AQUILA Same Rca UK 1970 Gatefold Cover REALLY GREAT JAZZ ROCK PROGRESSIVE

	£		143
	$		189

ASTRAL DREAM RECORDS

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PLEASE CONSIDER THAT IN THESE EBAY AUCTIONS I USE A STRICT RECORD COLLECTOR MAGAZINE GRADING SYSTEM THAT CAN'T DISAPPOINT ANYONE BUT THIS DOESN'T MEAN THAT ,FOR EXAMPLE,  A VG+ COVER OR A VG+ VINYL  IT'S EQUIVALENT TO "BAD CONDITIONS" BUT SIMPLY THAT MY GRADE IT'S STRICT AND PROBABLY EQUIVALENT TO AN EX OF SOMEONE ELSE WITH  NOT A SO STRICT GRADE. I HAVE SOLD IN THESE AUCTIONS EX- RECORDS THAT WERE SURELLY M- COPIES BUT I PREFERE TO BE STRICT TO AVOID ANY DISAPPOINTEMENT BECAUSE I TAKE GREAT CARE OF MY REPUTATION.

Record Collector Magazine Grading System MINT The record itself is in brand new condition with no surface marks or deterioration in sound quality. The cover and any extra items such as the lyric sheet, booklet or poster are in perfect condition. Records advertised as Sealed or Unplayed should be Mint.

EXCELLENT The record shows some signs of having been played, but there is very little lessening in sound quality. The cover and packaging might have slight wear and/or creasing.

VERY GOOD The record has obviously been played many times, but displays no major deterioration in sound quality, despite noticeable surface marks and the occasional light scratch. Normal wear and tear on the cover or extra items, without any major defects, is acceptable.

GOOD The record has been played so much that the sound quality has noticeably deteriorated, perhaps with some distortion and mild scratches. The cover and contents suffer from folding, scuffing of edges, spine splits, discolouration, etc.

FAIR The record is still just playable but has not been cared for properly and displays considerable surface noise; it may even jump. The cover and contents will be torn, stained and/or defaced.

POOR The record will not play properly due to scratches, bad surface noise, etc. The cover and contents will be badly damaged or partly missing.

BAD The record is unplayable or might even be broken, and is only of use as a collection-filler.


graded VG/EX- for a strict Record Collector magazine grading system

ASTRAL DREAM RECORDS will be in the next MEGA Records Fair of November 22/23/24 in Utrecht, STALL 3743 A, HALL 11. Our stall will be positioned in the stalls column of the left side ,that you meet during the transit before entering to the BIG hall 12 where you can find all the others stalls. We will sell some hundreds more of TOP UK folk/progressive & German/European & Worldwide progressive lps not listed here yet just for lack of time...so please have a look because it well worth, believe me!!

label: the Original British pressed Rca Victor Orange label it's absolutely clean and without signs of plays.
vinyl: a very nice looking vinyl with just a couple of scuffs and playing perfect so EX- .
cover: the cover it's notoriously very prone to wear being unlaminated and with black background. Normaly it have a big tear and left because many copies does have a round sticker on it and when removed he make a big tear ...this one has two minors tears on the right not so well repaired so maybe you can do a better work ... this copy it's VG because also some ring on back and minor spine and seams wear.
review: taken from Progressive Archives:"1970 band Aquila's only release was this self titled album. In that year, founding member of Welsh proto-prog outfit Blonde on Blonde, Ralph Denyer, left that band to go it alone. He brought in four other musicians including George Lee, a dedicated wind instrumentalist and the five piece Aquila was formed.

Denyer is the clear leader, writing all the material on the album. He did however entrust production duties to Patrick Campbell-Lyons who at the time formed 50% of the real Nirvana, i.e. the late 60's early 70's proto-prog outfit, not the grunge band from Seattle.

Whenever I play this album, and even though I bought it over 30 years ago I still do so on regular occasions, right from the start I find myself anticipating the sensational ending section. I am of course doing so again here, and we should return to the beginning.

The album is split into two distinct halves. Side one has four self contained tracks which range from jazz rock to psychedelic proto-prog, while all the while remaining firmly in art rock territory. Side two is taken up entirely by the "Aquila suite", a 26 minute venture in three parts, delving into much deeper territories.

