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Sacred Scenes and Characters Limited Gatefold 180gram Vinyl LP

by Canterbury Glass

Release Date: 02 June 2016

Format: LP Vinyl

Label: Stamford Audio

£16.99

Canterbury Glass Sacred Scenes and Characters Limited Gatefold 180gram Vinyl LP

Overview:
Stamford Audio, in association with Canterbury Glass singer/songwriter Malcolm Ironton, is proud to present the very first pressing on beautiful 180 gram vinyl in a lavish gatefold sleeve of this superb 'lost' album, recorded in 1968. The first engineering job for renowned producer Chris Kimsey (famed for his later work with The Rolling Stones, Yes, ELP, INXS among many others), featuring legendary Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett on 'Prologue', and with future Whitesnake drummer Dave Dowle in the line-up, this album, a psychedelic/progressive crossover with church-music and bluesy influences, was made by a group of musicians very much on the London underground 'scene' of the time, playing gigs at Middle Earth and The Electric Garden, supporting Hendrix, supported by John Peel and pitched to CBS and Polydor, both of whom failed to pick up on a fabulous and original piece of work by a band which, on the strength of these songs, deserved way more recognition. At the time of a 2007 CD release of on Ork Records/RPM, 2 tracks ('Battle Hymn' and 'The Roman Head Of A Marble Man') could not be found, but after Simon Ashley at Stamford Audio contacted Malcolm Ironton late in 2009 to arrange releasing the album on vinyl, he searched again and, this time, the search bore fruit! Listening to all of the original tracks together again, he remembered that 'Gloria' had been intended as the last track on the album and 'Battle Hymn' finished off side one, so 'The Roman Head Of A Marble Man' then slotted in between 'Prologue' and 'Gloria' on side two and we now had the original running order for the vinyl LP, as it should have been issued all those years ago! "…rooted in church music, you hear snatches and elements of the quieter Seeds sounds, some Vanilla Fudge, Caravan and much more.The whole is certainly evocative of the Middle Earth scene in 1968, which is no bad thing." From the Kingsley Abbott 4 star review of the original CD release, Record Collector Magazine

Featured Tracks:
Disc: 1
1. Kyrie
2. Nunc Dimittis
3. Battle Hymn

Disc: 2
1. Prologue
2. The Roman Head Of A Marble Man
3. Gloria