Customer Reviews

Return to Fantasy

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

1974 was not a banner year for Uriah Heep. Exhausted by years of recording while touring, it saw the "classic" lineup produce their least-inspired (although still quite listenable) album, "Wonderworld", followed by absolute disaster, when bassist Gary Thain was nearly killed by a severe electric shock while on stage during a show in Texas during the subsequent tour. Thain would never rejoin the band; always haunted by drug problems, he turned to heroin during his convalescence, which addiction would cost him his job in that year, and his life in December, 1975. He was replaced in the band by John Wetton, who had played with Family and King Crimson, and 1975 saw the first effort by the new lineup.

"Return To Fantasy", the first album of the Wetton era, is a crisp return to form. While not quite living up to the lofty standards of the 1970-73 recordings, as the band still seemed to be in the process of deciding what musical direction they wanted to take the new lineup, resulting in a less cohesive overall sound, the material and performances still shine nonetheless. Particular standouts are the title track, a long-time fan favorite (which the current lineup has played to open their shows recently), "Devil's Daughter", with intricate time changes (no doubt inspired by Wetton's stint in King Crimson) and a tasty Mick Box guitar solo, "Your Turn To Remember" and "Why Did You Go?", both aching ballads, (primary songwriter Ken Hensley specializes in songs about lost love, although the writing credits on this album are more evenly distributed than on any other) and the jaw-dropping "Beautiful Dream", with a wailing lead synth courtesy of Mr. Wetton, outstanding drumming from Lee Kerslake, and an absolutely astonishing vocal from David Byron, that with all respect to Deep Purple's Ian Gillan, could have taught him a trick or two (Byron's vocals are particularly impressive throughout the album overall; he remains perhaps the most sadly overlooked vocalist in rock history).

The bottom line: while not quite at the level of their finest work as a whole, this is still an excellent album, and is certainly worth picking up for even a casual fan on the strength of the title track and "Beautiful Dream" alone.

Of all the band's albums, Return to Fantasy probably had the worst sound quality of them all. The original vinyl was tinny at best, and as you got closer to the end of a side, it just got worse. The reissue sounds considerably better. While this record sounds a bit dated now, it included such memorable tracks as "Beautiful Dream," "Your Turn to Remember" (an FM hit here in the US), and "A Year or a Day"--quite possibly one of the band's best tunes. Although Thain was kicked out of the band during the sessions for Return to Fantasy and replaced by John Wetton, the liner notes state that Thain may be playing bass on the demo of "Beautiful Dream" (included here as a bonus track). The band members can't seem to remember must've been the 70's). Also included as bonus tracks are two B-sides and the single version of the title track.

Everybody kind of...hesitantly...anticipated ths album back in 1975, because right after "Sweet Freedom," Hensley, Box, & company fired bassist Gary Thain and replaced him with John Wetton. Personally, (this's just MY opinion), they traded UP, but, as Hensley himself notes in "Fantasy's" liner notes, "the chemistry wasn't there." Well...maybe not, but Heep sounded FINE ('as frog hair,' as we used to observe down south) and tight as a TICK. The tracks are typical hobbity Heep trax, but that second cut, "Shady Lady" kind of solely justifies the CD's purchase. Beginning with a strong Mick Box/open A/ascending chord progression, there's a bit of drum/bass histrionics, and then Ken Hensley jumps in, playing some excellent bottleneck-slide guitar. The lyrics, of course, recount how singer Dave Byron meets a lady (a SHADY lady), who tells him, "hang around, 'cause I'm takin' you home" - and THEN says, "OK, Sonny - give me your money!" Yeah, yeah, "been-there-done-that," but in the end, ol' Dave tells Shady Lady, "STAY? Baby, NO WAY!" True, both the subject matter of the song and my description of it make it sound like ANY generic "OD'd on testosterone/metal" song, but that instrumental in the middle of the song nullifies any snide eletism. Buy the ticket, take the ride, folks...

This album has always been one of my all-time favourite albums by the mighty Heep, and I really don't see why everyone bashes it, sure, it isn't their greatest accomplishment, but it's still a damn good album. Even Ken Hensley himself hates it according to the linear notes. I just don't see why.
The album opens with the roaring title track, which is simply one of the classic tracks that was ever recoded by the band, starting with a midtempo keyboard-led intro, it soon explodes into a high-speed, gothic masterpiece. Another under-rated track from this album is Shady Lady, a kind of laid back boogie rocker that still has classic Heep qualities. Devil's Daughter comes out as one of the best songs on the album and Beautiful Dream comes out as one of the best songs of the era. Side 2, I will admit is a little sketchy at times, but it still has it's killer moments, Showdown and Why Did You Go to be more specific. But my personal favourite of the album is the mini-epic closer, A Year or a Day, a song about how man has tortured the environment ever since the beginning. As far as bonus tracks go, there are some really good songs such as the stomping Shout It Out.
To any true fan of music, this album needs to be in your collection, especially if you like Uriah Heeps slightly more expirimental side.

