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Renaissance (band)

Renaissance are an English progressive rock band, best known for their 1978 UK top 10 hit "Northern Lights" and progressive rock classics like "Carpet of the Sun", "Mother Russia", and "Ashes Are Burning". They developed a unique sound, combining a female lead vocal with a fusion of classical, folk, rock, and jazz influences.[1] Characteristic elements of the Renaissance sound are Annie Haslam's wide vocal range, prominent piano accompaniment, orchestral arrangements, vocal harmonies, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, synthesiser, and versatile drum work. The band created a significant following in the northeast United States in the 1970s, and that region remains their strongest fan base.

Renaissance
Renaissance, 2012. Clockwise from upper left: Jason Hart, David J. Keyes, Rave Tesar, Frank Pagano, Michael Dunford, and Annie Haslam
Background information
OriginLondon, United Kingdom
GenresProgressive rock
Years active
  • 1969–1987
  • 1998–2002
  • 2009–present
Labels
Members
  • Annie Haslam
  • Rave Tesar
  • Mark Lambert
  • Frank Pagano
  • Leo Traversa
  • Geoffrey Langley
WebsiteOfficial Website

The original line-up included two former members of the Yardbirds, Keith Relf and Jim McCarty, along with John Hawken, Louis Cennamo and Relf's sister Jane Relf. They intended to put "something together with more of a classical influence".[2] Renaissance was born, and the band released a studio album in 1969, and another in 1971. Subsequently, John Tout replaced Hawken on keyboards, followed by a period of high turnover of musicians until the "classic line-up" of Annie Haslam, John Tout, Michael Dunford, Jon Camp, and Terry Sullivan was established, although none of them were in the original band. They were assisted with lyrics on many songs from Cornish poet Betty Thatcher-Newsinger. From 1972 to 1979 Renaissance released seven successful studio albums, toured extensively, and sold out three nights in a row at Carnegie Hall with Tony Cox conducting the New York Philharmonic.[1]

The 1980s were a lean time for them, with personnel changes, and two relatively unsuccessful studio albums, leading to disbandment in 1987. Two different offshoots of Renaissance existed at the same time at one period in the mid-1990s. The band re-formed in 1998 to record Tuscany, which was eventually released in 2001; however, they disbanded again the next year.

2009 heralded a new line-up for Renaissance, led by Haslam and Dunford, and since then the band has continued to record and tour. Dunford died in November 2012. Later, Haslam stated that the band would continue touring. The line-up during the 2010's tended to not be as "English" as during the band's early period, with five U.S.-born members and one England-born member residing in the United States. In 2013, Renaissance released the studio album Grandine il Vento, re-released the following year under the title Symphony of Light.

Original incarnation (1969–1970)

As the Yardbirds were transforming into the New Yardbirds (with Jimmy Page) in 1968 and then Led Zeppelin, the departing founding members of the Yardbirds, Keith Relf and Jim McCarty, formed an acoustic duo called Together. [3] They released "Henry's Coming Home" b/w "Love Mum and Dad" as a single on Columbia Records in November 1968 without chart success.[4]

In January 1969, Relf and McCarty organized a new group devoted to experimentation with rock, folk, and classical forms. In his book Mountains Come Out of the Sky: An Illustrated History of Prog Rock, Will Romano quoted McCarty: "Toward the end of the Yardbirds we wanted to do something a bit more poetic, if you like, not so heavy. A bit more folky... We had had enough of heavy rock."[2] This quintet—Relf on guitar and vocals, McCarty on drums and vocals, plus bassist Louis Cennamo, pianist John Hawken, and Relf's sister Jane as an additional vocalist—released a pair of albums on Elektra (US) and Island (UK-ILPS 9114), the first one, titled simply Renaissance (1969), being produced by fellow ex-Yardbird Paul Samwell-Smith.[5]

The band had begun performing in May 1969, before recording had commenced for the debut LP, mostly in the UK, but with occasional forays abroad, including festivals in Belgium (Amougies, October 1969) and France (Operation 666 at the Olympia in January 1970, and Le Bourget in March 1970, both in Paris). In February 1970, they embarked on a North American tour, but that month-long trek proved only marginally successful. Because of their Yardbirds credentials, they found themselves paired with bands such as the Kinks and their new classically orientated direction did not always go down well because audiences were expecting rock/blues-based material.

Beginning in the late spring of 1970 as touring began to grind on them, the original band gradually dissolved. Keith Relf and McCarty decided to quit performing, and Cennamo joined Colosseum.[2] Hawken organized a new line-up to fulfill contractual obligations to Island Records and complete the band's second album, Illusion (1971) which had been left unfinished.

Transition (1970–71)

Apart from Jane Relf, the new band consisted mostly of former members of Hawken's previous band, the Nashville Teens – guitarist Michael Dunford, bassist Neil Korner and singer Terry Crowe, plus drummer Terry Slade.[2] This line-up recorded one track, "Mr Pine", a Dunford composition, and played a few gigs during the summer of 1970. Meanwhile, a final recording session brought together the original line-up minus Hawken, with Don Shin sitting in on keyboards, and produced the album's closing track "Past Orbits of Dust". The now completed Illusion was released in Germany in 1971, although it was not released in the UK until 1976 (Island HELP 27). The album marked the beginning of Renaissance's long-standing collaboration with poet Betty Thatcher-Newsinger as lyricist when she co-wrote two songs with Relf and McCarty.

The two remaining original members left in late 1970; Jane Relf was replaced by American folk singer Anne-Marie "Binky" Cullom, then John Hawken left to join Spooky Tooth and pianist John Tout replaced him.[2] There is an extant video (released on the DVD "Kings & Queens" in 2010) of that line-up performing five songs on a German TV program (Muzik-Kanal). The plan at the time was that Relf and McCarty would remain involved as non-performing members – Relf as a producer and McCarty as a songwriter. Both were present when singer Annie Haslam successfully auditioned in January 1971[5] to replace the departing Cullom (who would later marry drummer Terry Slade and retire from the music scene). While McCarty would go on to write songs for the new band, Relf's involvement would be short-lived. Dunford soon emerged as a prolific composer, and continued the writing partnership with Thatcher, who would go on to write most of the lyrics for the band's 1970s albums.

Second incarnation (1971–1980)

Sometime in 1971, new manager Miles Copeland III decided to re-organize the band, focusing on what he felt were Renaissance's strong points – Haslam's voice and Tout's piano. Will Romano in Mountains Come Out of the Sky explained that "unlike many of the artists to which they were compared Renaissance allowed the piano and female voice to come to the forefront".[2] Until then Haslam had shared vocals with Terry Crowe, who was in effect the band's chief vocalist. Crowe and Korner went, the former not replaced, the latter replaced by a succession of bass players, including John Wetton (later of King Crimson, U.K., and Asia), Frank Farrell (formerly of Supertramp) and Danny McCulloch (formerly of the Animals and a former bandmate of Dunford and Crowe in the Plebs), until the position settled with the inclusion of Jon Camp. It was also decided that Dunford would now concentrate on composing, and a new guitar player, Mick Parsons, was brought in for live work. In 1972, shortly before recording sessions for the new band's debut LP, drummer Terence Sullivan joined after Slade's initial replacement, Ginger Dixon,[6] was deemed unsuitable following a European tour. Parsons died in a car accident and was replaced at short notice by Rob Hendry.[7] The resulting line-up entered the studio having played only a dozen gigs together.

