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What's New
Our Discography has been updated with information on a new Annie Haslam holiday release with Rave Tesar called Snowball; the
CD is available through Annie's
web site. (updated 1 January 2010)
Annie Haslam sent us several photos from the recent tour.
Click here to see the new Renaissance 2009
Gallery! You can also see the photos on the band's
MySpace page, right
here. We expect more photos in the near future as the band goes
through their collections. (updated 12 November 2009)
Northern Lights co-editor Joe Lynn wrote a review of Jim
McCarty's new CD, Sitting on the Top of Time! Check it out
in our Press Box section! (24 September 2009)
Friend of Northern Lights Mark C Doyle sent us information on
several new Japanese reissues, including some SHD releases from
Universal Music and some remastered versions of some of the Sire-era
releases! Check out the Discography for
more information! (10 August 2009)
Northern Lights co-editor Russ Elliot has posted a
review of the Friday Music reissue of Live at Carnegie Hall (see
below for more release information). Follow
this link to the Musical
Discoveries site for the review! (10 August 2009)
Northern Lights contributor Matt Parish forwarded us
this link to his review of Annie Haslam's CD Woman Transcending.
Check it out! (30 June 2009)
Renaissance News And FAQ
This section is kept up-to-date with the latest information
on Renaissance and its members. We publish news as soon
as we receive it, and if you have specific questions, please write to us and we will do our best to get the answers for
you.
Correspondent Peter Tim reports that Stephanie Adlington's web site has been
updated: you can visit the site at
stephanieadlington.com. (1 January 2010)
Renaissance's recent tour was a great success! The reviews are starting
to roll in, and here's what's been said so far:
Greg Haymes, from the Albany Times Union said: "The barefoot
Haslam was clearly the focus, but the band ... carried her on their
shoulders, spinning orchestral whirlwinds and one climactic rush
after another from the wordless vocals of the opening 'Prologue' to
the rousing encore of 'Ashes Are Burning.'" Check out Greg's
full review by
following this link.
Another review appears on the Vintage Rock website. Ralph
Greco says that Annie and Michael led the band "through a two-hour
show at the brand-new South Orange Performing Arts Center and
teleported the audience back to the mid 70s with a near-perfect
performance."
Follow this
link to that review!
A review by Pete Pardo appears on the Sea of Tranquility web
site. His piece
can
be found here and in it he tells us "The sound was wonderful,
all the musicians were spot on, and Annie's voice was remarkable."
The Rochester City Music Blog says "The rock-opera band got a
standing O after its very first song. The crowd damn near gushed
after every tune.... I found it interesting that with the big
productions like Trans-Siberian Orchestra, and even Celtic Women,
that Renaissance could pull off just as much evocative magic without
all the flash and smoke." Read the complete piece
here.
We're certain more reviews will be coming in, and we'll be posting links as
we learn about them. (updated 8 November 2009)
Longtime Northern Lights friend Dave Owen tells us that the UK magazine
Classic Rock Presents Prog has a four-page feature on Renaissance in
their latest edition. Watch your newsstand for the magazine! (25
November 2009)
Steve Houk interviewed
Michael Dunford for his blog-- check out the excellent article where
Michael talks about Renaissance's past, present, and future!
Follow
this link to the article at Steve's blog! (30 September 2009)
Listen to
an interview and live performance with
Annie and Michael on Pete Fornatale's "Mixed Bag" on WFUV, New York!
Click here and then choose the September 26 2009 link! (1
October 2009)
Attention Renaissance Fans! Annie
Haslam and Michael Dunford will join together with some special friends for a
series of concerts in the Northeast this Fall as "Renaissance 2009." We are in
contact with Annie and the band's management, and we will have more details
posted here very shortly! Click
here
for more info on the dates that have already been announced! (29 August 2009)
The rest of the show dates have been added!
Click
here
for more info!
The latest press release appears
below... (14 September 2009)
Annie Haslam and Michael Dunford to Lead
World-Class Musicians
On 9-City Concert Tour of Theaters and
Performing Arts Centers Starting Oct. 6
In
celebration of their 1969 formation,
English "classical rock" pioneers
Renaissance are embarking on a
special 40th Anniversary Fall Concert
Tour to re-introduce to new generations
the lush, orchestral favorites that made
them a staple of 1970s progressive rock
radio.
Led
by Annie Haslam and Michael
Dunford, the voice and principal
songwriter, respectively, of the band’s
most popular lineup, RENAISSANCE 2009
will mount a nine-city East Coast tour
of theaters and performing arts centers
that kicks off Oct. 6 in
Annapolis, MD, and includes New York,
Philadelphia and Washington, home to the
nation’s top progressive rock stations
during the classic Renaissance era.
"I'm
thrilled to be performing these truly
unique masterpieces again," says Haslam,
whose five-octave voice is one of the
most legendary in rock history. “These
songs are a big part of my life and I
will sing my heart out."
