Other Stories

Chris de Burgh's storytelling prowess comes into fruition on Spanish Train and Other Stories as he carefully grasps the listener's attention with his soft-spoken candor. With songs that are reminiscent of tales told to a young child by his bedside, de Burgh captivates his audience with his serene anecdotes that are enhanced by the music that envelops him. The opening "Spanish Train" is a mysterious yarn about a poker game between God and the Devil, where the victor inherits the soul of a dying train engineer. de Burgh's vocal escalation from serene to flamboyant makes this one of his best songs, as does the marvelous twist at the end of the story. "A Spaceman Came Travelling" has de Burgh blanketing his wispy voice in a tale about the birth of Jesus, only his version substitutes the Star of Bethlehem for an alien visitor who has arrived to reveal a startling message…

Alpha Seven is the brainchild of Pete Roberts, formerly keyboard player of early eighties norwich popsters Testcard F. by day a mild - mannered computer technician, he transforms by night into club promoter (co-running the Ambient Sofa nights), record label boss (Sofacom, releasing an album's worth of "Great Lift Journeys of Norwich"), and also writing music as Alpha Seven and other guises.

This album was the group's magnum opus in the perception of many onlookers and fans, and it still plays well, though its flaws are more evident than they were at the time. The "Song of Scheherazade," really a suite for the group supported by the London Symphony Orchestra and a chorus, started with guitarist-composer Michael Dunford, who had a personal fascination with the medieval literary work Tales of 1,001 Arabian Nights, and was realized by Dunford and his composing partner Betty Thatcher, with bassist Jon Camp and pianist John Tout. The piece, really nine sections assembled together, was one of the more ambitious works to come out of the progressive rock boom - it fits together nicely and does have some gorgeous passages and many lyrical, powerful sections, although it also seems slightly repetitive, overstaying its welcome somewhat…

Issued as a double CD in a 3-panel digi-sleeve, here is a compilation of all the released recordings that the acclaimed Dutch progressive band made during the years 1987-1991. The Last Detail were one of the few highlights in the Dutch progressive history during the 80's of the last century. Between 1987 and 1991 they released two cassette albums (both on the bonus disc) and one full length CD and various tracks on a couple of compilation albums. To commemorate 35 years 'Freia' the label has decided to remaster all the band's official recordings and re-release the music on one double album in a limited edition of 300 copies.

Over the past decade, Steven Wilson's (Porcupine Tree) relationship with prog rock has grown increasingly intimate. He previewed a killer new band on the live album Get All You Deserve - woodwind/multi-instrumentalist Theo Travis, keyboardist Adam Holzman, session bass and stick player Nick Beggs, drummer Marco Minnemann, and guitarist Guthrie Govan - put a diverse, sophisticated face on Wilson's 21st century brand of the genre. The Raven That Refused to Sing and Other Stories is their first studio outing. Wilson was also able to coax Alan Parsons out of semi-retirement to co-produce and engineer the effort, and he fully committed: the album's crystalline, detailed sound and spacious ambience reflect some of his best work behind the boards…

Over the past decade, Steven Wilson's (Porcupine Tree) relationship with prog rock has grown increasingly intimate. He previewed a killer new band on the live album Get All You Deserve - woodwind/multi-instrumentalist Theo Travis, keyboardist Adam Holzman, session bass and stick player Nick Beggs, drummer Marco Minnemann, and guitarist Guthrie Govan - put a diverse, sophisticated face on Wilson's 21st century brand of the genre. The Raven That Refused to Sing and Other Stories is their first studio outing. Wilson was also able to coax Alan Parsons out of semi-retirement to co-produce and engineer the effort, and he fully committed: the album's crystalline, detailed sound and spacious ambience reflect some of his best work behind the boards…

Norwegian vocalist/composer Grete Skarpeid's "Beyond Other Stories" is contemporary word painting at its finest, with rhythmic contours beautifully enhanced by a quartet of master musicians, led by Cuban pianist Aruán Ortiz. Skarpeid draws us into the interior landscape of life with an eerily beautiful sense of freedom in her voice, mixing melancholy and joy, vulnerability and splendor. Ortiz's beautifully crafted arrangements of variety and sensuousness, are captured in every caressed phrase by Skarpeid. The music shines from the ethereal magnificence of "Singing Again," which sets to music a poem by the noted Norwegian poet Olav H. Hauge, through the feelings of spiritual loss evoked in "Adam and Eve," to the existential weightlessness of "Flying High."

This album was the group's magnum opus in the perception of many onlookers and fans, and it still plays well, though its flaws are more evident than they were at the time. The "Song of Scheherazade," really a suite for the group supported by the London Symphony Orchestra and a chorus, started with guitarist-composer Michael Dunford, who had a personal fascination with the medieval literary work Tales of 1,001 Arabian Nights, and was realized by Dunford and his composing partner Betty Thatcher, with bassist Jon Camp and pianist John Tout. The piece, really nine sections assembled together, was one of the more ambitious works to come out of the progressive rock boom - it fits together nicely and does have some gorgeous passages and many lyrical, powerful sections, although it also seems slightly repetitive, overstaying its welcome somewhat…

Chris de Burgh's storytelling prowess comes into fruition on Spanish Train and Other Stories as he carefully grasps the listener's attention with his soft-spoken candor. With songs that are reminiscent of tales told to a young child by his bedside, de Burgh captivates his audience with his serene anecdotes that are enhanced by the music that envelops him. The opening "Spanish Train" is a mysterious yarn about a poker game between God and the Devil, where the victor inherits the soul of a dying train engineer. de Burgh's vocal escalation from serene to flamboyant makes this one of his best songs, as does the marvelous twist at the end of the story. "A Spaceman Came Travelling" has de Burgh blanketing his wispy voice in a tale about the birth of Jesus, only his version substitutes the Star of Bethlehem for an alien visitor who has arrived to reveal a startling message…

Chris de Burgh's storytelling prowess comes into fruition on Spanish Train and Other Stories as he carefully grasps the listener's attention with his soft-spoken candor. With songs that are reminiscent of tales told to a young child by his bedside, de Burgh captivates his audience with his serene anecdotes that are enhanced by the music that envelops him. The opening "Spanish Train" is a mysterious yarn about a poker game between God and the Devil, where the victor inherits the soul of a dying train engineer. de Burgh's vocal escalation from serene to flamboyant makes this one of his best songs, as does the marvelous twist at the end of the story. "A Spaceman Came Travelling" has de Burgh blanketing his wispy voice in a tale about the birth of Jesus, only his version substitutes the Star of Bethlehem for an alien visitor who has arrived to reveal a startling message…