Prologue was released later in 1972 on EMI-Sovereign Records in the UK and on Capitol-Sovereign in North America. Prologue's music was, except for two songs by McCarty, composed by Dunford, with all lyrics by Thatcher-Newsinger. Rock radio stations (particularly in the northeast US and Cleveland) gave the song "Spare Some Love" significant airplay for a few months after the album's release, and fans of Yes and Emerson, Lake & Palmer in particular, took notice of the band. Francis Monkman, of the group Curved Air (another group managed by Copeland), was a guest on VCS3 synthesizer on the final track "Rajah Khan".[1]

Hendry was replaced for the Prologue tour by Peter Finberg, but Finberg was already committed to another band and so could not be a permanent replacement.[7] This left Camp to play most of the guitar on their next album, Ashes are Burning, released in 1973. Though the band were trying to transition to a more acoustic sound, Andy Powell, of the group Wishbone Ash (yet another group managed by Copeland), was brought in for an electric guitar solo on the final track "Ashes are Burning",[7] which became the band's anthem piece, often extended in live performances to over twenty minutes with a long bass solo and other instrumental workouts. The album became the band's first to chart in the US, where it reached No. 171 on the Billboard 200.[8] Shortly after the album's release, Michael Dunford returned as (acoustic) guitarist, completing what most fans regard as the classic five-piece line-up, which would remain together through five studio albums. The band played their first US concerts during this period,[7] enjoying success on the East Coast in particular, which soon resulted in a special orchestral concert at New York's Academy of Music in May 1974. Soon Renaissance would choose to concentrate on the US market, as the UK press virtually ignored them.

Joining BTM label

The band left Sovereign Records and joined Miles Copeland's new prog rock stable and label BTM (for British Talent Management). The label's first release was Turn of the Cards in 1974. With a larger budget, the album went from folk-flavoured to a more dark, lush, orchestral rock sound. One of the album's songs, "Things I Don't Understand", which clocked in at 9:30, was Jim McCarty's last co-writing credit with the group (although it was actually in the band's live repertoire for years). A lengthy tribute to Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, called "Mother Russia", closed out the album, with lyrics inspired by his autobiographical novel, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich. Turn of the Cards was first issued in the United States on Sire Records in August 1974, where it reached No. 94,[8] some months before an official UK release. It remained in the Billboard 200 for 21 weeks. Although Renaissance's fan base was relatively small, its following was heavily concentrated in the large cities of the northeast US. The album was eventually released in the UK in March 1975.

It was soon followed by Scheherazade and Other Stories, released on both sides of the Atlantic in September 1975. The album, whose second side was taken up with the epic tone-poem "Song of Scheherazade" based on stories from One Thousand and One Nights, peaked at No. 48 in the United States.[8] There is "no musical connection to the well-known classical work Scheherazade by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov",[2] but the track does have a recurring six-note motif that alludes to that work.[9]

A double live album, Live at Carnegie Hall, followed in 1976. Despite criticisms that much of the album was little more than a note for note reproduction of highlights from their previous four studio albums,[10] the album reached No. 55 in the US.[8] Renaissance were the first British band to sell out three consecutive nights at Carnegie Hall.[2] They were joined on stage by the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. While introducing the song "Ashes Are Burning", Haslam refers to it as the title track from the group's second album, rather than their fourth, suggesting that the Haslam-led lineup by this point considered themselves a distinct band from Keith Relf's incarnation of the group. (This point is further underscored by the band's including an album discography in the gatefold of LP copies of Live at Carnegie Hall, which lists only the four albums from Prologue forward.)

Live at Carnegie Hall's follow-up, Novella, saw more chart success in the US, peaking at No. 46 in 1977,[8] although its UK release was delayed by yet another label change. Will Romano in Mountains Come Out of the Sky describes the band: "Renaissance was at an all-time popularity high, finding themselves playing to sold-out audiences ... in the U.S., particularly in the northeastern part of the country, in Pennsylvania and New York."[2]

 
Renaissance, 1979. Clockwise from upper left: Terry Sullivan, Michael Dunford, John Tout, Annie Haslam, and Jon Camp.

UK hit single

Although commercial success was limited during this period, Renaissance scored a hit single in Britain with "Northern Lights", which reached No. 10 during the summer of 1978. The single was taken from the album A Song for All Seasons (a No. 58 album in the US),[8] and received significant airplay in the US on both AOR and on radio stations adapting to a new format known as "soft rock", now known as adult contemporary. The band performed on a modestly successful tour of the US east of the Mississippi and drew significant crowds in State College, Pennsylvania and Cleveland in May and June 1979, promoting both A Song for All Seasons and a mix of old and new tracks. Additionally, the band gained exposure via US television; performing "Carpet of the Sun" in 1977 on The Midnight Special, and appearing as guests on the May 4, 1978, edition of the Mike Douglas Show, where they played "Northern Lights".

Renaissance floundered following 1979's Azure d'Or, as many fans could not relate to a largely synthesizer-oriented sound.[11] As a result, the band's fan base began to lose interest and the album only reached No. 125.[8] Dunford and Camp assumed most of the band's songwriting.

In the 1970s, Renaissance defined their work with folk rock and classical fusions. Their songs include quotations from and allusions to such composers as Alain, Bach, Chopin, Debussy, Giazotto, Maurice Jarre, Rachmaninoff, Rimsky-Korsakov, Prokofiev and Shostakovich. Renaissance records, especially Ashes Are Burning, were frequently played on American progressive rock radio stations such as WNEW-FM, WHFS-FM, WMMR-FM, KSHE 95 and WVBR.

Critical reception to the "classic line-up"

Reviewers were deeply divided in their reactions to the "classic" period of Renaissance, and their style of music. Some critics saw little value in their music, like Wayne King's entry in The New Rolling Stone Record Guide describing the period 1974 to 1983: "Their inability to compose songs that would allow for any fluidity or improvisation meant that Renaissance's appeal, nonexistent in their native England and cultish at best in America, declined ... and the remainder of the Sire material matches this commercial decline with an artistic one. The comeback attempt on IRS ... was a ludicrous failure."[10] Progressive rock reviewers were much more supportive, such as Charles Snider in The Strawberry Bricks Guide to Progressive Rock evaluating the album Scheherazade and Other Stories, who describes:

"Annie Haslam's crystal clear five-octave voice high in the mix, supported by the virtuoso talents of pianist John Tout and Jon Camp's distinctive Rickenbacker bass, and orchestral arrangements by Tony Cox."[1]

1980–1998

After the Azure d'Or tour, Tout left the group for personal reasons, quickly followed by Sullivan. Subsequent albums Camera Camera (1981) and Time-Line (1983) brought Renaissance more into the contemporary synthpop and new wave genre, but neither garnered enough commercial interest to make a viable future for the band. Camera Camera was the band's final album to chart in the US where it reached No. 196 in late 1981.[8] In 1985 Camp left, and Haslam and Dunford led an acoustic version of the band and performed occasional shows (the last being in Georgetown, DC, until splitting up in August 1987).

In 1988, Sire issued a two-part compilation, Tales of 1001 Nights, focusing on the band's 1972–79 period. In the 1990s most of their catalogue appeared on CD from reissue record labels such as Repertoire Records (Germany). In 2006 Repertoire issued remastered versions of Ashes are Burning, Turn of the Cards and Scheherezade and Other Stories.

In the mid-1990s, both Haslam (who had released a self-titled solo album in 1989) and Dunford (who had been working on a proposed musical based on the Scheherazade storyline) formed their own bands, each using the name Renaissance and releasing albums with different line-ups.

