Stock: 
Format: 
Release Date: 25-03-1995
Label: Erdenklang Musik
Catalog Number: EK50832
Barcode: 723091508322
Musical Style: Rock
Track Listing:
| Disc 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mighty  | 10 | One Niter |
| 2 | Nude | 11 | Way Down |
| 3 | Curse | 12 | Spaceman Came Travelling |
| 4 | Blessed | 13 | Hats Of Glass |
| 5 | Loner's Rhyme | 14 | Grover's Mill |
| 6 | Benedictus | 15 | Chances Are |
| 7 | Fuge | 16 | Heaven Sales |
| 8 | V.A.T. | 17 | Holstenwall Fair |
| 9 | Morning | 18 | Cheese |
Description:
The symphonic-rock presented by Eela Craig in the seventies is completely in the standard tradition of Keith Emerson and his group Nice, as well as the Who. The Craigs can surely consider themselves to be pioneers of this symphonic rock- and space-music since they played almost exclusively in the opera and theatres. This stylistic spectrum was only made possible using electronics and Eela Craig had quite a bit to offer in this field. Almost anything that was electrically powered was collected in London during adventurous travels. The Craigs can proudly boast that they counted to the first musicians that worked with the legendary 'Mellotron', an instrument that reproduces a continuous series of choral, wind and string sounds using tape loops. These fantasy sounds in combination with the sound of the Hammond C3, the sound of the brilliantly played E-Guitar, diverse 'ancient' keyboards such as Lowrey, Wurlitzer and Fender and the VCS-3, the Minimoog plus many other analog synthesizers composed the historically warm sound of Eela Craig. Their synthetic wind sounds belonged to one of the most beautiful of this era. The Craigs were, of course, never perfect, like many other groups of this time they heralded substance and lifestyle instead of perfection. Furthermore, one starts to philosophize when this music is compared with the perfect yet lifeless, the loud yet insignificant music of the 80's which has been influenced by marketing parameters more and more. The seventies - the peak-time of the group -, in which their three LP's 'One Niter', 'Hats Of Glass' and 'Missa Universalis', presented in this collection, were produced, were also the years of Pink Floyd, Queen, Yes, King Crimson and 10 CC, all of which were favorite groups of the Craigs. It was also the time of psychedelic trips, which were jointly responsible for the sociocultural phases of the creative young musician's scene and that stand in blatant contrast to the present rational computer operator scene of the 90's. were also the years of Pink Floyd, Queen, Yes, King Crimson and 10 CC, all of which were favorite groups of the Craigs. It was also the time of psychedelic trips, which were jointly responsible for the sociocultural phases of the creative young musician's scene and that stand in blatant contrast to the present rational computer operator scene of the 90's. The willing listener will find out for themselves which time and which music has had more influence on their life, or can influence it in the future. In those days the group's studio was already centered at the 'electronic hunter's lodge', the family estate of the leader of the group, Hubert Bognermayr, who introduced the age of the digital sampler with his Fairlight-music computer and his 'Computer Acoustical Sound Symphony Erdenklang' only a few years after the introduction of the pop mass 'Missa Universalis' and a few years later he founded the digital, philharmonic 'Blue Chip Orchestra'. However, there in this legendary house, blessed by numerous international music journalists and by Bob Moog, the fruit schnapps bottles or the Austrian 'Mehlspeisen' (cakes) were more likely passed around as mind-expanding trips. These ancient and effective Austrian 'drugs' could possibly help to support the warm-hearted, lyrical and harmonic music.
