Amazing Blondel "Fantasia Lindum" 1971

Ground and Sky review
Amazing Blondel's third album sees the group continue with their mellow twin lute, woodwind and close harmony style, but start to experiment a little with song format. The band had obviously settled into a comfortable niche by this time, the trio still using much the same instrumental techniques, but sounding much tighter. They also felt less keenly the need for external aid, with the only guest musician being Jim Capaldi, who plays a military snare on "Siege of Yaddlethorpe."
A glance at the track listing may lead one to believe that the twenty-minute title track is a fully blown progressive epic. In reality, it's a series of short songs and instrumentals linked together by the occasional use of a recurring theme. This track is not all together arranged in an ad hoc manner, however; it flows together well enough, with its last song, "Celestial Light," being a suitable climax before a subdued restatement of the main theme leads to a gentle finish.

The remaining tracks are all strong. The three penned by Gladwin are typical Amazing Blondel fair, while the two dances by Baird offer perhaps the closest thing to an authentic Elizabethan sound and "The Siege of Yaddlethorpe" like something from a Military Tattoo.

This is another fine release by Amazing Blondel, not offering much substantially different from Evensong, but perhaps exploring musical possibilities a little more, and having a little more quality to the overall song writing.