in their concerts than can possibly be captured in the studio. -- James Chokey

Maestoso (80)

Stuart "Woolly" Wolstenholme was a member of Barclay James Harvest from 1967 to 1979; he played keyboards on all their albums from 1970 to 1979, and was responsible for the lush walls of keyboards that was an integral part of BJH's sound (similar to Pinder's work with the Moody Blues). Maestoso was his only solo release, from 1980, that places rock within an orchestral and symphonic setting. Musically, comparisons could be drawn to mid-period BJH and some of the early to mid-period works of the Moody Blues.

[See Barclay James Harvest]

A Quick Step (75)

Obviously this band has heard bands such as Fantasy and Cressida, as that's what they most closely resemble. The band features dual guitars, keyboards and flute among its instrumentation. There are some nice Mellotron passages, which are always welcome. The main problem is that the band wear their influences too much on their sleeve. Which is not to say that they plunder from their sources, which they don't. They just don't have anything unique and new to add to the style, but they execute it OK if unspectacularly. Also problematic is their singer, whose thin, raspy voice becomes quite unpleasant over the entire course of this album. -- Mike Ohman

Tarot (71), Somnabular (73), Vibrarock (76), Tombac Vibe (??)

Electronic vibraphone (!) music. -- Mike Ohman

Fantasy (79)

Fusion and jazz five piece outfit that sounds somewhat like Return to Forever without the funk. Wooden Ear also lack a little bit of Return to Forever's intensity, although they are quite good musicians and the compositions themselves are strong. Main instruments are the usual keyboards, guitar and sax. Keyboardist Christian Darré's style is comparable to Chick Corea, so even when they don't sound like Return to Forever, they still sound like Corea's Elektric Band. -- Mike Taylor

The Big Picture (92)

Woodenhead have been around the New Orleans for many years and apparently have several albums out. Privately released, The Big Picture is the only one I've seen on CD thus far. Woodenhead is comprised of four very talented musicians: Jimmy Robinson on guitars and guitar synth (and the focus of the instrumental music), Paul Clement on bass, Fran Comiskey on keyboards and Mark Whitaker on drums. The only problem is their style is derivative (or *heavily* inspired, if you prefer) of the Dixie Dregs. Robinson even handles "violin" on his guitar synth. The band does have some good ideas and bits of originality but I'd like to see them step out of the Dregs' shadow more often. Much more often. For example, the blues-inflected "King Rootin' Tootin'" reflects much of the traditional blues heard in New Orleans. I'd love to hear Woodenhead blend the jazz and blues in a more original way. I'm sure they're capable of it. The Big Picture is good stuff if you like the Dregs and don't mind another band that sounds just like them. But if you'd prefer more originality in style, well...you've been warned. I don't know if their other releases are like The Big Picture or not.

The World Of Oz (69)

Psych/folk/prog.

World Trade (89) Euphoria (95)

Euphoria is a good album. Chris Squire cowrote two songs with group leader Billy Sherwood. Strong melodies and bass playing, although song structures may be a bit basic for some prog heads. -- J. Drake

Woz (81)

Solo synthesist from the east coast area. The multi-layered tracks from his album Woz tend to concentrate less on melodics and more on sort of a rhythmic psychedelicism, with interesting effects and growling tonations. This would be a nice soundtrack to your next hit of acid!

Wet Dreams (78)

Keyboardist with Pink Floyd. His album Wet Dream explores some of territory not unlike Floyd circa Obscured by Clouds and thereabouts, with less emphasis on guitars and virtually no vocals. A very good album.

[See Pink Floyd]

Power of the Picts (69)

Heavy prog.

Rock Fantasia Opus 9 (80)

Offbeat symphonic prog

The End of an Ear (71), Rock Bottom (74), Ruth Is Stranger Than Richard (75), The Animals Film (82) (soundtrack), 1982-84 (84), Nothing Can Stop Us (85), Old Rottenhat (86), Dondestan (91), A Short Break (92), Mid-Eighties (93) Flotsam Jetsam (94, compilation)

The End Of And Ear and Rock Bottom are truly two of the most innovative albums ever recorded by this genius ex-Soft Machine, Matching Mole drummer/vocalist. Rock Bottom was recorded after Wyatt's accident in which he fell out of a building and became paralyzed from the waist down. Very haunting and very emotional. The End Of An Ear was Wyatt's experimentation in vocal technique. No lyrics, just voice and incredible music. I love it a LOT.

A Short Break is a collection of 5 tracks by Robert Wyatt recorded into a 4-track machine in his home, and seem to be more in the nature of rough works, as might comprise a demo. Wyatt is accompanied by piano and sparse percussion, with music that harkens back to his earlier days. This item is probably more in the nature of a memento to those who enjoy Wyatt's style, or are collectors of the genre (Canterbury, I suppose), rather than a release of great musical merit.

Dondestan is great. I love this guy's voice. Songs are mainly sad and whimsical.

A genius. Get them all. Rock Bottom has the amazing "Alifie" and "Alifib" which get my vote for his greatest tracks. Ivor Cutler adds bizzarre verse too. The line-ups of Rock Bottom and Ruth contain Mike Oldfield, Fred Frith, Richard Sinclair, Ivor Cutler ... produced by Nick Mason ... hear or regret.

His End Of An Ear album is not unlike the experimental edge of the stuff he was doing with Soft Machine, many tracks done entirely with vocals. David Sinclair of Caravan guests on organ. Weird, especially the two almost unrecognizable, very long versions of Gil Evans' "Las Vegas Tango." Rock Bottom is a good deal more listenable, yet still highly unconventional. Mostly consisting of Wyatt's voice, keyboards and some light percussion. -- Mike Ohman

[See Matching Mole | Soft Machine | Sugarcane Harris]