Record Reviews

CARAVAN ~ ALL OVER YOU TALKING ELEPHANT 090 (Barcode: 5028479009022) ~ UK ~ Canterbury Scene Recorded: 1995 - 1996 Released: 2006 It doesn´t happen too often that a band takes a look back at its music recorded over 20 years earlier and decides to re-record it from scratch, as if from another perspective. But than again, CaravanFind albums by this artist, the legendary British Prog / Canterbury pioneering group, is hardly a "usual" band – one can always expect them to come up with the unexpected. This album is exactly that – a new look at the glorious material the band recorded in the 1970s and a new presentation of that material. Of course many fans saw this move as sacrilegious, holding the opinion that this classic Prog material should remain untouched. With all due respect to the fans, it´s really up to the band to decide what they wish to do with it, and honestly, considering how great this new versions are, this bold move truly paid off. Pye HastingsFind albums by this artist, Geoffrey RichardsonFind albums by this artist, Dave SinclairFind albums by this artist, Jimmy HastingsFind albums by this artist and Richard CoughlanFind albums by this artist (the Caravan lineup at the time this album was recorded) did a splendid job and this historic material sounds absolutely fresh and brilliant as it ever did and in some cases even better. Years of experience and evolution surely added layers of sophistication and understanding, which can, and in this case do outshine the youthful enthusiast and spirit of the original recordings. A must for any Canterbury music fan!

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CARAVAN ~ BACK TO FRONT ECLECTIC 1010 ~ UK ~ Canterbury Scene Recorded: 1982 This CaravanFind albums by this artist album features the original members Pye HastingsFind albums by this artist, Richard CoughlanFind albums by this artist, Dave SinclairFind albums by this artist and Richard SinclairFind albums by this artist, with Mel CollinsFind albums by this artist featured on saxophone as guest artist. Although the peak of the Catnterbury scene was already in the past, Caravan maintained their usual excellent standards both as composers and performers. A pity this was left behind for such a long time and great to see it available again.

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CARAVAN ~ CARAVAN & THE NEW SYMPHONIA (EXPANDED EDITION) DERAM 882969 (Barcode: 042288296928) ~ UK ~ Canterbury Scene Recorded: 1073 Released: 2001 This is the 6th album by the great British Prog group CaravanFind albums by this artist, which is considered as their most unusual venture. With a phenomenal lineup consisting of keyboardist Dave SinclairFind albums by this artist, violinist Geoffrey RichardsonFind albums by this artist, guitarist Pye HastingsFind albums by this artist, bassist John G. PerryFind albums by this artist and drummer Richard CoughlanFind albums by this artist, the band recorded this album live, accompanied by a large orchestra – a very ambitious and challenging project. The level of writing was also phenomenally strong with most of the quirky material written by Hastings. This is classic Prog stuff of the highest caliber and an absolute must in any serious Prog record collection.

CD 1 Remastered Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend

CARAVAN ~ FOR GIRLS WHO GROW PLUMP IN THE NIGHT (EXPANDED EDITION) DERAM 882980 (Barcode: 042288298021) ~ UK ~ Canterbury Scene Recorded: 1972 Released: 2001 This is the 5th album by the great British Prog group CaravanFind albums by this artist, which is often considered as their best album. With a phenomenal lineup consisting of keyboardist Dave SinclairFind albums by this artist, violinist Peter RichardsonFind albums by this artist, guitarist Pye HastingsFind albums by this artist, bassist John G. PerryFind albums by this artist and drummer Richard CoughlanFind albums by this artist, the band also used a plethora of other guest musicians, mostly from the burgeoning British Jazz scene (clarinetist Tony CoeFind albums by this artist, saxophonist / flautist Pete KingFind albums by this artist, trumpeter Henry LowtherFind albums by this artist to mention just a few). The level of writing was also phenomenally strong with most of the quirky material written by Hastings, except for one tune by Perry and another one by Soft MachineFind albums by this artist´s Mike RatledgeFind albums by this artist. This is classic Prog stuff of the highest caliber and an absolute must in any serious Prog record collection.

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CARAVAN ~ IF I COULD DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN, I`D DO IT ALL OVER YOU (EXPANDED EDITION) DECCA 882968 (Barcode: 042288296829) ~ UK ~ Canterbury Scene Recorded: 1969 Released: 2001 This is the 2nd album by the great British Prog group CaravanFind albums by this artist, which is considered as one of their best albums and the 1st "true" Canterbury album. With a phenomenal lineup consisting of keyboardist Dave SinclairFind albums by this artist, saxophonist / flautist Jimmy HastingsFind albums by this artist, guitarist Pye HastingsFind albums by this artist, bassist Richard SinclairFind albums by this artist and drummer Richard CoughlanFind albums by this artist. The level of writing was also phenomenally strong with the quirky material written by all members of the group. This is classic Prog stuff of the highest caliber and an absolute must in any serious Prog record collection.

