Barclay James Harvest Ring Of Changes (1983)

BJH's early exploration of different sounds and styles was well behind them by 1983, and in its place came some pretty standard fare. The songs here are soft rock; Alan Parsons Project type compositions…

Barclay James Harvest are an English rock band specialising in Symphonic/Melodic Rock with folk/progressive/classical influences. The band was founded in Saddleworth, a civil parish now in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in September 1966 by John Lees, Les Holroyd, Stuart "Woolly" Wolstenholme, and Mel Pritchard (1948-2004). After signing with EMI's Parlophone in the UK for one single in early 1968, they moved to the more progressively inclined Harvest label. Their self-titled debut album was released in mid 1970 to positive reviews, but few sales. Their second album Once Again gained more favourable reviews, and the tour that followed was conducted with a full orchestra under the guidance of Robert John Godfrey.

In 1966 two R & B bands local to Oldham (UK) merged to form a blues outfit The Blues Keepers. With sponsorship from a local businessman (also their manager) they rented an 18th century farmhouse where they practised extensively, gradually moving towards a progressive rock style then beginning to emerge. On turning professional the name Barclay James Harvest was adopted, and the line-up stabilised as John Lees (guitars, vocals), Les Holroyd (bass, rhythm guitar, vocals), Stuart "Wooly" Wolstenholme (keyboards, vocals) and Mel Pritchard (drums). After releasing their first single in April 1968, the band joined the legendary progressive Harvest label, quickly expanding their musical horizons, chiefly by experimenting with longer evolving song structures and orchestrations…

Barclay James Harvest was, for many years, one of the most hard luck outfits in progressive rock. A quartet of solid rock musicians John Lees, guitar, vocals; Les Holroyd, bass, vocals; Stuart "Wooly" Wolstenholme, keyboards, vocals; and Mel Pritchard, drums with a knack for writing hook-laden songs built on pretty melodies, they harmonized like the Beatles and wrote extended songs with more of a beat than the Moody Blues.

BARCLAY JAMES HARVEST? Needless to say more about the indisputable reputation of this band who has been bringing their million-sellers like LIFE IS FOR LIVING or HYMN to succeeding generations of fans in dynamic live performances for four decades. They have been enjoying ongoing success since the seventies with band leader LES HOLROYD who gave the band their very specifically own sound in Classic Rock genre which somewhat reminds of the style of THE MOODY BLUES and PINK FLOYD. THAT WAS THEN… THIS IS NOW gives an eloquent overview of their repertoire, with a bonus DVD of their scene performances for the past 15 years in Europe…

Barclay James Harvest was, for many years, one of the most hard luck outfits in progressive rock. A quartet of solid rock musicians John Lees, guitar, vocals; Les Holroyd, bass, vocals; Stuart "Wooly" Wolstenholme, keyboards, vocals; and Mel Pritchard, drums with a knack for writing hook-laden songs built on pretty melodies, they harmonized like the Beatles and wrote extended songs with more of a beat than the Moody Blues. They were signed to EMI at the same time as Pink Floyd, and both bands moved over to the company's progressive rock-oriented Harvest imprint at the same time, yet somehow, they never managed to connect with the public for a major hit in England, much less America.

Barclay James Harvest was, for many years, one of the most hard luck outfits in progressive rock. A quartet of solid rock musicians John Lees, guitar, vocals; Les Holroyd, bass, vocals; Stuart "Wooly" Wolstenholme, keyboards, vocals; and Mel Pritchard, drums with a knack for writing hook-laden songs built on pretty melodies, they harmonized like the Beatles and wrote extended songs with more of a beat than the Moody Blues.