Timeless Flight

Background

After the success of the band's 1975 album The Best Years of Our Lives, which spawned the UK number-one single "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)", the band soon returned to the studio to record their next album, Timeless Flight. During their tour for The Best Years of Our Lives, Harley had begun writing new material for the album, some of which was inspired by events and places the band went to on the tour. The band recorded the album at Trident Studios, Abbey Road Studios and Scorpio Sound Studio during the summer of 1975. The entire album was remixed, mastered and cut at Abbey Road Studios. On the album, guitarist Jim Cregan used a number of guitars, including a Martin D18, 1956 Fender Telecaster, Gibson SG Standard and an Ovation acoustic with a built-in pick-up.

The album's was created in much more of a relaxed environment in comparison with The Best Years of Our Lives, which had been recorded quickly under considerable pressure. For the liner notes of the 2003 BGO CD release of Timeless Flight, Harley recalled:

"It was a sweltering summer. It was incredibly hot. The songs, many of them being semi acoustic or laid back, I think stemmed as much from that as anything else. It made me a little lethargic."

In November 1975, the lead single, "Black or White", preceded the album. Despite the previous album's success earlier in the year, "Black or White" failed to reach the UK Top 50, which in turn gave the UK's music press the chance to predict Harley's commercial eclipse. It did, however, reach #2 on the BMRB's UK Breakers Chart, which would have been equal to #52 on the main Singles Chart. In a February 1976 interview with Record Mirror & Disc, Harley commented: "I knew it was either going to be massive - top three - or a complete stiff. It turned out to be a stiff."

Timeless Flight was released in early February 1976 and would peak at #18 on the UK Albums Chart. It lasted six weeks on the chart, having debuted at #23 on 14 February. In America, it was reported in Record Mirror & Disc that the album had received 40,000 advance orders, despite the band's lack of a hit single or album there. During the middle of February, the album's second single, "White, White Dove", was released, but also failed to reach the UK Top 50, peaking at #6 on the BMRB's UK Breakers Chart.

Following the album's release, the band embarked on a British and European tour from February onwards. On the tour, the band hired guitarist Jo Partridge to play rhythm guitar. After a concert at Wembley in April 1976, the band then toured America.

In his interview with Record Mirror & Disc, Harley commented on the album: "It took about three months altogether and so much hard work went into it that as far as I'm concerned, it has to be the best I've done so far." Years after its release, Harley revealed that Timeless Flight was his personal favourite album from his own career. In an exclusive 2004 interview for the unofficial fan site Harley Fanzone, he said:

"Well, years ago I would have said "Timeless Flight" because it got the worst reviews. It's my precious boy, my favourite child. It was such a change for me and the critics weren't ready. It's like I heard Mick Jagger say about one of the Stones albums, it was his favourite because it was nobody else's! I never realised it was the favorite album of so many people. "Nothing is Sacred" is on there and when I started to play that live I sensed it was something they really wanted to hear. Now it's a real blinder and it meant a lot to a lot of people to hear it. And "Red is a Mean Mean Colour" is a really personal song for me. There's a lot of personal stuff in there. "All Men Are Hungry" is another I like to sing. It's a song people can relate to."

In 2003, Harley commented in the liner notes of the BGO release:

"There were magic moments on Timeless Flight that I'd never experienced before. It wasn't the most commercial album ever following up the very commercial Best Years of Our Lives. I understand that. But there you are. We're not machines, are we?"

Speaking to The Leader in November 2016, Harley spoke of the album again:

"I call it the naughty child that became a favourite. It was slightly experimental and I'm playing five tracks from it on this tour, two of which I'd never played live before. I was only 25 in 1976 and I just did what I wanted to do at that age and we thought it was going to be a monster hit and even though it wasn't, I'm still very proud of that album."

Song information

The opening track "Red is a Mean, Mean Colour" speaks of the concept of communism, and was considerably shortened during the recording stage. Harley felt the editing of the lyrics eclipsed the message of the song. In his 1976 interview with Record Mirror & Disc, he said: "I haven't achieved what I set out to do with that one. People say it's long - winded lyric, but really I was explicit as I could be. When it started out, it had 10 verses and I edited it down drastically. It's about the concept of a communist and you can't sum up a man in one sentence for Christsakes."

The song "Understand" was first recorded by Patricia Paay for her 1975 album Beam of Light. Harley produced the entire album, which also featured a cover of Cockney Rebel's 1973 European hit "Sebastian". Paay is the sister of Yvonne Keeley, who was Harley's backing vocalist and girlfriend of the time. Harley later described the song as "a touch of the jazz world". The song features an improvised solo, played on a Mini-Moog synthesizer. It was completed in one take by keyboardist Duncan Mackay.

"All Men Are Hungry" was inspired by a trip Harley took to Belgrade. In his 2004 interview for the Harley Fanzone, he recalled: "Not everybody was in Belgrade and not everybody can see exactly what I saw that morning but everyone can reflect on the idea that everyone has a need and not everybody is fulfilled. Everybody needs space and time and that's what the song is about." In one of the song's verses, Harley refers to Ernest Hemmingway's 1932 book Death in the Afternoon.