CD 1 Remastered Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend

CARAVAN ~ IN THE LAND OF GREY AND PINK (40TH ANNIVERSARY DELUXE EDITION) DERAM 533316 (Barcode: 600753331613) ~ UK ~ Canterbury Scene Recorded: 1970 - 1971 Released: 2011 This is the 3rd album by CaravanFind albums by this artist, the ultimate Canterbury Scene band which defined the Prog sub-genre and laid out its musical boundaries. Guitarist Pye HastingsFind albums by this artist, keyboardist Dave SinclairFind albums by this artist, bassist Richard SinclairFind albums by this artist and drummer Richard CoughlanFind albums by this artist were not only superb players but also revolutionary composers, creating music which was new and completely different from anything else on earth. Aided by flautist / saxophonist Jimmy HastingsFind albums by this artist, the band recorded this masterpiece, which remains their best effort in a long and illustrious career. The original album is an iconic singularity as far as giant steps in music development are concerned and it still is an absolutely essential listening experience. This new edition expands even further the 2001 expanded edition, including BBC sessions, previously unreleased demos and alternate versions and a DVD with 5.1 Surround Sound mixes of the album by Steven WilsonFind albums by this artist (of Porcupine TreeFind albums by this artist and BlackfieldFind albums by this artist fame) and TV video material. If any album deserves such a royal treatment, this is it, so enjoy every minute of it as there are certainly many minutes to be enjoyed. Beyond essential!

2CD+DVD 3 Digipak Remastered Bonus Tracks Essential Recommend To A Friend

CARAVAN ~ LIVE IN NOTTINGHAM CLASSIC ROCK 1049 (Barcode: 823880010491) ~ UK ~ Canterbury Scene Recorded: 1990 Released: 2002 This is a historic live recording by the legendary group CaravanFind albums by this artist, reunited in 1990 and bringing together the lineup that recorded the great "In The Land Of Grey And PinkFind albums with this title" album: Pye HastingsFind albums by this artist, Richard SinclairFind albums by this artist, Dave SinclairFind albums by this artist, Richard CoughlanFind albums by this artist and Jimmy HastingsFind albums by this artist. Some of the tracks present here come from this landmark recordings and other are of course no less attractive. The album has a great Roger Dean cover, which is one more reason to grab it on top of the music of course. Not to be missed by the group´s fans.

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CARAVAN ~ THE ALBUM ECLECTIC 1011 ~ UK ~ Canterbury Scene Recorded: 1980 This CaravanFind albums by this artist album features Pye HastingsFind albums by this artist, Richard CoughlanFind albums by this artist, Geoff RichardsonFind albums by this artist, Dave SinclairFind albums by this artist, with Dek MessecarFind albums by this artist playing bass. This is a continuation of their melodic Canterbury style with excellent compositions and flawless performances. The fire of the 1970s might have been dying out, but the group remained faithfull to their ways. The material is slightly on the lighter side of Prog, but the many Caravan fans will love it.

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CARAVAN ~ THE SHOW OF OUR LIVES - LIVE AT THE BBC 1968-1975 DERAM 301443 (Barcode: 600753014431) ~ UK ~ Canterbury Scene Recorded: 1968 - 1975 Released: 2007 Every piece of archival material by the legendary Canterbury Scene band CaravanFind albums by this artist is worth its weight in gold, and where to look for such material if not in the BBC vaults, which seems to be an endless source of superb material from the 1960s and 1970s material for us, the ever hungry fans. This great collection of Caravan recordings spans the first 8 years of the group’s career and includes material from their most adventurous and productive period. It’s enough to list the musicians, who were members of the band over the years (Dave SinclairFind albums by this artist, Pye HastingsFind albums by this artist, Richard SinclairFind albums by this artist, Richard CoughlanFind albums by this artist, Geoffrey RichardsonFind albums by this artist, Mike WedgwoodFind albums by this artist) is enough to make every Canterbury fan shiver with awe-inspired admiration. The group was truly inspirational, setting the path for generations to come and vastly contributing to the development of jazz influenced Fusion and avant-oriented RIO. The BBC session included here cover the band’s entire first phase, starting from their debut eponymous album on VerveFind albums on this label and covering all the albums they recorded for DeccaFind albums on this label, the last being Cunning StuntsFind albums with this title. The quality of the material is absolutely superb from start to finish both musically and sonically, as the usual high standard of the BBC sound engineering never fails to astonish. This is an absolute must to every Caravan and Canterbury Scene fan, and basically for anybody out there, who likes good music.

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CARAVAN ~ WATERLOO LILY (EXPANDED EDITION) DERAM 882982 (Barcode: 042288298229) ~ UK ~ Progressive Rock Recorded: 1972 Released: 2001 This is the 4th album by CaravanFind albums by this artist, the ultimate Canterbury scene band which defined the Prog sub-genre and laid out its musical boundaries. Guitarist Pye HastingsFind albums by this artist, keyboardist Steve MillerFind albums by this artist, bassist Richard SinclairFind albums by this artist and drummer Richard CoughlanFind albums by this artist were not only superb players but also revolutionary composers, creating music which was new and completely different from anything else on earth. This album is slightly more Jazzier that the previous effort, due to the change of the keyboardist, and is yet another masterpiece of the Canterbury sub-genre, which lost absolutely nothing of its charm and wit over the years. This is classic Prog stuff of the highest caliber and an absolute must in any serious Prog record collection.

CD 1 Remastered Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend