Customer Reviews

Camel: Moondances

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4 star:		(2)
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Man what a find these recordings are! The quality is first-rate, especially considering the original recordings are over 30 years old. You get to see the original Camel lineup on some of the songs here, which is a real treat for me because I really liked the bass playing of founding member Doug Ferguson, and why they kicked him to the curb still mystifies me. And then an entire concert recorded a year later with Peter Bardens, Andrew Latimer and Andy Ward of the original band backed by Mel Collins and new bassist Richard Sinclair. They are in top form here; it's great to see Peter Bardens especially, since he passed away six years ago. He was a hell of a keyboard player who never got the recognition of a Keith Emerson or a Rick Wakeman, but he was just as good in my opinion. Camel was a great band, and here on this DVD you get to see them when they were the real deal.

Camel is an incredible band from the same era as Genesis, Yes, ELP, Jethro Tull, etc. They are well documented on DVD but this one is the best - nearly full sets from the Moonmadness tour, with original four members, followed by the next tour for Rain Dances, which featured new bass player/vocalist Richard Sinclair and winds genius Mel Collins. It's a great opportunity to see the band in top form first as a classical/progressive rock outfit, complete with psychedelic projections, and long spacey jams, followed by their quick rebirth as a progressive jazz collective. Guitarist Andy Latimer outdoes Clapton in my view and I agree with the other posting here that keyboard player Pete Bardens was in the same class as more well known prog-rock masters. Highly recommended....Doug

Track Listing - Moonmadness Tour 14 April, 1976:
White Rider
Lunar Sea
Preparation
Dunkirk
Another Night
Lady Fantasy

Track Listing - Raindances Tour 22 September, 1977:
First Light
Metrognome
Unevensong
Rhyader, Rhyader Goes to Town
Skylines
Highways of the Sun
Lunar Sea
Rain Dances
Never Let Go
One of These Days I'll Get an Early Night

Plus studio audio recordings of unreleased material: Autumn (1973) and Riverman (1974)

Great videos! This band never got the fame they deserved. Both concerts in this video are outstanding. And the addition of Mel Collins in the second show is outstanding. If you are looking for the best footage capturing Andrew, Peter and the boys, you just found it.

It's unbelievable that these guys never went to the top. It's unbelievable I didn't hear of this band before last year. It's unbelievable that time is running out and we may not hear any new material from Andy and friends (since last year I have bought all their albums and most of their DVD's). It's just unbelievable that a band this good isn't noticed and the rest of the crap is... it's unbelievable. WAIT... come to think of it it IS believable being the MASSES are ASSES!!! I have not found any of their music bad. Some albums/dvd's are better than others but all are worth owning!

This is my third Camel DVD. Filmed in 1976, if fills in the past with great song selections and perfectly captures Camel during this era. Great for fans or for your first exposure to Camel music!

Well here you find a very interesting video retrospective witnessing a couple of famous
concerts regarding the old line-up by Camel...featuring Andrew Latimer, Doug Ferguson, the
unforgettable Peter Bardens and Andy Ward, without forgetting Richard Sinclair and Mel
Collins. If you regard of the old BBC sessions concerning their performance at London's
Hammersmith Odeon or their concert at the Hippodrome- dated 1977- you can listen to the
Hammond organ excursions and other melodic lines at the minimoog too, performed by P.
Bardens...but of course it's the perfect support to the pshichedelic and spacey guitar by Andy
(inside "White rider" for instance, but also in their various instrumental numbers). That's the
reason why a clever keyboardplayer coupled with the magic touch by Mr Latimer (talking about
his guitar solo in "Lunar sea" or in the famous flute solo within "Rhayder", just to mention a
few jewels!!...),seem to be the best features to contribute to the perfect music "alliance". They
were able to create an intelligent sound of classic prog! Of course I prefer the modern gigs,
like that one and unforgettable within the "Coming of Age" Live Tour concert, but never mind
cause the present DVD is a must-have for the collectors of the best derivative and melodic
prog band in the vein of the classic Genesis line-up and the symphonic period concerning the
band Pink Floyd- as well. Moreover I like to make a special mention regarding the harmonic and rhytmical machine created by Andy Ward and Doug Ferguson together and... well you don't need to add anything else, so choose this classic number, even though I suggest you to buy also their last modern live gigs!!

This Album Moondances was the 1st LP from this Band I heard when I was a child and started to hear music with delicates sounds of flutes,guitar effects and keyboards. If you like Camel, you must have it...