Well folks, just in time for the end of the year....word has filtered down that there will be a new release for the fansbase. Annie Haslam will at some point announce on her site that there will be a concert DVD from the 1970's. And prerelease information indicates that this will be a combination of two shows: The Scheherazade tour and one from Azure d' Or....
On the latter point, there has been some debate as to what was the song order due to the presence of 'The Vultures Fly High' on the setlist. More often than not this song showed up as the opening piece on two of their last tours, Azure D' Or and Camera Camera. And there is something interesting about the setlists:
Azure D' Or
Can You Understand [instr]
The Vultures Fly High
Day OF The Dreamer
New Song One
New Song Two
Running Hard
Northern Lights
New Song Three
New Song Four
Mother Russia
A Song For All Seasons
Prologue
Ashes Are Burning
Camera Camera
Can You Understand [Instr]
The Vultures FLy High
Day OF The Dreamer
New Song One
New Song Two
Running Hard
Northern Lights
New Song Three
Mother Russia
New Song Four
New Song Five
A Song For All Seasons
Ashes Are Burning
Notice a pattern there folks??? Granted familiarity does help if only due to us hardcore fans. But this also meant that those who were in control at the time may not have had a little bit of imagination. Of course these oversights were corrected for the Beacon shows [previously mentioned] and later tours.
Speaking of later material...
- Someone in another blog had mentioned that 'Chagrin Boulevard' was the best song on 'Time-Line'. Yes I have my faves off of this somewhat uneven album, but for crying out loud, if a song named after a somewhat non-descript street in Cleveland is the best off this album, then there may just be a few things wrong with this planet.
--And while we are at it, comparing Renaissance to ABBA is an insult....to Renaissance. IF one were to notice somewhat carefully, the production on the last two albums on Sire was more like that of mid period Genesis which was not by coincidence. The same production team responsible for 'Duke' and 'ABABCAB' had their hands on 'A Song For All Seasons' and 'Azure D' Or'. Hence the sound was going to be somewhat similar and the overdubbing of synths on 'Azure' was not by accident. But ABBA....only someone who while a fellow Ren fan but smoking rope can make that rather large, if not strange leap of illogic.
Well that is the news, sports and weather for now.....if I do get a copy of the DVD, you will see a review of it here!!!
Showing posts with label Time-Line. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Time-Line. Show all posts
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Monday, October 6, 2008
The Last Live Album by Renaissance..Land of The Rising Sun
[Sidebar-Due to some medical issues that have been more or less been creeping up like the taxman does when they smell a potential audit victim, postings here will be a tad intermittent. Yours truly is hoping that at some point the young team of doctors who I am working with will find something to put all of these to rest and life can resume with some sense of normality and I can post here more often]
For a while, yours truly had been hoping to obtain the above mentioned disc for various reasons. One being that this would complete a little part of the collection in that I was interested in the more electric concerts that Renaissance had recorded....with and without orchestras. Second being that this has some material from 'Tuscany', which is one heck of an album. As has been mentioned in other corners, considering the last two studio pieces ['Camera Camera' and 'Time-Line', respectively] this is a comeback, a triumph so hearing anything live from this mini-tour in Japan would be fantastic, a real treat. Lastly, it seems that the word had gotten around that Terry Sullivan would be back on drums, David Keyes would be on bass and two excellent keyboardists - Mickey Simmonds and Rave Tesar rounding out the band. I would be remiss if I forgot to mention that the groups was led by Annie Haslam and Mickey Dunford. So when this arrived in the mail, I tore at this like a child on Christmas Morning looking for that long awaited present.Let's say on the first listen and subsequent playings.....there is no disspointment here.
'Carpet of the Sun' leads off the concert and it is just as good as any previous version, but this has a kick. Much like the others on these discs which in other settings have had an orchestra, those parts are filled with synthesizers, but these are not your father's type of synth background. Close your eyes and it sounds as though the strings that accent the beginning of 'Carpet' are there. This is to the credit of Mickey Simmonds and Rave Tesar doing the right thing as far as sampling is concerned. And then there is Annie's voice. You know from these moments that this is going to be a fun trip, a wonderous trip back home with the band. And the best is yet to come all through the disc...
The next track being 'Opening Out' is usually coupled with 'Day of The Dreamer' from 'A Song For All Seasons' , but here is a standalone and it does work as that. Just a simple piece....nothing more and nothing less....and as beautiful as the studio version. 'Midas Man' comes after and it is a shame that this one was not featured in concert as often, if only because it is another song that while the melody is simple, the lyrics will get someone to think. After all, we have all at one time had employers who have acted like misers in the tradition of, let's say Ebeneezer Scrooge.
