For me this 2 CD set has been like being reintroduced to an old friend. Klaatu is a band that probably more than any other has major supporters and major nay-sayers in the prog rock community. Looking at their recorded output, it's easy to see why. Their debut disc and the follow up Hope truly were prog rock masterpieces, but not in the lengthy epic style of progressive rock, but more in the song-oriented sub-genre practiced these days by artists like The Flower Kings. When they released their third album the pressure from the label to produce a hit was getting pretty fierce, and they focused more on the pop side of the coin, but still there was merit in much of the material. After releasing their third album of a five record contract, the label made them an ultimatum - one more album, but there had to be a hit. They begrudgingly focused on material that they thought would get them radio airplay. But even then the label replaced long time producer Terry Brown with a "hit maker" and even went so far as to bring in studio musicians to actually perform the album. The tracks included here to represent that disc are the band's demos for the songs. The pseudo Klaatu album (seems a good way to refer an album by a band, but played by studio musicians instead - unless you are the Partridge Family or Milli Vanilli) didn't generate the sales that Capitol was looking for, and they cut Klaatu lose one album early. The final album, Magentalane was a gift to the band from Capitol Canada - the US label had dropped them - but was only offered if they toured - and they did. The CD saw the band looking back to their roots. As the book that accompanies this collection explains they decided that if this was going to be their last album, they wanted it to be something their long time fans could appreciate. They couldn't stand the idea of the aptly titled Endangered Species being their last product.

So, with such a powerful first couple of albums, what went wrong to keep this band from not achieving the level of other prog contemporaries? Certainly, as with any such situation, varying factors came into play. Not the least of these were the Beatles connection. The band has always had a strong tie to the sound of the Beatles. Frankly, much of their music feels like something that John, Paul, George and Ringo might have produced if they had decided to move further into the progressive rock stylings hinted at with Sgt. Peppers. The sound was so reminiscent that it caused more than one writer to speculate that this outfit was actually the fab four playing incognito. I even remember hearing some idiot on the radio say that they had done voice print analysis and came up with that answer. This rumor was further fueled by a highly respectable concept that the band had made part of their contract. They wanted the music to speak for itself. To that regard, no mention of their names or any pictures of them were published on the albums. They did no live performances until very late in their career. Unfortunately, in keeping with this credo they chose to not respond to the speculation - which was probably a big mistake. Once the hype wore off and people began to realize that this was not in fact some reunion of the Liverpool lads, there was almost a sense of resentment on the part of many listeners and some of the media. This certainly hurt the band in the long run. It's a case of someone sticking to their ethics, but having it cut their legs out from under them in a real sense.

With this collection the group have put together a lot of alternate takes, rarities and single versions and created a 2 CD set that should be a welcome breath of nostalgia for those, like myself, who were fans in the day. It probably also represents something that would make a good introduction and cross section of the career. The accompanying book really chronicles the history of a band who had strong musical talents, high standards and were victims of rumors and prevailing industry pressures that sank their career. It, combined with the music, therefore presents a cross section of their career, the highs and the lows - and offers the uninitiated a great place to start to learn about this unique outfit. All of those facts would be enough to sell me on the collection, but there is more. The Hope album was originally recorded as an epic concept album, complete with a full orchestra. Through situations that are chronicled in the book - that version was never released, instead reworked into the album that Klaatu fans know. For the first time that set is presented here in all it's original glory. The long and short of the whole situation, though, is this - Klaatu's music will always live on - and for the true believers, this will forever be a great tribute to a very talented group of musicians.

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2005 Year Book Volume 1 at https://garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2005.