Short Reviews [Oliver Wakeman - 2024 - "Anam Cara"]

I often feel that Oliver is somewhat overlooked when compared against his brother Adam, even though he has appeared on more than 60 albums, was a member of Yes, has toured and recorded with The Strawbs, as well as being responsible for a number of well-received collaborations with the likes of Steve Howe, Gordon Giltrap and Clive Nolan. In fact, one of those albums with Clive, ‘The Hound of the Baskervilles’ is still a frequent visitor to my player. Yet even I was not prepared for the sheer majesty and beauty of this album, which is surely going to end up in my Top Ten releases for 2024. The genesis of this album began before Wakeman joined Yes in 2009, but it was only in 2023 that he finally set to and finished writing it. To help him achieve the vision, he then invited in Hayley Gri?ths (Riverdance, Karnataka) on vocals, Troy Donockley (Nightwish) on pipes and whistles, Oliver Day (Fragile) on acoustic guitars, lute and mandolin, Scott Higham (Pendragon) on drums along with David Mark Pearce (electric guitar), Robert McClung (violin), Steve Amadeo (bass guitar) and Mick Allport (saxophone, clarinet). The album was mixed by Karl Groom (Threshold) and recorded by John Mitchell (Arena, It Bites, Frost*, Lonely Robot), so it was very much him working with people he knew very well indeed. The result is an album which has Oliver’s name on the front cover, but his role in this is to provide the perfect support to Hayley in an album which is very Celtic in nature with nods to Iona as much as to his more symphonic approach. Some of the flourishing and rippling piano is very much like his father, as he demonstrates his more progressive approach than his brother (who has always been more rock based to my ears, and it is perhaps not surprising he is most well-known these days for being sideman to the likes of Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep, Deep Purple and many more). There is a depth to this album which combines with a lightness of touch which is pure Oliver, with plenty of piano against the synths, acoustic instruments against the rock, with Troy making a huge difference whenever he comes in, yet he is not overplayed. Yet Oliver has made this album all about Hayley, providing material and accompaniment to perfectly suit her voice, and she has grabbed this opportunity and run with it showing both her classical and rock chops as she moves much more into the folk field. That this is beautiful is to surely understate just how magical this truly is, with the album feeling very much like an ensemble with everyone playing their part to lift Hayley up and ensure the vocals truly shine. It will take a while for me to truly gauge if this is Oliver’s best work yet, as ‘Baskervilles’ will take some toppling, but at present I think this may indeed take first place as this is faultless with a stunning guitar break here, the perfect violin there, punchy drums at the right time, all held together with magical keyboards and piano. Months on from its release I note this is the first review on PA, which means a gem is being missed out by many. Available through Cherry Red, this is sublime.