Agree with everyone who suggested Moonmadness.. first one I ever heard.. then I worked backwards to Mirage, First album, Snowgoose.. then Raindances.. Hard to go wrong with early Camel..
Agree with everyone who suggested Moonmadness.. first one I ever heard.. then I worked backwards to Mirage, First album, Snowgoose.. then Raindances.. Hard to go wrong with early Camel..
Do NOT avoid 'I Can See Your House From Here'. OK, it has a couple of clunkers on it - but 'Ice' was their finest hour...
"When Yes appeared on stage, it was like, the gods appearing from the heavens, deigning to play in front of the people."
A Live Record is somewhat interesting as it's a concert with very little audience noise. That's something that simply wouldn't happen in this day and age.
Down on the Farm is a bit of fun but it's not typical of the material on Rain Dances and Breathless. When I want to introduce someone to Camel I lend them the debut.
For my money, their overall finest tracks were "The White Rider", "Lunar Sea" and "Echoes", from Mirage, Moonmadness and Breathless respectively.
My personal fave of theirs still (except for the non-album archival ballad "Autumn"), is this song from Rain Dances - which otherwise is not a very strong record, IMO:
"Improvisation is not an excuse for musical laziness" - Fred Frith
"[...] things that we never dreamed of doing in Crimson or in any band that I've been in," - Tony Levin speaking of SGM
If I were going just getting into them I might go for one of their live albums. As someone already mentioned "Live Record" is a good as is "The Paris Collection" or "Coming Of Age" are also excellent.
I would def. recommend Rain Dances after Mirage and Moonmadness.
Some lovely instrumental stuff on there:
First Light (Music captures the start of a new day)
Rain Dances (Lovely tune)
Elke (beautiful, haunting song)
One of these days I'll get an early night (pleasant jazzy tune)
Add in the evocative vocals on Tell Me and the enjoyable Unevensong and you have a fine album.
Not their best perhaps but a really impressive piece of work nonetheless (IMHO)
+1. OK I can skip "Remote Romance" and "Neon Magic" is not a favorite, but I quite like the rest of the album. From the excellent synth solo in "Wait" to the strings in "Who We Are" and "Survival" and the very tasteful guitar playing on "Ice", there's a lot of good stuff here. Also guest spots from the Collinses, Mel and Phil.
all of Camel's albums have great things on them (even The Single Factor has Sasquatch) but the three to get last after you have the rest are the Pop leaning albums; Stationary Traveller, The Single Factor and I can see your house from here (the standout piece entitled Ice is what saves ICSYHFH)
Why is it whenever someone mentions an artist that was clearly progressive (yet not the Symph weenie definition of Prog) do certain people feel compelled to snort "thats not Prog" like a whiny 5th grader?
The debut is just OK (some good material but badly let down by flat production), but 'Mirage', 'The Snow Goose' and 'Moonmadness' are all great IMHO.
'Rain Dances' and 'Breathless' are both patchy, with the band trying out too many different styles, with mixed results- the flirtations with jazz-funk and disco are particularly dodgy IMHO. I do think 'Echoes' is a contender for the very best Camel song, however.
I've always been very fond of 'I Can See Your House From Here'- 'Remote Romance' aside, it's quite a consistent album. 'Neon Magic' suffers from its lead vocal but I do like that ethereal keyboard section a lot. 'Ice' is pure class. 'Eye Of The Storm', 'Who We Are' and 'Hymn To Her' are first-rate too IMHO. I even like the pop song 'Your Love Is Stranger Than Mine'. I find it a very likeable album.
'Nude' is my favourite album of their career. By contrast 'The Single Factor' is the weakest of the original Camel albums, I think. 'Stationary Traveller' is better- it's slick like its predecessor, but has more instrumental work.
Try Moonmadness, Rain Dances and Rajaz.
My recommended starting points:
Moonmadness: I'm a huge Camel fan, and this is my single favorite record of theirs. It showcases pretty much everything that they do well. The opener "Aristillus" is a bit goofy, but it works in the context of the album. *HIGHLY* recommended.
Mirage, Snow Goose: If you like the harder/energetic stuff on Moonmadness (Another Night, Lunar Sea), go for Mirage. Softer stuff (Song Within a Song, Air Born)? Snow Goose.
