Drummer reacts to "Can You Understand?" by Renaissance

I feel bad for not realizing the absolute massive talent this band has with my first listen. I was so focused on Annie that I totally was blind to the fact that both John and Jon are absolute animals back there. The entire band was on the exact same frequency in this performance. It's absolute magic.
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• RENAISSANCE - Can You ...
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#renaissance

[@L33Reacts]

This was so good. How did I not realize how good the rest of the band was?? Good god! The rhythm section paired with those keys... WOW. Add Annie's beautiful vocals and you have yourself some amazing music. How were they not bigger?? Or were they big and i'm just a millienal. Thank you so much for watching y'all! It means the world to me, it really does. If you want to help support the channel, please consider liking this video and subscribing to the channel. If you would like to make a request or just send a one time donation, here's how! @L33Reacts - PayPal WWW.PATREON.COM/L33REACTS Thank you so much. A donation of any amount will get your named added to the supporter video that plays at the end of every video.

[@craigward2710]

They were only big in North East USA. They were pretty much ignored in the UK (with the exception of one freak hit single in 78: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pJy4ZYejqLqSa6c)

[@pencilpauli9442]

@@craigward2710 Wouldn't say Renaissance were ignored in the UK There is a very dedicated following, here, but it never translated into record sales. Not sure why they weren't as successful as other prog bands. Could be that the symphonic style wasn't hard enough.

[@JoeSlish-q2e]

for some reason they were big in the northeast part of the us than other areas

[@kevinlese633]

One of my top ten favorite bands

[@davidcandelaria4411]

I was the weird kid in high school in the mid late 70's listening to fusion jazz and Renaissance, Genesis, ELP, Yes, PFM, Gentle Giant, Jethro Tull...etc

[@et781]

Same here. I am a 64 year old lady. Yes, I went to all the rock concerts like Sabbath, Zeppelin, Heart, Rush, but I also was very into Tull, Renaissance, Al Dimeola, Yes, ELP etc. Some of my friends were not into progressive rock. I loved and still love listening to Renaissance. Their music is so enchanting.

[@Lightmane]

Another track by Renaissance that I really like is Carpet of the Sun

[@L33Reacts]

I'll add it to the list, thank you bro!

[@Lightmane]

@@L33Reacts anytime. I used it as intro and outro music for Chapter 28 of my narration. It kind of fit the theme : )

[@surfpsych]

XLNT choice!

[@JJ8KK]

What I always _really liked_ about Annie's vocal style was that, unlike Opera singers who have her range, she didn't add vibrato to every single note coming out of her mouth like they do to show off their "control"; she would add it extremely tastefully to finish off certain sustained notes as was appropriate. I found it so refreshing to hear a beautiful voice just hold a clean note without the excess. 🙂

[@philsmith2444]

John Tout’s misfortune was playing at the same time as 2 guys named Keith and Rick. You should check out the song “At The Harbour”, Tout’s intro of part of Debussy’s “La Cathédrale Engloutie” is magic. The whole song is heart-breakingly beautiful and sad. There’s a live version of “Can You Understand” from the Capitol Theatre in which Annie scats the orchestral part in the middle.

[@L33Reacts]

Bro you ain't kidding.... it was a gauntlet back then of talent. Absolutely crazy how much skill came out of that decade. Nowadays it's almost a wasteland lol

[@philsmith2444]

@@L33ReactsThere’s plenty of talent out there, but there’s nothing like the college & album-oriented stations that played this stuff in the 70s. You have to go looking for it to find it, KZbin is actually pretty good at recommending stuff but you have to find some of it first. Sirius? Nope. I haven’t used Spotify enough to have an opinion, but Pandora sucked. Most of my new music comes from reactors, to tell the truth.

