Steve Hackett
Bay of Kings

We are in 1983, and after releasing "Highly Strung," Steve Hackett seems to conclude that it is finally time to complete a project he conceived three years earlier and developed over time: to record an entirely instrumental album for classical guitar. Needless to say, Charisma doesn't want to hear about it, and so Steve is forced to turn to a much more modest record label, the little-known Lamborghini Records.

In this decidedly atypical work, Steve's guitar is in some instances accompanied by his brother John's flute and Nick Magnus's keyboards, which, however, play a purely background role.

Bay of Kings opens with the title track and immediately the reality around us crumbles, and we find ourselves observing the oscillating motion of a massive galleon setting sail from the old Bay of Kings, heading who knows where... The guitar is the only actor in this sound short film and is tuned to make the sound deeper on the bass (the sixth string is tuned to D). After this vision of ancient times, the window to the past remains open (and will be for the duration of the work) and shows us a journey to unknown lands, explored only by Steve's phrasing, this time accompanied by Nick's keyboards that aim to recreate a string section supporting the guitar in its evocative progress. As "The Journey" concludes, Kim appears to us. The sweetness of this portrait created by all three musicians is unparalleled and makes this brief composition one of the most effective moments of the album, thanks also to the beautiful flute theme that recalls the sounds of Erik Satie (on which the Hackett brothers will later focus in 2000 with "Sketches of Satie"). The keyboards make the sound even warmer than it was five years earlier in "Please Don't Touch," where the first version of "Kim" found its place. Kim Poor, Steve's partner and an artist of great talent, doesn't limit her support to the album by simply giving her name to the piece dedicated to her but also creates the painting that will be the cover of this work, even though later, when the CD will be remastered by Chrysalis, the image will be replaced with a portrait of Steve playing his guitar (also by Kim).

The fourth track of the album, titled "Marigold," seems to describe scenes of daily life in a small village. The acoustic guitar plays in a peculiar way thanks to the use of a harmonizer that makes it resemble a classical guitar. If possible, the sound is treated even more in the following "St. Elmo's Fire," where Steve, with his instrument, seems to ride the dark waves of a stormy sea, but shortly after, calm returns, and we are taken to visit the Brazilian town of Petropolis, from which the new track takes its name, pausing to admire the rivers that cross it and the forests that surround it while the guitar lulls us in this splendid setting. As this musical postcard fades, John's flute comes into the foreground with "Second Chance" and creates another unrepeatable melodic moment before once again withdrawing upon the arrival of Steve's descriptive guitar fantasy that in "Cast Adrift" seems to want to take us adrift over vast maritime landscapes once again. The following track takes us back eleven years to 1972, to the times of "Foxtrot," and is known as "Horizons"; the type of guitar used in the performance changes, but not the magical harmony that has always characterized this acoustic gem.

The next "Black Light" differs from the previous compositions due to the guitarist's use of tremolo, allowing him to execute two melodic lines simultaneously. The occasionally dark sonorities of this last piece reappear in the following "The Barren Land," where the guitar, once again left to itself, conveys with its notes a sense of loneliness and desolation, which will resolve with the final composition of the album: "Calmaria." The title refers to a Portuguese term meaning "the calm after the storm," and this is indeed the sensation we experience during the listening. After the initial notes played by Steve, Nick makes his appearance on the keyboards, supporting the main theme with a bed of strings until it leads to its quiet conclusion.

In the remastered version I mentioned earlier, there are three more tracks performed solely by the guitar: "Time Lapse at Milton Keynes," calm and nostalgic, with two peaceful and melancholic themes alternating, "Tales of the Riverbank," inspired by a composition by guitarist and cellist Mauro Giuliani (1781-1829), and "Skye Boat Song," an old folk tune recreated by Steve's guitar to close this acoustic masterpiece with its delicacy.

Without a doubt, this is not an easy or immediately assimilable work, requiring numerous and attentive listens, but it has the ability to transport a patient listener into ancient villages or aboard ships lulled by the sea.