DT - A Change of Seasons- Any supporters?

[KELLY WELSH]

Is there any love out there for this gem of an album? Have only returned to listening to this recently,and have realised what i have been missing! The live tracks are good,but pale into insignificance compared to the title track. IT IS JUST AWESOME! It's been on auto-repeat this evening,and i still find enjoyment on each play.Labrie's voice sounds incredible,and the band play with real strength.My only criticism I have is the rather weak production ,but that's only a minor quibble!
Also does anyone know when ACOS was last played live in its entirety?

[SteveSly]

I have always liked it. No clue when it was last performed live, but they have done it on some tours back in the day.

[Scott Bails]

Also does anyone know when ACOS was last played live in its entirety?

Don't know when it was last performed live, but it appears on Live Scenes from New York in its entirety.

[Progatron]

Don't know when it was last performed live, but it appears on Live Scenes from New York in its entirety.

And that is the definitive version IMO.

[SteveSly]

And that is the definitive version IMO.

I would tend to agree. It really smokes on the live version.

[Dodie]

It's never grabbed me as much as I feel it ought to, whereas I actually really enjoy those live cover versions! I've listened to their gutsy performance of Elton John's 'Funeral for a friend / Love lies bleeding' much more often than the 'main feature' (so to speak). Maybe I should give it another try. I think at the time I was disappointed that Kevin Moore had left - he was a big part of why I enjoyed Images & Words and Awake so much.

[tallliman]

I really love the song. They definitely improved it from the early version they played in 1992-4. Agree that the LSFNY version is probably the best.

From memory, ACOS was last played around 2004.

[Dusty Chalk]

Yeah, that suite might be one of my favourite things they've ever done, other than Metropolis 2: Scenes from a Memory.

[Progatron]

their gutsy performance of Elton John's 'Funeral for a friend / Love lies bleeding'

Absolutely outstanding cover! I assume this one was Derek Sherinian's suggestion, but I'm not sure. They seriously nailed it though - and I'm a big EJ fan.

If memory serves, those live tracks were mostly (or all?) from the Ronnie Scott's show where they played with Steve Howe (doing a Yes medley), Steve Hogarth and Rothery (doing "Easter" and "Happiness Is A Warm Gun"), the growly guy from Napalm Death (doing "Damage, Inc.")... some of that footage is available on one of the DT DVDs. Fish was supposed to show up too, and do "In The Flesh?" by Pink Floyd but was unable to attend.

DT always did great covers, and although I don't go to see them anymore, I did see them seven or eight times back in the day, and whenever they played Toronto, they treated us to a one-off Rush cover. "The Camera Eye", "A Passage To Bangkok", "Jacob's Ladder"... these were pretty spectacular to see. Very impressive live band - it's not many bands who would learn a song like "Jacob's Ladder" to play it once.

[tallliman]

^^ Correct! The Ronnie Scotts gig is documented on some bootlegs. Pretty good show on the whole if a little bitty.

[Spiral]

It's never grabbed me as much as I feel it ought to, whereas I actually really enjoy those live cover versions!

The reverse here. "ACoS" makes a damn good EP on its own, but I never cared a whole lot for the covers (or really any of DT's covers, come to think of it). I just don't generally see the point of releasing cover recordings if you're basically playing everything by numbers the same way it was done before.

Then again this release first introduced me to the Dregs, so I can't complain too much.

[mellotron storm]

It was one of the very first things I bought when I discovered Prog and the title track left me speechless. First time I played it was on my 50 minute drive into work and when I got there I was just beaming, I knew I had found the music I had been looking for for years.

[MudShark22]

DT always chose great covers; played blindingly uninspired.

[profusion]

The title track is the last thing by DT that I enjoyed without reservation. That might say more about me than it does about them, however.

[progeezer's ghost]

Yeah, that suite might be one of my favourite things they've ever done, other than Metropolis 2: Scenes from a Memory.

If I had to pick an all-time favorite band, it'd be DT. If I had to pick an all-time favorite album it'd be Scenes. And, quite possibly, my favorite all-time standalone track would be A Change of Seasons.

Jordan Rudess is one of the best musicians I've ever heard. That being said, the contributions of Kevin Moore and Derek Sherinian to the group's early sound should not be overlooked.

[tallliman]

^^ Agree, Kevin Moore shouldn't be forgotten in the DT scheme of things. His contribution to the initial sound and writing was large (even if he liked writing lyrics with far too many words!).