[@luizoctaviodrummond8878]

Renaissance is fantastic. Listen to Opening Out and Day of the Dreamer together or Things I Don’t Understand

[@jkkansasband7056]

Lee, please continue with Renaissance. This is the classic lineup. One of my favorites of all time. I've seen Annie many times as she lives near me here in the States. A precious gem amongst the gems. She also performed in her bare feet. There is a TV concert on the BBC out there from 1977. It's excellent. I'll just name a few songs: Ashes are Burning, Ocean Gypsy, Black Flame and Mother Russia. Many more ahead. Peace. 7.6

[@L33Reacts]

I definitely am! I love this band and I should have done more by now... ashes are burning blew my mind LOL here's my reaction kzbin.info/www/bejne/pIPdqJSsaN-Dnc0

[@bearballin]

Renaissance is sorely underrated as a musical phenom. I hate to say it but i feel they were overlooked because A) they were British and B) they had a female lead singer, that was unheard of for a prog rock band. You gotta remember this was the early 70s when women were relegated to mainstream pop, soft pop and easy listening music. The band Heart helped change that w the Wilson sisters leading the charge for women in rock. While i was exposed to Renaissance in my early to mid 20s, it wasn't until i was in my mid to late 30s their music began to resonate w me. Here i am 64 and they bring back such great memories in my changing tastes in music. ❤ Next up try their song "Black Flame".

[@lisarainbow9703]

How cool ( and rare !) to see a reaction to Renaissance!! They were a fantastic prog band. I recommend checking out, "Ashes Are Burning" and "Mother Russia" for a few more amazing songs from this lineup of the band...

[@L33Reacts]

Here is my reaction to ashes are burning kzbin.info/www/bejne/pIPdqJSsaN-Dnc0 They are so damn good. They deserve so much more

[@olias056]

I'm glad you got back to them. Song for Schedrezade is a great peice, but long. Anything from their live at carnegie hall is a joy to listen to.

[@L33Reacts]

I'll do that one next! I'm glad I got back to them too. They are fantastic.

[@davidfelgate9541]

The Carnegie Hall recording of "Song of Scheherazade" is great, but in my opinion too much of the orchestration that you hear in the studio version gets lost in the live version.

[@Guido102]

I like the orchestration on the live version better. But either one you choose to listen to is awesome. The whole Scherezade and other stories album is amazing.

[@mikehale6235]

I second this suggestion. "Song of Scheherazade" is a real masterpiece whether on album or in one of the live remasters. Unfortunately very few of the Renaissance performances in their heyday were filmed or taped. Annie is still singing/performing in the PA area. You can find youtube entries for the current band line-up but, alas, Annie is the only member still performing as several of the originals have passed on. Annie has announced this year as the farewell tour. She still sounds pretty good for her age.

[@RMForbes505]

This band had far more than just one album. "From 1972 to 1979 Renaissance released seven studio albums, toured extensively, and sold out three nights in a row at Carnegie Hall with Tony Cox conducting the New York Philharmonic.[1] The band's success was largely concentrated in the United States, where they built a cult following."

[@L33Reacts]

Yeah I don't know what I was thinking when I said that lol woops my bad 😅

[@stephanevilleneuve9450]

Since you seem to be enchanted by the magnificent voice of Annie Haslam, to appreciate it to its full capacity, the song that best demonstrates it in all its greatness is Things I don't Understand, studio version of the album Turn of the Cards. Obviously, the Renaissance musicians demonstrate all their talent there

[@davidfelgate9541]

I agree 100%. There is no better song to showcase Annie Haslam's voice than "Things I Don't Understand" from Turn of the Cards (studio version).

[@harrybeaverjr3988]

Lee, check out their album Live at Carnegie Hall. You won’t be disappointed.

[@schuylersouthwell2554]

I was fortunate to see them live 3 times. One of those times was at Phoenix Symphony Hall with Al Di Meola as the opening act. A small part of the audience felt that Di Meola should have the entire show and kept yelling for Al during the Renaissance set. Finally, lovely Annie, using nice, clean adult words said she had never heard a more rude audience, and would they please shut up. The rest of us erupted in applause, not another peep was heard, and the show went on and still ranks as one of the top 5 concerts I have ever seen.. Renaissance is one of the tightest bands I have ever heard live - Annie's voice is what makes everything pop, but that band (Michael, Jon, John, Terry) - wow . . . Try reacting to _Opening Out / Day of the Dreamer_ (together) from *A Song for All Seasons* . Or anything from the Carnegie Hall album.

