Album Review - Rick Wakeman The Myths and Legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table
Reprinted from the December 2006 edition of Music Street Journal
"Who so pulleth out the sword from the stone is the true-born king of all of Britain."
While this greatest of tales of heroism and chivalry has been told numerous times in written and filmed form, only a handful of music based tellings have been done. One of the best known is this version, The Myths and Legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, composed by Yes keyboardist Rick Wakeman.
The fourth album in the very prolific Wakeman’s solo discography was originally released in 1975, between his early stints with Yes. This concept album detailing the Arthur legend is first and foremost a showcase for Wakeman’s talents on the ivories (both traditional and analog synth alike). Its subsequent tour was a performance staged on ice, which also reportedly iced Wakeman’s finances. Despite the seemingly bizarre staging, a couple of real gems are to be found here.
Before we get to the review though, a random trivia note: Both this album and the film Monty Python and the Holy Grail were released in April of 1975. There are far fewer coconut horses here however.
"Arthur" - Introduced by actor Terry Taplin (whom you might recognize as the groundskeeper left in shock after seeing Lord Blackwood rise from the grave in the big screen Sherlock Holmes), this opening number starts out orchestrally and segues quickly into a mix of rock, spacey keys and Arthurian style instrumentation. Vocals throughout the album are handled by Ashley Hold and Gary Pickford Hopkins who trade off throughout this number, augmented by The English Chamber Choir. Portions of this piece have been almost exclusively used since 1979 as theme music for the BBC’s election night TV coverage.
"Lady of the Lake" - The shortest piece on the album is in fact not even a minute long. Choir singers under the direction of Choirmaster Guy Protheroe are the sole performers of this segue number into the next.
"Guinevere" - Rick Wakeman’s lone piano opens this beautiful number for merely a moment before fading into silence. This follows with a memorable Mellotron refrain that practically paints a mental picture of the queen of surpassing beauty. The vocals here are slightly thin in the mix but a great bass line from Roger Newell shines through and helps propel the number effectively. At the four-minute mark, Wakeman goes off on an analog synth solo that effectively dates this album smack dab in the prog heyday of the 70’s, which is by no means a bad thing, because a Mellotron/Moog resurgence in the 21st century would be wondrous.
Didn't believe me about the King Arthur on Ice thing, did you?
"Sir Lancelot and the Black Knight" - Orchestra and choir blare forth and are quickly joined by the rock band and a much improved vocal performance from the previous number. The most up-tempo number thus far on the album, it tells the tale of the most loyal of Arthur’s knights (yeah, except for that whole naughty tryst with Guinevere, but we won’t dwell on that) in his battle against the dreaded Black Knight. You can almost picture the two dueling with their swords during the instrumental sections. Wakeman’s Mellotron noodling is amazing here. The instrumentation behind him is just as effective. Were this to be resurrected as a stage (instead of ice) musical, there would be very little rearranging that needed to be done to make this an effective piece in that form.
Arthur and the Black Knight battle. Please note the comparative lack of limbs being removed by sword and comedic blood spray.
"Merlin the Magician" - If this album had a “hit” in the traditional sense, this would be it, as this instrumental makes appearances on Wakeman’s various greatest hits volumes. The male voices of the choir open the piece on a dour tone, sounding like monks of Arthurian England. There is a brief piano flourish and another pause of silence. Seconds later bass, key and guitar form a haunting, magical melody that dances between the left and right speakers like a will o’ the wisp on the moors. Only in 1975 could a bass line be so prominent in the mix of an album and truly help drive the number rather than being buried beneath the other instruments. Once again, Wakeman’s keys explode in their analog goodness, dueling against his acoustic piano refrain like a magician battling his evil doppelganger.
Things were much more colourful in the 70's apparently
"Sir Galahad" - The voice choir is back to introduce this movement exactly as the previous, followed by the piano overture present throughout. This is soon followed by a bouncy riff that owes more than a little to the live performances of Emerson, Lake and Palmer in terms of style, though the guitar riffing of Jeffrey Crampton sets it apart and propels the track effectively.
"The Last Battle" - At nearly ten minutes long, this longest and final track on the album closes it appropriately. Softly opening with bells and vocals, the piece is quickly accentuated by Wakeman’s sound as it builds up in intensity like knights readying themselves for battle. The combination of classical and rock orchestras is most effective here. Rick Wakeman’s synth solo through the middle portion is so good you almost wish it were a shorter, stand-alone number itself. Terry Taplin is back as the number winds down, closing the performance with additional narration.
The mix throughout the album, especially on Wakeman’s Mellotron, are a delight for those listening with a quality pair of headsets, with notes bouncing to and fro between your ears. Despite the science fiction tonal qualities the analog synths produced, they do not feel wholly out of place in King Arthur’s time. Prog purists and Yes completists are already in the know on this album, but if adventurous young listeners want to hear a slice of a bygone era, Rick Wakeman’s tale of King Arthur is an adventuresome listen.
Rick Wakeman is of course on Twitter, with a rather fun handle to boot. You should of course be following him as well as some other guy named Rick. #JustSayin
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