Comments for Caravan, Cunning Stunts

Dominated in many ways by excellent new singer/bass-player, Mike Wedgwood, "Cunning Stunts" still features fine performances from the Caravan regulars. Wedgwood and Pye Hastings alternate lead vocals on the first five songs and on into the side-long Dave Sinclair suite, "The Dabsong Conshirtoe" (this piece begins with a song medley akin to the second side of "Abbey Road," which segues into a jazzy instrumental, Wedgwood`s bass working dynamically against Richardson`s spiralling flute melody). Orchestral ballads feature throughout, with Sinclair`s wistful writing plaintively delivered by Wedgwood, as well as Wedgwood`s own fine "Lover" and Hastings` dreamy "Backstage Pass." "Stuck in a Hole" rocks in a similar style to the material on "For Girls ..." while "Welcome the Day" is disco-progressive! The fading in at the beginning of "The Show of Our Lives" successfully sets the scene (this also closes the 2CD "Canterbury Tales" compilation). I hate the title (originally intended to be "Toys in the Attic") and dislike the cover, but it is worth looking beyond these. Caravan are mostly an album band and this is a great album!(Ian Thomas)