"Mother Russia" is the closing song on Renaissance's 1974 album Turn of the Cards. It also appears on the 1976 live album Live at Carnegie Hall, the compilation Tales of 1001 Nights, Vol. 1, and several other Renaissance concert albums.
The song is a tribute to Russian fiction writer Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, who had been forced by the USSR government to leave the Soviet Union earlier in 1974. Written as usual by poet Betty Thatcher, the lyrics are based on Solzhenitsyn's famous fiction novel about Soviet repression, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich.[4] Because fans of the band were surprised at the move into topical songwriting, singer Annie Haslam has had often to point out to interviewers that "Mother Russia" really refers to Solzhenitsyn.
Musically, the full version of "Mother Russia" begins with a sparse, string-driven introduction marked by occasional piano crescendos. Around two minutes into the song, Haslam's voice enters, and the next three minutes of the song contain six verses in three pairs describing Solzhenitsyn's plight, in between which are short interludes of strings and acoustic guitar.
The last five minutes of the full song consist of a three-minute instrumental interlude with the full band performing over wordless vocals by Haslam, followed by a repeat of the last two verses to finish. Recording engineer and co-producer Dick Plant stated:
I think that the real thrust of the music came from John Tout's piano. I don't think Renaissance ever wanted to do anything that they couldn't reproduce on stage.[4]
The music to "Mother Russia" is credited to Michael Dunford, but the song is cited by Renaissance bassist Jon Camp as being a case where he made major compositional contributions without being credited for them.[5]
A version of "Mother Russia" edited down to three minutes and seven seconds was released as a single in the United States only. Although its parent album, Turn of the Cards, peaked at #94 on Billboard,[6] the single did not go anywhere near the Billboard Hot 100.
^Murphy, Sean (March 28, 2017). "The 100 Best Classic Progressive Rock Songs: Part 3, 60-41". PopMatters. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
^Moser, John J. (March 14, 2018). "Prog-rockers Renaissance, funk band Mingo Fishtrap, tributes to Queen, Everly Brothers and Cream set at ArtsQuest Center". The Morning Call. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
^ abRomano, Will (2010). Mountains come out of the sky: an illustrated history of prog rock (1st Ed.). Montclair, NJ: Blackbeat Books. p. 133. ISBN978-0-87930-991-6
^Whitburn, Joel (1996). Joel Whitburn's top pop albums, 1955-1996 Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 649. ISBN0-89820-117-9
January 31, 2023
mother, russia, renaissance, song, mother, russia, closing, song, renaissance, 1974, album, turn, cards, also, appears, 1976, live, album, live, carnegie, hall, compilation, tales, 1001, nights, several, other, renaissance, concert, albums, mother, russia, sin. Mother Russia is the closing song on Renaissance s 1974 album Turn of the Cards It also appears on the 1976 live album Live at Carnegie Hall the compilation Tales of 1001 Nights Vol 1 and several other Renaissance concert albums Mother Russia Single by Renaissancefrom the album Turn of the CardsB side I Think of You Released7 October 1974 US 1 GenreProgressive rock 2 3 Length9 30 album 3 07 single LabelBTMSireRCASongwriter s Michael Dunford music Betty Thatcher lyrics Producer s Richard GottehrerDick PlantRenaissance singles chronology Carpet of the Sun 1973 Mother Russia 1974 Carpet of the Sun live 1976 The song is a tribute to Russian fiction writer Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn who had been forced by the USSR government to leave the Soviet Union earlier in 1974 Written as usual by poet Betty Thatcher the lyrics are based on Solzhenitsyn s famous fiction novel about Soviet repression One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich 4 Because fans of the band were surprised at the move into topical songwriting singer Annie Haslam has had often to point out to interviewers that Mother Russia really refers to Solzhenitsyn Musically the full version of Mother Russia begins with a sparse string driven introduction marked by occasional piano crescendos Around two minutes into the song Haslam s voice enters and the next three minutes of the song contain six verses in three pairs describing Solzhenitsyn s plight in between which are short interludes of strings and acoustic guitar The last five minutes of the full song consist of a three minute instrumental interlude with the full band performing over wordless vocals by Haslam followed by a repeat of the last two verses to finish Recording engineer and co producer Dick Plant stated I think that the real thrust of the music came from John Tout s piano I don t think Renaissance ever wanted to do anything that they couldn t reproduce on stage 4 The music to Mother Russia is credited to Michael Dunford but the song is cited by Renaissance bassist Jon Camp as being a case where he made major compositional contributions without being credited for them 5 Personnel EditRenaissanceAnnie Haslam lead vocals Michael Dunford acoustic guitar Jon Camp bass backing vocals John Tout keyboards Terence Sullivan drums percussionAdditional personnelJimmy Horowitz orchestral arrangementsSingle EditA version of Mother Russia edited down to three minutes and seven seconds was released as a single in the United States only Although its parent album Turn of the Cards peaked at 94 on Billboard 6 the single did not go anywhere near the Billboard Hot 100 References Edit Renaissance singles US cat no Murphy Sean March 28 2017 The 100 Best Classic Progressive Rock Songs Part 3 60 41 PopMatters Retrieved June 8 2019 Moser John J March 14 2018 Prog rockers Renaissance funk band Mingo Fishtrap tributes to Queen Everly Brothers and Cream set at ArtsQuest Center The Morning Call Retrieved June 8 2019 a b Romano Will 2010 Mountains come out of the sky an illustrated history of prog rock 1st Ed Montclair NJ Blackbeat Books p 133 ISBN 978 0 87930 991 6 Jon Camp Interview 2012 Whitburn Joel 1996 Joel Whitburn s top pop albums 1955 1996 Menomonee Falls Wisconsin Record Research Inc p 649 ISBN 0 89820 117 9 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Mother Russia Renaissance song amp oldid 1132859594, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