Third incarnation

Renaissance partially re-formed in 1998 around a nucleus of Haslam, Dunford and Sullivan, plus Tout and several new musicians, most notably Roy Wood and Mickey Simmonds, to record the CD Tuscany.[12] In 1999, Haslam, Dunford and Simmonds played a one-off trio concert at London's Astoria supporting Caravan.

In March 2001, following the delayed release of Tuscany, a full band tour was organised, with a line-up of Haslam, Dunford, Sullivan, Simmonds, Rave Tesar (keyboards) and David J. Keyes (bass/voc), who played one London concert on 9 March (again at the Astoria) and three dates in Japan – Osaka on the 13th, Nagoya on the 14th and Tokyo on the 16th. The Tokyo concert was recorded and released as In the Land of the Rising Sun: Live in Japan 2001. (Tout, although in the audience at the Astoria, did not perform on this tour.) Haslam, who had become the band's spokesperson, said that several factors made further touring and recording impractical. The band's short third incarnation was soon over.

Terry Sullivan recorded an album called South of Winter in 2004, with a studio group he named Renaissant.[13] It is evocative of Renaissance's music, with lyrics by Thatcher-Newsinger and keyboard contributions by John Tout.

On 20 September 2008, John Tout made his first public appearance in the US in over 25 years, with Annie Haslam and the Jann Klose band, at the Sellersville Theatre 1894 in Sellersville, Pennsylvania. In 2009, Tout suffered a heart attack.

In August 2009, Haslam announced that she and Dunford were commemorating the 40th anniversary of Renaissance with a re-formed band, called Renaissance 2009 (including no other members of the "classic" line-up, but with musicians from the 2001 incarnation of the band), and a concert tour.[14]

A tour in Eastern North America and Japan was undertaken in 2010, together with a three-song EP release and a new official website. Renaissance headlined the sold-out final edition of the North East Art Rock Festival, entitled NEARfest Apocalypse, on 23 June 2012.

Bassist/vocalist David J. Keyes died in July 2019 from leiomyosarcoma.[15]

Deaths of Betty Thatcher, Michael Dunford, and John Tout

Betty Thatcher (born 16 February 1944), the band's non-performing lyricist who wrote most of the lyrics for the band (mostly for the second 'classic' lineup, but starting with the original Relf-led version), died on 15 August 2011.

On 20 November 2012, Michael Dunford (born 8 July 1944) died from a cerebral hemorrhage at his home in Surrey, England.[16] A few weeks later, Haslam stated that the band would continue touring in the future,[17] despite losing "her guiding light".[18] In February 2013, it was announced that Ryche Chlanda would be the guitarist on their 2013 tour,[19] and he has established a permanent role in the band, although not appearing on their 2015 UK and European dates.

John Tout died of lung failure on 1 May 2015 at the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead, London.[20] According to ultimateclassicrock.com, the band paid tribute to their former keyboardist on their Facebook page, saying: “He was an amazing musician, highly contributing to the unique sound of the band from 1970–1980."[20]

Symphony of Light

In April 2013 a new Renaissance album, Grandine il Vento, was released. It was dedicated on the inside sleeve to Dunford. This album was reissued as Symphony of Light in April 2014 with three bonus tracks.

Symphony of Light follows a similar path to the band's early work with a combination of shorter songs, and longer, more progressive tracks such as the title track, and "The Mystic and the Muse". The band were joined by well-known guest musicians Ian Anderson playing the flute on "Cry to the World", and John Wetton performing a duet with Haslam on "Blood Silver Like Moonlight". All the music was written by Dunford, except "Renaissance Man" (dedicated to Dunford) which was written by Rave Tesar. All the lyrics were written by Haslam, and the artwork featured a painting 'Symphony of Light' also by Haslam. [21]

Ralph Greco, Jr. in vintagerock.com observed that "Symphony of Light thrives on lush production, evocative lyrics, excellent playing and that superlative voice that could only belong to Annie Haslam."[22]

The current line-up is not as English as the band's early period with five U.S. born members, and one English born member who lives in the U.S.

Personnel

Current members

  • Annie Haslamvocals, percussion (1971–1987, 1998–2002, 2009–present)
  • Rave Tesar – keyboards, piano (2001–2002, 2009–present)
  • Mark Lambert – guitar, backing vocals (2015–present); bass (1985–1987)
  • Frank Pagano – drums, percussion, backing vocals (2009–2017, 2018–present)
  • Leo Traversa – bass, backing vocals (2015–2018, 2022–present)
  • Geoffrey Langley – keyboards, backing vocals (2016–present)

Discography

Studio albums

Year Title Chart positions Comments
UK
[23]
US
[8]
NL
[24]
1969 Renaissance 60 10
1971 Illusion 1977 (UK)
1972 Prologue
1973 Ashes Are Burning 171
1974 Turn of the Cards 94
1975 Scheherazade and Other Stories 48
1977 Novella 46
1978 A Song for All Seasons 35 58
1979 Azure d'Or 73 125
1981 Camera Camera 196
1983 Time-Line 207
2001 Tuscany
2013 Grandine il vento Reissued in 2014 as Symphony of Light with bonus tracks
"―" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

Live albums

Year Title Chart positions Comments
UK
[23]
US
[8]
1976 Live at Carnegie Hall 55
2002 In the Land of the Rising Sun: Live in Japan 2001
2011 Renaissance Tour 2011 – Turn of the Cards and Scheherazade & Other Stories Live in Concert (DVD and double CD set)
2016 Renaissance 2012 (recorded April 16, 2015) – Renaissance Live at the Union Chapel (DVD and digital only audio set)
2016 Renaissance Live at the BBC Sight & Sound (DVD and 3-CD set) Contains radio/television broadcasts of three live concerts, one each from the years 1975-77. The DVD contains the video of the televised concert in London on 8 January 1977.
2018 A Symphonic Journey (recorded October 27, 2017) – Live In Concert (DVD and double CD set)
2021 Renaissance 50th Anniversary: Ashes Are Burning - An Anthology - Live in Concert (Blu-ray/DVD/2CD Box) 2019 lineup performing 12 October 2019 in Glenside, PA.
"―" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.

Other releases

  • In the Beginning (compilation double-album of Prologue and Ashes are Burning), 1978
  • Tales of 1001 Nights (compilation in two volumes), 1990
  • Da Capo (Repertoire Germany compilation), 1995 (2 CDs) (Limited Edition in tall digipak with a much more concise, detailed booklet)
  • Live at the Royal Albert Hall: King Biscuit Flower Hour, 1997 (live performance recorded 1977; two volumes)
  • Songs from Renaissance Days, 1997 (compilation of out-takes, including one B-side and two Haslam solo tracks, 1979–88)
  • The BBC Sessions 1975–1978, 1999 [2 CDs]
  • Day of the Dreamer, 2000 (live performance recorded 1978)
  • Live at the Academy of Music, Philadelphia, 2000 (live performance recorded 1985)[nb 1]
  • Live + Direct, 2002 (edited 1970 live recording plus demos and miscellany, by Renaissance and related artists, from 1968 to 1976)
  • Innocents and Illusions, 2004 (compilation double CD of Renaissance and Illusion from the original incarnation)
  • Dreams & Omens, 2008 (live performance recorded 1978)
  • Live in Chicago, 2010 (live performance recorded 1983)
  • The Mystic and the Muse (Three-track EP of new songs), 2010
  • Past Orbits of Dust, 2012 (live performances, plus one remastered studio track, from 1969 to 1970)
  • DeLane Lea Studios 1973, 2015 (live performance recorded 1973)
  • Academy of Music, 2015 (live performance recorded 1974)

Singles

Year Title UK
[23]
Certifications
1970 "Island"
1972 "Spare Some Love"
1973 "Carpet of the Sun"
1974 "Mother Russia"
1977 "Back Home Once Again"
"Midas Man"
1978 "Northern Lights" 10
1979 "The Winter Tree"
"Jekyll and Hyde"
1981 "Faeries (Living at the Bottom of My Garden)"
"Bonjour Swansong"
1983 "Richard IX"
2010 "The Mystic and the Muse" (EP)
"–" denotes releases that did not chart.

