Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Saga
Label: SPV Records
Released: 1998
Runtime: 113:14
Rating: 4.5/5
“Detours” is a double live album from the legendary Canadian art rock heavyweights Saga. A good number of years have passed since their first live album “In Transit” (1982), and it was high time for a new live release. After winning over music lovers early on as one of the most unique and innovative bands at the crossroads of progressive rock and melodic rock, they went through various evolutionary sound phases, some more successful, some less. Even the rare darker moments of their career they managed to shake off very quickly.
The tour this double live recording comes from was organized after the release of the disastrous, techno- and industrial metal-leaning album “Pleasure And The Pain” (1997), which marked the lowest point of their career. Definitely not the best moment to put out a live album. But any fear of panic is totally unfounded, because only two songs from that horror made it onto the recording: the toothless power metal/grunge hybrid “Welcome To The Zoo” and the industrial metal/pop rock dud “Heaven Can Wait”. And even those in versions that ditch the electronic and drum-machine-driven sonic filler that dominates the studio takes.
The recording is nicely spread across long-standing classics, a few songs that rarely turn up in their live set, and a handful that they’ll probably never play live again. Among the longtime favorites you get gems like excellent versions of “How Long”, “Careful Where You Step”, “Don’t Be Late”, “Wind Him Up”, “On The Loose”, “You’re Not Alone” and “Humble Stance”. The pleasant surprises, meanwhile, are the very good performances of lesser-known pieces like the mysterious “Ice Nice”, the superb acoustic version of the mystically tinged “The Security Of Illusion”, the magical ballad “Scratching The Surface” with keyboardist Jim Gilmour on lead vocals, and the romantic, refined pop rockers “The Flyer” and “Take A Chance”.
The performance of that last lost pearl especially is a big surprise, since they usually steer clear of playing anything from “Behaviour” (1985), their most commercially minded record. Even bigger is the surprise of “I Walk With You” from “Steel Umbrellas” (1994), the soundtrack to the American TV series Cobra and one of their weakest efforts. Interestingly, from the excellent concept album “Generation 13” (1995) the recording only has a brilliant take on “The Cross”. That one is always interesting also because it’s one of the rare moments in their story where Jim Gilmour has an equal role to singer Michael Sadler. Sadler, for his part, delivers outstanding vocal displays throughout and keeps living up to his reputation as one of the most charismatic singers in progressive rock. Another interesting moment is “William’s Walkabout”, which opens with a piano intro from the classic “Images” before turning into a solo spot for Jim Gilmour, where the keyboard master convincingly shows off his classical chops.
Fans of music visuals, and therefore DVDs, will be thrilled by the live videos of “Pitchman” and “Intermission”, which you won’t find on the album as audio tracks. These two already foreshadow the growing flood of live DVD releases that followed in the years after, and which have lately all but pushed out the classic live CD.
As for the quality of the performances, their number and the production, “Detours” is without a doubt better than “In Transit”, which was surely too short for the average Saga fanatic to really capture everything this indestructible band is capable of. “Detours” is a very good live recording that manages to capture the concert spirit and energy of the classic, most beloved Saga lineup in an authentic way. And that’s what matters most with a good live album.
The fact that it was recorded after their worst studio album doesn’t hurt it one bit. Quite the opposite. After “Detours”, Saga made an incredibly important U-turn back to their prog rock roots with the studio album “The Full Circle” (1999), and became an incredibly consistent outfit. So when it came out, this recording was undoubtedly very important for convincing old followers that Saga hadn’t lost their compass after one bad record. Among their live releases so far it’s really hard to pick a favorite (personally I’d go with the unrepeatable “The Chapters Live”, 2005), since they’re all a guarantee of high quality.
Lineup
Michael Sadler – vocals, keyboards
Ian Crichton – guitar
Jim Crichton – bass, keyboards
Jim Gilmour – keyboards, backing vocals
Steve Negus – drums
Production
Jim Crichton
Track List
CD 1: 56:12
1. In The Hall Of The Mountain King William (2:46)
2. How Long (4:46)
3. The Perfectionist (5:51)
4. Careful Where You Step (4:32)
5. Ice Nice (5:57)
6. Don’t Be Late (7:13)
7. Interview (3:38)
8. Wind Him Up (5:46)
9. Welcome To The Zoo (4:18)
10. Take A Chance (4:34)
11. William’s Walk About (2:39)
12. The Cross (4:12)
Pitchman – Live Video
CD 2: 57:02
1. Scrathing The Surface (5:26)
2. On The Loose (4:55)
3. The Security Of Illusion (5:00)
4. I Walk With You (3:10)
5. Time’s Up (2:11)
6. Heaven Can Wait (5:55)
7. The Flyer (4:54)
8. You’re Not Alone (7:43)
9. Framed (5:46)
10. Humble Stance (12:02)
The Intermission – Live Video
