Jim Gilmour - "Great Escape" Review

Artist/ Band: Jim Gilmour
Title: Great Escape
Label: Progrock Records
Year of Release: 2005
Artist/ Band Link (click for details/ ordering)

The Review:

Okay let’s get a bit of history out of the way first. For those unaware, Jim Gilmour is the keyboardist for the amazing Canadian progressive rock band, Saga. Now Jim has released a solo album through Progrock Records called Great Escape. The music on this album is a mix of symphonic prog, jazz-fusion, hard rock, and catchy AOR/pop music. Not only does Jim play keyboards, he also sings. He’s sang back-up and occasional lead with Saga but on Great Escape it’s all Jim with the exception of some nice female vocals from Corrina Tofani on the final track.

One of my favorites of the album is the catchy symphonic rocker, No Sign. It just hooks you from the get go and never lets go. Jim has a somber warm vocals that could even be on any Camel album especially on Lost Along te Way and The Northwind. There’s also plenty of instrumentals on the album that shows off Jim’s keyboard playing, sometimes more than he does in Saga. Some highlights of the instrumentals are the prog-fusion based "Algonquin" and the ELP influenced "Killarney Sunrise". There’s everything on this album for the progressive rock connoisseur.

Closing the album is one of the finest progressive rock songs in this age, "Last Portage". It has all the makings of a great progressive rock song and it clocks in at over 13-minutes, so Jim and the others are able to flex their musical muscles so to speak more. This seems to be one of those albums that snuck in and out of the public eye in 2005 but it deserves much more attention that especially for loyal Saga fans. I can’t recommend this album enough. It’s surely become one of my favorites of the new millennium.

Reviewed by Ron Fuchs on April 4th, 2006

Tracks:

1. No Sign

2. Algonquin

3. Lost Along the Way

4. Killarney Sunrise

5. The Northwind

6. Radiant Lake

7. Carden Isle (Piano Improv)

8. Wasteland

9. Canoe Do It?

10. Last Portage