Novella (album)

Novella is the seventh studio album by the English progressive rock band Renaissance, released in 1977.

Novella
Studio album by
Renaissance
ReleasedJanuary 1977 (North America)
August 1977 (UK)
RecordedNovember 1976
StudioDe Lane Lea Studios, Wembley, UK
GenreProgressive rock
Length40:23
LabelSire (US/Canada)
Warner Bros. (UK)
ProducerRenaissance
Renaissance chronology
Live at Carnegie Hall
(1976)		 Novella
(1977)		 A Song for All Seasons
(1978)
1st (ABC Distribution) US release cover
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]

Release history

Due to the bankruptcy of the band's UK label BTM, this album was released in the USA some months before its UK release, leading to a number of UK fans importing copies. At the time of this original issue, Sire was distributed in the USA by ABC Records; the cover featured unique artwork by Pamela Brown different from that which would be used for its subsequent UK issue. Shortly thereafter, Sire changed distribution in the USA to Warner Bros. Records, and the cover artwork was revised to use the same painting by Brown as that employed in its UK issue. The 2nd USA issue can most easily be identified by the rendering of the band which takes up the entire back cover; the original ABC-distributed cover features a much smaller painting of the band on the back.

After the demise of BTM, the band agreed in principle to sign for CBS Records UK. However they actually agreed to a contract with Warner Brothers.

In the USA the album was initially released with unique cover art by Sire Records in March 1977 under its distribution deal with ABC Records, and was assigned the catalog number SA-7526. It was subsequently re-released with revised cover artwork with the catalog number SR-6024 after Sire moved its distribution to Warner. In the UK it was given a scheduled release in the same month by CBS with the catalog number S CBS 82137 and although some test pressings were made, the release did not go ahead. The album was eventually released by Warner Bros. in the UK on 2 September 1977 with the catalog number K 56422. It was also released in Japan in 1978 on the Warner Brothers / Pioneer label, catalog number WB P10492W.

The album charted at No. 46 in the Billboard 200 chart in the USA.[2]

The song "Can You Hear Me?" was sampled in the Deep Puddle Dynamics' We Ain't Fessin' (Double Quotes), and Blockheads' Music by Cavelight track "Sunday Seance".

Expanded 2019 edition

In 2019 Esoteric Recordings announced a re-mastered and 3 CD expanded edition of the album which was released on 5 July 2019.[3]

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Can You Hear Me?"Jon Camp, Michael Dunford, Betty Thatcher13:38
2."The Sisters"Dunford, Thatcher, John Tout7:15
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
3."Midas Man"Dunford, Thatcher5:47
4."The Captive Heart"Camp, Dunford4:16
5."Touching Once (Is So Hard to Keep)"Camp, Dunford9:27

Expanded edition
2019 re-issue Disc one - re-mastered & expanded edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Can You Hear Me?"Jon Camp, Michael Dunford, Betty Thatcher13:38
2."The Sisters"Dunford, Thatcher, John Tout7:15
3."Midas Man"Dunford, Thatcher5:47
4."The Captive Heart"Camp, Dunford4:16
5."Touching Once (Is So Hard to Keep)"Camp, Dunford9:27
6."Can You Hear Me?" (single edit)Jon Camp, Michael Dunford, Betty Thatcher 
7."Midas Man" (single edit)Dunford, Thatcher 
2019 re-issue Disc two - Live at the Royal Albert Hall, London, 14 October 1977
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Prologue"Dunford 
2."Can You Understand"Dunford, Thatcher 
3."Carpet of the Sun"Dunford, Thatcher 
4."Can You Hear Me?"Camp, Dunford, Thatcher 
5."Song of Scheherazade"
a. "Fanfare" (John Tout)
b. "The Betrayal" (Jon Camp, Tout, Dunford)
c. "The Sultan" (Dunford, Thatcher)
d. "Love Theme" (Camp)
e. "The Young Prince and Princess as told by Scheherazade" (Dunford, Thatcher)
f. "Festival Preparations" (Camp, Tout, Dunford)
g. "Fugue for the Sultan" (Tout)
h. "The Festival" (Dunford, Thatcher)
i. "Finale" (Camp, Tout, Dunford)"
  
2019 re-issue Disc three - Live at the Royal Albert Hall, London, 14 October 1977
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Running Hard"Dunford, Thatcher 
2."Midas Man"Dunford, Thatcher 
3."Mother Russia"Dunford, Thatcher 
4."Touching Once (Is So Hard to Keep)"Camp, Dunford 
5."Ashes Are Burning"Dunford, Thatcher 

Personnel

Renaissance
  • Annie Haslam – lead and backing vocals, miscellaneous percussion
  • Michael Dunford – acoustic guitars (6 & 12 string), backing vocals
  • John Tout – piano (Steinway Grand Piano), electric keyboards (analogue synthesizers & Hohner D6 clavinet), backing vocals, percussion
  • Jon Camp – bass (Rickenbacker 4001), acoustic guitars, co-lead vocals on track 4, backing vocals, Moog bass pedals, cello on track 2
  • Terence Sullivan – drums, percussion, backing vocals

Additional musicians
  • Richard Hewson - orchestral arrangements & conductor
  • uncredited - saxophone solo on "Touching Once"

Production
  • Dick Plant - engineer, co-producer
  • Barry Kidd - assistant engineer
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References
  1. Eder, Bruce. "Renaissance - Novella review". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  2. "Novella Billboard Albums". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 21 September 2015.
  3. "Esoteric New Releases". Retrieved 19 July 2019.
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