KAYAK
''KAYAK''
1995
1973
52:29
1 Reason for it All (Scherpenzeel) 6:26
2 Lyrics (Scherpenzeel) 3:40
3 Mouldy Wood (Slager/Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 5:13
4 Lovely Luna (Koopman) 8:15
5 Hope for a Life (Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 6:46
6 Ballet of the Cripple (Van Leeuwen/Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 4:35
7 Forever is a Lonely Thought (Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 5:22
8 Mammoth (Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 2:54
9 See See the Sun (Van Leeuwen/Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 4:10
Bonus tracks (1995 reissue)
10 Still Try to Write a Book (Koopman) 1:59
11 Give it a Name (Van Leeuwen/Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 2:41
Ton Scherpenzeel – keyboards, vocals
Pim Koopman – drums, synthesizer, marimba, vocals
Max Werner – lead vocals, percussion, mellotron
Cees van Leeuwen – bass, harmonica, vocals
Johan Slager – guitars, vocals
Guest appearances
Giny Bush and Martine Koeman – violins on "Lyrics"
Ernst Reijseger – cello on "Lyrics"
Gerrit-Jan Leenders – vocals, percussion on "Hope for a Life"
Rijn Peter de Klerk – percussion on "Hope for a Life"
G. Perlee – barrel organ "Flamingo" Amsterdam on "Mammoth"
ABOUT THE ALBUM
BY WIKIPEDIA
Kayak (See see the sun) is the first album by the Dutch progressive rock band Kayak. It was originally released in 1973 and reissued with two bonus tracks (which were originally singles b-sides) in 1995, and again in 2012.
The song 'Mammoth' is one of the very few pop singles to feature a barrel organ (or street organ). The organ, The Flamingo, was too big to get through the studio entrance. Therefore the melody was recorded outside. Being a manually operated organ, the pace varied all the time, making it very hard to fit the piece into the rest of the song.
REVIEW
by Paul Collins / AMG
Featuring classic art rock instrumentation -- trebly Rickenbacker bass, orchestral washes of Mellotron, and staccato guitar lines laid over intricate time changes -- Kayak's debut album is quite simply a lost gem of the genre. From the enervating but impressive stop-time exercise of "Mouldy Wood" to the buzzsaw-bass dirge "Lovely Luna," the band manages to convey virtuosity without lapsing into pompousness; only the irritatingly bombastic Wurlitzer sound on "Mammoth" fails to achieve the standard set by the rest of the album. "Forever is a Lonely Thought" is a particular standout; beginning with bare vocals, it slowly gathers like a thunderstorm into an overwhelmingly powerful anthem.
BIOGRAPHY
by Paul Collins / AMG
With their instrumental prowess and keyboardist Ton Scherpenzeel's facility at writing lyrics in English, you might be forgiven for mistaking Kayak for a bunch of clever proggers from London. But this Dutch band began in 1968 in the city of Hilversum, where Scherpenzeel and drummer Pim Koopman attended a music conservatory. After the addition of guitarist Johan Slager, bassist Cees van Leeuwen, and vocalist Max Werner, the group solidified by 1972 and commenced recording. Stylistically they featured the instrumentation and chops of progressive acts like Yes and Genesis, but the pop song structures of Supertramp and the Alan Parsons Project; as time passed they increasingly favored the pop side of the equation. Royal Bed Bouncer, the most even balance between these two styles, was to be a commercial and artistic high point for the band. They continued to meet with minor success throughout the '70s on a variety of record labels, and in 1974 toured in support of Queen -- a move that influenced the flavor of their later work.
Like most progressive bands, Kayak never had a terribly stable lineup; at one point they went through three bassists in as many years. With Scherpenzeel as the sole constant, Kayak's first lineup also proved to be their finest; but Koopman's asthma forced him to retire in 1976, and Werner was so tortured by stage fright and unfounded doubts over his singing ability that he demanded the vacated drum chair for himself, leaving the vocal duties to new member Edward Reekers. Scherpenzeel's central role in the band eventually wore on the others, and Kayak fell apart in 1980. Scherpenzeel continued on to work with the English band Camel and then compose primarily for the theater. Koopman and Reekers worked in music production and performance; Werner left the stage to become a postal worker; and van Leeuwen became -- of all things -- a prominent lawyer. The band reunited in 1997 for a Dutch TV special, though no new recordings have yet emerged.