[@GreyDabbler]

I'm so glad that you are including Renaissance on your channel - one of the lesser known Progressive Rock bands, I think, but they are spectacular.

[@L33Reacts]

They are so damn good! It's a crime they are not as well known as some of the other bands I listen too... Annie and John and Jon are so damn special. I loved this so much. Thank you for watching my friend!

[@JJ8KK]

If you liked Jon Camp's bass playing as much as I do (he was clearly inspired by Chris Squire right down the the same Rickenbacker sound) you'll want to hear his extended solo in their _Live At Carnegie Hall_ version of Ashes Are Burning. It's one of my favorite live recorded bass solos, right up their with Chris Squire's extended solo on the Yessongs Album. He was really great AND he could sing, doing some beautiful harmonies with Annie quite often...

[@kmg2480]

I've long considered Annie Haslam's voice the sweetest in Prog; right up there with Jon Anderson's.

[@L33Reacts]

I totally agree. Her voice is pure Magic!!

[@tomratcliff3755]

Have you seen her work with Steve Howe, covering Yes?

[@user-vv9it9ye4g]

​@@tomratcliff3755OMG When I heard unexpectedly sing Turn of the Century with Steve, I wept openly.

[@DRob-s6d]

The audio for this is dubbed from the Royal Albert Hall concert. That's why the orchestration is present. BTW, I highly suggest "Day of the Dreamer". Great reaction!

[@L33Reacts]

Thank you so much! Well that makes sense. I was like where is the orchestra?? Lol that was amazing.

[@pancentricism]

By the time this classic line up was created, every member of the original line up had been replaced. Their original singer, Jane Relf also was fantastic. Her brother, Keith, was the original guitarist, and sadly died on stage due to an electric shock. Luckily there is some really good footage of the first line-up to explore as well. Turn Of The Cards, though, from this line up, is one of the greatest albums of all time.

[@onemerlin]

Glad to see you're getting into Renaissance, and good to see you noting Jon Camp. The fact that the guitarist plays only acoustic and only harmonically leaves a gap for melodic leads, and Jon is virtually the only bassist I know who drops in the melodic leads like that while still anchoring the pace. It's a sound that just isn't like anyone else's and I've loved it since I stumbled across them back in the day. Definitely check out Mother Russia, and Prologue, and Can You Hear Me, and the live album with orchestra at Carnegie Hall is just pure wonderful.

[@michaelhogan6770]

They do a cover of S&G's "America" I saw them preform it at the Phila Academy of Music. WOW They were are popular in the Philly area, Annie had a gallery in the New Hope area and sold her paintings at local art and craft shows. I saw them many times and got to meet her a few times.

[@michaelmeyerson5051]

You said it perfectly. How is this band not more popular? I've been a fan since 1974. They are my second favorite band of all time, just barely behind The Beatles. The band is amazing. But you are right, it's Annie who steals the show. She's soon to start the farewell tour for Renaissance. Yes, it's all new musicians with Annie. Rave Tesar is the musical director. He's been with Annie for over 20 years. Annie is now 77 years old. She still sings better than anyone else I've ever heard. I'm so happy to see you Anda few others react to her music I'd recommend you listen to Song of Scherezade from the "Live at Carnegie Hall " album. It is a full album side from this wonderful double album.

[@joe-9256]

This is not just music, this is medicine for whatever ails you. Life is a journey. This music will help you see where to go in your life and lift your spirit to help free you from whatever holds you back. Please take the time each day to listen to this music. Find a quiet room. Lock the door. Get high if necessary. And let the love from this music soak into your soul.

