"Music From The Spheres" – Anthony Phillips' s new album – Gemini reviewed by Alan Hewitt. Photo by Alan Hewitt.

An album by Ant is always a delight and when he branches out into the world of piano music rather than his more accustomed guitar work, then the results are even more rewarding.

Gemini is the third full piano album from Anthony following on the heels of 1986's Ivory Moon and 1999's Soiree. Even by the standards of its predecessors however, Gemini sets the bar even higher. As Ant admits in the sleeve notes to the album, this one had a lengthy gestation. Not intentionally but more due to a series of health issues which prevented him from completing it sooner. Not that you would know ny of that from the music itself which is every bit as remarkable as you would expect. The delays however, gave Anthony time to explore more fully many of the partly formed ideas he had been working on and the end result is a massive two discs of music – a lot to digest for us the listener but believe me the repast is well worth it. What follows are merely my impressions on listening to the music – the images that come into my head. So, if you hear something different when you listen to it, that's absolutely fine...

DISC ONE

This opens with River of Serenity, a worthy piano successor to the guitar driven Field Of Eternity from all those years ago. A meandering, shimmering and utterly beautiful piece which was definitely inspired by Debussy - a wonderful opener.

Sanctum is an appropriately quiet and reflective piecem evoking for me at least, a day spent in the garden with a good book and my own thoughts – something I sadly don't get the opportunity to do very often these days.

Oblique – not sure if the title to this one is necessarily accurate, it is a delicately brittle piece like frost on a window pane.

Testament is austere and yet emotional, definitely a statement of intent and a testament to a more spacious age of graceful music.

Twister again has a slightly misleading title. There's nothing twisted about this one, the ominous bell tolling keyboard would fit well in so many film scores.

Solitude however, does exactly what its title suggests, evokes a feeling of quietude, beautiful and fragile thos one is a personal favourite.

Kaleidoscope too lives up to its title; a brilliant, bright, shimmering piece a veritable kaleidoscope of sounds.

Spring Fair – is lively, full of fun with the occasional hint of drama, the sights and sounds of its title are all here in glorious music – almost an overture in itself.

Gravitas – is brilliantly juxtaposed after all the excitement of its predecessor. Stately and serene the quiet after the storm.

Piece For CS is the first of several homages to friends of Ant's who are no longer with us . In this cae it is the late Colin Sturge, a long time friend of Anthony's and member of the Send Occasionals whom I had the pleasure of meeting on one particularly memorable day. This is a fitting memorial to the man, full of warm affection.

Odyssey Of A Somnambulant – what a title! Suitably dreamlike ranging from quiet and tranquil to dramatic – a tableau of dreams.
Confessional and Penitence should be grouped together. The former made me cry as it reminds me of so many places and people gone but not forgotten whilst the latter too is a wondefully wistful piece.

Lost Love too is a delicate and thought provoking piece, romantic in style and playing.

Cradle Of Night – a lullaby without words, beautiful!

Golden Days – Sweet and mellow, a wonderful evocation of a day in the countryside.

Empyrean – I admit I had to resort to the dictionary for this one! Apparently the highest heaven – a view of Olympus, the magnitude of the ineffable!

Dying Star is by contrast rather sedate and restrained as indeed is Forest Green, a stroll through the summer woods with all the atmosphere surrounding it, lush and verdant a tone poem in miniature.

Memoir -

And that's only the first disc folks! On we go with the next one...

DISC TWO

Gemini – the album's title track, ethereal and beautiful and by turns playful , evoking the character of the heavenly twins. There are definitely shades of Debussy on this one.

Hymnal – I can imagine this with words – a worthy successor to Take This Heart.

Frost Flower – A delicate bloom with a melancholy beauty all of its own.

Pablo Farceur – Another homage to a friend of Anthony's who is no longer with us. A “Farceur” is, apparently a joker or prankster and evidently this was part of the character of the person whom the music so vividly portrays with a rich vein of warm humour and affection bith of which shine through in this delightful pen picture.

Labyrinth – Dramatic and full of movement – a race to find the exit from the labyrinth with an echo of an earlier piece by Ant – see if you can spot it!

Sanctity – The tolling of the sanctuary bell heralds the end of another day.

Fathomless Caverns – There is no tranquility here! Hard and dramatic with echoey chords but with flashes of light breaking the oppressive gloom.

Perdita – I am sure there is a lady somewhere whom Ant had in mind when he wrote this as it is a delightfully elegant and charming pen portrait.

Faded Glory – Suitably melancholy and wistful, but with flashes of defiance – the raging against the dying of the light.

Making Time – Out of the gloom comes the light – shimmering raindrops on a sunny day.

Lady Moon- Another elegant portrsit, full of delicacy a silver tracery of chords shimmering lilke moonlight.

Sundowner – A deliciously lazy and jazzy pieces – cocktails on the lawn.

Canticle – A “little song” based on the liturgy with the feel of cathedral bells in the distance and voices singing.

Crossed Lines – Short, echoey.

Chansons Sans Mots – That's Songs Without Words to those of you who don't “Parlez Francais”. A truly delicious selection of gourmet treats. Each of these should be given words IMMEDIATELY. Decidedly French in terms of composition and inspiration with shades of Debussy and the boulevards and cafes of Paris drawn to mind – marvellous!

In Repose – The title says it all!

Sliding Doors – Played backwards, a well known ploy of Ant's but it really falls flat in the company it is keeping here.

Pool Of Memory – Wistful and reflectively melancholy without becoming maudlin.

Into The Firmament – Suitably ethereal and spacious illuminating the glories of the night sky.

And there you have it. This is without doubt the finest piano album that Ant has committed to record. The style is polished and elegant, playing accomplished without being flashy – music that speaks to the heart as well as the ears.