Rain Dances: Jazzier direction overall. Some gorgeous tunes (First Light, Tell Me, Rain Dances), some not-awesome stuff. I wasn't a huge fan of the jazzy disco sound at first, but it's grown on me. Love the boingy swirly Rhodes sound on "Early Night". Recommended.
Rajaz: My favorite of the newer stuff. There's a lot more subdued mood, with lots of acoustic strumming and patient pacing in some songs, but there is some good energy in the more upbeat passages too (Three Wishes, Lost & Found, Sahara).
Camel has a ton of live album available. I think they're all pretty good. "A Live Record" is the best of the bunch from the 70s. For the 80s, I like "On the Road 1981" and "Pressure Points" (either version). All three live albums from the 90s/00s are pretty good ("Never Let Go" and "Coming of Age" offer mostly-complete performances of "Dust & Dreams" and "Harbour of Tears", respectively).
Love Camel.
flute juice
I love stuff on absolutely every single one of Camel's albums - studio and live.
The weakest is definitely The Single Factor, but not only does it have the wonderful Sasquatch, but also it closes with the utterly gorgeous "A Heart's Desire/End Peace" - probably the single most beautiful instrumental piece Andy Latimer's ever (co)written.
Sure, there are one or two weaker songs on Rain Dances, Breathless and I Can See Your House From Here - but they've still got plenty of fantastic things on them, such as "Unevensong", "Echoes" and "Hymn to her" (just to pick one from each).
One of the first I heard was the live album Pressure Points, and I'd say the expanded version Total Pressure is just as good a live album as any of the others. The version of "Lies" is, for me, essential. Also some of the nice Stationary Traveller material comes off better live than on the studio album, like the title-track and the emotive guitar playing at the end of "Long goodbyes"
I thought it'd be nice to report back on my discovery of Camel following your recommendations. Most of you suggested I start with Mirage and Moonmadness, so I followed this advice. I deliberately avoided Snow Goose because I know I won't fully enjoy an entirely instrumental album. I also tried Rain Dances, which is apparently more controversial, because I was intrigued by what Richard Sinclair and Mel Collins could bring to the band.
My favorite is definitely Mirage: great melodies, great musicianship, this one's a classic. I'm really grateful to PE for this discovery!
As for Moonmadness, I like it a bit less. First because it relies more heavily on synths, which is something I like less in general. Second, the instrumental sections are great, but the vocal melodies are weaker than on Mirage. It seems that the vocals were the weak spot in the first incarnation of Camel, but it shows more on Moonmadness while Mirage is saved by better vocal melodies.
Finally, I found Rain Dances very frustrating. I really like Sinclair's and Collins's input: the vocals are stronger and the woodwinds broaden the sound palette. Unfortunately, the album is bogged down by a few weak compositions, especially a failed attempt at pop (guess which track ). It seems this lineup never realized its full potential.
Anyway, here are my first thoughts after having spent a few weeks discovering these three albums. Feel free to comment...
Not just a Genesis fanboy.
For me it's precisely because Snow Goose is all instrumental that it is their best album. Good instrumental band - songs were their weakness.
Mirage is my second favourite of their albums. Like a lot of prog bands they declined in the late 70s and even more so in the early 80s, IMHO.
Aw, sorry you didn't like Moonmadness. I understand why you might not like it, though. The vocals are pretty dodgy, and it is pretty synth-heavy. Maybe you'd like the first (s/t) album, or the live albums from the early days (Gods of Light, On the Road 1972).
The rest of Camel's recorded output, I suspect you might not like. Their late 70s & 80s material has a lot of pop on it, and the stuff that isn't so poppy is pretty synth-drenched. You might give "Nude" a try, though .. It's got a pretty diverse sound palette overall, and Colin Bass is an incrementally better singer than any of the original guys. Or maybe Rajaz or A Nod and a Wink? There are plenty of synths on it, but I wouldn't really call it "synth driven" in the same sense as something like "Lunar Sea".
Otherwise, no shame in enjoying the heck out of "Mirage," and whatever else has grabbed you. Cheers!
flute juice
Actually, IMO I think Rain Dances and Breathless are quite different(a touch poppier and jazzier) than Mirage and Moonmadness(more progressive, longer stretched out tunes) and as for the vocals, it's a matter of taste. I don't find them inferior at all and really love Sinclair's vocals in the context of those albums.
We are the grandchildren of apes, not angels
But only we are gifted with the eyes to see
On days without FEAR, when our heads are clear
That angels, we could be
(Marillion 2016)
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