Camel-Rain Dances (1977)

By 1977, Camel had released four seminal albums oriented towards progressive rock, with hints of the Canterbury sound. That same year, 1977, the band underwent its first lineup change, incorporating bassist and vocalist Richard Sinclair (formerly of Caravan), replacing Doug Ferguson, and saxophonist Mel Collins (formerly of King Crimson). Both musicians enriched Camel's sound with different jazz textures and nuances, while maintaining the band's usual progressive structures. The rest of the lineup remained Andy Latimer, Andy Ward, and Peter Bardens. The result of this new Camel reorganization was their fifth album, "Rain Dances", where Latimer's crystalline guitars, along with Bardens' extensive keyboard repertoire, are supported by Collins' elegant saxophone playing and a rhythm section with a distinctly jazzy feel. From the atmospheric "First Light", or the fragile "Elke", a track featuring Brian Eno with his experimental keyboards and Fionna Hibbert with her electro-acoustic harp, to commercial melodies like the catchy "Highways of the Sun", relaxed passages like "Tell Me", convincing minimalist and orchestrated pieces like "Rain Dances", or the instrumental and carefree jazz "One Of These Days I'll Get an Early Night" or "Skylines", the result was a work that, while not reaching the excellence of their previous works, maintained the high level that was demanded of this iconic and essential British band within the progressive rock scene.