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I Can See Your House from Here | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | October 1979 | |||
Recorded | 1979 | |||
Studio | Farmyard Studios, Little Chalfont, England | |||
Genre | Progressive rock | |||
Length | 46:04 | |||
Label | Gama/Decca | |||
Producer | Rupert Hine | |||
Camel chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Classic Rock | [2] |
I Can See Your House from Here is the seventh studio album by English progressive rock band Camel. Released in 1979, a new line up was introduced with founding members Andrew Latimer (guitar) and Andy Ward (drums) joined by bassist Colin Bass (to replace Richard Sinclair) and keyboardists Jan Schelhaas (who joined in 1978 for the Breathless tour) and Kit Watkins (ex-Happy The Man) who both replaced founding member Peter Bardens. At one point, the album was going to be called Endangered Species. [3] [4]
Work started on the album in summer 1979, collaborating with producer Rupert Hine, at the Farmyard Studios in Little Chalfont. The process also took place in an Elizabethan country house, a residential recording studio that suited the band well. The orchestral overdubs were added at London's AIR Studios. Mel Collins (who also worked with Caravan) contributed to the band's sound on the saxophone, while Phil Collins was chosen to play percussion. Andy Latimer was pleased with the end product, saying Hine "was great fun to work with, he was really up and zappy. I enjoyed making that record. We did it rather quickly and it wasn't a lengthy production."
The album was released in October 1979. It spent three weeks in the chart in late October and early November, reaching No. 45. An accompanying single was planned, but shelved. Instead a maxi single containing an edited version of Andy Latimer and Kit Watkins "Remote Romance" was backed with "Rainbow's End" from Breathless (1978) and a Camel / Mick Glossop production of "Tell Me", first released on Rain Dances (1977). It did not reach the charts. The single "Your Love is Stranger than Mine" / "Neon Magic" followed in February 1980.
The cover image is based on a joke that was somewhat popular at the time, in which Jesus, while hanging up on the Cross dying, calls out for his disciple Peter to come to him, who does so with great difficulty. The punchline is that Jesus merely wants to tell Peter, "I can see your house from here." [5]
It also pays homage to the 1951 painting Christ of Saint John of the Cross by Salvador Dalí.
The world tour began on 8 October at The Dome, Brighton, England, following France, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Belgium, Spain, Portugal and ended on 29 January 1980 in Koseinenkin Hall of Tokyo, Japan.
All credits adapted from the original releases. [6]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Notes [7] | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Wait" | Andrew Latimer, John McBurnie | Personnel:
| 5:02 |
2. | "Your Love Is Stranger Than Mine" | Colin Bass, Latimer, Jan Schelhaas, Andy Ward | 3:26 | |
3. | "Eye of the Storm [nb 1] " | Kit Watkins | Personnel:
| 3:52 |
4. | "Who We Are" | Latimer | 7:52 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Notes [7] | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Survival" | Latimer | Personnel:
| 1:12 |
2. | "Hymn to Her" | Latimer, Schelhaas | Personnel:
| 5:37 |
3. | "Neon Magic" | Latimer, Vivienne McAuliffe, Schelhaas | Personnel:
| 4:39 |
4. | "Remote Romance" | Latimer, Watkins | Personnel:
| 4:07 |
5. | "Ice" | Latimer | Personnel:
| 10:17 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
10. | "Remote Romance" (Single version) | 4:02 |
11. | "Ice" (Live 1981) | 7:15 |
Chart (1979) | Peak position |
---|---|
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [8] | 18 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [9] | 36 |
UK Albums (OCC) [10] | 45 |
Camel are an English progressive rock band formed in Guildford, Surrey, in 1971. Led by guitarist Andrew Latimer, they have released fourteen studio albums and fourteen singles, plus numerous live albums and DVDs. Without achieving mass popularity, the band gained a cult following in the 1970s with albums such as Mirage (1974) and The Snow Goose (1975). They moved into a jazzier, more commercial direction in the early 1980s, but then went on an extended hiatus. Since 1991 the band has been independent, releasing albums on their own label.
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