Caravan & the New Symphonia

For Girls Who Grow Plump in the Night For many aficionados of the creative rock music that surfaced in the heady days of the late 60's / early 70's, the bands who surfaced from the English provincial city of Canterbury produced some of the most consistently interesting music of that period. Of all the groups to em...	Waterloo Lily Remastered reissue of the British progressive rock act's 1972 album. Featuring the original 6 tracks and 4 bonus tracks, 'Pye's June Thing', 'Ferdinand', 'Looking Left, Looking Right' and 'Pye's Loop'. Standard jewel case. 2001 release.	If I Could Do It All Over Again I'd Do It All Over You Full title 'If I Could Do It All Over Again I'd Do It All Over You'. Remastered reissue of the British prog-rock act's 1970 album. Featuring the original 8 tracks and 4 bonus tracks, 'A Day In The Life Of Maurice Haylett', 'Why?', 'Clipping The 8th' and 'As I Feel I Die'. Standar...	In the Land of Grey and Pink Remastered reissue of the British progressive rock act's 1971 album. Featuring the original 5 tracks and 5 bonus tracks, 'I Don't Know It's Name', 'Aristocracy', It's Likely To Have A Name Next Wee, 'Group Girl' and 'Dissassociation/100% Proof' (new mix). Standard jewel case. 2001 release.	Cunning Stunts Remastered reissue of the British progressive rock act's 1975 album. Featuring the original 7 songs and 3 bonus tracks,'Stuck In A Hole', 'Keeping Back My Love' and 'For Richard'. Standard jewel case. 2001 release.
Caravan Remastered from the original master tapes for the first time. Features both the mono and stereo versions. 12 page booklet features previously unseen photographs and memorabilia and an interview with Pye Hastings. Plus the added bonus track 'Hello, Hello' (single version). 2002.	Hatfield and the North Part of the Charisma series. Japanese reissue packaged in a miniature LP sleeve. Originally released in 1974. Virgin. 2004.	Blind Dog at St. Dunstan's Reissue of the British art-rock and Canterbury scenester 's 1976 album. 9 tracks. Repertoire. 1994.	The Rotters' Club Out of print in the U.S.! Reissue of the 1975 sophomore album from this Prog band featuring five bonus tracks. Featuring Dave Stewart, Phil Miller, Richard Sinclair and Pip Pyle, this band emerged from the Canterbury scene and impressed audiences and critics with their expert mus...	Third Includes the Remastered Four Track Original Album plus a Bonus Disc of a a BBC Live Session from the Royal Albert Hall.

Fantastic Recording
As someone who enjoys listening to Rock vs. Orchestra hybrids, I find this recording outstanding. Not only did I finally get a chance to update my old LP, bonus tracks really are a bonus. Why has this held up over the years? I'd say partly due to Caravan's musical sensibilities which already allowed for a lead electric viola. Already playing jazzy rock, the orchestra seems to be less of an extention of the keyboards, but an additional sound to be added to their already unique sound. I credit the band members as songwriters, as musicians who sound like they really enjoy what they're doing, and as musicians who can jam and excite their audiences. I credit Martyn Ford and his arrangements. I credit the orchestra, no matter how unhappy some individual members may have been. Largely, I credit the engineers at the Pye Mobile Recording Unit who made such a great recording the first time around, allowing the remastering and remixing to sound so good now. While the orchestra in Deep Purple's "Concerto for Group and Orchestra" sounds like it was recorded through a wall or like orchestras on your great grandparents old 78s, and while the orchestra from Barclay James Harvest 1972 BBC concert sounds nasty and out of tune, The New Symphonia sounds fantastic. I do not recommend this recording as a Caravan fan, but as one who enjoys music that is melodic and doesn't sound like "everything" else.

A Winner
Great CD. This remastered CD, complete with bonus tracks, should be part of every Caravan collection.

Complete at last
Caravan first worked with an orchestra when recording Pye Hasting's instrumental piece A Hunting We Shall Go for the album For Girls Who Grow Plump In The Night in 1973. The conductor and arranger for the session was Martyn Ford, who had been working with Barclay James Harvest. He enjoyed the experience so much he proposed the idea of a live concert also featuring the New Symphonia Orchestra. The idea was in vogue at the time with artists as diverse as Procol Harum and Deep Purple recording albums with full orchestras on board, sometimes with overblown and pompous results, though this is happily not the case here, where the orchestration genuinely adds a new dimension to the music. The concert happened on 28 October 1973 and was brilliantly captured on the Pye Mobile by Bill Price for an album, which was duly released in April 1974. Due to the space limitations of vinyl, only the main part of the concert was included, and the running order could not be maintained. It consisted of the lengthy Love In Your Eye (from Waterloo Lily), two hurriedly finished new songs, Mirror For The Day and Virgin On The Ridiculous, and their normal closing number, the suite For Richard. For this remastered re-issue the entire concert appears for the first time, complete with Pye Hastings' between song banter. Three songs from the current album were performed before the orchestra came on, and for an encore the complete ensemble performed the piece that had kick-started the project, A Hunting We Shall Go. These make a valuable and very welcome addition to an already essential CD.

The Finest Fusion of Rock and Orchestra
The fusion of rock and orchestration is certainly not something new. It seems many rock bands these days are deciding to update their material with an orchestra. Metallica brought back this idea with their 1999 release "S&M." The Scorpions tried doing the same thing and now, KISS is at it in Australia--ready to perform with the Sydney Orchestra in full makeup! God help us all.However, in 1974, the Canterbury prog-rock masters, Caravan, fused the two perfectly. In fact, this could possibly be the best fusion of rock and orchestra ever attempted. The orchestra is used in just the right way--not too overdone and not too overblown. Caravan uses the New Symphonia just like another member of the band--adding an overall effect, which is astonishing and breathtaking. From the power of "For Richard," to the sweetness of "The Love of Your Eyes," this record is sure to be a favorite for any Caravan fan who might be skeptical of this live classical fusion. For others interested in the paring of electricity and orchestra, this album is not one to miss.This new remastered version is a gem. To put it bluntly, it sounds amazing. The orchestra is so clear and perfect, it almost sounds as if this wasn't recorded in 1974. Plus, as a bonus, this disc features three tunes the band recorded that same night without the orchestra as a warm up before hitting the stage with the big band-I don't believe these songs were featured on the original release.While the fusion of orchestra with rock is a novelty these days, Caravan did it best in 1974 with this live release, along with the album prior to this, "Cunning Stunts." Play it loud and play it often!

Finally.......New Symphonia is on CD
A friend turned me on to Caravan in 1971 and I've enjoyed all of their recordings (up to 1975's Cunning Stunts) ever since. This CD release of New Symphonia will certainly be welcomed by all fans of the group, and with good reason. It has been remastered reasonably well, so the quieter orchestral passages sound clearer (no tape hiss) and the band sound is balanced nicely with the orchestra.Deram also included additional material in the form of A Hunting We Shall Go, performed with the orchestra. They also decided to add the group's non orchestral warmup set, giving all listeners a well rounded hearing of a very special evening. The New Symphonia has always been a favorite of mine because of the unique sound. It seems Caravan's music just works well in an orchestral setting, and this recording proves the point. There is a lot to enjoy here.If you are new to Caravan, I would recommend you start with In The Land of the Grey and Pink or For Girls Who Grow Plump In The Night. If you are already familiar with the group but never listened to this one, you can feel comfortable in purchasing this CD. A very pleasant experience awaits you.