Record Reviews
14 Reviews Found. Use search to find more reviews or follow the links in the review text.
  | ANNIE HASLAM ~ BLESSING IN DISGUISE
VOICEPRINT 354 ~ UK ~ Progressive Rock
Recorded in 1994 (and released under the banner Annie Haslam`s Renaissance) this is one of Annie`s strongest solo albums since leaving the mother group. Produced by the legendary Tony Visconti (who also plays on the album and composed some of the tracks) the album resembles the original Renaissance in every aspect - sound, atmosphere, instrumentation, etc. The material is exceptionally strong (in fact much stronger then the late Renaissance albums), Annie`s voice crystal clear as ever - in short a masterpiece. Considering the fact that she recorded this album just after recovering from a breast cancer is a miracle in itself. The bonus tracks, although written in 1992, were recorded in 2002. Essential!
| | | CD 1 Remastered Bonus Tracks Essential Recommend To A Friend |
  | ANNIE HASLAM ~ DAWN OF ANANDA
VOICEPRINT 356 ~ UK ~ Progressive Rock
Recorded in 1999, this is Annie`s most serious solo project in many years. She wrote all of the lyrics to the songs included on the album and the wonderful music was composed by her veteran colleagues such as Michael Dunford (Renaissance), Rave Tesar and the legendary Tony Visconti, who also co-produced the album. The songs are all based on Annie`s deep personal feelings and experiences and the manages to transform those into music in full. This gentle, melodic, blissful music is perhaps to `sweet` for some, but I absolutely adore it.
| | | CD 1 Remastered Recommend To A Friend |
  | ANNIE HASLAM ~ IT SNOWS IN HEAVEN TOO
VOICEPRINT 357 ~ UK ~ Progressive Rock
Before you read any further - this is a `Christmas` album! So how come it is classified as Prog? Well, Annie Haslam has been associated with the genre since we all can remember and her vocal qualities are beyond dispute. And who better to record those songs then the Lady with the voice of an angel? Annie sings just brilliantly, and the songs, carefully arranged by Rave Tesar, sound just wonderful. The choice of material and the atmosphere are nothing like all those tacky X-mas albums we all know and despise - this is a masterpiece. The album was recorded in 2000.
| | | CD 1 Remastered Recommend To A Friend |
  | ANNIE HASLAM ~ LIVE STUDIO CONCERT
VOICEPRINT 379 (Barcode: 604388322022) ~ UK ~ Progressive Rock
Recorded: 1997 Released: 2006
Recorded in 1997 at the Prism TV Network studios in Philadelphia, Annie proves that she is still as good a singer as she ever was and her angelic voice remains intact. She gets a most sympathetic support from three musicians / friends (Rave Tesar – keyboards, David Biglin – keyboards and guitar and Joe Goldberger – drums) and the material includes some of her best known songs from her solo career and a few older Renaissance songs. The intimate setting of small studio audience provides Annie with an ideal environment to display her ability and get immediate feedback from the listeners. For the many Annie Haslam’s fans this is a Godsend. This CD includes the audio material on the DVD by the same name, with the addition of one bonus track.
| | | CD 1 Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend |
  | ANNIE HASLAM ~ LIVE STUDIO CONCERT
VOICEPRINT 020 ~ UK ~ Progressive Rock
Considering how rare any footage by Annie Haslam / Renaissance is, it is a great feast to have an opportunity to see and listen to this wonderful performance. Filmed in 1997 at the Prism TV Network studios in Philadelphia, Annie proves that she is still as good a singer as she ever was and her angelic voice remains intact. She gets a most sympathetic support from three musicians / friends (Rave Tesar – keyboards, David Biglin – keyboards and guitar and Joe Goldberger – drums) and the material includes some of her best known songs from her solo career and a few older Renaissance songs. The intimate setting of small studio audience provides Annie with an ideal environment to display her ability and get immediate feedback from the listeners. For the many Annie Haslam’s fans this is a Godsend.