After these first three, the Tuscany material comes to the fore. The title track 'Lady From Tuscany' is just as powerful here as it is on the CD, the orchestral samples playing as though there is the Royal Philharmonic is present with either Louis Clark or Harry Rabinowitz at the baton. Of course, Annie carries the day here, much like on the CD...once you hear her upper range you know that this is truly classic Renaissance, the band in their element. 'Pearls of Wisdom' follows next and this is actually another example of a truly great love song that was common for the band to play from 'Prologue' on. It is a combination of the lyrics and the lushness of the intruments that shows a truly great romantic edge [folks if you are like me, you may have sent copies of Ren lyrics as love poems to the person you are interested in and this song falls into the same family of material and can work just as well *S*]. The last of the new songs in this portion of the concert is 'Dear Landseer' which sounds just like the album version. It is a sweet piece, a tale of an artisan from a long bygone era and the images he creates as well as those which are still a part of the London landscape to this day.
'Northern Lights' is next and it is not a Renaissance show without this song. Granted there are as many versions of this...live and otherwise....as there are 'Famous Ray's' Pizza in New York City, but here it sounds as though the band is having fun with the song. Speaking of having fun, the next song 'Moonlight Shadow' is played in a similar vein [lyrics to the contrary]. There are versions of this which have made the rounds, here however this could have almost have become a singlalong.
The next two tracks 'Precious One' and 'Ananda' are those which have been featured on Annie's solo albums and have good readings here. Sadly due to the state of current radio trends you may not hear much of her solo work. And that is a shame. Yes, these may not sound like they would fit on a Renaissance CD, which I guess would be the point, in that these are two songs that have helped Annie define her own style. In this setting they are worth multiple listenings.
The second CD starts off with one of the 'magnum opi' that Ren was known for. 'Mother Russia', which is played in full. This one still brings chills, especially given certain political realities on this planet. With that said, it is still powerful still timely. Again let's credit the keyboardists for the attention to detail in replicating the orchestral flourishes which are one of the song's hallmarks.
'Trip To The Fair' comes next and this is a study in what happens when Ren infuses a song with jazz figures. The album version on 'Scheherazade' is has a similar break, but this version sounds as though it comes out of the Brubeck school of cool...with turbochargers. Think of it as being a rather nice game of 'call and response' . Of course this is framed by the storyline as related by Annie's vocals.
The next two piecces can be considered a romantic couplet. Frist being 'One Thousand Roses' which is the last track from Tuscany plays like the album version. Lyrically, it is a wonderful story...and repeated listenings show there is a tale that any person who has wanted to show their unconditional love for another can relate to. It is followed by 'I Think Of You' which is from 'Turn of the Cards' . For the life of me, I cannot figure out why this was not featured more often in their previous tours, but be that as it may....wow....this is just a great version. This could have been a solo version by Annie with just Mickey on guitar and the result would be the same, as the rest of the band had a little hand in this....
And then came 'Ashes are Burning', the standard close. Once again, the middle breaks are jazz centered with Mickey Simmonds expanding on the basic melody with a solo for the ages. This led to David Keyes on bass, who while he is not Jon Camp, then again Jon Camp is not David Keyes. What David did was put his own signature on what is the 'seldom imitated-never to be duplicated' Jon Camp solo [which is a clinic on how to do a bass solo] as though it were being played on a lead guitar.The eolo here that really surprised was that of Rave Tesar, which almost sounded like this was a lead guitar. Upon further airings, this is a 'wow factor' solo...in a sense in the same ballpark as the solo Mickey did during the encore of the 'Camera Camera' tours. The end.....Annie in her element, another reason why this was a band to be reckoned with and to savor.
If there are no other live material to be upcoming from Ren, then this is a great way to say so long. Not many bands can do this, even those that have been on their respective concert circuits for decades. Even with changes in personnel, there is that consistency, that fire in Renaissance that still remains...not many can say that, let alone play it.
