Trace on OGWT 1975

Rick van der Linden and Trace - 'Confrontation'

Love this 1976 number by Trace. The Dutch vocalist is called Hetty Smit or Smith.

Also known as Cherry Vangelder-Smith.

365 Albums 271-285

1. Jan Akkerman Jan Akkerman 1977
2. Jan Akkerman Live Jan Akkerman 1978
3. Can't Stand Noise Jan Akkerman 1983
4. White Eagle Tangerine Dream 1982
5. CU2 Live in Tokyo Jan Akkerman 2009
6. Fromage a Trois Jan Akkerman 2006
7. The Orchestral Tubular Bells Mike Oldfield David Bedford 1975
8. Blue Joni Mitchell 1975
9. Focus Con Proby Focus 1978
10. Focus 8.5 Beyond the Horizon Focus and Friends 2016
11. Golden Oldies Focus 2014
12. The Complete Guitarist or It Could Happen to You Jan Akkerman 1982
13. North Sea Jazz Legendary Concerts Jan Akkerman 2013
14. Forcefield II Forcefield 1988
15. White Ladies Trace 1976

365 Albums 151-165

1. War U2 1983
2. The Yes Album Yes 1970 (M31)
3. Saved Bob Dylan 1980
4. The Chieftains 5 The Chieftains 1975
5. Tanx T Rex 1973
6. Peace Eurythmics 1999
7. Paradise Found Maddy Prior & the Carnival Band 2007 * (J5)
8. Focus X Focus 2012
9. Birds Trace 1975
10. Mind Wave Cyril Havermans 1974
11. Slow Train Coming Bob Dylan 1979
12. Let it Be The Beatles 1970
13. Introspection 3 Thijs van Leer 1977 (J10)
14. Underwater Sunlight Tangerine Dream 1986
15. Ekseption 5 Ekseption 1972

365 Albums 31-45

1. Inside Llewyn Davies Soundtrack 2013
2. Joshua Tree U2 1987
3. Cuilidh Julie Fowlis 2007
4. 6 6 6 Aphrodite's Child 1972
5. Sing Lustily and with Good Courage Maddy Prior & The Carnival Band 1990*
6. Epsilon in Malaysian Pale Edgar Froese 1975
7. Trace Trace 1974
8. Tales from the Book of Time Catherine Lambert and the Lore Liege Ensemble 2003
9. The Chirping Crickets The Crickets 1957
10. Hamburger Concerto Focus 1974
11. Dona Nobis Pacem Pedal Point 1983*
12. Guitars Philip Catherine 1975
13. Regatta de Blanc The Police 1979
14. Long Player Late Bloomer Ron Sexsmith 2010
15. The Unfortunate Cup of Tea Horslips 1975

(* Suitable for Sunday playing IMHO)

Retro Album of the Week 19 - Trace

This week I want to feature the self-titled first album by the Dutch band Trace which came out in 1974. The rise of the band Focus in the seventies meant that some of us her in the UK began to look to see what else Holland had to offer in this field. We had heard of Ekseption and it was with the demise of that group and the departure of Pierre Van Der Linden from Focus that the line up for this album came about. Ekseption didn't want (the late) Rick Van Der Linden (a sort of Dutch Keith Emerson) for some reason and so Phillips gave him the opportunity to forma  new band. He tried working with the Ekseption drummer but that failed. Then with Pierre Van Der Linden (second cousin of Rick they now say; I had thought they were completely unrelated) and Jaap Van Eik (bass) forming a trio he got it together with this album. (They were to have been Ace but the name had been taken so someone suggested Trace). The album was no Moving Waves as far as success was concerned but I just loved it and still do. They did come to Cardiff but it was prayer meeting night so I didn't join my friends for that. What I like is the reworking of Bach, Grieg and folk tunes from Scandinavia and Scotland plus the obligatory solos for bass and drums. The synthesisers sound dated now but were state of the art then an can still sound good. Much later copies of the album add two bonus tracks. Two further albums were produced after this one with altered line ups. This is by far the best.

What seventies prog rock was all about

This video of the late Rick van der Linden's Trace has it all - hair, satin, banks of keyboards, a drum break, etc, etc. Not to everyone's taste I'm sure.