Michael Dunford's Renaissance

These albums were essentially collaborations between Dunford and singer Stephanie Adlington.

  • The Other Woman, 1994 (originally issued as by "Renaissance")
  • Ocean Gypsy, 1997 (mostly new versions of past Renaissance songs)
  • Trip to the Fair, 1998 (compilation of tracks from the previous two releases)

Annie Haslam's Renaissance

This album was essentially an Annie Haslam solo release (one of several).

  • Blessing in Disguise, 1994.

Renaissant

This album was essentially a Terry Sullivan solo release with lyrics by Betty Thatcher-Newsinger and keyboards by John Tout. Terry's wife Christine did most of the vocals, with Terry himself taking lead on two songs.

  • South of Winter (2005)

Major television appearances

  • Don Kirshner's Rock Concert

Multi-artist television programme with Renaissance performing "Can You Understand" and "Black Flame". Syndicated (USA), 1974. 11 minutes, original running time unknown.

  • The Midnight Special

Multi-artist television programme with Renaissance performing "Carpet of the Sun" and "Midas Man". NBC (USA), 1976. 5 minutes, original running time unknown.

  • Sight and Sound in Concert

First in a series of programmes consisting of artists performing live with the first performance broadcast simultaneously on BBC TV and FM radio, hosted by DJ Alan Black. Songs performed were: "Carpet of the Sun", "Mother Russia", "Can You Hear Me?", "Ocean Gypsy", "Running Hard", "Touching Once" and "Prologue". Originally broadcast on 8 January 1977. BBC (UK), 1977. Approximately 50–55 minutes.

  • The Mike Douglas Show

Television talk show features Renaissance performing "Northern Lights" and "Day of the Dreamer" on 4 May 1978.

  • MTV Interview

Interview by J.J. Jackson with Annie Haslam and Jon Camp on the Time Line album Tour. MTV (USA), April 1983. 10 minutes.

Illusion

Shortly prior to his death (May 1976), Keith Relf wanted to try to reform the original Renaissance. Since the name Renaissance was now firmly in the hands of the Haslam lineup, he chose the tentative band name "Now". Jim McCarty was not involved at this point.[27] After Relf's death (May 1976), the surviving four formed a new band (along with two new musicians) and named it Illusion after Renaissance's second album. Illusion released two albums for Island Records before splitting, while a third made up of unreleased demos appeared years later. The demos were recorded in 1979 but no label was interested in them which caused Illusion to break up. The original four reformed again for the production of Through the Fire which was released under the bandname of Renaissance-Illusion. There are two second albums entitled Illusion: the second album of the original Renaissance (1971); and the eponymous second album of their reunion band, Illusion (1978).

  • Out of the Mist (1977) produced by Paul Samwell-Smith (original bass player of the Yardbirds)
  • Illusion (1978) produced by Douglas Bogie (recording engineer)
  • Enchanted Caress: Previously Unreleased Material (1990) produced by Jim McCarty
  • Illusion: The Island Years (2003) 2-CD compilation of Out of the Mist/Illusion with unreleased track by Keith Relf

Renaissance-Illusion

  • Through the Fire (2001) produced by Jim McCarty

Covers of Renaissance songs

This list does not include Renaissance songs performed by individual former members of the band.

References

  1. ^ a b c d Snider, Charles (2007). The Strawberry Bricks Guide to Progressive Rock (1st ed.). Chicago: Strawberry Bricks. p. 233. ISBN 978-0-615-17566-9.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Romano, Will (2010). Mountains Come Out of the Sky: An Illustrated History of Prog Rock (1st ed.). Montclair, NJ: Blackbeat Books. pp. 130–133. ISBN 978-0-87930-991-6.
  3. ^ Brennan, Mark (1994). Turn of the Cards (CD album notes). Renaissance. Germany: Repertoire Records. ASIN B000000132.
  4. ^ "Together biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
  5. ^ a b Elliott, Russell W. "The History of Renaissance". www.nlightsweb.com. Retrieved 29 April 2009.
  6. ^ "Jon Camp Interview 2012". Retrieved 28 March 2012.
  7. ^ a b c d Dome, Malcolm (2019). Ashes Are Burning (Booklet). Renaissance. Cherry Red Records Ltd. pp. 2–11.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Whitburn, Joel (1996). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Albums, 1955–1996. Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 649. ISBN 0-89820-117-9.
  9. ^ Liner notes from the Tales of 1001 Nights compilations.
  10. ^ a b Marsh, Dave (1983). The New Rolling Stone Record Guide (1st ed.). New York: Random House/Rolling Stone Press. p. 419. ISBN 0-394-72107-1.
  11. ^ Eder, Bruce. "Renaissance – Azure D'or (1979): Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 January 2014.
  12. ^ Eder, Bruce. "Renaissance – Tuscany (2001): Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  13. ^ "Renaissant – South of Winter (2004)". AllMusic. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
  14. ^ . Archived from the original on 7 September 2009. Retrieved 18 March 2012.
  15. ^ "Renowned Franklin Lakes Musician Dies After Long Cancer Fight". Wyckoff-Franklin Lakes Daily Voice. 12 July 2019.
  16. ^ Eder, Bruce. "Michael Dunford's Renaissance biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 6 September 2014.
  17. ^ Hughes, Rob (April 2013). "I and Thou". PROG magazine. No. 35. p. 27.
  18. ^ Haslam, Annie (5 December 2012). "Annie Haslam: Artist". Facebook. Retrieved 22 December 2012.
  19. ^ Haslam, Annie (February 2013), "Renaissance Announces New Guitarist", Renaissance website blog, retrieved 14 February 2013
  20. ^ a b Giles, Jeff (6 May 2015). "Renaissance Keyboardist John Tout Dies". Ultimateclassicrock.com. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
  21. ^ Symphony of Light (CD album notes). Renaissance. Red River Entertainment. 15 April 2014. ASIN B00ID96PL8.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  22. ^ Greco, Ralph Jr. (July 2014). "Renaissance – Symphony of Light (2014): Review". VintageRock.com. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
  23. ^ a b c Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 458. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  24. ^ "Dutch album charts – Renaissance (album)". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  25. ^ "Renaissance - A Song for All Seasons". bpi.co.uk. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  26. ^ "Renaissance - Northern Lights". bpi.co.uk. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  27. ^ Live+Direct (CD album notes). Renaissance. Spiral. 29 April 2002. ASIN B00005YXMF.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)

Notes

  1. ^ The title of this CD is not given consistently in the CD package. The title listed here is the one given on the spine of the CD package. However, the text on the front cover and physical CD reads: "Unplugged" "Live" at the Academy of Music, Philadelphia USA.