[@jpmnewyork]

Lee, I'm so glad to find you reacted to this (even if it was 8 months ago). Someone commenting on another video mentioned how much they like Renaissance, and I responded I did too, and my favorite of theirs was "Can You Understand?" but nobody ever reacts to it. They responded there were a bunch of reactions online. So I looked, and sure enough, this popped up! I loved Renaissance when I was in college. My biggest regret to this day is that I didn't take the plunge and decide to go to a show at the Capitol Theater in Port Chester, NY in 1976: Renaissance and Al Stewart. Why didn't I go? Why, why, why?? I had never seen this live version. You should also listen to the studio recording, which is exquisite. And take a listen to "Prologue" from their first album with Annie Haslam, as well as "Trip to the Fair."

[@samsonau8205]

Lots of great tunes to check out. Black Flame, Trip To The Fair, Ocean Gypsy, Mother Russia, Carpet of the Sun...and more!! If you want keys, then Prologue.

[@wallacecallow2255]

Prologue is talent to the max! RIP John Tout.

[@Ajonr]

Yeah, Renaissance and Annie were pretty amazing. They niched as Prog and Prog never had mass appeal.

[@timgrady4630]

Definitional beauty . Their Compositional acumen built upon a thorough understanding of its roots in Classical tradition , much like Yes , ELP , Tull et al . Had their Albums in the mid '70's .

[@wallacecallow2255]

Wow! I didn't know you had reacted to these guys. And gal! I got to see them in concert, 70s, in Seattle. It was a special night at the Paramount! I'd suggest 'Prologue', 'Carpet of the Sun', and ' Can you hear Me?'.

[@philtred21]

One of the best bands ever, believe me. A lot of wonderful songs.

[@VampeyMK]

They have some incredible songs and albums i love them. Just the Sheherazade album alone is legendary.

[@rakjr6]

I saw them live in 1975. The glory days of progressive and album rock.

[@JonQuist]

Lee, they actually have a lot of albums, and still do concerts (minus some critical members… and Annie’s voice is not what it was then - still the same beautiful person though). Look up their discography. I’m familiar with Prolog, Turn of the Cards, Scherazad, live at Carnegie Hall, Novella, A Song for All Seasons. The contributors were consistent through all of those. I think things started to change after that… partially fallout from evolutions in popular music tastes (Disco, MTV, etc.). But I’ll vouch for almost any song off of those albums. Listened to them almost as much as Yes. I hope you eventually get to Ashes are Burning from the Carnegie Hall album. Jon Camp bass solo on that is really impressive, and the climatic ending is the best of many different endings for that song (for me). Maybe you can do that one in a few months. There are several folks that have reactions to Ashes on KZbin, but nobody has done the version from Carnegie, and I feel Mr. Camp doesn’t get near the recognition he should, in general, and for that masterpiece in particular. There are other recordings of his bass solo in the song available on line, but most are longer (and showcase his skill for sure) but, not as congruent to the underlying song IMO. He killed it that night. You’ve got a great ride ahead of you, my man. ENJOY.

[@jpirard]

John Tout (rip) on keys, Annie Haslam on vocals, Jon Camp on bass and vocals, Michael Dunford (rip) on acoustic guitar and vocals, Terrence Sullivan, on drums and percussion. This is the edited version, the audio is from their Carnegie Hall live album from 1974 with full orchestra. The song is actually longer.

[@L33Reacts]

They all are frickin amazing together. I will be doing more from them soon! I have a whole list of songs from them to do now

[@PeregrineTravers]

You have to do “the Sea”. Annie’s voice is astounding here.

[@paulrosenberg4227]

Saw them live under the stars at Red Rocks with an orchestra. Brill. Annie is a fab artist as well, and one of her works hangs in our bedroom.

[@paulehney4581]

Another hippie band. Lol yeah lots of talented people and Annie's voice. Try "Carpet of the Sun" by them.

[@L33Reacts]

I'll add it to the list, thanks bro!

