Customer Reviews

Muse Awakens (Dig)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The new Happy The Man album sounds just as delightful as their two Arista releases from 1977-8. It's almost as if that whole ugly three decades in between just vanished.

Except I'm still 50, dammit.

I pre-ordered this CD when I heard it was finally being released and it arrived in my mailbox yesterday. For a long-time Happy The Fan, this CD is incredible and well worth the wait.

They performed many of these songs in 2000 and 2001 so I had a pretty good idea of what to expect. The funny thing is that in 2000 Stan said the CD would be out in a few months; well 48 is a few more than a few, but it was worth it. "Contemporary Insanity", "Barking Spiders", "Shadowlites", "Kindred Spirits" are all "classic" Happy The Man. It is almost as if this CD was released in 1980, next in line after "Crafty Hands".

If you like Happy The Man, you MUST get this CD! You should also look for them on the road soon. They are a live show that is like no other. Check out http://www.happytheman.com for tour information.

This is a fantastick comeback for HTM. The Muse Awakens hangs right in there with the band's first two releases - Happy the Man and Crafty Hands. I would say they went out of their way to maintain the quality of the songwriting - and the same overall sound the band had in the late 1970s. HTM fans and all prog rock enthusiasts will want to have this disc in their collections. Well composed, well executed, breathtakingly majestic progressive rock.

Rosenthal emulates Watkins beautifully. I am really surprised how much he can sound like Kit - yet at times he manages to bring in his own sound as well. You can sort of notice Kit's absence as a composer - however, Rosenthal, Wyatt and Whitaker lay down some amazing stuff here.

My one criticism of this disc? It is recorded too bright. Too "digital" sounding. Too harsh. No warmth. And you can tell it really lacks bass when you get to the track "Shadowlites," one of my favorites. The remasters of the first two releases, which obviously were recorded analog, have better sound quality.

Other favorites include The Muse Awakens, Stepping Through Time, Maui Sunset, Barking spiders, Kindred Spirits ... they're all good, actually. A real feast for the ears and the intellect. It still gets five stars from me even though the recording is icy cold.

I didn't give this recording a ***** without a good hard look at it, believe me. I am the most hard-core prog fan immaginable and I KNOW when it's good and when it's dreadful (which most of it in fact, is!) But hats off to the Happymen, this record's GREAT! (All caps, bold, underlined, italics...GREAT!) If you like prog rock (and why else would you bother reading this) YOU WILL LIKE THIS RECORD AND THERE'S NO WAY YOU WON'T! Stop reading my drivel now and click ADD TO CART before the damn thing goes out of print like most other good progressive albums over the decades have!
OK...I've got a grip now. Just can't resist mentioning a couple things about the product before I get offo' their bytes. My copy came in an attractive digipak which you might want to make allowances for protecting from scuffs and dents. Unlike one other reviewer here I have no problem with the way it was mastered. I don't find it too bright, brittle or digital sounding, but I admit I like my treble. Actually, I think the fact that it simply has the sound quality of a 21st century studio is what sets it apart from all other excellent prog works. THIS IS THE FIRST ONE RECORDED SINCE THE 70s that I've heard! I can't evaluate the recent prog-metal movement...my ears are too old for the noise.
Which reminds me to maybe mention the music...it's NOT noisy, which I find a great relief & refreshment. It does have a slightly harder edge on some cuts than HTM's 70s albums but by no means is it over the top. If you've heard those earlier records, I feel they both suffered from a bit of compositional meandering that HTM seemed (to me) to always fall into. Each number, while always relentlessly "progressive," never sounded like it "went" anywhere in particular. I realize that may have been their artistic intent but frankly it bored me and I never listened to HAPPY THE MAN or CRAFTY HANDS more than a couple times. the MUSE AWAKENS is MUCH better in this regard, without sacrificing any of the unique structures, intricate arrangements or "crafty hands" virtuosity fans know this band for.
No need to belabor each cut...they're all great to awesome and highly enjoyable. HTM maintains their own little corner on the prog market sound with this release, but if you liked the debut UK album, "Stepping Through Time" could've been its bonus track! The only minor critique I can think of is a bit too much improv- out on the closing piece, but after experiencing this wonderful disc, I'm sure you'll find it in your musical heart to forgive them. HTM has my deepest gratitude for proving that progressive rock can still be done, and done extremely well.

