No Earthly Connection

Coming on the heels of his epic Journey to the Centre of the Earth and The Myths and Legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table projects, erstwhile Yes keyboardist Rick Wakeman's 1976 LP No Earthly Connection was a relatively stripped-down affair with respect to its orchestration, employing the six-piece English Rock Ensemble (most notably vocalist Ashley Holt, guitarist John Dunsterville, bassist Roger Newell and percussionist Tony Fernandez) for a metaphysical exploration of the musical essence of mankind's soul. This departure from the symphonic sound of his previous releases met with a decidedly mixed reaction from Wakeman's fan base (though the album did hit #67 on the charts); as he puts it, No Earthly Connection was "…full of recording techniques and production that were way ahead of its time and the album has created more controversy than any other album I have made. It's either loved or hated…" Which may explain why this record has only seen release on CD in a limited edition in Japan. Yet, of all his solo records, No Earthly Connection, with its move away from classical themes, has probably the most appeal to modern-day prog rockers. Our Real Gone release features the original cover artwork, and includes the inner sleeve with lyrics and credits, with new notes by Gene Sculatti.