[@reverts3031]

I am so glad you found this band. Been a favorite for a very long time. Loved all their music - check out Carpet Of The Sun

[@serenityedits1857]

One song is all it takes

[@yonatangoldman9759]

Scheherazade is a masterpiece, especially the Carnegie Hall version.

[@markfaris4735]

There is no note that Annie Haslam can't hit. I saw Renaissance in their prime on a number of occasions and just couldn't believe how tight they were. I guess it is safe to ask just who is comparable to Annie Haslam? She's a vocal goddess!!

[@frederickpando9444]

Jon Camp is the bass player. Jon Trout is the keyboardist. The acoustic guitarist is Mike Dunford.

[@TerryKrysinski]

Thanks for this one,Lee--awesome stuff! You need to hear the entire Ashes Are Burning album,,as well as their Turn Of The Cards- the follow-up. Brilliant music all the way through! T

[@TerryKrysinski]

One album? No-no... Prologue, Ashes Are Burning, Turn Of The Cards, Scheherazade & other stories, Novella, Song For All Seasons and Azure D'Or. All fab,bro. dive in...T

[@L33Reacts]

Yeah I don't know why I thought they only did ashes are burning! It was late lol I am definitely diving in!

[@serenityedits1857]

first vid. you got a good ear bro, Song for Schedrezade (all parts) will blow your mind.

[@frederickpando9444]

This performance was edited. The live studio performance was stopped at 6:48 and the audio of the album track was dubbed into the video.

[@davidcandelaria4411]

There were 3 bass players that insoired me to play bass....Chris Squire, Michael Rutherford and Jon Camp of Renaissance! No lead guitar, lead bass!

[@L33Reacts]

Duds that's a helluva list right there! Squire and Rutherford are just dynamic as hell. And camp so far has been breathtaking as well. Ashes are burning..no that's Jon camp burning cuz he is on FIRE

[@roloworm1501]

If you really want your mind blown listen to the entire album Live at Carnegie Hall (which is where the audio for this track comes from if I'm not mistaken). Look at the notes. Apparently the original audio for this live studio recording was lost, so they used the audio from Live at Carnegie Hall. In fact, there is an instrumental section originally from the movie soundtrack to Dr Zhivago that was included in Can You Understand, perhaps because the chord progression for a large part of this piece comes from it originally (not sure of that). The soundtrack was composed by Maurice Jarre I think. Trust me when I say you need to listen to the entire album Live at Carnegie Hall. Good Luck in your future music dicoveries!

[@grahamreed8774]

They were really well known at the time, but like all the fabulous bands and music that was created at the time- it makes me sad that their music is not so well known. Rickenbacker bass, same model as the one played by Chris Squire (Yes). Very popular late 60s-early 70s. Fear not there are some great new bands around now- EBB is a great example of a new melodic prog band.

[@reverts3031]

Another band I used to listen to was Celtic - for some amazing voices I recommend Clannad - Caisleáin Óir (The younger sister of one of the singers is Enya.)

[@johnmorris8799]

Was that miming to the Carnegie Hall live track at the end? Sounded exactly familiar ..

[@333wheeler]

Sheherazade is brilliant . Even better the live version .

[@DylanWhite-k5j]

Gongs are the most ecstatic instrument in music.

[@i-klaus]

The crime in music today is the compressor.

[@RandyHall324]

Lots of great suggestions in the comments, but for me the next tune needs to be Mother Russia - know you'll love it! Enjoying your reactions!

[@L33Reacts]

Sweet I'll add it to the list. Thank you my friend! I truly appreciate it.

