Visions (Clearlight album)
Encyclopedia
Visions is a progressive rock
album by Clearlight
, released in 1978 on Celluloid
/ LTM Records in France
. (LTM Records is specified on the cover, but the label says Celluloid Records.)
Clearlight's final album set off in yet another new direction: while previous albums incorporated a new age element blended with other styles, this one is primarily a new age album, reflecting the emergence of new age music
as a popular genre. The album is mostly instrumental, but has one song with lyrics and another with spoken word, both in French. Indian
instruments such as sitar
and tabla
s are prominent. "Fullmoon Raga" expands upon musical themes from "Master Builder" from Gong
's You
album, blending Indian music with rock music
. The album also incorporates Clearlight's usual psychedelic
jazz fusion
jamming
.
This edition of Clearlight played only one concert (the first since its UK tour in late 1975), at the Olympia in Paris on April 8, 1978, with a variation of the album's line-up: Verdeaux, Malherbe, Lockwood, Mandin, Melkonian and Bouladoux plus Jean-Michel Kajdan (guitar) and Mico Nissim (keyboards). It was badly attended, putting a premature end to the project. This would be the last manifestation of Clearlight until a one-off performance in 1988.
produced
by Cyrille Verdeaux
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...
album by Clearlight
Clearlight (French band)
Clearlight are a French progressive rock band from the 1970s, although their best known work was produced in England, and released by a major British record company...
, released in 1978 on Celluloid
Celluloid Records
Celluloid Records, a French/American record label, founded by Jean Georgakarakos operated from 1976 to 1989 in New York, and produced a series of eclectic and ground-breaking releases, particularly in the early to late 1980s, largely under the auspices of de facto in-house producer Bill...
/ LTM Records in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. (LTM Records is specified on the cover, but the label says Celluloid Records.)
Clearlight's final album set off in yet another new direction: while previous albums incorporated a new age element blended with other styles, this one is primarily a new age album, reflecting the emergence of new age music
New Age music
New Age music is music of various styles intended to create artistic inspiration, relaxation, and optimism. It is used by listeners for yoga, massage, meditation, and reading as a method of stress management or to create a peaceful atmosphere in their home or other environments, and is often...
as a popular genre. The album is mostly instrumental, but has one song with lyrics and another with spoken word, both in French. Indian
Music of India
The music of India includes multiple varieties of folk, popular, pop, classical music and R&B. India's classical music tradition, including Carnatic and Hindustani music, has a history spanning millennia and developed over several eras. It remains fundamental to the lives of Indians today as...
instruments such as sitar
Sitar
The 'Tablaman' is a plucked stringed instrument predominantly used in Hindustani classical music, where it has been ubiquitous since the Middle Ages...
and tabla
Tabla
The tabla is a popular Indian percussion instrument used in Hindustani classical music and in popular and devotional music of the Indian subcontinent. The instrument consists of a pair of hand drums of contrasting sizes and timbres...
s are prominent. "Fullmoon Raga" expands upon musical themes from "Master Builder" from Gong
Gong (band)
Gong is a Franco-British progressive/psychedelic rock band formed by Australian musician Daevid Allen. Their music has also been described as space rock. Other notable band members include Allan Holdsworth, Tim Blake, Didier Malherbe, Pip Pyle, Gilli Smyth, Steve Hillage, Francis Moze, Mike Howlett...
's You
You (Gong album)
You is an album by psychedelic rock band Gong, recorded and originally released in 1974.Recorded at The Manor, Oxfordshire, side 1 was mixed at Pye Studios, Marble Arch, while side 2 at the Manor...
album, blending Indian music with rock music
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
. The album also incorporates Clearlight's usual psychedelic
Psychedelic music
Psychedelic music covers a range of popular music styles and genres, which are inspired by or influenced by psychedelic culture and which attempt to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues-rock bands in the...
jazz fusion
Jazz fusion
Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...
jamming
Jam band
-Ambiguity:By the late 1990s use of the term jam band also became ambiguous. An editorial at jamband.com suggested that any band of which a primary band such as Phish has done a cover of be included as jam band. The example was including New York post-punk band Talking Heads after Phish performed...
