Renaissance – Prologue VG+/VG

Prologue is the third studio album by the English progressive rock band Renaissance, released in October 1972. The album marks a new start for the band, as it features a completely new line-up, with only singer Annie Haslam and keyboardist John Tout remaining from the previous incarnations. The album also introduces the songwriting partnership of former members Michael Dunford and Betty Thatcher, who would become the main composers for the band’s subsequent albums. The album showcases the band’s distinctive blend of classical, folk, and rock influences, with Haslam’s soaring vocals, Tout’s intricate keyboards, Jon Camp’s melodic bass, Rob Hendry’s electric guitar, and Terence Sullivan’s dynamic drums. The album contains six tracks, ranging from the epic “Rajah Khan” to the gentle “Sounds of the Sea”. The album’s cover, designed by the renowned art collective Hipgnosis, depicts a broken wooden crate revealing gold coins, symbolizing the contrast between appearance and reality. Renaissance – Prologue is widely considered as one of the band’s finest albums, as well as one of the classics of progressive rock.