THIS IS A WELCOME RETURN OF THE PROGRESSIVE GREATS. I ESPECIALLY ENJOY WYATT'S COMPOSITIONS- HE IS A MASTER OF MELODIC PROGRESSIVE MUSIC. ROSENTHAL IS A GREAT REPLACEMENT FOR KIT. I ALSO RECCOMMEND DEATH'S CROWN FOR ITS POWER AND BEAUTY.GLAD TO HAVE YOU BACK. HAPPY IS THE MAN WHO PURCHASES THIS CD.

It is hard to knock this CD because the muscianship is masterful, the compositions are stout, and the intricately woven melodies are amazing. The only issue I had was that while the newer compositions come across as more coherent, and more mature in a sense, they are missing that HTM "magic" that the older albums had. It was a certain whimsical energy, or flavor that was present in the older music that is lacking. The new music comes across to me more "technical" sounding-maybe a result of more modern recording equipment, etc.

I know it's maybe nit-picking, but there you have it. I still like it, will continue to listen to it, I can even overlook some of the new age elements that seem to creep in some of the "softer" melodies, but can't really compare it to the classic HTM works from their first album, or "Crafty Hands". Those are in a class by themselves.

I have to agree with Chuck's high regard for this record. I will just say that I fully share his enthusiasm, so I won't repeat myself here. Suffice it to say that this is in every way a most satisfying album: songwriting is superb, execution is flawless and production crystalline. The Muse is indeed wide awake, spinning its gleaming webs of Progressive Magic, entagling the listener in its crystalline threads... Music to entrance and delight the initiated and to bewilder and befuddle the rest.

Yep, 5 stars. It's that good.

This album and return of Happy the Man will undoubtedly be a big discussion topic in the prog world for quite some time. Rightly so, this disk is pure musical bliss. The first track really grabs your attention and will have you eager for more in no time.

The waiting is over and it was well worth it. Their performance at Nearfest some years back was only a hint of the greatness to come that would ultimately set the stage for this studio release. The muse has awakened and the magic has returned.

Fans of good prog (hmm, is anyone a fan of bad prog?) will delight in this tastey offering. Fans of Brocolli Spears and the wonderful world of pop music will continue to be just as bewildered as ever.

After a hiatus exceeding two decades, 70s prog masters Happy the Man re-emerged on the scene with this 2004 studio album, The Muse Awakens. For lovers of their two earlier studio releases, hearing this new release will bring an instant smile. Indeed, despite the passage of time and the departure of keyboard whiz Kit Watkins, this album marvelously re-kindles the sound and spirit of the previous Happy the Man releases. It's nothing short of an aural fantasy: exciting, comforting, uplifting, complex, and mysterious. A real winner!

I'm sorry. But I just don't get it. I just cannot see why all the rave reviews. I am new to HTM and bought it on the strength of all the reviews. I was expecting a lot more. Be sure to know what you are getting here. You are getting a bunch of short instrumental pieces that are not linked as any coherent whole. Not one review clued me into this fact, and no information posted on Amazon informed me of this either. With no samples or song length information I was indeed purchasing it blind.

With no words, or longer song structures to elicit any emotional response, or involvement, you end up with a bunch of four to five minute musical "snippets" that really do not go anywhere or take the listener anywhere. It is really quite boring.

Few bands can pull off the short instrumental, and compose an entire CD of them. The Dixie Dregs, come to mind as a band that can!

I am not criticizing their musicianship by any means. They are fine musicians. But for those of us who like our progressive music with a little more depth, we need to approach HTM with caution.

I am giving this CD two stars because of the musicianship and the one song, "Shadowlites" is actually quite good. I am not rating it any higher to serve as a warning to those who, like me, think they may be buying true progressive music. You are not, you are buying "progressive lite".