Customer Reviews

NUDE

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

yes, there was a time in life back at the early 80s when I was young, free and had the time to hear this type of music because somebody in the world made it, and made a world of difference with it... then some years ago Camel passed through Caracas and I just had to see it, because deep in my heart I thought Latimer could not reproduce that magical guitar sound live..was I wrong!!!

I must say I write this review to the younger souls who are exploring Camel.. this is an excellent record, back in those days we had the german vinyl edition... the battery work still is fresh on my memory.. this was the kind of holistic work that does not make much sense in fragmentating, as you would not do it with a simphony.. yes, the vocals are kind of weak, but that does not impede the unfolding of a marvelous story...

I have been a Camel fan forever, yet some reviews make me think as to why this album is so unique.. it is unique, period, and its a collectors item.. somehow I feel envious of those who are about to listen to it.. enjoy

O The City Life. One of the coolest songs of the early 1980's. Nude is a very misleading title. It actually is a person's name!

A concept album from an English band was fairly common back then. Even an historical one that takes place within the throes of World War II. Nicely produced, well connected songs. It's one of those CD's that makes you pay attention. Not many bands bother doing this type of music anymore, with the exception of Dream Theater and the most recent Green Day album.
Hey Amazon, I had to search hard and finally ended up buying the CD from Ebay. Please get NUDE into your warehouse. It's from London Records, # 810 880-2. I recommend this, everyone.

By 1981 you'd expect there to be no more sweeping epic symphonic concept albums. Well, somehow in between two of the weakest Camel albums this gem pops up. Mostly instrumental, it covers a variety of music styles (blues, world music) in a seamless fashion along with the characteristically Camel very melodic easy going symphonic style.

This 1981 album by the British prog-rock band Camel is a concept album based on the Japanese World War II soldier who remained on a Pacific island for 20 years, never knowing the war had ended. It's out of print now, but worth picking up if you can track down a copy. A live version of most of the album is available on "On the Road-1981".

Andrew Latimer is a fine guitarist and competent flute player, with a voice that has a pleasant tone but limited range and strength. Coupled with weak lyrics by his girlfriend Susan Hoover, it's just as well that only four songs have vocals. The highlights are the fantastic instrumentals "Captured" (with an angular melody of guitar and sax in unison), "Docks", and "Beached". Of the songs with vocals, the opener "City Life" is the catchiest. "Lies" is apparently supposed to be a high point of the album, but comes off as a poor man's Pink Floyd -- it's too slow, and Duncan Mackay's organ solo is tedious. "Drafted" is a weak song that Latimer seems to love; it's shown up on several live albums and collections. About a half dozen cuts are instrumental mood pieces; the most successful of these is "Changing Places", with Latimer's flute floating over some spirited hand-drum work by Gasper Lawal. "The Homecoming" is reminiscent of the brass band interlude in "Nimrodel" from the "Mirage" album, but much better. Latimer closes the album with a soaring guitar melody on "The Last Farewell". Camel's studio albums are never much for sheer intensity, and this one is no exception. Andy Ward's drum work in particular seems lackluster to me, though he perks up considerably on "Beached".

(1=poor 2=mediocre 3=pretty good 4=very good 5=phenomenal)

Released in 1981, this is a nice album from the group that shows them exploring a concept and using a softer, earthier sound. While fairly interesting musically, there are still attempts at a pop hit here and there. Fortunately, these moments are far and few between and Nude is certainly one of the finest Camel albums from the 1980s. Unfortunately, the follow-up albums The Single Factor (1982) and Stationary Traveler (1984) saw them adopting an even more commercial approach.

Of the original lineup, only Andy Latimer (guitars) and Andy Ward (drums and percussion) remained; in fact, Andy Ward would leave after this album/tour. On Nude, they are joined by a large cast of studio musicians and bassist Colin Bass, who had played on I Can See Your House from Here (1979). Unfortunately, I really missed the excellent keyboard playing of Kit Watkins and he is replaced on Nude by Duncan Mackay; Duncan seems to prefer texture and atmosphere over rapid arpeggios. He also seems to favor the softer, more polite synthesizer tone colors.

The concept of Nude (a soldier who does not realize the war is over) unfolds through a series of tunes that are loosely connected. While largely instrumental, the few tunes with vocals are actually quite nice. In terms of the tracks themselves, they range from highly atmospheric mood pieces with soft synthesizer washes, acoustic guitar and flute, to vigorous "proggy" workouts with some sizzling drumming from Andy Ward. Overall, there is a high standard of musicianship and attention to detail throughout.

