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Reversal of Time (Remastered)

by Elegant Simplicity

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John's Band
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1.
Whenever I Close My Eyes (Remastered) 07:08
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2.
Stars That Cry Your Name (Remastered) 04:37
lyrics
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I know this shouldn't be happening I know it's kinda wrong I close my eyes and you're all I see when you sleep do you think of me You say you hardly know me Well I guess that it's the truth We'd better start making plans my love To deceive the ones we'll lose I'm far too old for romance I'm far too old for fun I should now better at my age But you make me feel so young How can I keep away from you When you're everything I need It hurts to think what could have been It hurts to see you leave I just can't help thinking about you I can't stop my dreams in the night To feel this wrong just can't be right To hell with sin, be with me tonight It's all over now The back seat of my car I feel as soiled as you my love A dirty, fallen star In the mad rush of feeling In the searing heat of flame You left me crippled and reeling I left you cheerless and lame
3.
Fear Of Rejection (Remastered) 07:18
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You see her across the floor With a smile that offers something more But she is not for you Never could be The girl with the wrong intentions She comes here every night Looking for fools They say she's not quite right She is tall and thin Of picture perfect grace Every part of her body is saying yes The quest for perfection Justifies your fear of rejection The times they have said no The times they've refused When will you learn No one's concerned
4.
Hearts In Harmony (Remastered) 05:04
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5.
And So It Goes (Remastered) 08:29
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And so it goes The story of our lives The things you meant to say to me The things you kept inside My heart made all the promises My body told the lies I'm trapped in love with you Looking for some answers You hold me oh so close And whisper in my ear You leave me feeling restless As if I'm just not here How did it come to this Not knowing what to do The future looks so bleak If there isn't room for you I'm sinking in the ground My hand is reaching out A tunnel lies ahead I cannot see daylight
6.
Reversal Of Time (Remastered) 14:26
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Try as you might it's all history It's gone before you even begin Every little shade and nuance of language Every little act and every little deed It's happened before It's happening now It'll happen again Can't stop it anyhow Try as you might it's all history The gift of hindsight means nothing to me I can only see as far as the next uncertainty Don't get in my way, I've far too much to lose I haven't got the time for chit-chat with you So keep your distance and keep your mind You can keep your watch and you can keep your time And when it all begins When the centuries blur You'll find me in the stars looking down We have to return to what it was before Make it clean and make it pure There are people and world's waiting out there Who need to see it grow to claim their share Hanging on to our every choice We have to get it right this time The need to survive doesn't justify the crime The need to survive doesn't justify the crime Is there any point Is there any reason Did anybody think we'd ever turn out like this Was it genetic or something that just happened Has time passed us by Has time passed us by How can you tell me That you love the way things are When they've caused you so much suffering and pain How can you live like that On the edge of some great horror That comes to you when the world's asleep That comes to you when the world's asleep Don't you sometimes wish That time was your tool And to turn it back was your only life's desire A reversal of fortunes A reversal of time Give us back our history Give us back our lives They gave us the pyramids The wheel and the wall They gave us the plough The seed and the soil They gave us the tools and the knowledge They gave us the power and the will They gave us the arts and the sciences They gave us the source and the cure to all ills The waste and the greed Borne of man As tragedies unfold Somewhere in the depths of time Our story's being told
7.
The Light That Used To Shine (Remastered) 04:15
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The light that used to shine From your eyes at me Grew sadly paler as the years went by I can't seem to think What had caused it so Am I so much older It makes you want to go We used to spend our moments In each other's arms Now it seems we can barely Pass the time of day And now my nights are filled With the utmost fear I think I'm losing you I guess I'm losing you Now the door is open I don't want you to leave Now the door is open I don't want you to go
8.
Spinning Through The Years (Remastered) 13:28
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9.
Like Shadows Again (Remastered) 08:21
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They say he killed his folks Because he wanted to There was nothing else for him to do They locked him up for twenty long years They said he was completely insane And then they proved it Implants in his brain Electricity is good for you Makes us feel at ease He's over there Staring at the sun His eyes wild and grey Ignoring everyone He's over there What's he become Another homeless lunatic Staring at the sun Come the day They let him out Into a world he'd only heard about The noise of traffic Hurt his head People turned away As if he were dead The world passes by But does not mean a thing Take him back to the place that's home to him We don't wanna see his kind round here no more We want to live like shadows again We want to live like shadows We want to live like shadows again We want to live

about

This was our 9th album and second to be released on CD, way back in 1997. Like the previous few albums it was recorded onto multi-track reel-to-reel tape. I only had 8 tracks to play with (the mind boggles!), so there was a considerable amount of overdubbing and bouncing to stereo pairs involved! Not to mention some syncing to DAT!

Anyway, what came out must have been pretty decent as the album garnered some great reviews and quickly sold out of its initial 1000 disc pressing.

Ken Senior once again returned to sing on 6 of the 9 tracks.

One of the most interesting things about this album is that all the electric guitar parts were recorded using a Marshall JMP-1 Valve Midi Pre-Amp! Loved that thing. The guitar sound on this album is very sharp and incisive.

My favourite track is Stars That Cry Your Name. This was originally a blues rock number called Cheerless and Used, on which I sang the lead vocals (yes, I do have the demo!) and, I kid you not, played blues style guitar - something I rarely do. Needless to say, Ken totally owns this version of the song and the acoustic guitar solo is really nice.

And So It Goes has a terrific melody and is also another standout. Lyrically not too obtuse and the guitar sound on the lead is emotionally resonant.

In amongst the above highlights, we have a whopping title track that took up all of one reel of tape. It's big in every way, both musically and lyrically.

Overall, this is a good album with some very strong material and performances.

For the remaster, I cleaned up some noise, added a little bit of sparkle to the high end, fattened up the bottom end and applied a tiny bit of compression. Overall, it's a genuinely marked improvement over the original.

Have a listen and let me know what you think.

credits

released October 15, 2021

Line Up:

Steven McCabe: Acoustic and Electric Guitars, Organ, Piano, Mellotron, Synthesisers, all Compositions and Arrangements
Ken Senior: Lead and Backing Vocals
Frederick Retless: Bass Guitar and Midi Bass
Peter J. Douglas: Drums, Percussion, Samples and Electronic Kit

With:

Kevin Whittle – Violin, Viola
Kim Phibble – Clarinet, Oboe
Jonathan Heaver – Cello
Christopher Farquarson – French Horn

All tracks recorded between September and December 1996 at Propinquity Studios, Harrogate, North Yorkshire.

Mixed and digitally mastered January 1997.
Produced and engineered by Steven McCabe

Originally released on Proximity Records CD ESCD 9, 1997

This version remastered between 03/10/2021 and 09/10/2021

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Elegant Simplicity

ELEGANT SIMPLICITY is a Rock Band from the UK. That is all you need to know.

But! If you like eclectic rock that mixes elements of classic progressive rock, underground, folk, fusion, and all points in between, we might just be the band for you!

"Be yourself, everyone else is taken" ... more

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