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Olias of Sunhillow is the debut studio album by English singer-songwriter Jon Anderson, released in the United Kingdom on 9 July 1976 by Atlantic Records.[3] When the progressive rock band Yes took a break in activity in August 1975 for each member to record a solo album, Anderson, having established himself as their frontman, decided upon a concept album that tells the story of four tribes of an alien race and their journey to a new planet after their home is threatened by a volcanic eruption. Olias, a magician, builds a spacecraft named the Moorglade Mover and is helped by fellow magicians Ranyart and Qoquaq to gather and carry the population to their new home.
The album was recorded using a mobile studio situated at Anderson's country home in Seer Green, Buckinghamshire, with himself as the sole producer and Mike Dunne as the engineer. Musically, the album features elements of progressive rock with psychedelic folk, experimental electronics, and world music, and features Anderson playing every instrument, which includes a variety of keyboards, guitars, and percussion. The track "Ocean Song" was performed live at select shows during Yes's 1976 North American tour.
Olias of Sunhillow peaked at number eight on the UK Album Charts, the best performing chart position of the solo albums released by the band at the time. It reached number forty-seven on the US Billboard 200. The album received generally favourable reviews from music critics, and was reissued in 2021 with a remastered stereo mix, from which a 5.1 surround sound mix was created. Since 2000, Anderson has been working on music for a sequel album entitled The Songs of Zamran: Son of Olias, which centres around the creation of Earth's structure
Paul Stump's 1997 History of Progressive Rock called the album "probably the most complete manifesto to Progressive ideology (infinitely more so than [Tales from] Topographic [Oceans])." Stump praised the album's divergence from the normally accepted practices and language of mainstream rock, while noting that it is also very accessible to a mainstream rock audience.[17] In AllMusic, Dave Connolly concluded "the idea may seem overly ambitious, but Anderson fills the record with enough magical moments to delight fans of Yes' mystic side... at no point does the music lose its spellbinding effect for lack of sonic detail. Olias of Sunhillow is faithful to the spirit of Yes, though decidedly more airy than that band's visceral style ... Olias of Sunhillow is not the missing Yes album some might hope it to be, though it does prefigure the later Jon & Vangelis collaborations of the '80s."[18] Writing on his own Progrography website, Connolly has also commented that "it's not a stretch to say that Olias of Sunhillow looks and sounds like [Roger] Dean's previous Yes artwork come to life. Since Anderson himself handles all the instruments, the album is an airier affair than Yes, and yet at the heart of these songs is the same captivating, intoxicating core that the singer brought to that band.... Olias of Sunhillow is the one Anderson album most likely to please Yes fans, immersed as it is in their mystical aura. It's also a gorgeously packaged product (in LP form, anyway), which helps set the mood immeasurably."[19]
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In Elven Lands accomplishes it's goal more fully than many similar attempts do- to re-create the spirit of Middle-Earth. Some adaptions, like Blind Guardian's Nightfall in Middle Earth are excellent albums, but they don't seem to naturally flow with the true mood of Arda. To successfully transport the listener into another world, the musicians in The Fellowship (all 12 of them) use both modern and ancient instruments in a very traditional, non-prog rock manner.
Although every track does construct the Middle-Earth spirit, many of them fluctuate drastically in scope and mood. For example, the second track, Dan Barliman's Jig, is a humorous ditty while the next track, The Silver Bowl, is much more somber and bare. Several of the tracks are sung in elvish, ranging from the celestial Verse to Elbereth Gilthoniel to the warm Elechoi. The Liner notes are phenomenal because they not only present the lyrics in Elvish and English, but also an explanation of why each track is included on the album.
Other tracks like Oromë: Lord Of The Hunt, featuring a slow climax of brass instruments, are instrumental compositions. The absolute highlight, however, is The Sacred Stones sung by Jon Anderson. The lyrics, in true Jon fashion, paint a picture; they manifest the whole mood of the album delicately and beautifully. The golden peacefulness, yet limitless power, that ripples beneath the surface is simply incredible. "We're given heaven each and every day," Jon proclaims. He uses the powerful story of Morgoth's banishment and the recovery of the Silmarils to meditate on pure universal truth...
Next on the album is a haunting re-arrangement of Led Zeppelin's Battle of Evermore, and then a few other tracks that continue to show variance and originality between themselves.
In Elven Lands is essential for any fan of Tolkien. Even if the listener isn't a die-hard fan, though, he can still draw incredible enjoyment from this journey and experience a remarkable album, seemingly pulled from another age.
Rating: 9/10
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