(4 / 5)
Does this band get the credit and full recognition that their pioneering music deserves? Answers on a post card to……………In the meantime, while you are pondering that conundrum, stick this belting new release on your CD player as a reminder of what timeless and quality music sounds like.
The Prog’ genre has made a bit of a come-back in the last few years, even a glossy magazine on the newsstands dedicated to it. BJH kind of fall between the cracks of prog’, rock and with big nods to classical.
This newly re-mastered and expanded edition of their classic Gold selling 1976 album, “Octoberon”, gives us three discs; two CDs and a DVD. 25 audio tracks in total; 10 on disc one, nine on disc two and eight on CD 3 plus the two promo’ films.
New stereo and 5.1 Surround Sound mixes of the original album, and six bonus tracks. Plus two promotional films of “Rock N’ Roll Star” and “The World Goes On”, from BBC TV’s cult music show The Old Grey Whistle Test. The region free DVD includes 96 kHz / 24-bit stereo re-mixes and a 96 kHz / 24-bit re-master of the original album mix.
Originally released at the end of October 1976, the original album was a big selling release for the band, achieving Silver sales status in the UK and Gold in Germany, their first breakthrough album in that territory. The album struck a chord with the mainstream public thanks to tracks such as ‘The World Goes On’, ‘Suicide?’, the epic ‘Ra’ and ‘Rock n’ Roll Star’.
The bonus tracks, include the previously unreleased alternate introduction mix of ‘May Day’ and alternate mixes of ‘Ra’, ‘Suicide?’ and more. The package includes fully restored artwork and lavishly illustrated booklets with liner notes.
By Simon Redley
(1 / 5) ‘Dull Zone’
(2 / 5) ‘OK Zone’
(3 / 5) ‘Decent Zone’ (4 / 5) ‘Super Zone’
(5 / 5) ‘Awesome Zone’
