Beginnings (Steve Howe album)
Beginnings is the first studio album by English guitarist Steve Howe, released in October 1975 by Atlantic Records. It was recorded and released during a break in activity from the progressive rock band Yes, after the band agreed for each member to put out a solo album. Howe uses various guest musicians, including past and present Yes bandmates Bill Bruford, Alan White and Patrick Moraz, as well as members of Gryphon.
| Beginnings | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Steve Howe | ||||
| Released | October 31, 1975 | |||
| Recorded | 1975 | |||
| Studio | Morgan and Advision Studios, London | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock | |||
| Length | 39:51 | |||
| Label | Atlantic | |||
| Producer | Steve Howe and Eddie Offord | |||
| Steve Howe chronology | ||||
| ||||
The album reached No. 22 on the UK Albums Chart and No. 63 on the US Billboard 200. It was supported with promotional videos of "Ram" and "Beginnings".
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
AllMusic's retrospective review deemed Beginnings an artistic failure, summarizing that "The playing is strong throughout, but towards what end is the mystery -- none of the songs are particularly memorable, nor is the production[...] and Howe is such a weak singer that he'd have been better off[...] sticking to instrumentals."[1]
Track listing
The words and music are by Steve Howe except where noted.
- "Doors of Sleep" (Steve Howe, Alice Meynell) – 4:08
- "Australia" – 4:13
- "The Nature of the Sea" – 3:57
- "Lost Symphony" – 4:41
- "Beginnings" (Steve Howe, orchestrated by Patrick Moraz) – 7:31
- "Will o' the Wisp" – 6:00
- "Ram" – 1:53
- "Pleasure Stole the Night" – 2:57
- "Break Away From It All" – 4:19
Personnel
- Steve Howe – electric and acoustic guitars, bass, lap steel, mandolin, Moog, organ, washboard, vocals
- Graeme Taylor – guitar (3)
- Malcolm Bennett – bass, flute (3, 8)
- Colin Gibson – bass (4)
- Alan White – drums (1, 2, 4, 6)
- Bill Bruford – drums (8, 9)
- Dave Oberlé – drums (3)
- Patrick Moraz – piano on (4), grand piano, harpsichord, moog on (5), Mellotron on (6)
- Bud Beadle – saxophone (4)
- Mick Eve – saxophone (4)
- Patrick Halling, William Reid – violin (5)
- John Meek – viola (5)
- Peter Halling – cello (5)
- Chris Laurence – double bass (5, 8)
- James Gregory – flute, piccolo (5)
- Sidney Sutcliffe – oboe (5)
- Gwyd Brooke – bassoon (5)
Charts
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | Billboard Pop Albums | 63 |
| 1975 | UK Albums Chart | 22 |
References
- Eder, Bruce. Beginnings at AllMusic