Customer Reviews

Dreams & Omens: Live at The Tower Theatre, Philadelphia PA 1978 (Original Recording Remastered)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I really wanted to like this recording, and I'm giving it three stars for what is barely on the recording which would have made it a great recording of a great performance. This sounds like a "board mix," namely a reinforcement of what wasn't heard well enough from the stage. This recording tells me that the bass must have been quite loud from the stage, because it is almost non-existent. I'm a bass guitarist, and Jon Camp's melodic playing was one of many influences on my style. He may as well not have played. The recording is almost all vocalist Annie Haslam and keyboardist John Tout, and while they're excellent, and they played and sang very well, only two-fifths of Renaissance doesn't make for a good recording. Every once in a while some of the drumming (mostly cymbals and snare, not the whole drum kit) and a bit of acoustic guitar, (mostly hard strumming) find their way into the mix, but the only reason I can see for their appearance is that their sound must have been picked up by another microphone on the stage.

Two stars for potential wasted, one star for the performance which could be heard, too bad the rest wasn't available.

This CD is less than 48 minutes long, and the performance doesn't seem complete, missing 'Ashes Are Burning' or 'Song of Sheherazade,' perhaps 'A Song for All Seasons.' The title, "dreams&omens," is inscrutable if not inauspicious, given the band's steep decline the following year. Also, the cover art is amateurish and certainly not representative of the music.

But that is excellent, and the sound is far better than the previous reviewer states. I've listened to "dreams&omens" on headphones, on a boombox, and in my car stereo, and in each context I was able to hear all the instruments clearly. To me, it sounds like a mono mix, with the sounds located "center," "center right," and "center left." There is virtually no panning; if the music was mixed from multiple tapes or from multitrack tapes, very little was done to emphasize separation. However, Haslam's voice and the individual instruments are quite distinct and clear. The recording quality is not muddy at all; it's even sharp (check out 7:00 to 10:00 of the first track, 'Can You Hear Me') and has no noticeable hiss or audience noise except, appropriately, at the end/beginning of tracks. Those who prefer a stronger bass presence may want to invest in an equalizer; for more separation, put the speakers farther apart.

Even though I miss the epic tracks, this recording is not exactly a premonition of "Azure d'Or": three tracks are over nine minutes long. "Azure d'Or" ushered in bad Renaissance and appeared the next year (1979), so I was worried that this live album would suggest its design flaws, but I was wrong. Of the many live Renaissance albums to choose from, "dreams&omens"--cut for cut--is as good as or better than the others. The individual band members' high rating of the performance (in the booklet) and the engineer's remark that the CD was "painstakingly mastered from the original 1978 source tapes" (on the tray insert) seem justified, according to my ears.

But what's not there is palpable, and for that reason I'd suggest getting "Live at Carnegie Hall," "British Tour '76," "Renaissance at the Royal Albert Hall," "Day of the Dreamer," and the "BBC Sessions" recordings first--perhaps even "In the Land of the Rising Sun." Their cover art is significantly better, too.

This Renaissance live recording is excellent. Annie's voice is perfect and we can feel that the energy level was very high on that 1978 concert date. Tracks "Can you hear me" and "Day of the Dreamer" represents the main attraction of this album but my favourite track is "Things I dont understand" which closes the album.

I never got tired of hearing new classic Renaissance music.

For sure it's difficult to evaluate an important live concert like the present one (dated 1978), where the monophonic mix, as well as their first turning point of their career (culminating into the disappointing "Azure D'or" ), seem to make us express a controversial opinion about it!

Don't get me wrong, Annie's voice is clear as usual and in general the sound of the best ensemble of Renaissance as well; but here the mix of the bass guitar is bad (perhaps can you hear it?), being almost missing and- moreover- They have not included any symphonic track from "Turn of the cards" (with the exception of "Things I Don't Understand"), "Scheherazade" and also the majority of "A Song for All Seasons"...well this is the point, this latter album issued on the same period, was a perfect balance between the commercial ballads such as "Northern Lights" and the symphonic suite of the title track, of which there's no trace in the present live act . You can find the main songs from "Novella", played in a remarkable manner as usual, but their attempt to achieve a wider audience is clearly evident when you listen to "Northern Lights" (otherwise already used for a tv-series in the UK), an hit single in that period, where their new mood began to grow...Unfortunately their best folk-symphonic period ended after the issue of "Novella" (dated 1977) and here (despite of their good execution concerning "Day of the Dreamer", the second track inside "A Song for All..."), their stuff is not enough to know the best Renaissance" (otherwise is a very short audio cd- 47 minutes long, which is not completely representative of the band) and at the end you lose the acoustic guitar a bit and the bass guitar too much...nevermind, cause the duo represented by John Tout at the keyboards and Annie Haslam with her magic fascination and her clear voice, makes this "Dreams & Omens" worth checking out at least!!

Perhaps, by means of a great sound engineer like for instance Terry Brown, the final output as well as the quality of the recording should be completely different...but such defect cannot erase the grandeur of a legendary band, which became a controversial group only in the late seventies/early eighties!!

the only reason for me to buy this is this near perfect rendition of THINGS I DONT UNDERSTAND.

Which rarely shows up because of copywrite issues--Jim Mccarty co wrote it of the prevoius RENAISSANCE

BUT I WAS PUZZLED WAITING FOR THE EXPECTED PIANO FLORISHES, OR BASS LINES THAT NEEDED NOT BE STUDIO OVERDUBS TO BE HEARD LIVE...OTHER WISE IT WOULD BE A 5 STAR RECORDING.

JON CAMPS IDEA OF JAZZ IMPROVISING IS A LITTLE OFF KILTER even though this particular song has has several time changes - 5/8 THEN TO 4/4 AND BACK (GUESSING)

which makes the bassline runs so interesting on the first 2 verses of the song

ANNIE HASLAM painted the cover ( she is a surprisingly good artist who deals in rich color themes) and has a website for the art

Annie Haslam writes in the liner notes that this concert felt magical to them on stage. Indeed, the performance captured on this cd is a lost art of musical integrity -no computers sequencing the proverbial union wage clock here at the expense of human emotion. I read these wild, negative reviews of live Renaissance albums and I disagree with every one, especially a review saying there is no bass on this recording or feed back on that recording -all such weird targons of snobery. Enough said, true fans will love this recording and only wish the band knew then of things video now. So, without a doubt to true fans, this recording is a great example of the magic of Renaissance.

I play bass too.....Jon Camp was a big influence on my playing as well....and I hate live recordings that either leave the bassist out or are all mud......I was all set to purchase this live set...but now....I think I'll save my money and enjoy the 2 live shows I already have....and be happy with them...

I just wish that these producers would give a better listen to what they're releasing on disc...before they release it....Nothing sucks worse than getting ripped off on something that should have been a great show.