Brilliant and timeless...
nicjaytee | London | 09/05/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Featuring some of the best, road-honed musicians from the UK's mid/late 60's R&B scene, Colosseum's first release is one of the most interesting & exciting albums of its era. Why? Well first off it's underpinned throughout by some quite superb playing, including Dick Heckstall-Smith's wonderfully gutsy, brilliantly executed sax breaks, and a series of strong, unforgettable melodies that, on their own, make it a stand-out record. But what elevates it into a different league is the way it takes "standard" British Blues and shakes it up into something very different by incorporating large elements of modern jazz and the emerging progressive rock scene into the formula. Sure there are moments of self-indulgence, in particular on "Beware the Ides of March", but even these somehow fail to intrude on the incredibly powerful drive that just keeps pushing everything along. And on the way this self-evidently enthusiastic, highly ingenious and unfortunately short-lived combination deliver some quite stunning numbers, including the magnificent "Debut", "Walking in the Park", "Plenty Hard Luck", "Backwater Blues" and "The Road She Walked Before".
Brilliant and timeless "Those Who Are About to Die.." is a marvellous example of jazz-rock crashing head-on into the blues to produce an album that remains as effective and enjoyable today as it was all those years ago.
"
One of the most underrated groups of their time
William Honneus | Boston, MA | 06/25/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Colosseum was one of the truly unique supergroups of its time as all or most of its members had legitamately played on the jazz/blues scene since the early sixties. Drummer Jon Hiseman and saxophonist Dick Heckstall-Smith had spent time with Graham Bond and later with John Mayall, along with bassist Tony Reeves. Dick had also played with Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated. As a result, each musician had the improvisational skill and discipline that those fields demanded, which often resulted in tightly arranged musical excursions. Unlike many of their contemporaries, every note that Colosseum played mattered. Each jam was not only well thought out and executed, but had soul and emotion to match. This album was a brilliant starting point for the band. "Debut" is a great loose jam that features solos by Dick and Dave Greenslade on organ. The sax solos especially have great drama, starting out simple, then getting more complex and then building to a cresendo, at which point sounding like there are three sax players all blending together! "Beware The Ides Of March" is arguably the standout track on the album. It is based on the same Bach chord sequence on which Procol Harum based "A Whiter Shade of Pale", but Colosseum ups the ante by taking the idea beyond a simple commercial context. Dick again plays the guide melody on sax, while Dave Greenslade plays an absolutely haunting organ track in the middle section, which in my opinon exemplifies classical/rock fusion better than anything that Keith Emerson ever did with ELP (much as I do love Keith Emerson's work, I have to be honest here!). This song too starts out calm, then builds up to a climax, then returns to the original idea before reaching its truimphent conclusion. "Mandarin" gives Tony Reeves a chance to stretch out with a bass solo, while "Walking in The Park", a track they borrowed from Graham Bond, is a great, almost big band sounding song as the brass section has a driving force that dictates the song's every move. Meanwhile, James Litherland's guitar work provides some chaos to the order during the middle section of "Park" with some effects that makes you wonder "how'd he get those sounds to come out of there?". This album and Valentyne Suite taken together represent Colosseum's finest hour. If you're a fan of Valentyne Suite, then you'll want this album too. Fans of sixties British blues or progressive rock are also strongly advised to give this album a listen."
Track Listings (8) - Disc #1