“The last time we played with an orchestra was in Athens five years ago,” says Barclay James Harvest guitarist and vocalist John Lees. “We played at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, an amphitheatre on the slopes beneath the Acropolis. It was fantastic. Standing there on stage looking up at the Acropolis in spotlight in front of an orchestra was quite surreal.”
Although Barclay James Harvest might not have been the most flash and virtuosic of progressive rock bands, they were certainly one of the most ambitious and broke new ground, in early 1971, by touring with an orchestra. And, as their Acropolis concert demonstrated, they can still do rock and grandeur like no other group. But the road to Athens has been a long, and at times difficult, journey.
They formed in 1967 in the Oldham area and early on played at Middle Earth and with Pink Floyd at All Saints Hall, London. They established a melodic style with blues and folk elements and attracted a sponsor and manager, a local fashion entrepreneur John Crowther. They moved into one of his properties, Preston House, an 18th-century farmhouse in nearby Diggle. If that sounds like a cool way to ‘get it together in the country’, the facilities were, if not quite 18th-century, then certainly primitive.
This story is from the Issue 142 edition of Prog.
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This story is from the Issue 142 edition of Prog.
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Apollo Has Fallen
In the aftermath of Sons Of Apollo, band alumni Derek Sherinian and Ron 'Bumblefoot' Thal have regrouped for new sonic adventures in Whom Gods Destroy. Now the ice has finally melted, the new line-up are ready to take over the world with the ambitious Insanium. Prog caught up with Sherinian to find out more.
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In 2022, 3's Robert Berry, Saga's Ian Crichton and Saxon drummer Nigel Glockler released their debut as Six By Six. But have the prog supergroup been able to recapture that magic on the highly anticipated follow-up, Beyond Shadowland? Prog caught up with Berry to discuss the challenges, inspirational artwork and orchestral arrangements that lie behind their \"difficult\" second album.
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Shifting Gear
In the two years since Resident Human, Wheel have undergone internal changes that very nearly destroyed them. But fortunately the Finnish-Anglo band have bounced back with the more experimental Charismatic Leaders. Singer and guitarist James Lascelles reveals the challenges behind creating their third studio album, how Meshuggah's \"best amp\" helped them, and why they just can't shake off those Tool comparisons.
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The good rocketship Hawkwind have launched their 36th studio album into the progosphere! On Stories From Time And Space, the group have lost none of their sense of injustice about the world. Bandleader Dave Brock reveals the drive behind their new music, why he's continuing to fight for an alternative society and responds to recent concerns about his health.
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