.
This edition of Clearlight played only one concert (the first since its UK tour in late 1975), at the Olympia in Paris on April 8, 1978, with a variation of the album's line-up: Verdeaux, Malherbe, Lockwood, Mandin, Melkonian and Bouladoux plus Jean-Michel Kajdan (guitar) and Mico Nissim (keyboards). It was badly attended, putting a premature end to the project. This would be the last manifestation of Clearlight until a one-off performance in 1988.
Side one
- "Spirale d'Amour" (Cyrille Verdeaux) – 7:20
- "Messe Caline" (Verdeaux) – 6:30
- "Au Royaume des Mutants" (Verdeauz / Francis Mandin) – 6:00
Side two
- "Fullmoon Raga" (Clearlight) – 10:55
- "Songe de Cristal" (Verdeaux) – 3:50
- "Paix Profonde" (Verdeaux / Patrick Depaumanou) – 3:05
Personnel
- Cyrille Verdeaux – grand 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...
, ARP OdysseyARP OdysseyThe ARP Odyssey was an analog synthesizer introduced in 1972. Responding to pressure from Moog Music to create a portable, affordable "performance" synthesizer, ARP scaled down its popular 2600 synthesizer and created the Odyssey, which became the best-selling synthesizer they made.The Odyssey is...
, gongGongA gong is an East and South East Asian musical percussion instrument that takes the form of a flat metal disc which is hit with a mallet.... - Didier LockwoodDidier LockwoodDidier Lockwood is a French jazz violinist. He played in the progressive rock/jazz fusion band Magma in the 1970s and is known for his use of electric amplification and experimentation on different sounds on the electric violin....
– violinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
, bass violinBass violinBass violin is the generic modern term used to denote various 16th- and 17th-century forms of bass instruments of the violin family. They were the direct ancestor of the modern cello. Bass violins were usually somewhat larger than the modern cello, but tuned the same or sometimes just one step... - Didier MalherbeDidier MalherbeDidier Antonin Malherbe is a saxophonist and flautist. He was one of the founders of the Canterbury sound band Gong....
– fluteFluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
, tenor saxSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
, soprano saxSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846... - Christian Boulé – electric guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
, cosmic bottleneckSlide guitarSlide guitar or bottleneck guitar is a particular method or technique for playing the guitar. The term slide refers to the motion of the slide against the strings, while bottleneck refers to the original material of choice for such slides: the necks of glass bottles... - Jacky Bouladoux – 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 ....
, percussion - Philippe Melkonian – bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Luc Plouton – 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...
- Patrick Depaumanou – IndianMusic of IndiaThe music of India includes multiple varieties of folk, popular, pop, classical music and R&B. India's classical music tradition, including Carnatic and Hindustani music, has a history spanning millennia and developed over several eras. It remains fundamental to the lives of Indians today as...
sitarSitarThe 'Tablaman' is a plucked stringed instrument predominantly used in Hindustani classical music, where it has been ubiquitous since the Middle Ages... - Mohamed Taha – IndianMusic of IndiaThe music of India includes multiple varieties of folk, popular, pop, classical music and R&B. India's classical music tradition, including Carnatic and Hindustani music, has a history spanning millennia and developed over several eras. It remains fundamental to the lives of Indians today as...
tablaTablaThe tabla is a popular Indian percussion instrument used in Hindustani classical music and in popular and devotional music of the Indian subcontinent. The instrument consists of a pair of hand drums of contrasting sizes and timbres...
s - Gérard Aumont and Gérard Gustin – vocals
- Francis Mandin – synthesizerAnalog synthesizerAn analog or analogue synthesizer is a synthesizer that uses analog circuits and analog computer techniques to generate sound electronically. The earliest analog synthesizers in the 1920s and 1930s such as the Trautonium were built with a variety of vacuum-tube and electro-mechanical technologies...
programming
produced
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
by Cyrille Verdeaux