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Rating: A winning team should not be changed, and for their fifth career album, Saga flew from Toronto to England once again, for the second time handing over the reins to producer Rupert Hine, the craftsman behind their substantial leap in quality and sales, which happened with the previous album "Worlds Apart". This work generally follows the same path, yet it heightens the already apparent musical drift towards broader and less demanding markets.
With an eye toward more classy and trendy productions among those currently at the forefront, supported in this by Hine himself, a deep connoisseur of the British new wave, the band begins to blend their usual progressive, virtuosic, and personal flair with sounds, rhythms, and atmospheres already familiar to many people. For instance, in a couple of tracks, specifically "The Writing" and "Intermission", it feels like listening to Howard Jones or Tom Bailey, the leader of the Thompson Twins, due to a certain vocal resemblance to the Canadian frontman Michael Sadler. Not coincidentally, good old Rupert Hine would go on to produce albums for both Jones and the Twins in the years to come.
Nevertheless, the tracklist still holds a considerable allure for the formation's historical aficionados, those captivated by the dazzling keyboard layers, pyrotechnic counter-time breakdowns, Steve Negus's precise and imaginative rolls on his favored electronic rototoms, and the breathtaking solos of guitarist Ian Chricton, serving as an indispensable seasoning to the band's elegant and richly melodic foundational attitude.
The album promises great things right from the start, with the excellent "I'm the Flyer": tight, powerful, captivating. The single and its music video ruled the young MTV (and consequently Italy's newborn Videomusic, to which I personally owe gratitude for discovering this band).
The electronic sound of the kalimba heralding the thrilling "Catwalk", extensively used throughout the album, can be considered a symbol of the band's stylistic evolution: replacing the thick and mid-range sound of past brass and woodwinds, which carried solemn and progressive riffs, are the new, glassy and brilliant, dynamic and danceable tones of Roland keyboards, so trendy and disengaging. "Catwalk" fades after four minutes, just as a guitar solo is about to start... which originally raged on for a full five minutes, doubling the song's duration! The CD contains both versions, the overly shortened one (chosen for the LP at the time) and the honestly endless one with Chricton, who no longer knows what notes to play... Ideally, as is often the case, the solution would be somewhere in the middle, with the guitar solo fading out after a couple of minutes.
The final track "The Pitchman" proves to be the most satisfying from the perspective of instrumental virtuosity and group technique: in the instrumental section, Steve Negus's formidable rolls lead a series of hyperbolic unison scales, a cherry on top of a track full of drive and inventiveness.
There is no lack of vocal performance from keyboardist Jim Gilmour, who takes Sadler's place to sing the track "Scratching the Surface", which would also perform modestly well as a single and remain the most renowned episode among those he sang, almost constantly appearing in concert setlists.
With their fifth album, loaded with expectations and hopes, more than decent but ultimately inferior to its predecessor, Saga stabilizes and consolidates their rather modest fame (they are now considered the second-best Canadian band, behind only Rush), but they miss the mark of truly breaking through on a large scale, namely in the United States, the market that really counts. The appointment is postponed once again... they hope... alas, it won't be so.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 The Flyer (03:42)
Back in ten minutes
And I'll just hang the sign
I've got to find a place
To clear my mind
[Chorus]
I'm the flyer
With only one desire
I'm the flyer
Nobody's gonna shoot me down
I've got an urgent appointment
And I can't be late
I've got a million things
That have to wait
Just hang on a minute
I'll try to hurry back
I hate to make you wait
But I'm going and I'm going fast
[Repeat Chorus]
I fly-- and never look back
I fly away before they shoot me down
I fly
I'll hang the sign and find a place to clear my mind
I fly-- and never look back
I fly away before they shoot me down
I fly
Hate to make you wait
02 Catwalk (04:23)
High up above
Like a cat clings
To an icy root
He keeps a slow pace,
Tight hold,
Anxious view.
There's something ticking away
Inside his head.
He's got to keep that vital distance
You can see it in his eyes
That glance across the shoulder
[Chorus]
He's on a Cat Walk
He's got a Cat Walk
He's on a Cat Walk
He's got a Cat Walk
He's always on the far side of the street
Never getting too close,
Too near, might meet,
Someone a little too close to himself
You can see it in his eyes
Those eyes are getting older
You can see it in his eyes,
That glance across the shoulder
[Repeat Chorus]
03 The Sound of Strangers (04:10)
No more
Going for the more familiar
No more
The nervous anxious grin
No more turning away from the peculiar
No more
Afraid of letting anyone in
[chorus]
Oh…The sound of strangers
Clawing at the door
Oh…The sound of strangers
Doesn’t scare me anymore
No more
The fear of making the wrong impression
No more
Sitting on the edge of my chair
No more
Looking for approval on a quick decision
No more
watching me from over there
[chorus]
04 The Writing (04:09)
She looked down at my palm
I had to know what was in store for me
So many plans had gone wrong
She said her eyes could see the future
She said that in my past
She’d seen a mountain in front of me
She said it wouldn’t last
A change in luck would set me free
[chorus]
The writing is on the wall
Those words will change it all
The writing is on the wall
Good luck is just the thought
I pick up the morning express
I turn to the page that is calling me
Lately I’ve been a mess
I’ve got to see what the lion says
The sun is in the fifth house
You’re sure to feel its strong effects
The clouds are clearing away
This losing streak will end today
[chorus
08 Scratching the Surface (05:13)
So you won't tell me, where you've been up to now
I don't know, they've seen you come and go (oh)
You're well on your way but never leaving the chair
Playing scenes on T.V. screens
Watching widely to glimpse the full view
While the hours have their hands all over you
You say that you see me, well I see you too
I look behind, what do you find, all but an empty room
Scratching the surface and you can't get away
You've travelled far and so far you have nothing to say
[Chorus]
Scratching the surface
You better come up for air
A new experience to get you there
Scratching the surface
You better come up for air
Strapped to the media, a machine to fear
You're onto something then it slips right away
It's in your hand, follow through right in front of you
You say that you hear me, well I hear you too
My secret is no secret, outside of the tube
So you won't tell me, what you've done up to now
You're watching me, I'm watching you decide (oh)
Scratching the surface, you can't get away
You tried so hard, and so far you have nothing to say
[Repeat Chorus]
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