Magentalane
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| Review scores | |
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| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    link |
Magentalane was the fifth and final album of new material by the Canadian progressive rock group Klaatu.
The music on the album was a return to Klaatu's trademark Beatlesque psychedelic form, after their previous album, the radio-friendly, pop rock orientated Endangered Species. The band were also given back full artistic control over the writing and music on the album, unlike "Endangered Species", on which most of the music was performed by session musicians. For this reason, "Magentalane" was praised by both critics and fans.
The album was not released in the United States, since Capitol Records had terminated Klaatu, following the commercial failure Endangered Species. As such, "Magentalane" was only originally released exclusively in Canada and Mexico, although it was reissued worldwide in 1995 on Compact Disc by Permanent Press Records.
The mouse squeak from Klaatu's first and second album was present here, followed by the sound of a springing mousetrap. However, there is the sound of a mouse running away. According to John Woloschuk, this was intended to allow Klaatu's fanbase to know that "Magentalane" was likely to be Klaatu's last studio album.
The advance budget for the Magentalane album helped make E.S.P. Studios of Buttonville, Ontario, a professional studio in 1980. ESP was owned by Klaatu member Dee Long and partner John Jones, who both went on to George Martin's AIR Studios in London in 1985.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "A Million Miles Away" | John Woloschuk | 3:39 |
| 2. | "The Love of a Woman" | Woloschuk | 3:23 |
| 3. | "Blue Smoke" | Woloschuk, Dino Tome | 4:41 |
| 4. | "I Don't Wanna Go Home" | Woloschuk | 2:51 |
| 5. | "December Dream" | Woloschuk, Terry Draper | 4:20 |
| 6. | "Magentalane" | Woloschuk, Tome | 2:35 |
| 7. | "At the End of the Rainbow" | Dee Long | 3:30 |
| 8. | "Mrs. Toad's Cookies" | Woloschuk, Tome | 3:06 |
| 9. | "Maybe I'll Move to Mars" | Long | 5:15 |
| 10. | "Magentalane (...it feels so good)" | Woloschuk, Tome | 0:52 |
The album ends with the sound of a mouse squeaking and a mousetrap, followed by the sound of something running away.
Personnel
- Klaatu
- John Woloschuk - vocals, acoustic guitar, keyboards, bass guitar, vibraphone, sitar, vibes, orcana, piano, glockenspiel
- Dee Long - vocals, electric guitar, mandolin, slide guitar, Korg synthesizer
- Terry Draper - drums, percussion, Polymoog synthesizer, trombone, tambourine, vocals
- Additional musicians
- John Johnson - saxophone solo on "The Love of a Woman"
- Memo Acevedo - conga on "The Love of a Woman"
- Adele, Paul and Dick Armin - strings on "The Love of a Woman", "December Dream" and "Maybe I'll Move to Mars"
- George Bertok - piano on "Blue Smoke"
- Lorne Grossman - tympani and chimes on "December Dream" and "Maybe I'll Move to Mars"
- Paul Irvine - trumpet and trombone on "December Dream" and "Maybe I'll Move to Mars
- Jill Vogel, Anna Draper and Linda Davies - backing vocals on "Mrs. Toad's Cookies"