Robert Fox Timeless Play Sample:   56K Dialup   Broadband   Download Sample:   500K   1.5Mb (Excerpt from track(s) 'Queen of Hearts')

'Timeless' is an overdue retrospective of Robert Fox's career and appears nearly 15 years after Robert's debut 'Asfafa' in 1991. Since then he has built up a loyal fan base and his epic, sweeping, cinematic sound, with rich melodies and detailed rhythms has made him one of the UK's premiere exponents of melodic electronic music. His work has been compared to Vangelis at his most accessible and although the comparison is often meant as a compliment it underestimates Fox's own template which has been carefully crafted and undergone subtle changes through successive album releases. 'Timeless' focuses exclusively on his solo albums and is the ideal introduction to the unitiated and has been carefully compiled and sequenced.

The tracks are not strictly chronological as the set opens with the magnificent 'Thundering Water (Niagra)' from the 'A Gathering of Spirits' album from 1994. The orchestral opening sequence prequels the superb melody which uplifts and inspires reminding us from the outset of Robert Fox's abilities as a first class tunesmith. This is underlined by the next track taken from one of his finest releases 'Talking Heads' (2000), the outstanding 'Queen of Hearts' which like all the other offerings still sounds fresh and inspiring. 'Four Six Zero' and 'Water Music' are also taken from 'Talking Heads'. Robert has been influenced by the landscape and his travels to Australia and Canada were a rich source of inspiration. The 'Blue Mountain Suite' (1993) is represented by 'White Man Dreaming' and the outstanding '3 Sisters' which still sends shivers down the spine.

The latter has a pastoral, dream-like quality reminiscent in atmosphere to the 'Unicorn Theme' from the 'Legend' soundtrack and has subtle ethnic colour to enrich the sound. 'Asfafa' is represented by 'Over Turquoise Seas' and a decade and a half later it still sounds as evocative as ever. 1994's 'A Gathering of Spirits' is further represented by 'Moving On' another personal favourite of mine as Fox strips his sound down to produce a delightful almost folky, piano driven piece. The shimmering 'And All Shall Be Well' is taken from the T.S.Elliot inspired 'The Fire and the Rose' and 'Angel' from 'Underworld' (2002) revealed subtly darker textures which give the music a further dimension. 'Heaven's Gate' from 'The Stuff of Dreams' is simply magnificent and would enhance the soundtrack of a Hollywood production as there cannot be many better spiritual anthems than this. 'Into The Light' has 'Somewhere Out There' and 'Brother Earth' adding to the embarrassment of riches. The exclusive edited version of 'Ascension' from Robert's latest album 'Maya' underlines the composer's strengths as once again he takes his distinctive music into new territory.