Still Life (Annie Haslam album)
Encyclopedia
Still Life is the second solo album by Renaissance
vocalist Annie Haslam
, recorded with Louis Clark
and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
in 1985.
The album consisted of popular classical tunes set to the lyrics of poet and Renaissance lyricist Betty Thatcher
, and sold well due to its promotion through television advertising.
A remastered two-disc edition was released on April 25, 2011, with the second disc offering an instrumental version of each song.
described Still Life as the marriage of classical and popular music at its very best. Allmusic's Tomas Mureika called it "one of Haslam's career highlights: a gorgeous, lyrical, and endlessly listenable collection of classical pop nuggets, topped off with brilliant—often profound—lyrics."
Renaissance (band)
Renaissance are an English progressive rock band, most notable for their 1978 UK top 10 hit "Northern Lights" and progressive rock classics like "Carpet of the Sun", "Mother Russia" and "Ashes Are Burning".-Original incarnation :...
vocalist Annie Haslam
Annie Haslam
Annie Haslam is an English progressive rock vocalist and songwriter.Originally a fashion student, she began studying under opera singer Sybil Knight in 1970 and developed her five-octave vocal range...
, recorded with Louis Clark
Louis Clark
Louis Clark is a British musical arranger and keyboard player.He trained at Leeds College of Music. He was the conductor of the orchestra and choir hired to back Electric Light Orchestra's sound, introduced on their album Eldorado in 1974...
and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It tours widely, and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's national orchestra"...
in 1985.
The album consisted of popular classical tunes set to the lyrics of poet and Renaissance lyricist Betty Thatcher
Betty Thatcher
Betty Thatcher was an English lyricist, who wrote most of the lyrics for the UK progressive rock band Renaissance.-Early life:...
, and sold well due to its promotion through television advertising.
A remastered two-disc edition was released on April 25, 2011, with the second disc offering an instrumental version of each song.
Reception
The Bolton NewsThe Bolton News
The Bolton News - formerly the Bolton Evening News - is a daily newspaper covering the towns of Bolton and Bury in north-western England...
described Still Life as the marriage of classical and popular music at its very best. Allmusic's Tomas Mureika called it "one of Haslam's career highlights: a gorgeous, lyrical, and endlessly listenable collection of classical pop nuggets, topped off with brilliant—often profound—lyrics."
Track listing
- "Forever Bound" (Adagio cantabile from Symphony No. 5Symphony No. 5 (Tchaikovsky)The Symphony No. 5 in E minor, Op. 64 by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was composed between May and August 1888 and was first performed in St Petersburg at the Hall of Nobility on November 6 of that year with Tchaikovsky conducting. It is dedicated to Theodore Avé-Lallemant.-Structure:A typical...
, Tchaikovsky) - "Still Life" (Air from Suite No. 3 in D major, J. S. Bach)
- "One Day" (Berceuse from DollyDolly (Fauré)The Dolly Suite, Op. 56, is a collection of pieces for piano four-hands by Gabriel Fauré. It consists of short pieces written or revised between 1893 and 1896, to mark the birthdays and other events in the life of the daughter of the composer's mistress....
, FauréFaureFaure or Fauré is a French family name and may refer to:People:* Edgar Faure, French politician* Élie Faure, French art historian and essayist* Émile Alphonse Faure, lead battery pioneer* Cédric Fauré, French football striker...
) - "Ave VerumAve verum corpus (Mozart)Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Ave verum corpus in D major was written for Anton Stoll who was musical co-ordinator in the parish of Baden bei Wien, near Vienna. This setting of the Ave verum corpus text was composed to celebrate the feast of Corpus Christi and the autograph is dated 17 June 1791...
" (Mozart) - "Shine" (Gymnopédie No. 2, Satie)
- "Careless Love" (Étude Op. 10 No. 3Étude Op. 10, No. 3 (Chopin)Étude Op. 10 No. 3, in E major, is a study for solo piano composed by Frédéric Chopin in 1832. It was first published in 1833 in France, Germany, and England as the third piece of his Études Op. 10. This is a slow cantabile study for polyphonic and legato playing. Chopin himself believed the...
, Chopin) - "Glitter and Dust" (Swan LakeSwan LakeSwan Lake ballet, op. 20, by Pyotr Tchaikovsky, composed 1875–1876. The scenario, initially in four acts, was fashioned from Russian folk tales and tells the story of Odette, a princess turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer's curse. The choreographer of the original production was Julius Reisinger...
, Tchaikovsky) - "The Day You Strayed" (PavanePavane (Fauré)The Pavane in F-sharp minor, Op. 50, is a composition by the French composer Gabriel Fauré, written in 1887. It was originally a piano piece, but is better known in Fauré's version for orchestra and optional chorus...
, Fauré) - "Save Us All" (Adagio in G minorAdagio in G minorThe Adagio in G minor for violin, strings and organ continuo, is a neo-Baroque composition popularly attributed to the 18th-century Venetian master Tomaso Albinoni, but composed by the 20th-century musicologist and Albinoni biographer Remo Giazotto and based on the disputed discovery of a...
, Giazotto) - "Skaila" (La CalindaKoangaKoanga is an opera with music by Frederick Delius, his third opera, written between 1896 and 1897, and a libretto by Charles F. Keary, inspired partly by The Grandissimes of George Washington Cable. Inspiration also came from Delius' own experiences as a young man when his family sent him to work...
, DeliusFrederick DeliusFrederick Theodore Albert Delius, CH was an English composer. Born in the north of England to a prosperous mercantile family of German extraction, he resisted attempts to recruit him to commerce...
) - "Bitter Sweet" (The SwanLe CygneLe Cygne is a scholarly journal, published once a year, in April, by the International Marie de France Society.It is included in the Modern Language Association International Bibliography database....
from Carnival of the Animals, Saint-Saëns) - "Chains and Threads" (TannhäuserTannhäuser (opera)Tannhäuser is an opera in three acts, music and text by Richard Wagner, based on the two German legends of Tannhäuser and the song contest at Wartburg...
, Wagner)
Additional musicians
- Skaila Kanga, harpHarpThe harp is a multi-stringed instrument which has the plane of its strings positioned perpendicularly to the soundboard. Organologically, it is in the general category of chordophones and has its own sub category . All harps have a neck, resonator and strings...
- Trevor Bastow, pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
- Andy Pask, bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Barry de Souza, drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....