With Wolstenholme's keyboards pushed back in the mix, and strangely missing the harmonies that enriched their earlier work, Octoberon is something of a departure for the band.
While Wolstenholme's stately "Ra" shows a dabbling in mysticism and the soaring sound of their previous work, most of the album is a strangely glum affair.
John Lees adopts a pub rock sound in his compositions, although "May Day" manages to veer unexpectedly into a glorious choral and organ arrangement.
"Polk Street Rag," despite its name, is a slick rocker about a sordid X-rated movie house in San Francisco.
There's a black humor throughout, as in this brutally funny line from "Suicide?": "Heard a voice shouting 'Don't jump, please for God's sake let me move my car.'" Not up to the level of their best work, but worth a listen for fans.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The World Goes OnLes Holroyd | Barclay James Harvest | Play | 06:30 | 14 MB | 37 MB |
| 2 | May DayJohn Lees | Barclay James Harvest | Play | 07:58 | 18 MB | 47 MB |
| 3 | Believe in MeLes Holroyd | Barclay James Harvest | Play | 04:23 | 10 MB | 24 MB |
| 4 | SuicideJohn Lees | Barclay James Harvest | Play | 07:59 | 18 MB | 39 MB |
| 5 | Rock 'n' Roll Star | Barclay James Harvest | Play | 05:17 | 12 MB | 27 MB |
| 6 | Rock 'n' Roll Star (Early mix) | Barclay James Harvest | Play | 04:55 | 11 MB | 25 MB |
| 7 | Polk Street Rag (First mix) | Barclay James Harvest | Play | 05:34 | 12 MB | 32 MB |
| 8 | Ra (First mix) | Barclay James Harvest | Play | 07:24 | 16 MB | 37 MB |
| 9 | Rock 'n' Roll Star (Recorded at Marquee Studios) | Barclay James Harvest | Play | 03:19 | 7 MB | 19 MB |
| 10 | Suicide (First mix) | Barclay James Harvest | Play | 07:53 | 18 MB | 39 MB |
| 61 mins | 140 MB | |||||
| 61 mins | 331 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barclay James Harvest | Primary Artist, Producer |
| 2 | Richie Close | Conductor, String Arrangements, Vocal Arrangement |
| 3 | Patrick Halling | Leader |
| 4 | Les Holroyd | Bass, Composer, Guitar (Acoustic), Vocal Harmony, Vocals |
| 5 | John Lees | Composer, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Vocal Harmony, Vocals |
| 6 | Mel Pritchard | Drums, Percussion |
| 7 | David Rohl | Engineer |
| 8 | Woolly Wolstenholme | Keyboards, Vocals |
Barclay James Harvest
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |