Rick Wakeman (live at the Royal Festival Hall)

London
14 July 2019

It’s Rick Wakeman’s seventieth birthday, and what better way to celebrate than two nights of his early concept album Journey To The Centre Of The Earth, played in full with lots of extra tracks to help the extravaganza become fully realised.

Originally the piece was performed and recorded live at the Royal Festival Hall on Friday 18 January 1974. At this point, Wakeman was still a member of the progressive rock act Yes, who had just released their magnum opus Tales From Topographic Oceans.

Wakeman would leave the band for the first time later that year, just as his live recording of Journey To The Centre Of The Earth soared to the top of the UK album charts. This was the height of British progressive rock and concept albums, Genesis were about to release The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway and Emerson Lake And Palmer had only recently released Brain Salad Surgery, with its epic “Karn Evil Number 9” taking up a side and a half of vinyl. For Wakman and Yes, their star was in the ascendant as they began to play larger venues in America, and have top ten albums there as well.

So fast-forward forty-five years, and we find Mr Wakeman doing it all again on the same stage, although rather than the forty minutes of Journey To The Centre Of The Earth on the album, we have nearly two hours’ worth of music to enjoy tonight. He is joined onstage by The Orion Orchestra, and The English Chamber Choir (who appeared on the original recording in 1974), conducted by Guy Protheroe. His band The English Rock Ensemble now feature Rick’s son Adam Wakeman. Ashley Holt, the original singer on the 1974 album is joined by Hayley Sanderson and the opera singer Alfie Boe. The late David Hemmings did the narration on the album recording, but the chair this evening is filled by the wonderful Robert Powell, who adds extra depth and gravitas to his part.

Centre stage at the back stands Wakeman, surrounded by an arsenal of keyboards, including three Mini-moogs to help recreate his signature sound of the seventies. Of course, the man has a large flowing cape that he manages to wear for the entire show, even though its thirty degrees outside. Powell’s ominous narration introduces the piece and we are off on our travels as the well-known opening orchestral flourish of “The Journey Overture” begins. Hayley Sanderson equips herself well during the first vocal performance of “Journey’s Dawn”, and the choir sound haunting and mesmerising as we take our first steps towards the centre of the earth.

From here on in, both Sanderson and Holt share vocal duties until about an hour into the show when Alfie Boe comes on stage to rapturous applause, and decides he is going to throw himself into the whole experience at 100 miles an hour and release his inner rock god. In a strange way, it’s hard to review music that you have been listening to for about thirty-eight years; yes, it’s complex, but filled with stunning melodies that hook you in. Journey To The Centre Of The Earth is progressive rock at its finest, composed by a man who has always celebrated the genre, even when others were trying to beat it to death in the media from 1977 onwards. Wakeman’s keyboard runs are a delight: they are infectious, and it almost seems like the Mini-moog was created especially for them.

The band, all three singers and orchestra get to rock out on a celebratory new number called “Take A Ride”, with everybody giving their all to the performance. Of course, later in the evening Rick picks up his keytar and not only duels with the guitar player and his son (on another keytar), but then takes a stroll around the audience, playing an astounding lead as he walks around the fans, all of whom are trying to get a close-up photo of the man in the cape. But all too soon the performance is over with a rousing chorus of “Journey to the Centre Of The Earth”. The audience are on their feet to give it a standing ovation, and the cheering goes on so long that even Wakeman looks humbled by it.

Journey To The Centre Of The Earth tonight was everything that was promised when it was announced, and more. The performances from everybody on stage were faultless, and they all seemed to be really enjoying themselves as they went through every stage of Jules Verne’s story set to this wild and moving music. My only complaint was that there were no inflatable dinosaurs, but I suppose you can’t have everything, can you? So it’s happy seventieth, Rick, and may you keep the progressive rock flag flying for many years to come.

-Gary Parsons-