External links

  • Official band website www.RenaissanceTouring.com
  • Renaissance official Facebook page RenaissanceTouring
  • Northern Lights (fan site) www.NlightsWeb.com
  • Renaissance Fanfare (fan site) Prologue.ning.com
  • Annie Haslam's official site www.AnnieHaslam.com
  • Renaissance biography by Bruce Eder, discography and album reviews, credits & releases at AllMusic
  • Renaissance discography, album releases & credits at Discogs
  • Renaissance biography, discography, album credits & user reviews at ProgArchives.com
  • Renaissance albums to be listened as stream on Spotify

renaissance, band, renaissance, english, progressive, rock, band, best, known, their, 1978, northern, lights, progressive, rock, classics, like, carpet, mother, russia, ashes, burning, they, developed, unique, sound, combining, female, lead, vocal, with, fusio. Renaissance are an English progressive rock band best known for their 1978 UK top 10 hit Northern Lights and progressive rock classics like Carpet of the Sun Mother Russia and Ashes Are Burning They developed a unique sound combining a female lead vocal with a fusion of classical folk rock and jazz influences 1 Characteristic elements of the Renaissance sound are Annie Haslam s wide vocal range prominent piano accompaniment orchestral arrangements vocal harmonies acoustic guitar bass guitar synthesiser and versatile drum work The band created a significant following in the northeast United States in the 1970s and that region remains their strongest fan base RenaissanceRenaissance 2012 Clockwise from upper left Jason Hart David J Keyes Rave Tesar Frank Pagano Michael Dunford and Annie HaslamBackground informationOriginLondon United KingdomGenresProgressive rockYears active1969 19871998 20022009 presentLabelsIsland RecordsSire Records US Warner Bros RecordsElektra Records US BTM RecordsI R S RecordsGiant Electric PeaIllegal RecordsRepertoire RecordsHTD RecordsFriday MusicMembersAnnie HaslamRave TesarMark LambertFrank PaganoLeo TraversaGeoffrey LangleyWebsiteOfficial WebsiteThe original line up included two former members of the Yardbirds Keith Relf and Jim McCarty along with John Hawken Louis Cennamo and Relf s sister Jane Relf They intended to put something together with more of a classical influence 2 Renaissance was born and the band released a studio album in 1969 and another in 1971 Subsequently John Tout replaced Hawken on keyboards followed by a period of high turnover of musicians until the classic line up of Annie Haslam John Tout Michael Dunford Jon Camp and Terry Sullivan was established although none of them were in the original band They were assisted with lyrics on many songs from Cornish poet Betty Thatcher Newsinger From 1972 to 1979 Renaissance released seven successful studio albums toured extensively and sold out three nights in a row at Carnegie Hall with Tony Cox conducting the New York Philharmonic 1 The 1980s were a lean time for them with personnel changes and two relatively unsuccessful studio albums leading to disbandment in 1987 Two different offshoots of Renaissance existed at the same time at one period in the mid 1990s The band re formed in 1998 to record Tuscany which was eventually released in 2001 however they disbanded again the next year 2009 heralded a new line up for Renaissance led by Haslam and Dunford and since then the band has continued to record and tour Dunford died in November 2012 Later Haslam stated that the band would continue touring The line up during the 2010 s tended to not be as English as during the band s early period with five U S born members and one England born member residing in the United States In 2013 Renaissance released the studio album Grandine il Vento re released the following year under the title Symphony of Light Contents 1 Original incarnation 1969 1970 2 Transition 1970 71 3 Second incarnation 1971 1980 3 1 Joining BTM label 3 2 UK hit single 3 3 Critical reception to the classic line up 4 1980 1998 5 Third incarnation 6 Deaths of Betty Thatcher Michael Dunford and John Tout 7 Symphony of Light 8 Personnel 9 Discography 9 1 Studio albums 9 2 Live albums 9 3 Other releases 9 4 Singles 9 5 Michael Dunford s Renaissance 9 6 Annie Haslam s Renaissance 9 7 Renaissant 9 8 Major television appearances 9 9 Illusion 9 10 Renaissance Illusion 9 11 Covers of Renaissance songs 10 References 11 Notes 12 External linksOriginal incarnation 1969 1970 EditAs the Yardbirds were transforming into the New Yardbirds with Jimmy Page in 1968 and then Led Zeppelin the departing founding members of the Yardbirds Keith Relf and Jim McCarty formed an acoustic duo called Together 3 They released Henry s Coming Home b w Love Mum and Dad as a single on Columbia Records in November 1968 without chart success 4 In January 1969 Relf and McCarty organized a new group devoted to experimentation with rock folk and classical forms In his book Mountains Come Out of the Sky An Illustrated History of Prog Rock Will Romano quoted McCarty Toward the end of the Yardbirds we wanted to do something a bit more poetic if you like not so heavy A bit more folky We had had enough of heavy rock 2 This quintet Relf on guitar and vocals McCarty on drums and vocals plus bassist Louis Cennamo pianist John Hawken and Relf s sister Jane as an additional vocalist released a pair of albums on Elektra US and Island UK ILPS 9114 the first one titled simply Renaissance 1969 being produced by fellow ex Yardbird Paul Samwell Smith 5 The band had begun performing in May 1969 before recording had commenced for the debut LP mostly in the UK but with occasional forays abroad including festivals in Belgium Amougies October 1969 and France Operation 666 at the Olympia in January 1970 and Le Bourget in March 1970 both in Paris In February 1970 they embarked on a North American tour but that month long trek proved only marginally successful Because of their Yardbirds credentials they found themselves paired with bands such as the Kinks and their new classically orientated direction did not always go down well because audiences were expecting rock blues based material Beginning in the late spring of 1970 as touring began to grind on them the original band gradually dissolved Keith Relf and McCarty decided to quit performing and Cennamo joined Colosseum 2 Hawken organized a new line up to fulfill contractual obligations to Island Records and complete the band s second album Illusion 1971 which had been left unfinished Transition 1970 71 EditApart from Jane Relf the new band consisted mostly of former members of Hawken s previous band the Nashville Teens guitarist Michael Dunford bassist Neil Korner and singer Terry Crowe plus drummer Terry Slade 2 This line up recorded one track Mr Pine a Dunford composition and played a few gigs during the summer of 1970 Meanwhile a final recording session brought together the original line up minus Hawken with Don Shin sitting in on keyboards and produced the album s closing track Past Orbits of Dust The now completed Illusion was released in Germany in 1971 although it was not released in the UK until 1976 Island HELP 27 The album marked the beginning of Renaissance s long standing collaboration with poet Betty Thatcher Newsinger as lyricist when she co wrote two songs with Relf and McCarty The two remaining original members left in late 1970 Jane Relf was replaced by American folk singer Anne Marie Binky Cullom then John Hawken left to join Spooky Tooth and pianist John Tout replaced him 2 There is an extant video released on the DVD Kings amp Queens in 2010 of that line up performing five songs on a German TV program Muzik Kanal The plan at the time was that Relf and McCarty would remain involved as non performing members Relf as a producer and McCarty as a songwriter Both were present when singer Annie Haslam successfully auditioned in January 1971 5 to replace the departing Cullom who would later marry drummer Terry Slade and retire from the music scene While McCarty would go on to write songs for the new band Relf s involvement would be short lived Dunford soon emerged as a prolific composer and continued the writing partnership with Thatcher who would go on to write most of the lyrics for the band s 1970s albums Second incarnation 1971 1980 EditSometime in 1971 new manager Miles Copeland III decided to re organize the band focusing on what he felt were Renaissance s strong