For a while, yours truly had been hoping to obtain the above mentioned disc for various reasons. One being that this would complete a little part of the collection in that I was interested in the more electric concerts that Renaissance had recorded....with and without orchestras. Second being that this has some material from 'Tuscany', which is one heck of an album. As has been mentioned in other corners, considering the last two studio pieces ['Camera Camera' and 'Time-Line', respectively] this is a comeback, a triumph so hearing anything live from this mini-tour in Japan would be fantastic, a real treat. Lastly, it seems that the word had gotten around that Terry Sullivan would be back on drums, David Keyes would be on bass and two excellent keyboardists - Mickey Simmonds and Rave Tesar rounding out the band. I would be remiss if I forgot to mention that the groups was led by Annie Haslam and Mickey Dunford. So when this arrived in the mail, I tore at this like a child on Christmas Morning looking for that long awaited present.Let's say on the first listen and subsequent playings.....there is no disspointment here.
'Carpet of the Sun' leads off the concert and it is just as good as any previous version, but this has a kick. Much like the others on these discs which in other settings have had an orchestra, those parts are filled with synthesizers, but these are not your father's type of synth background. Close your eyes and it sounds as though the strings that accent the beginning of 'Carpet' are there. This is to the credit of Mickey Simmonds and Rave Tesar doing the right thing as far as sampling is concerned. And then there is Annie's voice. You know from these moments that this is going to be a fun trip, a wonderous trip back home with the band. And the best is yet to come all through the disc...
The next track being 'Opening Out' is usually coupled with 'Day of The Dreamer' from 'A Song For All Seasons' , but here is a standalone and it does work as that. Just a simple piece....nothing more and nothing less....and as beautiful as the studio version. 'Midas Man' comes after and it is a shame that this one was not featured in concert as often, if only because it is another song that while the melody is simple, the lyrics will get someone to think. After all, we have all at one time had employers who have acted like misers in the tradition of, let's say Ebeneezer Scrooge.
After these first three, the Tuscany material comes to the fore. The title track 'Lady From Tuscany' is just as powerful here as it is on the CD, the orchestral samples playing as though there is the Royal Philharmonic is present with either Louis Clark or Harry Rabinowitz at the baton. Of course, Annie carries the day here, much like on the CD...once you hear her upper range you know that this is truly classic Renaissance, the band in their element. 'Pearls of Wisdom' follows next and this is actually another example of a truly great love song that was common for the band to play from 'Prologue' on. It is a combination of the lyrics and the lushness of the intruments that shows a truly great romantic edge [folks if you are like me, you may have sent copies of Ren lyrics as love poems to the person you are interested in and this song falls into the same family of material and can work just as well *S*]. The last of the new songs in this portion of the concert is 'Dear Landseer' which sounds just like the album version. It is a sweet piece, a tale of an artisan from a long bygone era and the images he creates as well as those which are still a part of the London landscape to this day.
'Northern Lights' is next and it is not a Renaissance show without this song. Granted there are as many versions of this...live and otherwise....as there are 'Famous Ray's' Pizza in New York City, but here it sounds as though the band is having fun with the song. Speaking of having fun, the next song 'Moonlight Shadow' is played in a similar vein [lyrics to the contrary]. There are versions of this which have made the rounds, here however this could have almost have become a singlalong.
The next two tracks 'Precious One' and 'Ananda' are those which have been featured on Annie's solo albums and have good readings here. Sadly due to the state of current radio trends you may not hear much of her solo work. And that is a shame. Yes, these may not sound like they would fit on a Renaissance CD, which I guess would be the point, in that these are two songs that have helped Annie define her own style. In this setting they are worth multiple listenings.
The second CD starts off with one of the 'magnum opi' that Ren was known for. 'Mother Russia', which is played in full. This one still brings chills, especially given certain political realities on this planet. With that said, it is still powerful still timely. Again let's credit the keyboardists for the attention to detail in replicating the orchestral flourishes which are one of the song's hallmarks.
'Trip To The Fair' comes next and this is a study in what happens when Ren infuses a song with jazz figures. The album version on 'Scheherazade' is has a similar break, but this version sounds as though it comes out of the Brubeck school of cool...with turbochargers. Think of it as being a rather nice game of 'call and response' . Of course this is framed by the storyline as related by Annie's vocals.
The next two piecces can be considered a romantic couplet. Frist being 'One Thousand Roses' which is the last track from Tuscany plays like the album version. Lyrically, it is a wonderful story...and repeated listenings show there is a tale that any person who has wanted to show their unconditional love for another can relate to. It is followed by 'I Think Of You' which is from 'Turn of the Cards' . For the life of me, I cannot figure out why this was not featured more often in their previous tours, but be that as it may....wow....this is just a great version. This could have been a solo version by Annie with just Mickey on guitar and the result would be the same, as the rest of the band had a little hand in this....
