Desiree Barclay

100 privileged guests form part of this concert with a band who have played to hundreds of thousands at one gig alone-and see the wry introduction of "Poor Man's Moody Blues" by John Lees. Recorded at the end of 2010 the band welcomed the audience to "John's bedroom" and gave virtually a song-by-song rendition of the story of Barclay James Harvest. Filmed live for ITV in the intimate surroundings of London's Metropolis Studios on 4th December, 2010. The band was appearing as a quartet in the absence of Woolly Wolstenholme, who was unable to appear due illness, and who tragically died nine days later.

Punk's rise in Britain seemed to be leading to the demise of Barclay James Harvest, the fate awaiting so many of the island's veteran rock bands. Although 1976's Octoberon had finally pushed the band into the U.K. Top 20, it was all downhill from there, as the group's follow-ups in 1977 and 1978 landed ever lower in the listings, something that Barclay James Harvest's shift to a brighter, more American sound did nothing to prevent…

Mozart’s final opera Die Zauberflöte is also his most famous. The general public is familiar with its array of popular arias, most notably the Queen of the Night’s breathtaking coloratura. Since its premiere in 1791, two months before the composer’s death, the opera’s fairy tale plot, eccentric cast and fantastic scenery have exerted an almost childlike fascination on generations of audiences. The production is infused with an all-pervading sense of playful joy – packed with wonderful effects including flying machines, colourful costumes and magical scene changes…

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.

Un portrait d'E. Barclay par F. Bernheim, qui a été recruté à 21 ans par celui qui était surnommé l'empereur du microsillon. Le premier devient pour le second une sorte de père de substitution, même si la légitimation, la reconnaissance et la complicité que F. Bernheim espérait ne viennent jamais. …