The last time I reviewed an album featuring Rick Wakeman it was a bit of a disappointment (Anderson/Wakeman: The Living Tree In Concert - Part One), though for the record it was a collaborative effort, not all Wakeman’s fault alone. So when I received Wakeman’s Nick Of Time album, a 2003 performance that has never seen the light of day commercially, I was a bit worried. So how does it sound?

One word, Magnificent. At times it felt as if you had stumbled upon some fantastic opera, the vocals so passionately delivered as performed by some actor on stage, the music becoming emotion, aesthetic, backdrop. Other times it was transport through space as Wakeman delivers a sonic attack on keys and the band simply heads off into a jam induced session heading in all directions for lengthy amounts of time that in the end seem far to short once they've end.

Nick of Time was performed to promote Wakeman’s current album at the time of Out There. While he was with Yes I listened to a few of the albums featuring Wakeman during his rocky relationship with the group, but I had never actually followed his solo career. Nick of Time was a real game changer for me. If this is live, somewhat improvisational, I can only imagine what the studio album must sound like and how much further in-depth it is (liner notes and artwork and such).  Yes, Wakeman does have a unique flavor that some of you will have to get used to but once you break down that wall and really listen, well, I’ll see you on the band wagon. As always, final judgment is yours. Enjoy.