All in all, this is a pretty good album by the group and one of the best Camel albums from the 1980s; the live version of Nude from On the Road (1981) is also very good and a lot more energetic. For those folks new to the group, start with The Snow Goose (1975). Come to think of it, Rain Dances (1977) is also quite good.

1. City Life
2. Nude
3. Drafted
4. Docks
5. Beached
6. Landscapes
7. Changing Places
8. Pomp & Circumstance
9. Please Come Home
10. Reflections
11. Captured
12. The Homecoming
13. Lies
The last farewell:
14. The Birthday Cake
15. Nude's Return

I have not heard Breathless or I Can See Your House From Here, their previous two albums, but of course I'm very familiar with their first four albums with the original lineup and also Rain Dances. From my understanding both Breathless and I Can See Your House From Here demonstrated what went wrong with prog in the late '70s, the latter demonstrating that the band was no longer able to keep a steady lineup. One might expect Nude to follow in those footsteps, but actually it turned out to be their best since Rain Dances. Nude, in this case, was a name of a person, a Japanese WWII soldier stranded in the jungle of the South Pacific who returned home not realizing the war was over. The album pretty much paralleled the story of a real Japanese WWII solder (name escapes me) stranded in the jungle, returned home to Japan in the 1970s, only to be appalled by the grossly materialistic society the Japanese had adopted, so he moved to South America (Brazil to be exact).

Regardless, Nude might not be their best album, Camel newcomers are obviously advised to start with Mirage or Moonmadness, as those demonstrate Camel at their best. Here, it's only Andy Ward and Andy Latimar who were left from the original lineup (and Ward was to leave after this album, leaving Camel to be Latimer and whoever he could find at the time). Some of the musicians on this album included Duncan MacKay, who previously appeared on three Alan Parsons Project albums, I Robot, Pyramid and Eve, Mel Collins, who been with Camel since Rain Dances (and let's not forget his involvement with bands like King Crimson, the Alan Parsons Project, Clannad, and many others), Colin Bass, who first appeared on I Can See Your House From Here is still providing bass work (appears to be fretless), and even Jan Schelhaas (ex-Caravan) makes some appearances here. The first two cuts, "City Life" and "Nude" are more or less in the pop-oriented vein, much like what too many other prog band in the late '70s and early '80s that survived this long had done. But then the rest of the album has some great prog, but some rather New Age-y numbers I can live without, as it seems to clash with the prog. There's even a passage with a marching band that got me thinking of Mirage. It's obviously the band really shines when they stick to prog here, because it really showed a band can still make great prog in the early '80s if they actually tried, and they did. Yeah, I find the album a bit uneven in places, but it's still worth having, and definately a lot better than what too many other prog rock bands were doing at the time (certainly a lot less pop-oriented than the Genesis album at the time, Abacab).

My favorite group actually. I listen to this (older)one quite often. It sets a good mood.

An excellent and underrated album from the eighties, this album being one of the first AOR/new age oriented works , by Latimer... Well there are 3 symphonic tracks here, as from Docks, Beached,until you find the more new-age oriented Landscape; and these ones are followed by interesting ethnical sounds till the end. Latimer is able to change moods and styles, by adding also something new and diverse in every album (apart from some stuff , such as that one-too much light- into "I can see your house...", "Stationary Traveller";something mainstream into "Breathless" as well and into the disappointing "The single factor"). But talking about "Nude", I regard this album as one of the most interesting by Camel. It is based upon the story of a soldier who was forgotten in a far away isle of the Pacific ocean, near Japan, during the 2nd world war. Many years after the end of the war, nobody went to such atoll and find him, in order to tell him that He could come back home...when the japanese Government sent some public servants in the recent times (in the sixties), they found him without cloths and for this reason his nickname became "NUDE".Nevertheless He was not concerned about the possibility of living the rest of his life over there!!

The only inconsistent track is the first one,"City Life", but if you listen to the whole stuff by Latimer,during his long career, you understand that every album contains one uneven/sloppy track at least and one/a couple of jewels as well (sometimes many more)!!

Recommended!! Of course it's not the 1st place to start ...

This album is one of the very best symphonical rock albums that has ever been produced. Especially the title track Nude is an extremely well written and performed song. In general the album is a very enjoyable experiance. I bought the album back in the early 80's, and I have been looking for it on CD for a very very long time, so thank You for making it available!