Joining Haslam and Dunford in
RENAISSANCE 2009 are keyboardist
Rave Tesar and bassist-vocalist
David J. Keyes, both of whom were
previous members of Renaissance and the
Annie Haslam Band, plus
keyboardist-vocalist Tom Brislin
(Yes, Debbie Harry, Meat Loaf, Francis
Dunnery) and drummer-percussionist
Frank Pagano
(Bruce
Springsteen, Smashing Pumpkins, Bette
Midler, Barry Manilow). Together, these
world class musicians will revisit the
symphonic textures, stunning vocals and
poetic lyrics that embody the band’s
hauntingly compelling
international themes, with fresh
interpretations of their most admired
compositions. “Carpet of the Sun,”
“Ocean Gypsy,” “Mother Russia,” "Ashes
Are Burning," “Running Hard,”
“Prologue,” and "Northern Lights" are
central to Renaissance’s most prolific
period (1972-78), which produced the
albums Prologue, Ashes Are Burning,
Turn of the Cards, Novella,
Scheherazade and Other Stories, and
A Song for All Seasons, as well
as 'Live' at Carnegie Hall
(1976), the deluxe two-disc set recently
reissued.
Renaissance originally rose from the
ashes of the Yardbirds, with Haslam and
Dunford joining at the dawn of the 1970s
to define their work with folk rock and
classical fusions, including quotations
from and allusions to, such composers as
Bach, Chopin, Debussy, and Rachmaninoff.
It wasn’t long before influential
progressive rock FM stations like WNEW
(New York), WMMR (Philadelphia) and WHFS
(Washington) were turning on America to
Renaissance, while the band was
thrilling concertgoers on the world’s
most distinguished stages, from Carnegie
Hall in New York City to the Royal
Albert Hall in London.
"We've wanted to bring these songs to
American audiences again and now with
these great musicians," adds Michael
Dunford, "I'm looking forward to it with
great anticipation."
The DVD release from Cherry Red Records called "Song of Scheherazade" featuring
a Renaissance performance from 1976 is now available!
Annie Haslam says:
At last the corrected DVD Song of Scheherezade is
available. Although the footage is in black and white, the magic of
the band is still captured and a must for any Renaissance fan.
The DVD is available at
this link in the UK, and if you're in the US you can get the DVD
from Amazon at
this link. You can also read a
review of the DVD at
Musical Discoveries, the creation of Northern Lights
co-editor Russ Elliot. (30 June 2009)
Longtime friend of Northern Lights Mike Silveus has started an
eBay store featuring his collection of Renaissance and other
rock-related material. Visit the store
here or look for the seller "jans501". (30 June 2009)
A new reissue of Live at Carnegie Hall is available from Friday Music!
Annie Haslam sent us an update:
Live at Carnegie Hall is available again on CD.
This magnificent live performance by the band has to be one of
their best and most prestigious shows, performing with The New York
Philharmonic and full choir.
It is STUNNING!
Re-mastered and sounding better than ever! With personal
memories from Annie in the liner notes.
This has been re-released by Friday Music and is available now
at www.fridaymusic.com
Be sure to check it out! (9 May 2009)
The Jane Relf
Appreciation Society's Brian Williams sent us a note about a new compilation
that's just been released:
The JRAS is proud to announce the upcoming release, November 11,
2008, for the comprehensive Jane Relf compilation called Jane's
Renaissance, from Renaissance Records USA. This will mark the CD
debut of the songs that Jane released as solo singles ("Gone
Fishing," "Without a Song from You," and "Make My Time Pass By") -
all of which were professionally digitally remastered from pristine
source 45 RPM vinyl. Another vocal demo bonus ("Carpet of the Sun")
has been recently added after a complex denoising procedure. Total
music time - 156 minutes.
This set can be ordered from Amazon
at this link.
Please note that Amazon incorrectly lists the product as 1 CD, when
in fact it is a 2-CD set (verified by the label). These corrections
will be made on Amazon about 2 weeks before the November 11 release.
The list price according to the label will be $19.99, so quickly
pre-ordering on Amazon (who guarantees their pre-order prices) may
land the buyer a major bargain!
This Boxed Set's concept was based largely on the WPKN Radio Show
that we produced and aired in November 2003.
Another great release for Renaissance fans! (16 November 2008)
A new live Renaissance release is available from Friday Music! Dreams &
Omens: Live at the Tower Theatre, Philadelphia 1978 is now downloadable on
iTunes and available through
Friday
Music's web site! Annie told us:
The concert stands out as one of our best live performances, it
was truly a magical night! I am happy to share this with you and
hope it gives you as much pleasure and joy as it gives me. I feel so
proud when I listen to this CD, and to have been a part of such a
unique and inspiring part of musical history. The five band members,
John, Michael, Terry, Jon, and myself were perfectly matched. The
Tower Theatre holds fond memories of an era that was the pinnacle in
the evolution of Renaissance.
Check out this fantastic release! (26 October 2008)
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Last updated:
1 January 2010 |
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