Recorded just around the time when, after playing continuously over the previous couple of years and beginning to make their name in the wider prog firmament as a potent live act, this show catches Camel when they were about to enter what was to become their ‘imperial phase’ between 1974 and 1978. During this period, they’d go on to release albums like The Snow Goose and their meisterwork, Moonmadness. After that, changes of personnel and musical direction hindered their progress considerably and, while they’d go on to become a prog cult, they never became a major name. Which was a pity because, on the strength of this performance, Camel had the chops to go further.
Recorded with their classic lineup of Andy Latimer, Peter Bardens, Andy Ward and Doug Ferguson, just before the band were due to tour the States for the first time, this album gives the full sense of what a Camel gig was like during this time. Tracks are drawn from their debut album, Camel, and from 1974’s Mirage, featuring songs which would go on to become staples of their gigs, such as ‘Freefall’ and ‘Lady Fantasy’. This gig is also significant in that the band performed three tracks from their forthcoming The Snow Goose album, which was to propel them into the stratosphere.
If Camel can be summed up in one word, it’s ‘class.’ Their playing is occasionally intricate yet always performed with precision, which helps conjure up some quite memorable soundscapes. Opening up with title track ‘Earthrise’, ten of the thirteen tracks are instrumentals, with only ‘Mystic Queen’, ‘Lady Fantasy’ and ‘Freefall’ having any vocal content. Not that this is a bad thing, as much of what they play is softer and easier on the ear than many of their prog contemporaries. Their stage performance offers no bombast or over the top noodling or gratuitous soloing. The nearest they come to this is on the fifteen minute ‘Lady Fantasy’ and particularly the nineteen minute closing track, ‘Homage to the God of Light’, when Bardens and Latimer finally let rip on keys and guitar respectively.
What sets Camel apart from other prog bands is their music is ensconced on the quieter edge of the prog spectrum. The playing on tracks like ‘Six Ate’ and ‘Supertwister’ is simply gorgeous and unhurried, while the fluidity of Latimer’s guitar work on tracks like the fast paced ‘Arubaluba’, as well as the three pieces from The Snow Goose, is a delight, with every note played being made to count.
Most prog fans will already know The Snow Goose and Moonmadness, but this release offers younger fans the chance to hear what Camel were all about as they were about to enter their mid seventies pomp. Even though Richard Sinclair replaced Doug Ferguson on bass in 1978, with Sinclair being the best vocalist Camel ever had in its ranks by some considerable distance, this 1974 lineup was Camel at its musical best.
