BARCLAY JAMES HARVEST
Once Again ESOTERIC
Expanded look at the 1971 classic that put Oldham’s finest on the map.
Orchestral prog wasn’t new in 1970. The Moody Blues’ 1967 album Days Of Future Passed had come with strings attached; ditto Deep Purple’s famed 1969 outing Concerto For Group And Orchestra. Barclay James Harvest’s self-titled debut had been billed as the next big classical/rock crossover, but was actually a dry run for its 1971 follow-up. It was Once Again, a sombre orchestra and Mellotron-fuelled work exploring environmental decline and the horrors of war, which saw BJH’s vision settle into the stuff of legend.