Well, I was not fortunate enough as to have been born in the early 60's, therefore, my comments on this album are based on the sole experience of playing it now, totally foreign to its impact or the expectations that preceded it on its original release. In my particular opinion, this is an awesome Heep record. It does not sound quite like their older works, true; yet, still retains the fine style which makes the band so special (and definitely more accomplished than that before, Wonderworld). Return to Fantasy has it all: ballads, epics, rockers and jumpy tunes. No need to expatiate on each track - anybody can enjoy this one, both fans or casual listeners, I am certain.

This album contains few good songs, but we are far from the quality of earlier cd like "Look at yourself", "The Magician's Birthday" or "Demons and Wizards". The title track "Return to Fantasy", "Prima Donna" is a catchy song and I also like the ballad "Why did you go". The rest of the album is not very strong in my opinion.

JUST AS GOOD AS MOST FROM THE BYRON ERA ALTHOUGH WETTON IS NO MATCH FOR GARY THAIN ON BASS. MY FAVORITE TRACKS ARE PRIMADONNA & YOUR TURN TO REMEMBER.

Ok , I'm down with all the reviews that plot this one in the 3 star to 3-and-a-half range, but I must express what others certainly might agree with: What hurts this album is the TITLE CUT. Is it only me, or are the lyrics forced, the transitions clumsy, and the mixing just god-awful?? Really, take "Return to Fantasy" off this album and its a great record with a bridge being made between the boogie-style rock (like Foghat) and the more melodic sound that will show up on some parts of "High and Mighty", and more consistently on "Firefly." Maybe the injection of Wetton and the dynamic with him Byron and Hensley is part of the transitional feel (although Wetton wouldn't hang around long) But give me some feedback, I'm a huge Heep fan, but I don't understand why the title cut to Return to Fantasy gets so much praise -- or am i nuts?

By the time Heep had fired Gary Thain for his debilitating drug habit and hired John Wetton, Heep were in a position of a bit of rebuilding their reputation as a fine band of its day and era. Return to Fantasy does succeed overall in re-establishing them as a force to be reckoned with and respected as well. After the unfortunate release of Wonderworld(which to me, isn't a bad album AT ALL, just a victim of circumstance), Fantasy picks up some quality again. The first four cuts of this record are solid, consistent and possess a unique quality of music. The bulk of the record features collective songwriting credits(minus Wetton) even though Ken Hensley still remained their most prolific writer for this time period, it allowed the band more room to create as a unified front.

I bought the Sanctuary remaster and much prefer the outtake versions of Prima Donna and Showdown. Leaving the silly horn section off of Prima Donna would have certainly been the better for this mid-paced rocker. The only clunker I feel is Your Turn to Remember, which is blinding AOR-ish in its quality and intent on creating another radio hit. The title track is in the vein of what is considered classic Heep with ambient lyrics, the drive of Hensley's organ, Mick Box's guitar lines and a strong rhythm section as always. John Wetton proves himself a fine replacement and given his pedigree(Family, King Crimson, Roxy Music) it was an easy stop-gap for him to simply be a Rock Star and enjoy a little bit of limelight. Shady Lady and Devil's Daughter are easily bluesy harder rocking songs and are quite sustainable to the Heep catalogue. Beautiful Dream, like the title song, has an ethereal quality in performance and in the lyrical aspects as well; it is a very fine crafted tune that would have fit in with the Magician's Birthday set.

As previously mentioned, the released version of Prima Donna really throws a curveball into the mix of RTF and its a shame that they chose to alter the song with overdubbed horns because its totally unnecessary. Why Did You Go is an atypical ballad that began a trend on Magician's Birthday with Rain. It is a soft number and has its moments, but I prefer more of the "heavy" than the "humble" when I listen to Heep. A Year or a Day closes out on a pwerful note and although some of the second half of songs lose focus at times, overall, Fantasy is a solid effort. I recommend the Santuary remaster as it features alternate takes of the title track and Beautiful Dream as well as B-sides Shout It Out and The Time Will Come(which with these two tracks, its reckoned that they feature Gary Thain's bass playing before he was outsted, but it remains unclear). 3 and a half Stars.

Uriah Heep was at a professional crossroads when its eighth studio album was released in May 1975; bassist Gary Thain was replaced by John Wetton, but vocalist David Byron was battling personal demons that often made his dynamic on-stage presence a sad parody.

But the band regrouped and delivered one of its best songs ever - the title track - and a series of steady numbers, with Your Turn to Remember - a blues-based AOR ballad - that potentially could have garnered heavy rotation on FM radio a few years later, when that style of song became all the rage. Yes, timing is everything.

Beautiful Dream includes wonderful artistry, Prima Donna is biting commentary on the rock-n-roll scene, while Showdown - the song title became a reality for the band one year later - is the shining sleeper. Wetton obviously added some spark to the nucleus that was trying to keep things together - Ken Hensley (key, g), Mick Box (g), Lee Kerslake (d) - and the album is one of the strongest instrumental performances the band delivered in the cozy confines of a studio.