Rainbow Family - This is Not a Circular

  by Malcolm Carter

published: 22 / 6 / 2007

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Some time back I was lucky enough to come across a CD by a band called Palomino. One of the main players was Marco Rea and the album was full of timeless summery sounds recalling the Beach Boys. So it was no surprise that on seeing the name of Rea again to find that this Scottish band ( comprising Rea and Barry Christie) have taken the same route for their debut album under the name of the Rainbow Family. The opening song, ‘Have What You’ve Got’ is, quite simply, the best Beach Boys song that Brian Wilson and co never got onto tape. It wipes the floor with the recent ‘Smile’ reconstruction and recalls the best of Wilson’s glory days. It’s remarkable that this slice of Californian sunshine was made in a studio tucked away in the Scottish Highlands. The song is all perfect harmonies with a choir of angels wailing in the background. It’s a perfect opener and brilliantly showcases not just how talented these two are musically; the production of this song simply blows you away. Any Beach Boys fan is obviously happy that Wilson finally seems to have shaken off at least some of his demons and that we can finally see the great man in concert but when it comes to choosing between the music Wilson is currently producing and the sounds this duo are making in that Scottish studio then the Rainbow Family win on all counts. Many have tried since 1966 to recapture those glorious sounds of ‘Pet Sounds’ and there have been some excellent attempts but if Wilson’s masterpiece touched you and you’ve been searching ever since for an album that could rightly be called a follow up to those 13 music-changing songs then look no further. Forget whatever version of ‘Smile’ you have ; one of the many bootlegs or Wilson’s final version, play this album straight after ‘Pet Sounds’ and hear what Wilson should have come up with. But Rea and Christie have not just duplicated those sounds from 40 years ago, they have dusted them off and buffed them into shiny pop-gems that sound as contemporary today as they did four decades ago. They’ve added sound clips, spoken introductions and the like to the songs which although might have originated from the same period of the mid-60's bring a fresh and new dimension to the songs. A year or so after The Beach Boys delivered the ultimate soundtrack to the summer; an album that so perfectly captured that area between adolescence and adulthood, a band by the name of Nirvana ( the original Nirvana ) released an album full of orchestrated pop music, ‘The Story Of Simon Simopath’ which included one of the songs they are remembered for ‘Pentecost Hotel’. and much like the Beach Boys although they touched on the brilliance of that album on a few occasions after they never quite re-captured it over the course of a whole album. ‘This Is Not A Circular’ sounds like Nirvana covering ‘Pet Sounds’. To anyone with a love of summery-pop sounds with more substance than usually heard this album is a must-hear. So maybe it appears that this review has just compared ‘This Is Not A Circular’ to a couple of classic 60's albums without saying too much about the actual songs on this album. But with song titles like ‘Barbara Bach’ (Ringo Starr’s wife), ‘Baxter’s Revenge’ (60's legend Les Baxter is an obvious influence on the Rainbow Family) and ‘When California Began’ the band are not afraid to wear their influences on their sleeves. It’s enough to make that comparison; if any of those two albums touched you in a way that few albums have since then waste no more time; just go out and add ‘This Is Not A Circular’ to your collection, you won’t be disappointed. Just listen to the first minute of the aforementioned ‘When California Began’ to hear what us Wilson devotees have been looking for during the past 40 years. Finally an album that matches the beauty of ‘Pet Sounds’ song for song. An absolute classic and one that will, like Wilson’s finest hour, still stand up in 40 years time.

Track Listing:-

1 Have What You've Got
2 Mr Picture Perfect
3 I Can See A Rainbow
4 This Is Not A Circular
5 A Most Impressive Selection
6 Barbara Bach
7 String Thing
8 When California Began
9 Baxter's Revenge
10 From The Heart
11 Face The Colours
12 Seagus

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