Rain Dances (1977)

It also brings a major change in the "sound", and (to me anyway) a rather disappointing one. Overall the album is, well, boring. There are a lot more vocals and a lot less imagination. The songs are all slower and more mellow than those of the previous albums, which is not in itself bad, but there's just no "bite" to them. Latimer and Bardens still get all the writing credit, but with rare exceptions, these songs could have been done by any one of a dozen "ordinary" rock acts. There is less of Andy's guitar, less of his flute, and just too much saxophone. Only one song, "Skylines", brings to mind the flavor of previous Camel.

This is probably the only Camel album that I wouldn't recommend except to die-hard fans (like myself).

Other Opinions

You were not too keen on this CD. It was one of my favorites. The addition of Mel Collins added a new jazzy, free flowing dimension to Camel. The level of musicianship and production quality went up significantly with the release of Raindances. Although I agree with you on missing the flute.