The Single Factor
Encyclopedia
The Single Factor, released in 1982, is the 9th studio album by English progressive rock
band Camel
. The title refers to the fact that guitarist Andy Latimer
was the sole remaining original member, though original keyboardist Peter Bardens
makes a guest appearance on 'Sasquatch'. It has also been taken to mean this album was meant to satisfy the record company's request for radio friendly single material. Unlike previous Camel albums, all the songs were a comfortable length around 3-4 minutes. Some critics called those a half-hearted effort before they returned to the thematic, concept style albums for which Camel is notable.
The album was reissued 8 September 2009 by Esoteric Recordings with a bonus version of "You Are the One".
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
band Camel
Camel (band)
Camel are an English progressive rock band formed in 1971. An important group in the Canterbury scene, they have been releasing studio and live recordings steadily, with considerable success, since their formation.-1970s:...
. The title refers to the fact that guitarist Andy Latimer
Andrew Latimer
Andrew Latimer is an English musician and one of the original members of the progressive rock band Camel. He is mainly a guitarist and singer, but also a flautist and keyboardist....
was the sole remaining original member, though original keyboardist Peter Bardens
Peter Bardens
Peter Bardens was a keyboardist and a founding member of the British progressive rock group Camel. He played organ, piano, synthesizers and mellotron and wrote songs with Andrew Latimer...
makes a guest appearance on 'Sasquatch'. It has also been taken to mean this album was meant to satisfy the record company's request for radio friendly single material. Unlike previous Camel albums, all the songs were a comfortable length around 3-4 minutes. Some critics called those a half-hearted effort before they returned to the thematic, concept style albums for which Camel is notable.
The album was reissued 8 September 2009 by Esoteric Recordings with a bonus version of "You Are the One".
Side one
- "No Easy Answer" – 2:59
- "You Are the One" – 5:25
- "Heroes" (Latimer, Susan Hoover) – 4:52
- "Selva" – 3:34
- "Lullabye" – 0:59
Side two
- "Sasquatch" – 4:44
- "Manic" (Latimer, Hoover) – 4:28
- "Camelogue" (Latimer, Hoover) – 3:44
- "Today's Goodbye" (Latimer, Hoover) – 4:10
- "A Heart's Desire" (Latimer, Hoover) – 1:11
- "End Peace" (Latimer, Anthony PhillipsAnthony PhillipsAnthony Edwin "Ant" Phillips is an English multi instrumentalist, best known as a founding member of the band Genesis. He played guitar and sang backing vocals until leaving in 1970, following the recording of their second album, Trespass...
) – 2:55
Personnel
- Andy LatimerAndrew LatimerAndrew Latimer is an English musician and one of the original members of the progressive rock band Camel. He is mainly a guitarist and singer, but also a flautist and keyboardist....
– lead vocals, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, 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...
, keyboards, MellotronMellotronThe Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...
(B 2), organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
(B 4), bass (B 2) - David PatonDavid PatonDavid Paton is a Scottish bass and guitar player, most notably with three different bands: Pilot, The Alan Parsons Project, and Camel. He has also worked as a solo artist, session musician, and sometime vocalist...
– bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, backing vocals, lead vocals (A 3) - Chris RainbowChris RainbowChris Rainbow is a Scottish rock singer and musician who had two minor hit songs, "Give Me What I Cry For" and "Solid State Brain" in the 1970s....
– backing vocals, lead vocals (B 5) - Anthony PhillipsAnthony PhillipsAnthony Edwin "Ant" Phillips is an English multi instrumentalist, best known as a founding member of the band Genesis. He played guitar and sang backing vocals until leaving in 1970, following the recording of their second album, Trespass...
– organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
(A 3, B 2), grand piano (A 3, B 2, 6), PolymoogPolymoogThe Polymoog is a polyphonic analog synthesizer that was manufactured by Moog Music from 1975 to 1980. The Polymoog was based on divide-down oscillator technology similar to electronic organs and string synthesizers of the time, and this led to a certain lack of flexibility compared to later...
(B 2, 6), ARP 2600ARP 2600The ARP 2600 is a semi-modular analog subtractive audio synthesizer, designed by Alan R. Pearlman , and manufactured by his company, ARP Instruments, Inc...
(B 6), marimbaMarimbaThe marimba is a musical instrument in the percussion family. It consists of a set of wooden keys or bars with resonators. The bars are struck with mallets to produce musical tones. The keys are arranged as those of a piano, with the accidentals raised vertically and overlapping the natural keys ...
(B 6), acoustic guitarAcoustic guitarAn acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
(A 4), 12 string guitar (B1) - Graham Jarvis – 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 ....
- Peter BardensPeter BardensPeter Bardens was a keyboardist and a founding member of the British progressive rock group Camel. He played organ, piano, synthesizers and mellotron and wrote songs with Andrew Latimer...
– organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
, MinimoogMinimoogThe Minimoog is a monophonic analog synthesizer, invented by Bill Hemsath and Robert Moog. It was released in 1970 by R.A. Moog Inc. , and production was stopped in 1981. It was re-designed by Robert Moog in 2002 and released as Minimoog Voyager.The Minimoog was designed in response to the use of...
(B1) - Haydn BendallHaydn BendallHaydn Bendall is a British music record producer, engineer and mixer. He was Chief Engineer at Abbey Road Studios for ten years and was awarded the Audio Pro Industry Excellence Award for Best Studio Engineer in 2009.-Career:...
– Yamaha CS80 synthesizer (A 3) - Duncan Mackay – Prophet synthesizer (A 4)
- Francis MonkmanFrancis MonkmanFrancis Monkman is an English rock, classical and film score composer, and a founding member of the progressive rock band Curved Air.-Career:...
– synclavierSynclavierThe Synclavier System was an early digital synthesizer, polyphonic digital sampling system, and music workstation, manufactured by New England Digital Corporation, Norwich, VT. The original design and development of the Synclavier prototype occurred at Dartmouth College with the collaboration of...
(B 2) - Dave MattacksDave MattacksDave Mattacks is a rock and folk drummer. Best known for his work with Fairport Convention, Mattacks has also worked both as a session musician, and as a performance artist...
– drums (A 3) - Simon PhillipsSimon PhillipsSimon Phillips is an English jazz, pop and rock drummer.-Career:Phillips began to play professionally at the age of twelve in his father's Dixieland band for four years. He was then offered the chance to play in the musical Jesus Christ Superstar...
– drums (B 1) - Tristan FryTristan FryTristan Fry is a British drummer and percussionist. Fry began his career by joining the London Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of 17. He was a founder member of a number of ensembles, such as the Nash, Fires of London and the London Sinfonietta...
– glockenspielGlockenspielA glockenspiel is a percussion instrument composed of a set of tuned keys arranged in the fashion of the keyboard of a piano. In this way, it is similar to the xylophone; however, the xylophone's bars are made of wood, while the glockenspiel's are metal plates or tubes, and making it a metallophone...
(B 2) - Jack Emblow – accordionAccordionThe accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
(B 5)