Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Camel
Label: Camel Productions
Released: 1998
Rating: 4.5/5
Camel’s renaissance after their fantastic comeback in the early 90s carried on in their live recordings too, as fans could already hear on the excellent “Never Let Go” (1993), which served up some of the best performances they’d ever put on record. “Coming Of Age”, the fruit of the tour following the conceptual masterpiece “Harbour Of Tears” (1996), continues their sonic rebirth, because it’s yet another superb recording, packed with incredible energy and the kind of magic that only the greatest masters of their craft, like Camel, can conjure up. “Coming Of Age” ticks every box I need to call it a true live treat for all fans of the band and of pure, primal symphonic prog rock.
The man behind the superb atmosphere is once again none other than the timeless guitar master Andrew Latimer, not just one of the best guitarists of his generation but also an exceptional personality, who with his dreamy musical visions, independent approach and firm belief in the cause has etched himself forever into the hearts of all Camel fans as the best musician among those where, when you mention them to someone, they just stare blankly and say they’ve never heard of him. Of course, the other members of the lineup that recorded this live album are all great musicians in their own right, especially longtime bassist Colin Bass, who shows off his talent well here too, but Andy simply belongs in the category of the greatest masters of his instrument. Still, this recording also gives a special spotlight to his other musical virtue, one that usually gets overlooked far too often. His singing, that is. Even though critics have usually pointed to the vocals as Camel’s main weak spot, I couldn’t disagree more, because almost every time I hear the pathos and soul with which he sings most of his songs, I’m stunned by the incredible expressiveness and heart that the color of his voice sows, which to me is worth far more than any technical superiority. On the recording Andy also introduces two new members, Foss Patterson on keyboards and Dave Stewart (ex-Fish) on drums, who then said their goodbyes just as quickly after the release as most of the band’s previous members.
Even though a number of classics are missing from the recording, with “Never Let Go” (Camel, 1973) and “Lady Fantasy” (Mirage, 1974) at the head of the list, I absolutely love this selection of songs. They especially win me over with the fantastic opening space epic “Lunar Sea” (Moonmadness, 1976), where once again they manage to put the listener into a trance with dreamy arrangements and a string of excellent keyboard passages. On top of that, they even manage to improve on the original. The same goes for “Hmyn To Her” (I Can See Your House From Here, 1979), a surprising but very welcome pick and one of my favorite pieces from that album, where the excellent guitar intro and the heartfelt vocals hit especially hard. The next four tracks are taken from their greatest conceptual masterpiece “The Snow Goose” (1975), which in itself means they’re among the highlights of the recording. Andy’s flute ushers us into the immortal classic “Rhayader”, followed by excellent versions of “Rhayader Goes To Town”, “Preparation” and “Dunkirk”, which bring the heart of that legendary story about sacrifice and love in the hardest of times back to life. Camel then make a great move and follow the conceptual masterpiece of the 70s with three parts from the conceptual masterpiece of the 80s, “Nude” (1981)! Instead of the AOR-flavored “City Life”, this time the concept trio opens with the melancholic, piano-soaked “Drafted”, followed by a whole string of dreamy instrumental passages on “Docks” and “Beached”, which once again conjure up the story of the lonely soldier on a tiny island in the middle of the Pacific. The heated mood is then mellowed a bit by the serene, mystical ballad “Spirit Of The Water” (Moonmadness, 1976), which in its spaciness evokes the memory of its original author, former keyboardist Peter Bardens (RIP). That’s followed by a fantastic rendition of the instrumental epic masterpiece “Ice” (“I Can See Your House From Here”, 1979), which will leave even those of you who think nothing beats the original version with your jaws on the floor, even though this one is considerably better. To close out the first half of the recording, Camel pick the superb instrumental “Sasquatch” (The Single Factor, 1982), where majestic arrangements and incredibly tasteful guitar passages lift the atmosphere to the sky.
Now, strange as it may sound, the best is yet to come, and on the second disc at that! That’s where you’ll find splendid renditions of some of the best pieces from the conceptual masterpiece “Dust And Dreams” (1991), like the subtle instrumental “Milk’n’Honey”, the supersonic temperature-raiser and their neo-prog lesson “Mother Road”, the spacey instrumental epic “Needles” and “Rose Of Sharon”,which is once again stuffed with superb vocal harmonies and orchestral arrangements. Once again they all manage to vividly conjure up the main images from Steinbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath. Just as they successfully played the entire “Dust And Dreams” on “Never Let Go”, now they grandly, and as if it were nothing, play the whole of “Harbour Of Tears”, which was the current album of the tour at the time. I’d hardly dare say this version is better than the studio one, which it barely differs from, but the “live” energy gives it a special charm that conjures up images of the trials of poor Irish emigrants on their journey across the ocean. They especially shine on some of the best pieces, like “Watching The Bobbins”, “Eyes Of Ireland”, “Coming Of Age” and “The Hour Candle”, which faithfully follow their studio versions, just with the odd small improvisation and an extra orchestral arrangement thrown in here and there. In short: pure cloud nine for all the “Camel-heads”!
This fantastic live recording is yet another unique demonstration of what these champions of subtle melodies and cosmic expanses are capable of conjuring up on stage, delivering superb shows where they bring to life all the best chapters of their colorful history. Most legendary bands would usually offer their fans on live recordings just a collection of their hits and best-known pieces, steering clear of newer material as much as possible, whereas Camel have very solid reasons for playing current albums in full, alongside an interesting and well-judged choice of some older pieces. “Coming Of Age”, which came out on their independent label and is therefore a bit harder to get hold of, is nevertheless a must for every true fan of the band, who shouldn’t miss out on one of the best live albums of the 90s, which holds true outside the world of progressive rock too.
Lineup
Andrew Latimer – vocals, guitar, flute
Colin Bass – bass guitar, backing vocals
Foss Patterson – keyboards
Dave Stewart – drums
GUEST MUSICIAN:
Mae McKenna – vocals on “Irish Air”
Production
Andrew Latimer
Track list
CD 1 (60:20)
1. Lunar Sea (8:57)
2. Hymn to Her (6:34)
3. Rhayader (2:53)
4. Rhayader goes to Town (5:03)
5. Preparation (3:19)
6. Dunkirk (5:05)
7. Drafted (4:28)
8. Docks (3:54)
9. Beached (4:00)
10. Spirit of the Water (3:09)
11. Ice (9:40)
12. Sasquatch (4:18)
CD 2: (63:05)
1. Milk n’Honey (3:23)
2. Mother Road (4:29)
3. Needles (2:30)
4. Rose of Sharon (5:09)
5. Irish Air (0:57)
6. Irish Air Reprise (2:27)
7. Harbours of tears (3:16)
8. Cobh (0:52)
9. Send Home the States (4:04)
10. Under the Moon (1:46)
11. Watching the Bobbins (7:38)
12. Eyes of Irelands (3:13)
13. Running From Paradise (5:39)
14. End of the Day (2:44)
15. Coming of Age (7:38)
16. The Hour Candle (7:20)
Trajanje albuma: 123:25
