Cathedral - Stained Glass Stories (1978, Remastered 1991)
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Artist: Cathedral
Album: Stained Glass Stories
Released: 1978 (Remastered 1991)
Syn-Phonic (SYNCD 3)
Genre: Symphonic Prog
Tracklist:
1. Introspect (12:35)
2. Gong (7:00)
3. The Crossing (5:55)
4. Days and Changes (8:35)
5. The Search (11:20)
Line-Up:
Mercury Caronia IV (drums)
Fred Callan (bass, vocals)
Paul Seal (lead voice, bass pedals, percussions)
Tom Doncourt (keyboards, glockenspiel)
Rudy Perrone (guitars, vocals)
Progweed. Why is it that so many American prog bands from the 70s released one or two great albums, and then just disappear? Like Yezda Ufra, Lift, Babylon and many others, Cathedral was only able to put out a single excellent album before departing into obscurity. Stained Glass Stories is a unique blending of similar symphonic bands of the golden age of prog, most prominently King Crimson and Yes, with the occasional flourish of Genesis and Gentle Giant.
The two instrumental qualities that immediately jump out are the prominent addition of lush mellotron passages and the fat Rickenbacker bass that is quite reminiscent of Chris Squire. In fact, the bassist is probably the most notable member of the group, and can easily be heard throughout the mix. The guitar playing betrays an interesting combination of influences from Howe and Fripp, and is also a large contribution to the band's overall sound. The assorted percussion also adds a nice dimension. The vocals are sometimes reminiscent of Gentle Giant singer Derek Shluman in how they sound, but are generally delivered in an overly dramatic and anguished tone that might detract for some.The songs are all long and complex pieces with plenty of instrumental action.
"Introspect" is a great opener, filled with sounds from all the aforementioned bands. "The Crossing" has a very nice church-like chorus to open up the best vocal piece of the album. "Days & Changes" really takes a page out of the Yes book, with guitar that sounds just like Howe, and some mellotron sounds that function as the band's wordless vocals. This album is a no-brainer for fans of traditional 70s symphonic prog. Although it draws heavily on other bands of that time, it is still very unique and original.
Prog Archives. "Stained Glass Stories" should've gone down in history as one of the greatest symphonic prog records of all time. Unfortunately, due to some unfavorable constellation of the stars, it is considered merely a collector's item these days, but that doesn't detract one bit from it's majesty. Of course, no album is perfect, and "Stained Glass Stories" isn't an exception, so a number of flaws is present. influences here) The issue is the often-criticized vocalist, while he does have some ability, his main problem is that he repeatedly reaches for notes he's clearly not comfortable singing, with rather embarrassing results; his other weakness is that his vocal delivery is rather bland and lacking the emotion the music frequently requires . The other members of the band are more proficient: Tom Doncourt supplies plenty of interesting Mellotron, and guitarist Rudy Perrone, though occasionally a bit sloppy, provides tons of melodic hooks and intricate, dissonant guitar lines drawn from many styles; these are augmented by solid, confident bass playing and creative drumming. However, the group's true strength lies in the quality of the compositions, which present in equal amounts complex, inventive ideas and catchy melodies of the highest caliber. Thus , the aforementioned inconsistencies and occasional dull moments are more than made up for to establish this as a prog classic.
The first track, "Introspect" begins with a calm intro that lasts for about 45 seconds before exploding with outstanding guitar/Mellotron interplay that provides one of the album's best moments, although it's over rather quickly, replaced by a mellow but likeable vocal section, which after a while makes way for tribal-sounding drums and bass riffs; these in turn lead into further interplay with intricate arrangements and a somewhat ominous atmosphere. Unfortunately, the moody melodic part that follows the strange-sounding Mellotron interlude is ruined by the weak, inexpressive vocals , but the following sections make up for this shortcoming with more great ideas and playing. The first several minutes generally constitute the stronger part of the song, but it’s as a great an opener as one could hope for.
Following “Introspect” is “Gong”, an instrumental number and probably my favorite on the album, mainly because of the superb sinister section guided by Doncourt’s ominous organ work that occurs in the early part of the track. But it has lots more to offer, from the sweet, mellow guitar riff that is repeated throughout to the great transition sections, and is a towering achievement of 70s prog.
“The Crossing” would have to be the weakest song on the album, although it’s not bad at all. A choral arrangement opens the song, unfortunately followed by an annoying funky section; it’s redeemed, once again, by the tasteful guitars and keyboards, just not to the point where it can compete with the rest of “Stained Glass Stories”.
The album gets back on track with “Days and Changes”, although it too starts in a somewhat disheartening fashion as the singer decides to open the track unaccompanied. Perhaps I’m too harsh on the guy – after all, he does have a fine voice and could’ve been a capable singer had he taken some proper vocal training; unfortunately, it appears that he hadn’t , and the results aren’t satisfying. But soon the music takes over with a mighty guitar riff , once again displaying the bands ability to pull outstanding ideas out the ass. The song continues meandering through various impressive parts, ranging from Yes-like melodies to jazz guitar interludes, and is another majestic prog number.
Finally, we have “The Search” , an epic track that certainly doesn’t disappoint . It begins with Perrone bouncing tasty guitar fills off Doncourt’s Mellotron, following which is a great verse section (I love how the tonality changes from light and optimistic to unexpectedly ominous ). From there we are treated to more great prog rock music, full of interesting, intricate ideas and great instrumentation, making the song a fine way to end a fantastic album.
To sum things up, I repeat that while the “Stained Glass Stories” does have it’s shortcomings, it easily surpasses the vast majority of what most consider to be classics of prog rock. It’s a shame that these guys threw in the towel so early - I’m quite sure they had the potential for at least one more classic prog masterpiece.
Vintage Prog. Cathedral's first and only album "Stained Glass Stories" is the definitive American symphonic progressive rock release for many people. It's a very complex album that takes quite some listens to get fully into. Their influences was the traditional stuff (Yes, Genesis and King Crimson) but they were able to create a style and sound of their own, and they were undoubtedly a big inspiration for Änglagård when that band recorded and released their legendary "Hybris"-album 15 years later. The opening track "Introspect" was a 12-minute journey that goes from atmospheric and melodic beauty to distorted and noisy parts. The mellotron was used in a quite original and often disharmonic way. The superb and powerful bass-work of Fred Callan was mixed very much in front of the music, and drummer Mercury Caronia IV contributed with lots of complex and original drumming, using a very large battery. The tasty guitar-playing of Rudy Perrone was clearly inspired by Steve Howe, and you can hear this especially on the instrumental "Gong". The only weak link in the band was singer Paul Seal who sounded like a strained and weaker version of John Wetton. But it's really not much to care about, as the focus of the music is on the instrumental side most of the time. The only exceptions are "The Crossing" and the excellent closing-number "The Search" that features some of the strongest melodies on the album. "Days & Changes" is an amusing demonstration of how many different ways you can play a simple and atmospheric theme. "Stained Glass Stories" was ignored upon its release due to the time and period, but has now got the attention and respect it deserves from progressive rock fans.
Particularly recommended to Anglagard's fans: here you'll find where the sound of the swedish band came from (but also on Ile de fievre, forex). Cathedral have recently released another album (The Bridge): listening to some tracks on their site, it seems to be a fair album, but Stained Glass Stories is a one-shot masterpiece. With Sacred Baboon, it's my favourite U.S. album of the 70s. Enjoy it!
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