points Haslam s voice and Tout s piano Will Romano in Mountains Come Out of the Sky explained that unlike many of the artists to which they were compared Renaissance allowed the piano and female voice to come to the forefront 2 Until then Haslam had shared vocals with Terry Crowe who was in effect the band s chief vocalist Crowe and Korner went the former not replaced the latter replaced by a succession of bass players including John Wetton later of King Crimson U K and Asia Frank Farrell formerly of Supertramp and Danny McCulloch formerly of the Animals and a former bandmate of Dunford and Crowe in the Plebs until the position settled with the inclusion of Jon Camp It was also decided that Dunford would now concentrate on composing and a new guitar player Mick Parsons was brought in for live work In 1972 shortly before recording sessions for the new band s debut LP drummer Terence Sullivan joined after Slade s initial replacement Ginger Dixon 6 was deemed unsuitable following a European tour Parsons died in a car accident and was replaced at short notice by Rob Hendry 7 The resulting line up entered the studio having played only a dozen gigs together Prologue was released later in 1972 on EMI Sovereign Records in the UK and on Capitol Sovereign in North America Prologue s music was except for two songs by McCarty composed by Dunford with all lyrics by Thatcher Newsinger Rock radio stations particularly in the northeast US and Cleveland gave the song Spare Some Love significant airplay for a few months after the album s release and fans of Yes and Emerson Lake amp Palmer in particular took notice of the band Francis Monkman of the group Curved Air another group managed by Copeland was a guest on VCS3 synthesizer on the final track Rajah Khan 1 Hendry was replaced for the Prologue tour by Peter Finberg but Finberg was already committed to another band and so could not be a permanent replacement 7 This left Camp to play most of the guitar on their next album Ashes are Burning released in 1973 Though the band were trying to transition to a more acoustic sound Andy Powell of the group Wishbone Ash yet another group managed by Copeland was brought in for an electric guitar solo on the final track Ashes are Burning 7 which became the band s anthem piece often extended in live performances to over twenty minutes with a long bass solo and other instrumental workouts The album became the band s first to chart in the US where it reached No 171 on the Billboard 200 8 Shortly after the album s release Michael Dunford returned as acoustic guitarist completing what most fans regard as the classic five piece line up which would remain together through five studio albums The band played their first US concerts during this period 7 enjoying success on the East Coast in particular which soon resulted in a special orchestral concert at New York s Academy of Music in May 1974 Soon Renaissance would choose to concentrate on the US market as the UK press virtually ignored them Joining BTM label Edit The band left Sovereign Records and joined Miles Copeland s new prog rock stable and label BTM for British Talent Management The label s first release was Turn of the Cards in 1974 With a larger budget the album went from folk flavoured to a more dark lush orchestral rock sound One of the album s songs Things I Don t Understand which clocked in at 9 30 was Jim McCarty s last co writing credit with the group although it was actually in the band s live repertoire for years A lengthy tribute to Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn called Mother Russia closed out the album with lyrics inspired by his autobiographical novel One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich Turn of the Cards was first issued in the United States on Sire Records in August 1974 where it reached No 94 8 some months before an official UK release It remained in the Billboard 200 for 21 weeks Although Renaissance s fan base was relatively small its following was heavily concentrated in the large cities of the northeast US The album was eventually released in the UK in March 1975 It was soon followed by Scheherazade and Other Stories released on both sides of the Atlantic in September 1975 The album whose second side was taken up with the epic tone poem Song of Scheherazade based on stories from One Thousand and One Nights peaked at No 48 in the United States 8 There is no musical connection to the well known classical work Scheherazade by Nikolai Rimsky Korsakov 2 but the track does have a recurring six note motif that alludes to that work 9 A double live album Live at Carnegie Hall followed in 1976 Despite criticisms that much of the album was little more than a note for note reproduction of highlights from their previous four studio albums 10 the album reached No 55 in the US 8 Renaissance were the first British band to sell out three consecutive nights at Carnegie Hall 2 They were joined on stage by the New York Philharmonic Orchestra While introducing the song Ashes Are Burning Haslam refers to it as the title track from the group s second album rather than their fourth suggesting that the Haslam led lineup by this point considered themselves a distinct band from Keith Relf s incarnation of the group This point is further underscored by the band s including an album discography in the gatefold of LP copies of Live at Carnegie Hall which lists only the four albums from Prologue forward Live at Carnegie Hall s follow up Novella saw more chart success in the US peaking at No 46 in 1977 8 although its UK release was delayed by yet another label change Will Romano in Mountains Come Out of the Sky describes the band Renaissance was at an all time popularity high finding themselves playing to sold out audiences in the U S particularly in the northeastern part of the country in Pennsylvania and New York 2 Renaissance 1979 Clockwise from upper left Terry Sullivan Michael Dunford John Tout Annie Haslam and Jon Camp UK hit single Edit Although commercial success was limited during this period Renaissance scored a hit single in Britain with Northern Lights which reached No 10 during the summer of 1978 The single was taken from the album A Song for All Seasons a No 58 album in the US 8 and received significant airplay in the US on both AOR and on radio stations adapting to a new format known as soft rock now known as adult contemporary The band performed on a modestly successful tour of the US east of the Mississippi and drew significant crowds in State College Pennsylvania and Cleveland in May and June 1979 promoting both A Song for All Seasons and a mix of old and new tracks Additionally the band gained exposure via US television performing Carpet of the Sun in 1977 on The Midnight Special and appearing as guests on the May 4 1978 edition of the Mike Douglas Show where they played Northern Lights Renaissance floundered following 1979 s Azure d Or as many fans could not relate to a largely synthesizer oriented sound 11 As a result the band s fan base began to lose interest and the album only reached No 125 8 Dunford and Camp assumed most of the band s songwriting In the 1970s Renaissance defined their work with folk rock and classical fusions Their songs include quotations from and allusions to such composers as Alain Bach Chopin Debussy Giazotto Maurice Jarre Rachmaninoff Rimsky Korsakov Prokofiev and Shostakovich Renaissance records especially Ashes Are Burning were frequently played on American progressive rock radio stations such as WNEW FM WHFS FM WMMR FM KSHE 95 and WVBR Critical reception to the classic line up Edit Reviewers were deeply divided in their reactions to the classic period of Renaissance and their style of music Some critics saw little value in their music like Wayne King s entry in The New Rolling Stone Record Guide describing the period 1974 to 1983 Their inability to compose songs that would allow for any fluidity or improvisation meant that Renaissance s appeal nonexistent in their native England and cultish at best in America declined and the remainder of the Sire material matches this commercial decline with an artistic one The comeback attempt on IRS was a ludicrous failure 10 Progressive rock reviewers were much more supportive such as Charles Snider in The Strawberry Bricks Guide to Progressive Rock evaluating the album Scheherazade and Other Stories who