UK compilation for Renaissance side-project featuring Michael Dunford and Annie Haslam. Comprised mostly of unreleased tracks along with rare b-sides, some tracks are on CD for the first time. Includes five rare Renaissanc... more »e tracks, three of which are previously unreleased, 'Love Is A State Of Mind', 'I Am A Stranger' and 'On And On' along with 'No Beginning No End' and 'Mother Russia'. 2000 release. Standard jewel case.« less
UK compilation for Renaissance side-project featuring Michael Dunford and Annie Haslam. Comprised mostly of unreleased tracks along with rare b-sides, some tracks are on CD for the first time. Includes five rare Renaissance tracks, three of which are previously unreleased, 'Love Is A State Of Mind', 'I Am A Stranger' and 'On And On' along with 'No Beginning No End' and 'Mother Russia'. 2000 release. Standard jewel case.
CD Reviews
The beginning of the Renaissance of the 80's
R. Josef | New Haven, CT United States | 06/19/2001
(2 out of 5 stars)
"When the best known version of Renaissance broke up in 1980 amid personal and professional difficulties, vocalist Annie Haslam and gutiarist/songwriter Michael Dunford took off in a different direction. Recruiting keyboardist/vocalist/lyricist Peter Gosling, they worked on a series of demos hoping to secure a new record contract. Under the name Nevada, Polydor released 4 songs on two singles in Europe. However, they weren't successful enough to interest the company in a full length album, making Nevada a very short lived project. Until now, only two more Nevada tracks saw the light of day -- "Faeries" showed up when the trio reteamed with bassist Jon Camp for the next Renaissance album, "Camera Camera"; and Dunford recorded "Star of the Show" with singer Stephanie Adlington on the album "Ocean Gypsy" in 1997....the recordings on the "Pictures in the Fire" CD have to be the Nevada demos (or copies of these -- Dunford claimed these had been destroyed in a flood or fire). This explains the rather crude quality of the recordings and the basic arrangements (there is no proper rhythm section).In retrospect, the roots of the synth-pop sounds that Renaissance explored on "Camera Camera" and "Timeline" obviously started here, with Gosling's staccato synths and programmed drum beats. Which means that a lot of the fans of the classical and progressive sounds of 70's Renaissance will be none too pleased with upbeat pop songs like "Tokyo" or "Faeries" .... Still, Dunford does have way with melodies, especially on ballads like the beautiful "Star", the title track and Holst's "In the Bleak Midwinter". Gosling's lyrics are rather ho-hum when compared with those by classic Renaissance lyricist Betty Thatcher, with the exception of the bizarre "Motorway Madness" (Gosling's car radio, played by Annie, talks to him!). Annie's incredible voice is always a joy to hear, even in this mediocre setting. Gosling gets two lead vocals, which only accentuates this.As for the five "bonus" tracks by the late 80's, post-"Time Line" Renaissance (which included keyboards played by Raphael Rudd and Mark Lampariello replacing Jon Camp), four of them could have found a home of the 1997 ouutakes compliation "Songs from Renaissance Days". The pop tune "No Beginning, No End", which appeared on "SFRD" in demo form, is much stronger here in a full band recording; "I Am a Stranger" sounds like a demo, but it's a gorgeous ballad; "Love is A State of Mind" is an amusing tropical-sounding tune that recalls a couple of songs on Annie's 1977 solo, "Annie in Wonderland". Thatcher's lyrics help immensely.However, it's telling that the inclusion of of yet another live version of the 1974 classic "Mother Russia" (unsourced) stands head over heels above anything else here.Despite the incredible redundancy (it appears on all FIVE of the band's live albums!), hearing the performance here only confirms that Renaissance's strengths lie in their 70's progressive work, not in their 80's pop. Newcomers should start there and only move way on to "Pictures in the Fire" when they fall totally in love with Annie's voice."
Not the best Renaissance, but well worth having
Keith Levkoff | NY, USA | 03/09/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)
"This album has some neat songs on it - and some interesting versions of old favorites. While I would agree with those folks who say this is NOT a good start for people unfamiliar with Renaissance, I would say it is a fine addition for anyone who likes Renaissance and Annie enough to want a complete collection. Yes, it would be nice if the quality was a bit better in places - but you still get Annie's magnificent voice.... which is what I came here for :)"
Pretty enjoyable
K. Cooper | Phila. area | 10/25/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Although not as good as the best Renaissance or Annie Haslam, it is still pretty good. I liked it a lot better the 2nd listen than the first so I guess it grows on you. The voice is the same and the material is good although not great. Definitely a rare hard to find item for the hard core fan."
Most welcome
G. Donaldson | Glasgow, Scotland | 05/12/2001
(3 out of 5 stars)
"I approached this CD with some trepidation, expecting very poor sound quality. However, although not perfect by any means, the sound is actually far better than I had been anticipating - certainly very listenable. "Songs from Renaissance Days" definitely is the better collection by some distance but I'm sure think this CD will delight Renaissance/Annie Haslam fans. Clearly, most Nevada songs bear closer relation to latter day Renaissance than the classic band of the 70s, displaying a 'pop' direction. Songs such as "Lady of the Sea" and "In the Bleak Midwinter" are standouts and I also really like the bouncy pop of "Tokyo"."
For die-hard fans of Renaissance
G. Donaldson | 09/05/2000
(2 out of 5 stars)
"This is not a CD I would play for anyone to get them interested in Renaissance or Annie Haslam. Most of the tracks sound like demos, mastered on multi-track cassettes, replete with rudimentary drum machines and tape hiss. And some of the vocal performances could have used another take, or at least a producer to say "let's have another go at it". The two Nevada singles represented here are NOT the original versions that were released by Polydor.If you're searching for Renaissance rarities, BMG's "Songs from Renaissance Days" is a much better collection."
Track Listings (15) - Disc #1