[iguana]

sold mine a long time ago as i continued to side with moore and his plethora of projects.

the evening at ronnie scott’s is, indeed, a significant chapter in prog’s book of myths, although the best moments weren’t represented on that CD. “perfect strangers” and “turn it on again” sounded aseptic and superfluous. and, just for the record, that “growly guy from napalm death” is barney greenway, one of the most ardent supporters and advocates for all things melodic and progressive rock and a massively outspoken character for veracity and integrity in music.

DT are no longer on my list of musical choices (although i was all over them in my younger days) but i respect their productivity and their working ethic to the max. the accolades and their appreciation within the(ir) musical universe speak volumes about them as individuals. there is only one piece from their later-day output that i truly adore and that is the track “octavarium”. why? no idea.

now, for some more NAPALM DEATH…

[Dusty Chalk]

If I had to pick an all-time favorite band, it'd be DT. If I had to pick an all-time favorite album it'd be Scenes. And, quite possibly, my favorite all-time standalone track would be A Change of Seasons.

Jordan Rudess is one of the best musicians I've ever heard. That being said, the contributions of Kevin Moore and Derek Sherinian to the group's early sound should not be overlooked.

Agreed! They both contributed to defining their sound.

And to the first part: cool!

[Spiral]

^^ Agree, Kevin Moore shouldn't be forgotten in the DT scheme of things.

Absolutely. The more I drift away from DT in my old age, the more I'm consistently drawn to OSI and Kevin's solo stuff. His contribution to I&W and Awake were vital, but I didn't appreciate it (or even realize just what he added) until I heard him and the band separately afterward. He's still my favorite of their keyboardists.

At the same time the others have been perfectly fitting for what the band's done during their own time in the chair, and I don't miss Kevin too much here. Derek's contribution to "Change of Seasons" is a key part (pun unintended) of why it turned out as excellently as it did.

[profusion]

Kevin Moore's idea of progressive music is more than just playing a million notes a minute, and I think that view added something important to DT that they've never been able to replace.

[mnprogger]

As much as I enjoy the finished/final released version/EP and would love to see it get released on Vinyl, I've actually always preferred the original demo

[Proglodite]

The band did a showcase gig in NYC with Kevin in the band and they perform the entire Change of Seasons - that's what I consider the definitive version musically, though it does suffer from being a raw board tape. When the band finally got into the studio, Kevin was gone and also jettisoned were his atmospheric parts and sound samples. The studio version is good, but I rarely listen to it because it feels too sanitized and over-produced. --Peter

[ytserush]

The band did a showcase gig in NYC with Kevin in the band and they perform the entire Change of Seasons - that's what I consider the definitive version musically, though it does suffer from being a raw board tape. When the band finally got into the studio, Kevin was gone and also jettisoned were his atmospheric parts and sound samples. The studio version is good, but I rarely listen to it because it feels too sanitized and over-produced. --Peter

That's probably my favorite version of the song although the Live Scenes version is right up there.

[Adrian]

Kevin Moore's idea of progressive music is more than just playing a million notes a minute, and I think that view added something important to DT that they've never been able to replace.

100% agree with this. I think they had a much better balance of melodic ideas and metallic shredding (if that's the right term for it), and Kevin's loss in that regard was enormous. I think Derek did a commendable job of filling Kevin's shoes, but after he left, the music started to sound too cold and clinical for me -- too much emphasis on shred and not enough on melody or songwriting. I quickly lost interest. While I certainly respect their chops, the only thing I've found that I sort of like from the Rudess era is disc 1 of "Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence," especially "The Glass Prison." The rest of it I never listen to anymore -- but I do still go back to "I&W," "Awake," "A Change of Seasons," and "Falling Into Infinity."

[Rufus]

100% agree with this. I think they had a much better balance of melodic ideas and metallic shredding (if that's the right term for it), and Kevin's loss in that regard was enormous. I think Derek did a commendable job of filling Kevin's shoes, but after he left, the music started to sound too cold and clinical for me -- too much emphasis on shred and not enough on melody or songwriting. I quickly lost interest. While I certainly respect their chops, the only thing I've found that I sort of like from the Rudess era is disc 1 of "Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence," especially "The Glass Prison." The rest of it I never listen to anymore -- but I do still go back to "I&W," "Awake," "A Change of Seasons," and "Falling Into Infinity."

Opposite for me, they got better when Rudess joined and much prefer everything post SFAM. Seldomly revisit the earlier albums!