[@j.jennings1722]

Hey, L33, Steve Howe and Annie Haslam covered the Yes song "Turn of the Century" and I actually like it better than the original, which I found shocking, because I love Jon Anderson's voice. You should definitely react to that song. It suits her voice so well. Also, the "Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe" album. A classic with incredible songs. Please, check it out. ❤✌

[@JoeSlish-q2e]

there are 2 fairly new bands called grizzly bear and fleet foxes that are good

[@haeuptlingaberja4927]

Good on ye, lad, for checking this forgotten stuff out. Really. But if you're really going to go down this 70s medieval prog road, you absolutely HAVE to check out Gentle Giant. And Gryphon, Skin Alley and others I will not swamp you with. But especially Gentle Giant. The magical musical genius Steven Wilson has been remastering this stuff, my dude, and it's just fookin' brilliant. "I Lost My Head" is this very sub-genre's anthem, although Wilson just released his rendering of "Giving It Back," which is the penultimate medieval reggae song. (Yeah, those are real things.) And when you're all done, you might want to check out the original Celtic rockers, Horslips. So, so much genius stuff for you to discover...I envy you, laddie-boy. I discovered it 50 years ago, when there was at least a context for it. Have fun and good luck!

[@L33Reacts]

Hey bro thank you so much! I have done about 5 GG tracks here is the link Gentle Giant reactions!: kzbin.info/aero/PLCaCScTIhclJcVjKXKG-3G8A2ME1En6yJ

[@L33Reacts]

I have been meaning to check out gryphon! Thank you for reminding me and thanks for the other suggestions. I will add them to the list!

[@haeuptlingaberja4927]

@@L33Reacts I spoke too soon, not having seen your GG reactions. You are on the right track, my boy. I would love to hear what you play nowadays. And thank you. Next up has to be Horslips, for my "money." (Very sorry that I can't give you much of that, disabled, old, broke hippie that I am.) But I will give you another suggestion you might not get elsewhere. Check out Gerry Brown's drumming on Stanley Clarke's epic 1978 live at Montreux performance of "Hot Fun." kzbin.info/www/bejne/jISvqmttd9JraaMsi=z6iEBnVCXei0HR_X

[@francisbroka9471]

Jon Camp is NOT acoustic, he's the bassist on Rickenbacker, like Chris Squire. The acoustic guitar is heldby Michael Dunford

[@tomratcliff3755]

They were British,and didn't get a lot of airplay in the states. After their live at Carnegie Hall double LP, the American A&R people pushed them into a more -- 80's model still very nice but less progressive more MTV. Their first album is not the same lineup,but has the singer from the yardbirds and his wife. Prologue through Carnegie Hall are the best of the band, I think you will enjoy every track. I'm going to miss the premier (Dr appointment) but I look forward to seeing it when I get back home.

[@L33Reacts]

I hope you enjoy the video when you get back!! I loved this. I am definitely gonna check out more. Thank you for all the info!

[@jpirard]

Actually it was 5 years before that happened. They released Novella, Song For All Seasons, and Azur D'or before that happened.

[@jpirard]

The next 3 albums after Carnegie Hall were stellar as the rest. Many years later, Tuscany, a GOOD solid album, but Grande In Vento was the last studio album and a real return to form.

[@tomratcliff3755]

Well to each their taste, thought novella was weak,and after song I quit buying. I'm not able to comment on the rest, but I saw a real move away from their roots towards a slicker,more commercial product.

[@rdmtimpaz]

@tomratcliff3755 Jane Relf was Keith's sister, not his wife.

[@beldin2987]

Since you started just the rant about todays music, have you already discovered "symphonic metal" ? For me that is more or less what evolved out of bands like Yes and Renaissance and they are all fantastic. And metal is in the end the modern classical music. Renaissance was also very classical just more with a folk mix. Now if you already know Nightwish, Tuomas also wanted to make a folk band first, but after Tarja came back from her classical studies in germany, he thought her voice was maybe too strong now for that, and so they went metal. But especially on their first album there is also still quite some folky stuff. Oh and then we have Ritchie Blackmore he came from hardrock but also always brought some classical stuff to that and then went medivial folk later with Blackmores Knight, and the even covered "Ocean Gypsy" from Renaissance. Whatever, there is still a lot good music out there, but you don't have to search it in the US charts and also not in the european charts. Hell even in the Netherlands nobody knew Floor Jansen before she was in the show "Beste Zangers" Ok, enough for know .. could continue forever else ..