And then came 'Ashes are Burning', the standard close. Once again, the middle breaks are jazz centered with Mickey Simmonds expanding on the basic melody with a solo for the ages. This led to David Keyes on bass, who while he is not Jon Camp, then again Jon Camp is not David Keyes. What David did was put his own signature on what is the 'seldom imitated-never to be duplicated' Jon Camp solo [which is a clinic on how to do a bass solo] as though it were being played on a lead guitar.The eolo here that really surprised was that of Rave Tesar, which almost sounded like this was a lead guitar. Upon further airings, this is a 'wow factor' solo...in a sense in the same ballpark as the solo Mickey did during the encore of the 'Camera Camera' tours. The end.....Annie in her element, another reason why this was a band to be reckoned with and to savor.
If there are no other live material to be upcoming from Ren, then this is a great way to say so long. Not many bands can do this, even those that have been on their respective concert circuits for decades. Even with changes in personnel, there is that consistency, that fire in Renaissance that still remains...not many can say that, let alone play it.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Another look: The Time-Line VCD
[This is another repost from the Renaissance Fanbase group over at Yahoo. The address is here:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/renaissance-fanbase/?yguid=132801527
While it may seem that I am focusing only on Renaissance, there will be some other posts on other bands in this genre soon enough. In the meantime, enjoy!!]
For a while, many of us in this Yahoo group and in other places had been wishing, hoping, maybe even making sacrifices on altars with the wish that there would be a video available of Renaissance in performance. Yes, in addition to the appearances on The Midnight Special, Don Kirschner's Rock Concert, Mike Douglas and others there was a strong rumour that other live performances were recoreded and were floating around. As such when this one became available, I placed myself on the list to receive it and when this arrived, I told my cats they were in for a treat. After all, they have heard their mom rave about these folks for years...and at the time the only video concert I had available for us to view [limited funds at the time and other issues] was the Moody Blues at Red Rocks with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra [not a bad show in itself and I am a hardcore fan of theirs as well]. So the first few airings of it on the PC's VCD player were nice....and a couple weeks back, I decided to look at it again.
If one were to skip the obligatory introduction by the hostess for the USA Network, this one opens with a rocking version of 'Northern Lights'. The beauty of this being shot in a smaller venue [the Park West] is that one not only sees Annie's emotional delivery but also see a clinic on how Jon is able to rip into the Great White with an ease that seems to be beyond regular human skill [Think of how Dwight Gooden's fastball used to be described and you will get the idea]. Granted this gets one hooked and ready for the rest of the disc.
'Flight' from Time-Line is up next and while not a bad song in concert [see a previous review of the 'Time-Line' concerts], it almost seemed as though the band was going through the motions on this evening. Mick Taylor, who along with Gavin Harrison were the new kids playing keyboards and drums respectively looked as though they were in the process of still becoming a part of the band and the solo he does on this song seemed a little reserved. Almost to the point of it being mechanical, vis a vis attacking it.
Interpsersed between the concert pieces are interviews with Jon, Annie and if I remember right, Gavin. When one listens to Jon, you do get a little bit of an insight into how and why the change in musical direction occured. This is a little different than the usual 'we have a good band, a good album a good tour' interview [think of how comics would parody how a baseball manager would speak about his team and their outlook for the season and one can see Ren did not follow this pattern]. Annie's portion shows she is still captivating, even when not singing and is quietly matter-of-fact with regard to how she got involved with the band all those years ago.
While the number of songs on the disc is short, 'Running Hard' being the last stand alone...it is the medley, or as Jon called it 'The Renaissance Collection' is where this all comes together. While this is a tad restrained from what was heard at some of the east coast venues, this still shows that fire that one comes to expect when the band just lets loose. Mickey shows that even though he is not known for being a tiger on the Strat, he can rip into it in his own way and then there is Jon. Again the master of the bass being played as lead, shows with lightening fast movements how he is able to take the bassline from 'Touching Once' and make that a solo to remember. This combined with Mick's counter-solo on keyboards and Annies soaring voice [I will say it here: there are very few then and even now who can match Annie when she is on her game. Period] and that is a great ending to the main portion of the concert.
What puzzled me and still does is why the encore was cut short in this production. As in: no 'America', no 'Prologue' and a truncated 'Ashes Are Burning' which does not include Jon's solo. Yes, we do get the final portion and the crowd gets into it, led by Annie. They took their cue from her and she could have carried this for several hours if need be.
