Jon & Vangelis

Jon & Vangelis' first two albums really seemed to be building up to this point. With Private Collection, the two artists (Jon Anderson of Yes fame and Vangelis) have created what feels just a bit like a classical work. Truly the nearly 23-minute "Horizon" really feels a lot like a modern symphony. It is definitely the culmination of their work together, their most ambitious effort. The shorter cuts on the album all have their moments and surely hold up to anything from the previous releases, but "Horizon" stands far above them all. more…

Deluxe 13 CD box set from the veteran Greek composer and instrumental/electronic music pioneer. Delectus gathers together digitally remastered and expanded editions of Vangelis' seminal albums Earth, L'Apocalypse Des Animaux, China, See You Later, Antarctica, Mask, Opera Sauvage, Chariots of Fire, Soil Festivities and Invisible Connections, plus his collaborative recordings with Jon Anderson as Jon & Vangelis - Short Stories, The Friends of Mister Cairo and Private Collection. The mammoth collection includes all of his albums on Vertigo and Polydor, recently remastered for the first time ever under the legendary composer's own supervision. Presented in a lavish box with an essay and a plethora of rare photographs, the discs are housed in two die-cut, gatefold disc holders within a rigid 242mm square slipcase, and accompanied by a 64-page book illustrating a period of his prolific career of the iconic Maestro. "I always welcome remastering my old work for two basic reasons" - explains Vangelis - "firstly, I get the opportunity to bring the sounds to today's standards, secondly, it gives me the chance to go through the experiences and memories of the time."

Short Stories is the debut album by Jon & Vangelis, the collaborative effort between Jon Anderson of the prog rock band Yes and electronic music pioneer Evangelos Papathanassiou. Although this was not the first time that the two had worked together; Vangelis had auditioned to be Rick Wakeman's replacement in Yes in 1974, but the role was given to Patrick Moraz. In 1975 Jon Anderson sung on "So Long Ago So Clear" from Heaven and Hell. Vangelis later contributed to the Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe album in 1989..

Jon & Vangelis' first two albums really seemed to be building up to this point. With Private Collection, the two artists (Jon Anderson of Yes fame and Vangelis) have created what feels just a bit like a classical work. Truly the nearly 23-minute "Horizon" really feels a lot like a modern symphony. It is definitely the culmination of their work together, their most ambitious effort. The shorter cuts on the album all have their moments and surely hold up to anything from the previous releases, but "Horizon" stands far above them all. It combines the best elements of Anderson's work in Yes with the electronically classically tinged stylings of Vangelis to produce a work that is near masterpiece in its quality. It is a life-affirming, positive piece. Among the other highlights of the disc are "Deborah" and "He Is Sailing."

Inspired by the artwork of Roger Dean and the writings of Ver Stanley Alder, Jon Anderson developed an entire story around the idea of an interstellar exodus from Sunhillow, writing this album around the narrative (named for the spaceship's architect, Olias). The idea may seem overly ambitious, but Anderson fills the record with enough magical moments to delight fans of Yes' mystic side…