Refugee-Refugee (1974)

In the early 1970s, Keith Emerson left The Nice to form the first progressive rock supergroup, the legendary Emerson, Lake & Palmer. This move practically spelled the end for The Nice, who nevertheless managed to continue for a few years, releasing several albums consisting mainly of material they had composed in previous years. In 1973, two of its members, Lee Jackson and Brian Davidson, wanted to reform the band, recruiting a new keyboardist. This position went to the Swiss Patrick Moraz, who came from a band called Mainhorse. This virtuoso keyboardist, far from trying to emulate the instrumental pyrotechnics and post-romantic sounds of Keith Emerson, proved himself a virtuoso keyboardist with more versatile resources, oriented towards a more baroque and classical symphonic style. This new project, called Refugee, released their debut and ultimately only album in 1974. It showcased a solid progressive rock sound, with brilliant compositions and instrumentation, driven by Moraz's keyboards and supported by the powerful bass of Lee Jackson and the drumming of Brian Davison. From the opening track, "Papillon", a stunning display of Patrick Moraz's skills, to the epics "The Source" and "Credo", it's an outstanding work that rivals the masterpieces of ELP. However, a year later, history repeated itself. This time, Patrick Moraz left the band to join Yes, replacing Rick Wakeman, thus ending the adventure of this short-lived but formidable progressive rock band.