"Nothing is Sacred" was written by Harley after he visited the banks of the Danube in Belgrade. In the 2003 BGO CD liner notes, he commented: "It's the true story of three of us staying up 'til dawn and partaking of the hedonism that one did in the 'Seventies." The song was recorded in the studio after most of Cockney Rebel and the recording crew had gone home. Harley wanted to try out the song in the studio and he ended up recording it with the band's second drummer Lindsay Elliott, bassist George Ford and guitarist Jim Cregan.

Release

The album was released on vinyl by EMI Records in the UK and US, as well as across Europe including Germany, Finland, the Netherlands and Scandinavia. On the inside sleeve of the album, a short story titled "The Hill & Hibiscus Flowers" was included, which was written by Harley.

Later in 1991, the album received its first CD release through EMI, which featured two bonus tracks; the B-Side "Throw Your Soul Down Here" from the "White, White Dove" single, and a live version of the track "Mad Mad Moonlight", which was the B-Side to the "Black or White" single. In 1997, a Russian version of the CD was also released. On 5 June 2003, BGO Records re-issued the album on CD, which included the same two bonus tracks. The release featured new liner notes by Sean Egan. On 26 September 2011, BGO again re-issued the album on CD.

Promotion

For the "Black or White" single, a music video was filmed to promote it. The video was filmed at Abbey Road Studios and was directed by Mick Rock, who also took the photographs of, and designed, the album's sleeve. The band also performed the song on the ITV music programme Supersonic, as well as the Dutch TV show Top Pop. "White, White Dove" was also performed on Supersonic on another occasion.

Critical reception

In the 21 February 1976 issue of Sounds magazine, writer Geoff Barton reviewed a live performance of the band at the Glasgow Apollo. In his review, he spoke of Timeless Flight, writing: "For the first half dozen or so listenings, the band's current album "Timeless Flight" appears both unremarkable and confounding - which accounts for my rather rambling review a few weeks back. With successive spins, however, you begin to find it gently imposing and, ultimately, quite compelling."

In Words magazine, Wyn Carter reviewed the album, commenting: "Timeless Flight is the new album from the ultra-talented Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel who are definitely on a higher plan that most pop groups in that it takes a little time to get fully into what they're doing, but it's so rewarding when you finally make it. The fact that Steve is so popular means that many disc buyers appreciate being treated intelligently so this album will uplift you further with both words and music. "Black or White" is included with highlight tracks "Understand" and "Nothing is Sacred" and of course Steve wrote and produced everything. First class musicianship from the Rebel too!"

In the Street Life magazine, Angus Mackinnon reviewed the album, and summarised: "Timeless Flight is good music, questionable lyrical support systems. Or rather, if you dig the words the record's a Slumberland smooth double bed affair - and if you don't, you can just sleep on the floor."

Another UK music magazine review commented: "This is not as consistently good or disciplined as "The Best Years of Our Lives", but then I never expected it to be. Harley's a man of erratic talents and self-control and it was virtually impossible that his work would return to a mixture of brilliance and boredom, peppered equally with successes and excesses. Despite all the imperfections, I'll be surprised if "Timeless Flight" doesn't end up among my favourite five albums of '76." Another UK music magazine featured a review by Jonathan Barnett, who noted: "Timeless Flight is an important work by a critically underrated talent - few people it is, indeed, who are able to write startlingly honest and commercial material."

In the 28 May 1976 issue of the American evening newspaper The Miami News, music critic Jon Marlowe reviewed the album, and stated: "Timeless Flight is not the masterpiece that many feel Harley is striving to create. What it is, though, is a fine record that shows Harley obcessed with cabaret and color this time out. At first it is not that easy to listen to but then, Harley has never made himself easily accessible."

In the October 2003 issue of Q magazine, writer Martin Aston reviewed the BGO re-issue of the album. He stated: "Abandoned by his original charges, Harley was vindicated when Cockney Rebel Mark II topped the charts with "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)". He blamed 1976's sapping heatwave for the fact that his next move traded such pop perfection for a dense, tricky, almost anti-glam party line that exploited his new crew's session-musician skills. Timeless Flight bears plenty of Harley's melodic hallmarks, but some complex tripwires keep popping up: "Black or White" is a rare showing of Rebel soulfulness but the tempo is lethargic; "White, White Dove's" borderline-poppy chorus is scuppered by skittish, borderline-jazz rock flourishes. A fans-only purchase."

Donald A. Guarisco of AllMusic retrospectively reviewed the album, writing: "Steve Harley followed up the ambitious fusion of pop and artsy glam rock he perfected on "The Best Years of Our Lives" with this even more ambitious and artsy outing. Unfortunately, "Timeless Flight" neglects the strong pop hooks that made "The Best Years of Our Lives" so appealing. Much of Timeless Flight finds Harley getting bogged down in deliberately impenetrable wordplay and songs that, despite slick arrangements, are rather hookless vehicles for the verbose lyrics. However, a few highlights shine through for the patient listener. That said, the appeal of these occasional gems isn't enough to make the album consistently engaging, and "Timeless Flight" can only be recommended to Steve Harley completists as a result." Guarisco picked the two tracks "Red is a Mean, Mean Colour" and "Black or White" as recommended AMG tracks.

Track listing

All tracks written by Steve Harley.

Personnel

Band

Additional musicians

Production

Design