Various Artists The Sky Goes All The Way Home

A worthy cause but what of the music? Let’s first turn to the names already familiar to SMD’s readers. Robert de Fresnes opens the collection with ‘Claire’s Dream’, a lushly romantic interpretation skilfully deploying voice samples of Claire and her sister in an inspiring, melodic, operatic piece with a strong classical piano motif. In the Nursery’s ambient ‘Le Ciel’ is a wonderful blend of conventional instruments such as, voice, flute and oboe with minimalist electronica. Asana’s brilliant ‘Simran Visionary’ is a personal highlight and represents something of a departure for Dave Barker in that it is uncharacteristically restrained, with a greater emphasis on melody whilst retaining, albeit far more subtly, his dance floor references. {Watch out for the remixes). Similarly, Bekki Williams’ exotically melodic ‘Amber Dawn’ is an inspired and emotional piece which oozes quality and stands up with her very best work. ‘Lux Gratia’ by Michael Neil is, to paraphrase Michael’s own notes, an encapsulation of his work to date and is sure to win new converts to his spiritual and emotional sound textures. In similar vein, the undervalued Kelvin Smith contributes a delicately woven ambient tapestry of shimmering beauty.

Accomplished multi-instrumentalist James Asher contributes the relaxingly tranquil ‘The Bluest Sky’ and in his moving introduction to the project Asher articulates how he was moved and inspired by Claire’s line, “... it seems likely to be that there is no doubt some extraordinary and amazing observations made by people like Claire, but which conventional communication doesn’t always allow to come through. Hearing the line was like a chink in the doorways of perception - a glimpse of a hidden magical domain.” Andy Pickford’s excellent ‘The Sky Breaks’ is a vibrant sequencer driven opus, featuring some scorching sampled guitar and finely hewn melodies. Gier Jenssen, (Biosphere), is the only international artist represented, but more than justifies his inclusion turning in a characteristically hypnotic piece, incorporating natural sounds into a restful but evocative vista. The dance orientated Hyperdust provide the most commercial song ‘In The Perfect Blue’ which deserves to be featured on a ‘Chill Out’ collection.

To add to the exclusivity of the package, respected and renowned musicians such as, Peter Hammill, Kevin Coyne and Robert John Godfrey have all contributed material, which will undoubtedly make this a highly coveted album in future editions of Record Collector. Rick Wakeman has two tracks taken from his small label releases. ‘Hymn of Hope’ is a typically flamboyant prog-rock outing whilst ‘A Little Piece of Heaven’ is a delicate piano air. Rock veteran John Wetton’s moving quasi-religious ‘Adagietto’ is another pleasant surprise and is followed by Robert Fripp’s dramatically intense, ominous and provocative ‘The Sky Falls’. However, in my view, Roy Harper best captures the spirit of the album with his delightfully child-like ‘Solar Wind Sculptures’ which showcases his considerable talents as a poet and tunesmith. This album is a veritable cornucopia of musical delights, from the sensitive guitar instrumentals and songs of Gordon Giltrap, Anthony Phillips and Bob Armstrong to the inspiring Celtic rock of Celtus and Troy Donockley. There is a delightful sense of serendipity too, encountering new artists for the first time whilst dipping into the highly informative, extensive and touchingly intimate sleeve notes.