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Non-Prog CD Reviews

Peter Link

Goin’ Home

Review by Gary Hill

Progressive rock, jazz and funk merge with things like gospel into a great blend of sounds. Some tracks are stronger than other, and there are some musical theater bits in the mix, too. All in all, though, it’s a fairly accessible set that has enough meat for additional spins to bring new understanding and appreciation to the table.

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2012  Volume 5 at lulu.com/strangesound.
Track by Track Review
Goin’ Home (Opening) – Choir
The vocals that open this feel almost electronic, but are organic. This has some instrumentation in the mix, but surely the singing is the main impetus.
To My Father’s House
Jazz, funk and progressive rock merge on the musical motif here. The vocals are quite in the mode of gospel music. This thing really rocks and is quite cool. We get some tasty bits of guitar soloing and some intense keyboard sounds. The multilayered vocal arrangement is awesome, too.
Heaven
There is an R & B meets jazz and progressive rock texture on this tune. It’s not the stomper that the previous one was, but it’s still quite tasty. The vocals really get potent later in the piece.
I Ain’t Gonna Grieve My Lord No More/ I Got A Robe
Percussion opens this. I’m not overly crazy about this tune. It’s bouncy and fun, but seems a little silly. Still, the female vocals are quite strong. Beyond that there’s some exceptional keyboard and bass work.
There’s A Mountain In My Way
Now, this is more like it, the jazzy arrangement on this calls to mind some of the jazz rock from the late 1960s/early 1970s. There is also some musical theater built into this. Both gospel and funk are heard later in the tune. This is quite a complex number and even works into some Latin sounds near the end.
    
Embrace The Rainbow
While we get a more fully developed introduction, this is basically just a short (less than a minute) mellow piece. 
I Can’t Go Home
One of the mellowest sounds of the disc is heard here. It’s a mellow and symphonic ballad with definite elements of musical theater.
We Fix It
A Latin based, percussive segment opens this. It gets some funk and gospel added to the mix from there. Musical theater comes in with a call and response based segment.
What Could Have Been
Gentle and slow, this is a piano based ballad that gets some symphonic elements in the arrangement later.
In Dat Great Gittin’ Up Mornin’
This time around we get a killer gospel based number that works quite well. It takes on some jazz and progressive rock later and the vocal arrangement is among the best here. This is a high energy tune that’s awesome.
Goin’ Home
The title track is quite classical in nature. It’s a ballad with male vocals that are quite traditional and powerful. Harmonica is a nice touch.
   
When The Saints Go Marchin’ In
Some soundbites open this with some electronic music serving as the backdrop. This introductory section stops and then there’s some silence. Drums come in from there, building up in intensity. Keyboards come over the top and then we get a real jazzy arrangement from there. The vocals come in and are quite powerful. This is a soaring number that’s got plenty of musical theater along with progressive rock and other sounds in place. We get an awesome melodic guitar solo later, too. There’s a section later with the traditional vocal type arrangement for the tune laid over the top of some percussion and it grows out from there after a time. They keep building on this arrangement and it is both powerful and very progressive rock oriented with a lot of layers of sound built on it.
Come To Me As A Bird
Gentle and balladic, Julia Wade’s vocals and just plain great and really carry the tune. 
 
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