The program does end with a taste of the opening song on the tour 'Can You Hear Me' which would have been nice to see in its full version. One has to hope that maybe at some point, someone will have the complete show from the Park West and distribute this with the interviews. Until then, with the further viewing from these eyes, it is not a bad way to introduce others to the band and for the hardcore fan to savor a 60 minute view of what was and is one of the masters of the form.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/renaissance-fanbase/?yguid=132801527
While it may seem that I am focusing only on Renaissance, there will be some other posts on other bands in this genre soon enough. In the meantime, enjoy!!]
For a while, many of us in this Yahoo group and in other places had been wishing, hoping, maybe even making sacrifices on altars with the wish that there would be a video available of Renaissance in performance. Yes, in addition to the appearances on The Midnight Special, Don Kirschner's Rock Concert, Mike Douglas and others there was a strong rumour that other live performances were recoreded and were floating around. As such when this one became available, I placed myself on the list to receive it and when this arrived, I told my cats they were in for a treat. After all, they have heard their mom rave about these folks for years...and at the time the only video concert I had available for us to view [limited funds at the time and other issues] was the Moody Blues at Red Rocks with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra [not a bad show in itself and I am a hardcore fan of theirs as well]. So the first few airings of it on the PC's VCD player were nice....and a couple weeks back, I decided to look at it again.
If one were to skip the obligatory introduction by the hostess for the USA Network, this one opens with a rocking version of 'Northern Lights'. The beauty of this being shot in a smaller venue [the Park West] is that one not only sees Annie's emotional delivery but also see a clinic on how Jon is able to rip into the Great White with an ease that seems to be beyond regular human skill [Think of how Dwight Gooden's fastball used to be described and you will get the idea]. Granted this gets one hooked and ready for the rest of the disc.
'Flight' from Time-Line is up next and while not a bad song in concert [see a previous review of the 'Time-Line' concerts], it almost seemed as though the band was going through the motions on this evening. Mick Taylor, who along with Gavin Harrison were the new kids playing keyboards and drums respectively looked as though they were in the process of still becoming a part of the band and the solo he does on this song seemed a little reserved. Almost to the point of it being mechanical, vis a vis attacking it.
Interpsersed between the concert pieces are interviews with Jon, Annie and if I remember right, Gavin. When one listens to Jon, you do get a little bit of an insight into how and why the change in musical direction occured. This is a little different than the usual 'we have a good band, a good album a good tour' interview [think of how comics would parody how a baseball manager would speak about his team and their outlook for the season and one can see Ren did not follow this pattern]. Annie's portion shows she is still captivating, even when not singing and is quietly matter-of-fact with regard to how she got involved with the band all those years ago.
While the number of songs on the disc is short, 'Running Hard' being the last stand alone...it is the medley, or as Jon called it 'The Renaissance Collection' is where this all comes together. While this is a tad restrained from what was heard at some of the east coast venues, this still shows that fire that one comes to expect when the band just lets loose. Mickey shows that even though he is not known for being a tiger on the Strat, he can rip into it in his own way and then there is Jon. Again the master of the bass being played as lead, shows with lightening fast movements how he is able to take the bassline from 'Touching Once' and make that a solo to remember. This combined with Mick's counter-solo on keyboards and Annies soaring voice [I will say it here: there are very few then and even now who can match Annie when she is on her game. Period] and that is a great ending to the main portion of the concert.
What puzzled me and still does is why the encore was cut short in this production. As in: no 'America', no 'Prologue' and a truncated 'Ashes Are Burning' which does not include Jon's solo. Yes, we do get the final portion and the crowd gets into it, led by Annie. They took their cue from her and she could have carried this for several hours if need be.
The program does end with a taste of the opening song on the tour 'Can You Hear Me' which would have been nice to see in its full version. One has to hope that maybe at some point, someone will have the complete show from the Park West and distribute this with the interviews. Until then, with the further viewing from these eyes, it is not a bad way to introduce others to the band and for the hardcore fan to savor a 60 minute view of what was and is one of the masters of the form.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Coming up to bat...Renaissance's 'Time-Line'...the album and other material
[This is a repost, with some editing of a recent article I sent over to a Yahoo Group in re: 'Time-Line' the last Renaissance album prior to Jon Camp eventually leaving and 'Tuscany' being released in 2000 ]
To these ears, upon much further review, Time-Line is not really that bad an album, if the cheesiness factor is taken away. What I mean is that yes there are a few pieces on it which are way out of character, but by the same token one can imagine some person out there remixing a 'funkier' version of let's say 'Orient Express'. How did yours truly come to this? More or less it is repeated listening to the CD version on the walkman while shuttling between doctor's offices over the past 3-4months [no sympathy being elicited here, just stating the fact] and thinking 'gee if they had only released _______ at this time'. But that is just speculation...which is part of being a fan of any band. There were at least 3, maybe 4 tunes on the disc that, with a little improvement could have made air and not seem out of place ['Flight', 'Distant Horizons' , 'The Entertainer' and the above mentioned, 'Orient Express'].