The opening track "Change your ways" has a jazz tinge to a rock basis. The mid-pace of the song seems quickened by the driving beat of the rhythm section. The track is reminiscent of the early work of CHICAGO, with a similar gruff vocal. "How many more times" is a slightly softer Hammond organ based piece with overlain flute and still that strong rhythm section, perhaps reminiscent of MOUNTAIN. The strength of the melody and the passionate vocals, together with a lengthy Rod ARGENT organ style solo make this one of the album's highlights. This track in particular is reminiscent of the music of STEAMHAMMER.

"While you were sleeping" is the closest of the set to Denyer's former band, with a more psychedelic feel. The literal echoing of the vocal line by the sax is quite striking, the song being very similar to TEN YEARS AFTER's "Love Like a man" from their "Cricklewood Green" album released the same year. Side one closes with "We can make it if we try", which combines light pop verses with loose thunderous choruses. The instrumental break is a jazz sax solo backed by Hammond organ. Some nice bass work by Phil Childs here too.

And so to the crux of the album, "The Aquila Suite". The first movement opens with a brief solo flute rendition of the closing theme before the band burst in and we're straight into a Hammond led blues rock rhythm. The feel is slightly JETHRO TULL ("Thick as a brick" era) accentuated not just by the presence of flute and organ, but by the way the former is played. Once again, the rhythm section drive the track along as it twists and turns through various instrumental leads and occasional "Fly high" verses. Midway through, a percussion break (as opposed to drum solo) intervenes, not unlike OSIBISA's contribution to the closing section to URIAH HEEP's "Look at yourself".

The brief first part of the "Second Movement" is entitled "Cloud circle", the music being onomatopoeic as it moves from flute to organ. This is followed by "The hunter", a slower section with more of a blues feel, but lyrically the song is perfunctory serving only to carry the concept forward. "The kill" lifts the pace, as the high pitched organ backed by dramatic percussion simulates the bird of prey's dive for it quarry, the sax leads the ever increasing pace until the deed is done.

The third movement is what we have been anticipating right from the start, and is for me one of the most delightful pieces of music in my collection. There are two distinct sections, "Where do I belong" and "Aquila (conclusion)". "Where do I belong" is an uplifting, emotional ballad with sensitive lyrics which prolong the bird of prey analogy in a personal context. Here the organ is swirling and ever present, while saxes carry the main theme coming to the fore for the almost smooth solo section. During the solo, the Hammond is all the while raising the emotion of the piece until Denyer brings things to a wonderful conclusion. Acoustic guitar backs Denyer's link vocal which ends with a single held note on the organ. The held note swells driven on by rolling drums before bursting in to the magnificent closing section. This organ and multi-tracked sax wall of sound is simply awesome. Think "Hamburger concerto" (Focus), think "I want you" (Beatles), and your approaching the majesty of the conclusion. As endings to an album go, this is the standard by which others should be judged.

In all, an unjustly lost album from 1970. It is perhaps George Lee's contribution which distinguishes "Aquila" from other releases of the time, his multi- instrumental talents giving each track a unique flavour. Ralph Denyer's own contribution though should not be under-played. As sole songwriter and vocalist, as well as lead guitarist, he takes great credit for the way he exploits the talents of his fellow band members. Highly recommend, if you can find it! ... don't miss this opportunity!!!

ALL THE RECORDS ARE SHIPPED FROM ITALY AND I CAN'T SHIP FOR 4$ TO USA ... SO PLS READ THE FOLLOWS POSTAGE RATES AND
PLEASE AWAIT FOR MY INVOICE BEFORE TO PAY!

POST & PACKING:
ITALY:  € 9 (Raccomandata 1)
UK:  € 13  for 1/2 lps - from 3 to 6 € 19 (registered air mail)
EUROPE (including ISRAEL - RUSSIA + EASTERN EUROPE COUNTRIES ): € 13  for 1/2 lps - from 3 to 6 lps € 19 (registered air mail)
USA/CANADA/SOUTH AMERICA/JAPAN/SINGAPORE: € 18  for 1/2 lps - from 3 to 6 lps € 29(registered air mail)
AUSTRALIA/NEW ZELAND: 1/2 lps € 24 from 3 to 6 lps  € 34  (registered air mail)

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Guarantee: I try to be as accurate and honest as possible when describing the condition of any LP but of course if you feel that I am mistaken and the description is inaccurate I will offer a complete, no quibble refund (through Paypal) upon return of the item

ALL RECORDS ARE PROFESSIONALLY CLEANED BEFORE DISPATCH AND PACKAGED INSIDE CRUCIFORM MAILER WITH 2/3 STIFFENERS WITH THE VINYL OUTSIDE OF THE SLEEVE TO PREVENT ANY 'KNIFING' DURING TRANSIT.