When most music fans think about various members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee The Yardbirds, the focus usually falls on the subsequent careers of guitar gods Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton. Former members Keith Relf and Jim McCarty would take flight as well, forming the group Renaissance along with John Hawken, Louis Cennamo and Relf's sister Jane Relf.
Renaissance would generate a unique sound, fusing a female lead vocal with mix of classical, folk, rock, and jazz music. Shortly after their formation, Renaissance's lineup would change over the years, but the band hit its stride when they tabbed Annie Haslam as their lead in 1971. With songs like 1978's U.K. top 10 hit "Northern Lights" and progressive rock classics like "Carpet of the Sun," "Mother Russia," and "Ashes Are Burning" would come to define Renaissance's unmistakable sound.
Now, over 40 years later, Haslam and Renaissance are embarking on a new tour and are kicking it off at the Kent Stage this Thursday. I spoke with Haslam by phone about the tour, the band's new CD/DVD "A Symphonic Journey" and how she's managed to incorporate her passion for painting into the band's staging.
Renaissance last toured in 2016, so I asked Haslam what the biggest difference is between this tour and their previous visit to Northeast Ohio. She says fans should look forward to hearing songs that have been on the shelf for a while.
"We've got so many brilliant songs that we haven't done for a while. We're putting in 'Day of the Dreamer' which is a very powerful song. We're putting back in 'Ocean Gypsy.' We haven't done that for a few years. Very excited about the change of the set. It's a wonderful band. I'm very proud of them. It's a great show."
Renaissance is touring in support of their new CD/DVD release, "A Symphonic Journey." Haslam says that while this isn't their first live recording, it is a different experience for fans.
"It's got an orchestra. We did four shows with the orchestra. It's ten pieces. We've got two violins, a viola and a cello. We've got a wonderful percussionist and we've got a clarinet player, trumpet, trombone, oboe... Oh, it's magnificent. And what we did with these shows is I decided I would paint a painting for each song. And so I painted canvases that were 12"x24' of each song that we did and then we enlarged them behind the orchestra on stage. Oh my God, it was unbelievable. I kept turning my head sideways to see each song come up with a different painting. It was just magnificent. I think it's the best thing we've done visually."
Haslam is also an accomplished painter, a passion that she feels gels perfectly with her music and performances.
"When I do a painting, it flows like water. I'm painting songs. I just listen to the song, or it's still in my head because it's an old song, and I paint it. I kept having problems finding things to wear on stage. It's because I should be wearing my art, and that's what I did in the end. I'm wearing a dress and a beautiful tailored velvet jacket with the top of the dress showing the painting. It's amazing."
If you want to experience all of the creativity of Annie Haslam and Renaissance, both in her artwork and their music, when they come to the Kent Stage on Thursday, you can buy tickets on the band's website. Tickets are $37 and the show starts at 8pm.
To see Haslam's artwork, visit her website here.