describes Renaissance Trip to the Fair 1975 source source John Tout playing piano on Trip to the Fair from the album Scheherazade and Other Stories Problems playing this file See media help Annie Haslam s crystal clear five octave voice high in the mix supported by the virtuoso talents of pianist John Tout and Jon Camp s distinctive Rickenbacker bass and orchestral arrangements by Tony Cox 1 1980 1998 EditAfter the Azure d Or tour Tout left the group for personal reasons quickly followed by Sullivan Subsequent albums Camera Camera 1981 and Time Line 1983 brought Renaissance more into the contemporary synthpop and new wave genre but neither garnered enough commercial interest to make a viable future for the band Camera Camera was the band s final album to chart in the US where it reached No 196 in late 1981 8 In 1985 Camp left and Haslam and Dunford led an acoustic version of the band and performed occasional shows the last being in Georgetown DC until splitting up in August 1987 In 1988 Sire issued a two part compilation Tales of 1001 Nights focusing on the band s 1972 79 period In the 1990s most of their catalogue appeared on CD from reissue record labels such as Repertoire Records Germany In 2006 Repertoire issued remastered versions of Ashes are Burning Turn of the Cards and Scheherezade and Other Stories In the mid 1990s both Haslam who had released a self titled solo album in 1989 and Dunford who had been working on a proposed musical based on the Scheherazade storyline formed their own bands each using the name Renaissance and releasing albums with different line ups Third incarnation EditRenaissance partially re formed in 1998 around a nucleus of Haslam Dunford and Sullivan plus Tout and several new musicians most notably Roy Wood and Mickey Simmonds to record the CD Tuscany 12 In 1999 Haslam Dunford and Simmonds played a one off trio concert at London s Astoria supporting Caravan In March 2001 following the delayed release of Tuscany a full band tour was organised with a line up of Haslam Dunford Sullivan Simmonds Rave Tesar keyboards and David J Keyes bass voc who played one London concert on 9 March again at the Astoria and three dates in Japan Osaka on the 13th Nagoya on the 14th and Tokyo on the 16th The Tokyo concert was recorded and released as In the Land of the Rising Sun Live in Japan 2001 Tout although in the audience at the Astoria did not perform on this tour Haslam who had become the band s spokesperson said that several factors made further touring and recording impractical The band s short third incarnation was soon over Terry Sullivan recorded an album called South of Winter in 2004 with a studio group he named Renaissant 13 It is evocative of Renaissance s music with lyrics by Thatcher Newsinger and keyboard contributions by John Tout On 20 September 2008 John Tout made his first public appearance in the US in over 25 years with Annie Haslam and the Jann Klose band at the Sellersville Theatre 1894 in Sellersville Pennsylvania In 2009 Tout suffered a heart attack In August 2009 Haslam announced that she and Dunford were commemorating the 40th anniversary of Renaissance with a re formed band called Renaissance 2009 including no other members of the classic line up but with musicians from the 2001 incarnation of the band and a concert tour 14 A tour in Eastern North America and Japan was undertaken in 2010 together with a three song EP release and a new official website Renaissance headlined the sold out final edition of the North East Art Rock Festival entitled NEARfest Apocalypse on 23 June 2012 Bassist vocalist David J Keyes died in July 2019 from leiomyosarcoma 15 Deaths of Betty Thatcher Michael Dunford and John Tout EditBetty Thatcher born 16 February 1944 the band s non performing lyricist who wrote most of the lyrics for the band mostly for the second classic lineup but starting with the original Relf led version died on 15 August 2011 On 20 November 2012 Michael Dunford born 8 July 1944 died from a cerebral hemorrhage at his home in Surrey England 16 A few weeks later Haslam stated that the band would continue touring in the future 17 despite losing her guiding light 18 In February 2013 it was announced that Ryche Chlanda would be the guitarist on their 2013 tour 19 and he has established a permanent role in the band although not appearing on their 2015 UK and European dates John Tout died of lung failure on 1 May 2015 at the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead London 20 According to ultimateclassicrock com the band paid tribute to their former keyboardist on their Facebook page saying He was an amazing musician highly contributing to the unique sound of the band from 1970 1980 20 Symphony of Light EditIn April 2013 a new Renaissance album Grandine il Vento was released It was dedicated on the inside sleeve to Dunford This album was reissued as Symphony of Light in April 2014 with three bonus tracks Renaissance The Mystic and the Muse 2014 source source 30 second sample of Renaissance playing The Mystic and the Muse Problems playing this file See media help Symphony of Light follows a similar path to the band s early work with a combination of shorter songs and longer more progressive tracks such as the title track and The Mystic and the Muse The band were joined by well known guest musicians Ian Anderson playing the flute on Cry to the World and John Wetton performing a duet with Haslam on Blood Silver Like Moonlight All the music was written by Dunford except Renaissance Man dedicated to Dunford which was written by Rave Tesar All the lyrics were written by Haslam and the artwork featured a painting Symphony of Light also by Haslam 21 Ralph Greco Jr in vintagerock com observed that Symphony of Light thrives on lush production evocative lyrics excellent playing and that superlative voice that could only belong to Annie Haslam 22 The current line up is not as English as the band s early period with five U S born members and one English born member who lives in the U S Personnel EditMain article List of Renaissance band members Current members Annie Haslam vocals percussion 1971 1987 1998 2002 2009 present Rave Tesar keyboards piano 2001 2002 2009 present Mark Lambert guitar backing vocals 2015 present bass 1985 1987 Frank Pagano drums percussion backing vocals 2009 2017 2018 present Leo Traversa bass backing vocals 2015 2018 2022 present Geoffrey Langley keyboards backing vocals 2016 present Discography EditStudio albums Edit Year Title Chart positions CommentsUK 23 US 8 NL 24 1969 Renaissance 60 101971 Illusion 1977 UK 1972 Prologue 1973 Ashes Are Burning 171 1974 Turn of the Cards 94 1975 Scheherazade and Other Stories 48 1977 Novella 46 1978 A Song for All Seasons 35 58 BPI Silver 25 1979 Azure d Or 73 125 1981 Camera Camera 196 1983 Time Line 207 2001 Tuscany 2013 Grandine il vento Reissued in 2014 as Symphony of Light with bonus tracks denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory Live albums Edit Year Title Chart positions CommentsUK 23 US 8 1976 Live at Carnegie Hall 552002 In the Land of the Rising Sun Live in Japan 2001 2011 Renaissance Tour 2011 Turn of the Cards and Scheherazade amp Other Stories Live in Concert DVD and double CD set 2016 Renaissance 2012 recorded April 16 2015 Renaissance Live at the Union Chapel DVD and digital only audio set 2016 Renaissance Live at the BBC Sight amp Sound DVD and 3 CD set Contains radio television broadcasts of three live concerts one each from the years 1975 77 The DVD contains the video of the televised concert in London on 8 January 1977 2018 A Symphonic Journey recorded October 27 2017 Live In Concert DVD and double CD set 2021 Renaissance 50th Anniversary Ashes Are Burning An Anthology Live in Concert Blu ray DVD 2CD Box 2019 lineup performing 12 October 2019 in Glenside PA denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory Other releases Edit In the Beginning compilation double album of Prologue and Ashes are Burning 1978 Tales of 1001 Nights compilation in two volumes 1990 Da Capo Repertoire Germany compilation 1995 2 CDs Limited Edition in tall digipak with a much more concise detailed booklet Live at the Royal Albert Hall King Biscuit Flower Hour 1997 live performance recorded 1977 two volumes Songs from Renaissance Days 1997 compilation of out takes including one B side and two Haslam solo tracks 1979 88 The BBC Sessions 1975 