Various Artists: Round And Round – Progressive Sounds Of 1974, 4CD Box Set
Various Artists

• NEW 4CD REMASTERED CLAMSHELL VARIOUS ARTISTS BOXED SET CELEBRATING THE FINEST MUSICAL SOUNDS OF SO-CALLED PROGRESSIVE ROCK MUSIC OF 1974.
• FIVE HOURS OF MUSIC FEATURING TRACKS BY KEVIN AYERS, BARCLAY JAMES HARVEST, BE BOP DELUXE, JACK BRUCE, BUDGIE, CAMEL, CARAVAN, GONG, GREENSLADE, PETER HAMMILL, HATFIELD AND THE NORTH, HAWKWIND, JETHRO TULL, MAN, NEKTAR, PFM, PROCOL HARUM, NEKTAR, RENAISSANCE, TODD RUNDGREN’s UTOPIA, STACKRIDGE, STRAWBS, TRAFFIC, ROBIN TROWER, DARRYL WAY’s WOLF AND MANY MORE.
• INCLUDES AN ILLUSTRATED BOOKLET WITH ESSAY BY MARK POWELL. REVIEWS AND FEATURES IN NATIONAL NEWSPAPERS, UNCUT, MOJO, RECORD COLLECTOR AND PROG MAGAZINES PLUS COVERAGE ON RELEVANT WEBSITES AND FANZINES.

The next release in their series of compilations celebrating so-called “Progressive” rock music – ‘Round and Round – Progressive Sounds Of 1974’, is a 4CD clamshell box set which gathers together over five hours of music from 1974, another year in which would continue to see Progressive music in all its forms continue to develop and retain its presence as a dominating force with the album buying public.

1974 saw a wealth of imaginative artists continue to meld seemingly disparate musical genres and influences such as jazz, blues, folk, rock and classical music in a host of wonderful albums, all of which appealed to an audience of students and rock fans. Universities and Colleges remained regular venues on burgeoning live music circuit in the UK for these artists, most of whom earned loyal followings through regular concert performances both in Britain and in Europe. Progressive rock’s influence internationally was also growing with notable European bands such as Kayak from the Netherlands and PFM from Italy making their presence felt, along with Todd Rundgren’s Utopia from the USA.

This compilation also features lesser-known acts who failed to make a wider known impression but produced excellent work of a wide breadth such as KEITH CHRISTMAS, GRAVY TRAIN, NEUTRONS, REFUGEE, QUICKSAND, STACKRIDGE, STEVE SWINDELLS and DARRYL WAY’s WOLF.

TRACK LISTING

DISC ONE

1 Freefall – CAMEL
2 Negative Earth – BARCLAY JAMES HARVEST
3 Skating Away (On the Thin Ice of a New Day) – JETHRO TULL
4 Flying – QUICKSAND
5 Didn’t Feel Lonely ‘Til I Thought of You – KEVIN AYERS
6 Black September – DARRYL WAY’s WOLF
7 Son of “There’s No Place Like Homerton” – HATFIELD AND THE NORTH
8 Jets at Dawn – BE BOP DELUXE
9 Keep it Down – JACK BRUCE
10 Foothills – KEITH CHRISTMAS
11 Virgin on the Ridiculous – CARAVAN
12 Master Builder – GONG
13 Hero And Heroine (early version) – STRAWBS
14 God Speed the Plough – STACKRIDGE

DISC TWO

1 Fidgety Queen – NEKTAR
2 Tapeworm – PETER HAMMILL
3 Staircase to the Day – GRAVY TRAIN
4 Round and Round (early version) – STRAWBS
5 Zoom Club – BUDGIE
6 I Can’t See Where the Light Switch Is – STEVE SWINDELLS
7 Joie de Vivre – GREENSLADE
8 The Last Plimsoll – STACKRIDGE
9 Mother Russia – RENAISSANCE
10 Dream Gerard – TRAFFIC
11 Bungle in the Jungle – JETHRO TULL
12 Mockingbird (live) – BARCLAY JAMES HARVEST

DISC THREE

1 Brighter Day – KEITH CHRISTMAS
2 Scotch Corner – MAN
3 Exit – MAN
4 The World Became the World – PFM
5 Starlight Starbright – GRAVY TRAIN
6 Drunk Again – PROCOL HARUM
7 Ritt Mickley – REFUGEE
8 Let’s Eat Real Soon – HATFIELD AND THE NORTH
9 Graveyard People – TRAFFIC
10 Trust in the Machine – KAYAK
11 The Envoy – DARRYL WAY’s WOLF
12 Early Morning Clown – NEKTAR
13 Living in the World Today – NEUTRONS
14 The Psychedelic Warlords – HAWKWIND
15 Adventures in a Yorkshire Landscape – BEBOP DELUXE

DISC FOUR

1 Utopia Theme – TODD RUNDGREN’s UTOPIA
2 Black Flame – RENAISSANCE
3 Mirror for the Day – CARAVAN
4 Bridge of Sighs – ROBIN TROWER
5 Lady Fantasy – CAMEL
6 Paradox – HAWKWIND
7 Red Shift – PETER HAMMILL
8 Anthem – THE SENSATIONAL ALEX HARVEY BAND
9 Just Look Away – PFM
10 A Sprinkling of Clouds – GONG