| | | DVD 1 Recommend To A Friend |
  | ANNIE HASLAM ~ LIVE UNDER BRAZILIAN SKIES
VOICEPRINT 355 ~ UK ~ Progressive Rock
Recorded live during Annie`s 1997 tour of Brazil, this nice album spotlights her solo career years after leaving the legendary Renaissance. The music includes a few Renaissance classics, as well as songs from her later solo albums. Haslam has never lost neither her absolutely wonderful, crystal clear voice, nor her tremendous feeling and ability to express music, which make her one of the greatest performers in Prog.
| | | CD 1 Remastered Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend |
  | ANNIE HASLAM ~ ONE ENCHANTED EVENING
VOICEPRINT 358 (Barcode: 604388319824) ~ UK ~ Progressive Rock
Recorded: 2001 Released: 2005
Recorded live in 2001, this is the latest (so far) solo album by the legendary vocalist. As she herself describes it - it contains a number of songs that she has wanted to record for a number of years, and that she feels have played an important role in her career. Some truly exqusit renderings of classic songs, including her version of `She`s Leaving Home` by the Beatles. What a delight! In 2002 Annie started (seriously) to paint and the cover art of this album is one of her paintings.
| | | CD 1 Remastered Recommend To A Friend |
  | MELLUSYA ~ Z SERCA
SOLITON 660 (Barcode: 5901571096605) ~ POLAND ~ Sung Poetry
Recorded: 2019 Released: 2020
This is the debut album by Polish ensemble MelluSyaFind albums by this artist led by vocalist Kaja MianowanaFind albums by this artist and including Russian (resident in Poland) pianist Vlasta TraczykFind albums by this artist, violinist Kinga KloczkoFind albums by this artist, bassist Adam WardziakFind albums by this artist and drummer Karol KrasinskiFind albums by this artist. The album presents twelve original songs, all composed by Traczyk, with lyrics by Polish, Russian (Anna AkhmatovaFind albums by this artist), French (Christine de PisanFind albums by this artist), American (Emily DickinsonFind albums by this artist) and British (Edgar Allan PoeFind albums by this artist) poets and two original texts by Mianowana. Two of the songs have lyrics in English and the rest feature Polish lyrics, including translations into Polish.
The music is a typical example of the Polish Sung Poetry idiom, which is an extremely fruitful and popular sub-genre of the Polish Pop / Art Pop music, with a long and glorious tradition in Polish music scene and which is a companion to the Polish Jazz & Poetry idiom.
Not surprisingly the music is mostly influenced by Traczyk, who composed all the songs, and offers an amalgam of Russian Classical Music influences and East European lyricism and melancholy with a dash of poetic Progressive Rock nostalgia. They are well structured melodically and harmonically, and have a tad of Siberian wintriness in them, which takes a while to get into, but which manages to create a unique atmosphere.
Mianowana is an accomplished vocalist with a beautiful voice and great range. Her career and experience in musicals results in a certain over-theatrical approach, which is not naturally suited for Sung Poetry, which relays first and foremost on feeling and empathy with the poetic contents rather than a display of vocal mastery. But having said that, this is not really an issue here and she manages to deliver these songs very impressively.
All four instrumentalists are well educated and highly trained, and all perform their parts without a hitch, as expected. The violinist is a bit hidden in the mix and might have been featured more prominently INHO.
For Prog fans, the piano / vocals dominance brings fond memories of the RenaissanceFind albums by this artist / Annie HaslamFind albums by this artist albums – Prog-heads check it out!
Overall this is a very solid and classy debut album, which should keep connoisseurs of Sung Poetry / Art Pop / Prog extremely happy. Definitely worth investigating and warmly recommended – good job Ladies and Gents!