OFFICIAL SITE
2 Lyrics (Scherpenzeel) 3:40
3 Mouldy Wood (Slager/Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 5:13
4 Lovely Luna (Koopman) 8:15
5 Hope for a Life (Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 6:46
6 Ballet of the Cripple (Van Leeuwen/Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 4:35
7 Forever is a Lonely Thought (Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 5:22
8 Mammoth (Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 2:54
9 See See the Sun (Van Leeuwen/Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 4:10
Bonus tracks (1995 reissue)
10 Still Try to Write a Book (Koopman) 1:59
11 Give it a Name (Van Leeuwen/Koopman/Scherpenzeel) 2:41
Ton Scherpenzeel – keyboards, vocals
Pim Koopman – drums, synthesizer, marimba, vocals
Max Werner – lead vocals, percussion, mellotron
Cees van Leeuwen – bass, harmonica, vocals
Johan Slager – guitars, vocals
Guest appearances
Giny Bush and Martine Koeman – violins on "Lyrics"
Ernst Reijseger – cello on "Lyrics"
Gerrit-Jan Leenders – vocals, percussion on "Hope for a Life"
Rijn Peter de Klerk – percussion on "Hope for a Life"
G. Perlee – barrel organ "Flamingo" Amsterdam on "Mammoth"
ABOUT THE ALBUM
BY WIKIPEDIA
Kayak (See see the sun) is the first album by the Dutch progressive rock band Kayak. It was originally released in 1973 and reissued with two bonus tracks (which were originally singles b-sides) in 1995, and again in 2012.
The song 'Mammoth' is one of the very few pop singles to feature a barrel organ (or street organ). The organ, The Flamingo, was too big to get through the studio entrance. Therefore the melody was recorded outside. Being a manually operated organ, the pace varied all the time, making it very hard to fit the piece into the rest of the song.
REVIEW
by Paul Collins / AMG
Featuring classic art rock instrumentation -- trebly Rickenbacker bass, orchestral washes of Mellotron, and staccato guitar lines laid over intricate time changes -- Kayak's debut album is quite simply a lost gem of the genre. From the enervating but impressive stop-time exercise of "Mouldy Wood" to the buzzsaw-bass dirge "Lovely Luna," the band manages to convey virtuosity without lapsing into pompousness; only the irritatingly bombastic Wurlitzer sound on "Mammoth" fails to achieve the standard set by the rest of the album. "Forever is a Lonely Thought" is a particular standout; beginning with bare vocals, it slowly gathers like a thunderstorm into an overwhelmingly powerful anthem.
BIOGRAPHY
by Paul Collins / AMG
With their instrumental prowess and keyboardist Ton Scherpenzeel's facility at writing lyrics in English, you might be forgiven for mistaking Kayak for a bunch of clever proggers from London. But this Dutch band began in 1968 in the city of Hilversum, where Scherpenzeel and drummer Pim Koopman attended a music conservatory. After the addition of guitarist Johan Slager, bassist Cees van Leeuwen, and vocalist Max Werner, the group solidified by 1972 and commenced recording. Stylistically they featured the instrumentation and chops of progressive acts like Yes and Genesis, but the pop song structures of Supertramp and the Alan Parsons Project; as time passed they increasingly favored the pop side of the equation. Royal Bed Bouncer, the most even balance between these two styles, was to be a commercial and artistic high point for the band. They continued to meet with minor success throughout the '70s on a variety of record labels, and in 1974 toured in support of Queen -- a move that influenced the flavor of their later work.
Like most progressive bands, Kayak never had a terribly stable lineup; at one point they went through three bassists in as many years. With Scherpenzeel as the sole constant, Kayak's first lineup also proved to be their finest; but Koopman's asthma forced him to retire in 1976, and Werner was so tortured by stage fright and unfounded doubts over his singing ability that he demanded the vacated drum chair for himself, leaving the vocal duties to new member Edward Reekers. Scherpenzeel's central role in the band eventually wore on the others, and Kayak fell apart in 1980. Scherpenzeel continued on to work with the English band Camel and then compose primarily for the theater. Koopman and Reekers worked in music production and performance; Werner left the stage to become a postal worker; and van Leeuwen became -- of all things -- a prominent lawyer. The band reunited in 1997 for a Dutch TV special, though no new recordings have yet emerged.
OFFICIAL SITE
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