Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Renaissance
Label: Island Records
Release: 1971
Runtime: 44:31
Rating: 3.5/5
Things weren’t looking good for the cult British symphonic proggers Renaissance after the release of their self-titled debut in 1969. The original lineup started falling apart left, right and center before their second studio effort, »Illusion«, was even finished. It originally came out only in Germany, and didn’t surface on home British soil (with a different cover) until 1977, by which point Keith Relf (ex-The Yardbirds), the band’s founder, guitarist and singer, had already been dead for a year. The original lineup of one of the first prog rock groups, which besides a lead male vocalist also featured a female singer in the form of Keith’s sister Jane Relf, began to crumble when drummer/vocalist Jim McCarthy left in 1970, citing a fear of flying as his main reason. Even so, he stayed connected to Renaissance as a songwriter, which lasted right up until their third album, by which point the band already had a completely overhauled lineup.
Keith Relf and bassist Louis Cennamo soon followed him out the door, and in 1975 the two founded the short-lived prog/hard rock outfit Armageddon. Keyboardist John Hawken and Jane Relf decided to soldier on for a while, bringing in new members: guitarist Michael Dunford, singer Terry Crowe, bassist Neil Korner and drummer Terry Slade. Of that bunch, only Dunford stuck around, later becoming an important member of the classic Renaissance lineup and the sole link between the old/original band and the new/classic one. Before »Illusion« was even finished, the two remaining original members left too, so guest keyboardist Don Shinn played the keys on the closing epic »Past Orbits of Dust«, while Jane Relf, right before her departure, lured Betty Thatcher into the fold, and from then on, right through to the end of the seventies, Thatcher wrote the lyrics for all of Renaissance’s key albums.
The chaotic circumstances in which »Illussion« was made partly explain why the album lacks focus and a firm direction, even though some of the material, especially the last two tracks, ranks among the highlights of their entire output. The opening folk rock ditty »Love Goes On« certainly isn’t among them. With its cheerful, optimistic vibe and naive love lyrics, you’d never guess in a million years that the end was nigh for the original Renaissance. Here the band weaves a gorgeous acoustic melody and lovely male-female vocal harmonies peaking in a melodic chorus, while Jane Relf convincingly proves why she got her shot as one of the first female voices in prog.
»Golden Thread«, with drummer McCarthy taking over lead vocals, was already a somewhat more ambitious and eclectic piece, with a long piano intro and operatic vocal harmonies under Jane Relf’s baton, followed by a dramatic tempo shift into an epic section with melancholic symphonic arrangements. On »Love Is All«, another shorter folk rock ballad, Keith Relf shines on lead vocals one last time, backed by excellent supporting harmonies and elegant piano passages.
»Mr. Pine«, which puts the transitional lineup in the spotlight with Dunford on guitar and Terry Crowe on lead vocals, is one of the three key moments on this album, with its medieval atmosphere courtesy of baroque arrangements. The eclectic tempo changes and melodramatic orchestral flourishes from keyboardist Hawken are a real feast for the ears. The symphonic ballad »Face of Yesterday« and its ethereal mood also rank among the best moments on »Illusion«, giving you a rough idea of where Renaissance would be heading stylistically in the near future. Jane Relf shines brightest here with an outstanding vocal performance, accompanied on piano by an equally on-form Hawken. But it’s only in the closing 14-minute epic treat »Past Orbits Of Dust« that you can really hear why plenty of lovers of good music still count Renaissance among the symphonic prog elite today. This ambitiously arranged suite has an incredibly intense, turbulent atmosphere, with ‘magical’ vocal harmonies led by Jane Relf, loads of unexpected tempo changes and interesting, complex improvisations that also showcase the technical chops of the individual musicians.
»Illusion« is an album that didn’t exactly go down in the annals of symphonic prog rock in letters of gold, which is no surprise given that it was a transitional record marking the farewell of the entire original Renaissance lineup, but there’s still plenty of interesting stuff to dig up on it. By 1971, after numerous lineup changes, a completely new version of the group had taken shape, featuring singer Annie Haslam (today the only original member), keyboardist John Tout, bassist/vocalist Jon Camp and drummer Terence Sullivan, while guitarist Rob Hendry played on just one album. For a while, former Family bassist/vocalist, the legendary John Wetton, was also a member before joining King Crimson in 1972. The sadly late Michael Dunford, a member of the transitional lineup and the only link between the old band and the new, initially worked with the new Renaissance only as an ‘outside’ arranger, but later returned to the band as a guitarist and helped steer them into their most successful era.
Lineup
Keith Relf – guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals on “Love Is All”
Jim McCarty – drums, backing vocals, lead vocals on “Golden Thread”
John Hawken – piano, keyboards
Louis Cennamo – bass guitar
Jane Relf – backing vocals, percussion, lead vocals on “Love Goes On”, “Face Of Yesterday”and “Past Orbits Of Dust”
Don Shinn – keyboards on “Past Orbits Of Dust”
Michael Dunford – guitar on “Mr. Pine”
Terry Crowe – lead vocals on “Mr. Pine”
Neil Korner – bass guitar on “Mr. Pine”
Terry Slade – drums on “Mr. Pine”
Production
Keith Relf
Tracklist
1. Love Goes On (2:51)
2. Golden Thread (8:15)
3. Love Is All (3:40)
4. Mr. Pine (7:00)
5. Face of Yesterday (6:06)
6. Past Orbits of Dust (14:39)
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