| | Updated: 23/10/2020Posted: 03/04/2020 | CD 1 Recommend To A Friend |
  | QUIDAM ~ QUIDAM
ROCK SYMPHONY 070 (Barcode: 7898217280703) ~ POLAND ~ Progressive Rock
Recorded: 1995 - 1996 Released: 1996
1st album by the Polish Prog group QuidamFind albums by this artist, which took the Prog world by surprise when it hit the Western world. In retrospect this is definitely one of the best Prog albums released in the 1990s and surely one of the strongest Prog debuts ever. Quidam has all the elements of a great group: superb writers, excellent instrumentalists and a divine female vocalist with an angelic voice of the caliber of Annie HaslamFind albums by this artist – Emila DerkowskaFind albums by this artist. The band is deeply rooted in the Prog tradition, especially in the GenesisFind albums by this artist dramatics, but they take the best of the tradition only as a backbone of their music, developing it far beyond the cliches and building exceptionally well developed and masterly executed songs. The delicate balance between acoustic (flute, viola) and electric (keyboards and guitar) instruments is enchanting and extremely effective. The choice to stick to Polish lyrics is a wise one, as the vocalist certainly can express herself better in her native tongue, rather than use English (as they tried later on). This is a masterpiece in every respect and every single second of this album is absolutely perfect. No serious Prog collection can be complete without this album.
| | | CD 1 Recommend To A Friend |
  | QUIDAM ~ QUIDAM / RZEKA WSPOMNIEN (LIMITED EDITION)
ROCK SERWIS 101 (Barcode: 5907729910120) ~ POLAND ~ Progressive Rock
Recorded: 1996 Released: 2006
1st album by the Polish Prog group QuidamFind albums by this artist, which took the Prog world by surprise when it hit the Western world. In retrospect this is definitely one of the best Prog albums released in the 1990s and surely one of the strongest Prog debuts ever. Quidam has all the elements of a great group: superb writers, excellent instrumentalists and a divine female vocalist with an angelic voice of the caliber of Annie HaslamFind albums by this artist – Emila DerkowskaFind albums by this artist. The band is deeply rooted in the Prog tradition, especially in the GenesisFind albums by this artist dramatics, but they take the best of the tradition only as a backbone of their music, developing it far beyond the cliches and building exceptionally well developed and masterly executed songs. The delicate balance between acoustic (flute, viola) and electric (keyboards and guitar) instruments is enchanting and extremely effective. The choice to stick to Polish lyrics is a wise one, as the vocalist certainly can express herself better in her native tongue, rather than use English (as they tried later on). The new 10th Anniversary edition adds a second CD called “River Of Memories”, which is a collection of previously unreleased material by the group and offshoot projects, all very interesting and worth having. Several video clips are added as well. This is a masterpiece in every respect and every single second of this album is absolutely perfect. No serious Prog collection can be complete without this album.
| | | CD 2 Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend |
  | RENAISSANCE ~ DREAMS & OMENS
FRIDAY MUSIC 1093 (Barcode: 829421109327) ~ UK ~ Progressive Rock
Recorded: 1978 Released: 2008
By the late 1970s the great British Prog group RenaissanceFind albums by this artist, which dominated the scene for the last decade (although quietly and never reaching the popularity of the Big 5) and released a series of absolute classic albums, was reaching the end of the line, as all it´s contemporaries. The musical atmosphere was changing and artistic and intelligent music was rapidly loosing ground to more primitive music forms. With slight personal changes over the years the group reached a stage of perfect professionalism and stunning delivery, which marked the pinnacle of their musical path. Fronted by the vocal diva Annie HaslamFind albums by this artist, whose angelic voice had no competition whatsoever and with great players on board, the band was capable to produce a truly spectacular sound on stage, as documented by this recording. John ToutFind albums by this artist on keyboards, Michael DunfordFind albums by this artist on guitar, Jon CampFind albums by this artist on bass and Terrence SullivanFind albums by this artist on drums produce a stunning instrumental background for Annie´s heartbreaking vocals. The material includes some of the band´s most ambitious compositions, including a 14 and a half minutes long version of "Can You Hear Me". The music was recorded at the Tower Theatre in Philadelphia, a town where the band had quite a following and played in often enough. Every new document of the band´s performances is of course most welcome and the many fans will jump upon the occasion to hear some more of their eternal music. Although the music was not recorded with the intension of being released and therefore suffers from some technical imperfections, the overall strength of the performance makes is an absolute must for any fan of the band. Warmly recommended!
| | | CD 1 Remastered Recommend To A Friend |
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