Triumvirat-Spartacus (1975)

Triumvirat was the German response to the movement that The Nice and later Emerson, Lake and Palmer imposed on Britain and the rock world in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
With an identical configuration (bass, drums and keyboards), and due to their identical sound fully identified with the EL&P sound guidelines, this group was formed in the early 70s in the German city of Cologne under the leadership of keyboardist and voice Jurgen Fritz, author and producer in addition to all the group's albums.
The band was completed by Helmut Köller (bass, guitars and vocals) and Hans Bathelt (drums).
At the end of 1971 the English label Harvest, specialized in progressive groups of EMI, offered them a contract and published their first album "Mediterranean Tales" (1972).
In this first work the band shows a power and a more than acceptable sufficiency, that without reaching the levels of EL&P they leave their virtuosity well established, in songs like the suite "Across the Water", an excellent song where Fritz demonstrates his skills with keyboards.
With this album, the band manages to be present in continuous tours of Europe that catapult them to the Olympus of the great progressive bands of the 70s.
In 1974 the second album "Illusions on a Double Dimple" (1974) would appear, which places them in the American and English rankings.
In this second album, the band opted for more conventional themes in terms of their timing and a greater emphasis on the voices as demonstrated by the songs "Lucky Girl" or "Flashback", but it also contained instrumental themes typical of their virtuoso style such as "Double" or "Last Dance".
Later the group embarks on a great tour that would include the United States where they heel Fleetwood Mac and reap a triumphant tour.
"Spartacus" (1975), his next album, means his best work and ultimately one of the best progressive rock albums of the 70s considered by many one of the masterpieces of the genre.
In part this album recovered the pompous essence of the first album, but with an impeccable production and prodigious compositions such as the rhythmic "The Capitol of Power" or the splendid "The Sweetest Sound of Liberty" and "The Hazy Shades of Dawn".
The album manages to reach the top of the charts on both sides of the Atlantic and definitely confirms the band.
But from here on Triumvirat enters a descending line partly due to the continuous changes produced in it.

Triumvirat-Old Loves Die Hard (1976)

In 1976, the German band Triumvirat released their fourth album, "Old Loves Die Hard", which would ultimately be their last great work before veering towards the more predictable and commercial sounds of their subsequent releases. On this new album, the band introduced two new official members: for the first time, they had a vocalist, the Englishman Barry Palmer, and a new bassist, Werner "Dick" Frangenberg, who replaced Helmut Köllen. However, despite containing some great and brilliant moments throughout the album, "Old Loves Die Hard" falls far short of their excellent predecessors, such as "Illusion On A Double Dimple" (1974) and "Spartacus", released a year later, both considered masterpieces of 70s progressive rock. Created in the image of their contemporaries Emerson, Lake & Palmer a fact that would bring them considerable criticism throughout their career for being considered mere clones of the British trio Triumvirat's greatest asset was its leader, the virtuoso keyboardist Jürgen Fritz, thanks to his lavish arrangements and original style as a composer and instrumentalist. Composed of seven tracks, "Old Loves Die Hard" is distinguished above all by the complex mini-suites "A Day In A Life", "The History of Mystery", and "Panic on 5th Avenue", where the clear influence of EL&P is more than evident, but brilliantly crafted with grand and splendid symphonic arrangements. The rest is equally commendable, but lacks the excellence of the aforementioned tracks, such as the pompous "I Believe" or the melodic "A Cold Old Worried Lady". From this point on, Fritz's inspiration began to wane, resulting in a series of mediocre works: "Pompeii" (1977), "A La Carte" (1978), and "Russian Roulette" (1980), which failed to gain public traction, a fact that precipitated the band's definitive breakup at the end of 1980.