If ever there was a gathering that's true to name and a misnomer, this is it. The Reunion Project isn't a glimpse at a band reformation or a grand comeback statement, but rather an expression of shared experiences, influences, and actions. It's both a look back to earlier times and the dawn of a new adventure.
BMG will issue The Reunion Albums next month, a five-CD box set featuring material from the 2006 reformed classic line-up of Asia, which featured lead vocalist / bassist John Wetton of King Crimson, guitarist Steve Howe of Yes, keyboardist Geoff Downes of Yes, and drummer Carl Palmer from Emerson, Lake & Palmer. The clamshell box set features Fantasia: Live in Tokyo, a live show from their 2007 World Tour (a two-CD set), and the three subsequent studio albums: Phoenix (2008), Omega (2010) and XXX (2012).
We often cite the Reunion tour as a demarcation between the “classic” and “modern” Springsteen eras. Yet this April already marks 23 years since the start of the Reunion tour in Barcelona. Do the math, and the E Street Band’s return in 1999 is inching ever closer to being the midpoint of their overall career—a line to be reached in 2026, at which point it will have been 27 years from the start of Reunion; and Reunion itself was 27 years after the band formed in 1972. Time flies.
Drummer Jon Hiseman seemingly had low expectations for a Colosseum reunion. The group decided to re-form at keyboardist Dave Greenslade's 50th birthday party, although Hiseman wasn't sure the timing was right. He was hopeful his German bookers could maybe put together six shows; they swiftly found 30, with Colosseum going on to play over 100 gigs during 1994-1995. And why not? In their three-year lifespan, the group racked up three U.K. Top 20 albums, while simultaneously blowing the socks off of Germany and much of Europe. And coming back together after two decades was, judging by the music here, a lot like coming home…
This CD has no business being as great as it is. It simply rocks! The band sounds very tight and so well balanced sonically, it's hard to believe it's the same band. And to my ears, these don't sound like songs from their early days - they sound like brand new compositions that have all the fire and inspiration of their heyday, but with even more of qualities that make Sweetbottom so special. This live reunion is just light years better than I expected. If you're into the trail-blazing sounds of 1970's jazz-rock fusion, this CD is a MUST. And if you're into that select bunch of fusion artists that often expand their sound into symphonic rock and other progressive realms, your ship has arrived. Climb aboard and enjoy the ride.