The World Is Yours (Caravan, 1972)

Taken from "Waterloo Lily" album, this is undoubtely one of the best prog ballads ever and a blooming flower into Canterbury musical garden. Caravan mix the acoustic set with a soft vocal performance, conjuring up a spring smelling track, a true love song, including all the I love yous one can imagine.

Caravan: all is so Seventies in this picture!

Still, the original way the band wrap up their gift and the never too sweet sound we enjoy is true Canterbury prog, full of warm guitars and also featuring a misty mix and a folk inspiration. True, this is a catchy song, not so far from the best pop songs from the early Seventies, but if all of them were as good as this one, well, I'd listen pop music 24 hours a day!

Know Your Time (Gazpacho, 2015)

Since the early 2010s Gazpacho evolved from a mellow and captivating mix of pop and prog to a darker and somehow spiced post-progressive sound, including moments of ethereal beauty and a rich, even ethnic choice of instruments. This song, taken from the album "Molok" is a good example of this phase of the band's career. Arcane sounds and solid guitars surround the vocals by Jan-Henrik Ohme, much in the style of Marillion's Steve Hogarth.

Another fascinating cover. I really like the colours here.

The mood changes are very well done, especially when a tight line gets a wider breath, or when an acoustic passage follows electric ones. That's why I like "Know Your Time" and its unpredictable stream of creative music. I won't even try to explain the tricky theories about God and ancient religions behind this track and the whole album, but I confess I love the way Gazpacho approach such a challenging concept keeping their feet well on the ground.