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Progressive Rock CD Reviews

Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman and Howe Brother of Mine / Vultures in the City (vinyl single) Review by Gary Hill This single from Anderson, Bruford Wakeman and Howe is out of print, of course, but these days, it’s not that hard (or sometimes expensive) to get your hands on something like this. The two tracks here are intriguing. For one thing we get a single edit of one of the songs from the ABWH album. Then there’s an unreleased track that I like better than some of the songs that made it on the disc. In fact, I’d say this is worth having in one form another specifically for that B-Side track. It’s great! This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2014 Volume 5 at lulu.com/strangesound.

Track by Track Review

Side 1

Brother of Mine This is an abbreviated version of the song from the album. After a gong, the cut opens in the chorus. After the chorus runs through they move through a short instrumental section. Howe solos here. There’s a rather Native American styled feeling to a lot of this. The piece really does manage to capture most of the best parts of the album length piece and pull them together into a more concise piece. I love the keyboard dominated riff section that ends it.


Side 2

Vultures in the City I’ve always wondered why this song didn’t make the disc while some others did. I actually love the piece. It is a rather moody song early in some ways. Keyboards feature prominently and the whole piece is just so strong. Tony Levin’s bass works some magic in the background as the rest of the guys create the melodies. Anderson’s vocals are very strong here. This really does feel like it would have been at home on a Yes album…perhaps something between Going for the One and Tormato. There are some really soaring moments in the piece later. The closing section, in particular, is powerful.

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