PFM - JET LAG - 1977

...to grow on you. When I first heard "Jet Lag" I thought "Yikes.this ain't PFM!" Well it may not be the PFM of 1972 but it is still a great piece of music on its own. The album garners reviews ranging from "1-star crap" all the way to "the finest album PFM made." You'll have to decide that on your own, but please pretend the album came from some new band instead and hear it with fresh ears. It's really quite a concoction of musical talents pushing their own buttons, likely the product of a band wanting to try something new while subconsciously having been influenced by everything from their Italian roots, the English prog bands, American jazz and rock, and the more esoteric flavors of Area, Gentle Giant, etc. I don't like English vocals in my Italian prog and most of them are on this album. The vocal qualities of Lanzetti will always be a pebble in the shoe of many PFM fans but again, those who take to the music of Jet Lag will quickly tune him out as they listen to the playing of the musicians.

"Peninsula" is an amazing piece of acoustic guitar soloing by Mussida that just flows, it could easily have shown up on their more pastoral early albums. It reminds of something Steve Howe would do with a solo acoustic number, lots of color. "Jet Lag" changes course completely to something resembling a jazzy Gentle Giant. There is amazing bass guitar playing here and violins dropping in and out providing a cool texture. Obviously the guitar work is great. There is a sparse interlude in the middle for some laid back noodling (sometimes a bad word, sometimes not...here it works.) "Storia in LA" opens with fantastic keyboard moods and fretless bass that evoke warm, blue sky feelings. The pace is quite slow but things pick up as the song progresses, adding acoustic guitars and then violins to the amazing keyboard exploration.marvelous! "Breakin In" is the shortest (besides the introduction) and most forgettable track here with some feisty violin playing drowned out by too many vocals. "Cerco La Lingua" begins with a violin solo and becomes a mid-paced track with Italian vocals (yeah!) The violin/guitar workouts get pleasantly feisty between the verses and the drumming cooks yet again. "Meridiani" is another tasty instrumental of medium speed serving up some awesome guitar playing. Halfway through it kicks into overdrive with fast fusion interplay that is thrilling, burning electric guitar, ferocious rhythm section and some keys in the background. The closing section shifts again to a more introspective space-rock vibe quite flawlessly and this builds to a big finish. Great stuff! "Left-handed Theory" starts with brisk keyboard runs and then some excellent e-piano soloing. Here the vocals work great off the bass and guitar flourishes. Then some lilting violins and interesting percussions add much icing to the cake. Sounds a bit like the 1978 Area album. "Traveler" is a bit tepid in the first half but the second recovers nicely into a decent, more basic prog-rock track.

To help describe this complex album a bit more I like these excerpts of a review by one C.F. Kemp: ".. this album is neither failed nor a fusion experiment. Although certain songs are jazzier than anything the group had done before, it is a highly original album with few equals in the progressive rock pantheon. Sure it's a departure from the group's classical roots, coinciding with the exit of seminal violinist and flautist Mauro Pagani. And his loss was undoubtedly difficult for many fans to handle. But as time passes, Jet Lag has come to stand up as one of PFM's strongest efforts.. ..this is one of the group's most diverse efforts. It includes a solo classical guitar piece (Peninsula), a mini-epic with distinct movements (the title cut), a dreamy keyboard-dominated piece with a hint of New Aginess (Storia in `LA'), a folk/progressive blend complete with Mellotron (Circo la Lingua) and a Genesis-flavored anthem (Traveler). Even the more fusion-dominated cuts (Jet Lag, Left Handed Theory) are distinctive and a little strange - something I've valued in progressive rock since Genesis' Nursery Cryme days." [these sentences from CF Kemp's online review]

Despite a few shaky moments, my view is that the rich playing of Jet Lag combined with its sense of fun and adventure makes it a fine moment for PFM. 3 ¾ stars. Not perfect by any means but enough to eke its way to 4 stars on the required rounding. A must for fans of great rock with the emphasis on adventurous interplay of instruments. I really think that if you dig Gentle Giant, Area, Crimson, or the most adventurous Gabriel moments, you may well end up enjoying Jet Lag very much.
http://www.progarchives.com