1978 1999 2 CDs Day of the Dreamer 2000 live performance recorded 1978 Live at the Academy of Music Philadelphia 2000 live performance recorded 1985 nb 1 Live Direct 2002 edited 1970 live recording plus demos and miscellany by Renaissance and related artists from 1968 to 1976 Innocents and Illusions 2004 compilation double CD of Renaissance and Illusion from the original incarnation Dreams amp Omens 2008 live performance recorded 1978 Live in Chicago 2010 live performance recorded 1983 The Mystic and the Muse Three track EP of new songs 2010 Past Orbits of Dust 2012 live performances plus one remastered studio track from 1969 to 1970 DeLane Lea Studios 1973 2015 live performance recorded 1973 Academy of Music 2015 live performance recorded 1974 Singles Edit Year Title UK 23 Certifications1970 Island 1972 Spare Some Love 1973 Carpet of the Sun 1974 Mother Russia 1977 Back Home Once Again Midas Man 1978 Northern Lights 10 BPI Silver 26 1979 The Winter Tree Jekyll and Hyde 1981 Faeries Living at the Bottom of My Garden Bonjour Swansong 1983 Richard IX 2010 The Mystic and the Muse EP denotes releases that did not chart Michael Dunford s Renaissance Edit These albums were essentially collaborations between Dunford and singer Stephanie Adlington The Other Woman 1994 originally issued as by Renaissance Ocean Gypsy 1997 mostly new versions of past Renaissance songs Trip to the Fair 1998 compilation of tracks from the previous two releases Annie Haslam s Renaissance Edit This album was essentially an Annie Haslam solo release one of several Blessing in Disguise 1994 Renaissant Edit This album was essentially a Terry Sullivan solo release with lyrics by Betty Thatcher Newsinger and keyboards by John Tout Terry s wife Christine did most of the vocals with Terry himself taking lead on two songs South of Winter 2005 Major television appearances Edit Don Kirshner s Rock ConcertMulti artist television programme with Renaissance performing Can You Understand and Black Flame Syndicated USA 1974 11 minutes original running time unknown The Midnight SpecialMulti artist television programme with Renaissance performing Carpet of the Sun and Midas Man NBC USA 1976 5 minutes original running time unknown Sight and Sound in ConcertFirst in a series of programmes consisting of artists performing live with the first performance broadcast simultaneously on BBC TV and FM radio hosted by DJ Alan Black Songs performed were Carpet of the Sun Mother Russia Can You Hear Me Ocean Gypsy Running Hard Touching Once and Prologue Originally broadcast on 8 January 1977 BBC UK 1977 Approximately 50 55 minutes The Mike Douglas ShowTelevision talk show features Renaissance performing Northern Lights and Day of the Dreamer on 4 May 1978 MTV InterviewInterview by J J Jackson with Annie Haslam and Jon Camp on the Time Line album Tour MTV USA April 1983 10 minutes Illusion Edit Shortly prior to his death May 1976 Keith Relf wanted to try to reform the original Renaissance Since the name Renaissance was now firmly in the hands of the Haslam lineup he chose the tentative band name Now Jim McCarty was not involved at this point 27 After Relf s death May 1976 the surviving four formed a new band along with two new musicians and named it Illusion after Renaissance s second album Illusion released two albums for Island Records before splitting while a third made up of unreleased demos appeared years later The demos were recorded in 1979 but no label was interested in them which caused Illusion to break up The original four reformed again for the production of Through the Fire which was released under the bandname of Renaissance Illusion There are two second albums entitled Illusion the second album of the original Renaissance 1971 and the eponymous second album of their reunion band Illusion 1978 Out of the Mist 1977 produced by Paul Samwell Smith original bass player of the Yardbirds Illusion 1978 produced by Douglas Bogie recording engineer Enchanted Caress Previously Unreleased Material 1990 produced by Jim McCarty Illusion The Island Years 2003 2 CD compilation of Out of the Mist Illusion with unreleased track by Keith RelfRenaissance Illusion Edit Through the Fire 2001 produced by Jim McCartyCovers of Renaissance songs Edit This list does not include Renaissance songs performed by individual former members of the band Ashes Are Burning on the Faith amp Disease albums Fortune His Sleep 1995 and Livesongs Third Body 1996 Ocean Gypsy on the Blackmore s Night album Shadow of the Moon 1997 a ballad version References Edit a b c d Snider Charles 2007 The Strawberry Bricks Guide to Progressive Rock 1st ed Chicago Strawberry Bricks p 233 ISBN 978 0 615 17566 9 a b c d e f g h i Romano Will 2010 Mountains Come Out of the Sky An Illustrated History of Prog Rock 1st ed Montclair NJ Blackbeat Books pp 130 133 ISBN 978 0 87930 991 6 Brennan Mark 1994 Turn of the Cards CD album notes Renaissance Germany Repertoire Records ASIN B000000132 Together biography AllMusic Retrieved 25 October 2014 a b Elliott Russell W The History of Renaissance www nlightsweb com Retrieved 29 April 2009 Jon Camp Interview 2012 Retrieved 28 March 2012 a b c d Dome Malcolm 2019 Ashes Are Burning Booklet Renaissance Cherry Red Records Ltd pp 2 11 a b c d e f g h i j Whitburn Joel 1996 Joel Whitburn s Top Pop Albums 1955 1996 Menomonee Falls Wisconsin Record Research Inc p 649 ISBN 0 89820 117 9 Liner notes from the Tales of 1001 Nights compilations a b Marsh Dave 1983 The New Rolling Stone Record Guide 1st ed New York Random House Rolling Stone Press p 419 ISBN 0 394 72107 1 Eder Bruce Renaissance Azure D or 1979 Review AllMusic Retrieved 26 January 2014 Eder Bruce Renaissance Tuscany 2001 Review AllMusic Retrieved 12 May 2014 Renaissant South of Winter 2004 AllMusic Retrieved 24 May 2014 Renaissance 2009 40th Anniversary Concert Tour Archived from the original on 7 September 2009 Retrieved 18 March 2012 Renowned Franklin Lakes Musician Dies After Long Cancer Fight Wyckoff Franklin Lakes Daily Voice 12 July 2019 Eder Bruce Michael Dunford s Renaissance biography AllMusic Retrieved 6 September 2014 Hughes Rob April 2013 I and Thou PROG magazine No 35 p 27 Haslam Annie 5 December 2012 Annie Haslam Artist Facebook Retrieved 22 December 2012 Haslam Annie February 2013 Renaissance Announces New Guitarist Renaissance website blog retrieved 14 February 2013 a b Giles Jeff 6 May 2015 Renaissance Keyboardist John Tout Dies Ultimateclassicrock com Retrieved 13 May 2015 Symphony of Light CD album notes Renaissance Red River Entertainment 15 April 2014 ASIN B00ID96PL8 a href Template Cite AV media notes html title Template Cite AV media notes cite AV media notes a CS1 maint others in cite AV media notes link Greco Ralph Jr July 2014 Renaissance Symphony of Light 2014 Review VintageRock com Retrieved 24 August 2014 a b c Roberts David 2006 British Hit Singles amp Albums 19th ed London Guinness World Records Limited p 458 ISBN 1 904994 10 5 Dutch album charts Renaissance album dutchcharts nl Retrieved 1 June 2013 Renaissance A Song for All Seasons bpi co uk Retrieved 9 August 2022 Renaissance Northern Lights bpi co uk Retrieved 9 August 2022 Live Direct CD album notes Renaissance Spiral 29 April 2002 ASIN B00005YXMF a href Template Cite AV media notes html title Template Cite AV media notes cite AV media notes a CS1 maint others in cite AV media notes link Notes Edit The title of this CD is not given consistently in the CD package The title listed here is the one given on the spine of the CD package However the text on the front cover and physical CD reads Unplugged Live at the Academy of Music Philadelphia USA External links EditOfficial band website www RenaissanceTouring com Renaissance official Facebook page RenaissanceTouring Northern Lights fan site www NlightsWeb com Renaissance Fanfare fan site Prologue ning com Annie Haslam s official site www AnnieHaslam com Renaissance biography by Bruce Eder discography and album reviews credits amp releases at AllMusic Renaissance discography album releases amp credits at Discogs Renaissance biography discography album credits amp user reviews at ProgArchives com Renaissance albums to be listened as stream on Spotify Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Renaissance band amp oldid 1136502103, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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