Secondly, it is amazing how some of the concert discs, even though they were recorded close to 20 years ago still stand up and how fresh the memories of seeing Ren on Camera Camera or Time-Line were and are. For example, I put the Time-Line concert on and I am back in NYC...sitting at the Palladium watching them on that Saturday evening going through not just the new material, but also the pieces that had not been played in concert for years. Let alone the encore...one of the few times that there is an ovation for a line from a song that mentions the state of New Jersey [referring to the song 'America', '...counting the cars onthe New Jersey Turnpike...' which while part of the closing set...really SHOULD have been released as a single]. Considering what is now passing for music from other bands...hearing these just stands as a reminder of how special Annie, Jon, Mickey, John, Terry and the myriad others who worked alongside them were.
Finally a few weeks back, I was in the market doing my usual shopping and had the Time-Line 'My Father's Place' disc going on in the headphones. Depending on where I am, I may just start whistling along with the tunes and then ,when the spirit hits, start playing an air Rickenbacker bass [Ok...'Great White'] along with Jon's riffs. Which makes for a rather interesting picture when one is in the diary aisle, deciding on Cheddar, Swiss or Provolone and they see this person in a close state of near possession playing along with the bassline from the abbreviated version of 'Touching Once'. Anyhow, I moved onto one of the next aisle and one of the clerks there had noticed I was whistling and was wondering what it was. I then went into a Cliff-Notes version of who Renaissance was, what concert this was I had on and the fact that the last album that was released was 'Tuscany' and that they have since ceased recording. Now who knows, I may have turned another person onto one of the best bands there ever was and this may happen again if someone notices me in the store playing an air-Addamas 12 string and wonders 'what is she on?'
To these ears, upon much further review, Time-Line is not really that bad an album, if the cheesiness factor is taken away. What I mean is that yes there are a few pieces on it which are way out of character, but by the same token one can imagine some person out there remixing a 'funkier' version of let's say 'Orient Express'. How did yours truly come to this? More or less it is repeated listening to the CD version on the walkman while shuttling between doctor's offices over the past 3-4months [no sympathy being elicited here, just stating the fact] and thinking 'gee if they had only released _______ at this time'. But that is just speculation...which is part of being a fan of any band. There were at least 3, maybe 4 tunes on the disc that, with a little improvement could have made air and not seem out of place ['Flight', 'Distant Horizons' , 'The Entertainer' and the above mentioned, 'Orient Express'].
Secondly, it is amazing how some of the concert discs, even though they were recorded close to 20 years ago still stand up and how fresh the memories of seeing Ren on Camera Camera or Time-Line were and are. For example, I put the Time-Line concert on and I am back in NYC...sitting at the Palladium watching them on that Saturday evening going through not just the new material, but also the pieces that had not been played in concert for years. Let alone the encore...one of the few times that there is an ovation for a line from a song that mentions the state of New Jersey [referring to the song 'America', '...counting the cars onthe New Jersey Turnpike...' which while part of the closing set...really SHOULD have been released as a single]. Considering what is now passing for music from other bands...hearing these just stands as a reminder of how special Annie, Jon, Mickey, John, Terry and the myriad others who worked alongside them were.
Finally a few weeks back, I was in the market doing my usual shopping and had the Time-Line 'My Father's Place' disc going on in the headphones. Depending on where I am, I may just start whistling along with the tunes and then ,when the spirit hits, start playing an air Rickenbacker bass [Ok...'Great White'] along with Jon's riffs. Which makes for a rather interesting picture when one is in the diary aisle, deciding on Cheddar, Swiss or Provolone and they see this person in a close state of near possession playing along with the bassline from the abbreviated version of 'Touching Once'. Anyhow, I moved onto one of the next aisle and one of the clerks there had noticed I was whistling and was wondering what it was. I then went into a Cliff-Notes version of who Renaissance was, what concert this was I had on and the fact that the last album that was released was 'Tuscany' and that they have since ceased recording. Now who knows, I may have turned another person onto one of the best bands there ever was and this may happen again if someone notices me in the store playing an air-Addamas 12 string and wonders 'what is she on?'
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