Bo Hansson - Lord of the Rings & Magician's Hat

Swedish keyboard player/composer Bo Hansson first emerged in the 1960s, as part of a duo that made a name for itself, first in Sweden and then on tour in Europe, and a series of three albums. Jimi Hendrix heard the group and recorded some jams with Hansson that are still unreleased. The guitarist recorded one of Hansson's songs ("Tax-Free"), the group later toured with the Experience.

During the early '70s, Hansson burst on the international scene with his concept album Lord of the Rings, an all-instrumental album inspired by the literary trilogy written by J.R.R. Tolkien, which had been a best-seller for years among college students. The album received Gold Record awards in England and Australia. Licenced by Tony Stratton-Smith's Charisma Records label in England and America, the album was the subject of an extensive television advertising campaign that turned it into a hit in progressive rock circles. Two subsequent albums, Magician's Hat and Attic Thoughts, were also released throughout Europe and in America.

Bo Hannson - The Lord Of The Rings
Tracklist -

01 Leaving shire (2:47)
02 The old forest / Tom Bombadil (3:42)
03 Fog on the barrow - Downs (2:28]
04 The black riders / Flight to the Ford (3:48]
05 At the house of Elrond / The ring goes South (4:23)
06 A journey in the dark (1:07)
07 Lothlórien (3:22)
08 Shadowfax (0:50)
09 The horns of Rohan / The battle of the Pelenmor fields (3:58]
10 Dreams in the houses of healing (1:50)
11 Homeward bound / The scouring of the shire (2:11)
12 The grey havens (4:56)
13 Early sketches from Middle Earth (8:50)

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Bo HANSSON is famous for his 1972 concept album "Lord of the Rings" which came out decades before Hollywood ever made any noise about Tolkien's trilogy. The music was taped on a remote island off Stockholm, on an 8-track recorder, in a summer house studio with the help of a few friends and musicians. It received Gold Record awards in England and Australia. Licenced by Tony Stratton-Smith's Charisma label in England and America, it was also the subject of an extensive TV ad campaign that turned it into a hit in progressive rock circles at the time.

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Review by Bruce Eder - Allmusic The best of Bo Hansson's albums, and one of the few progressive rock instrumental recordings that still holds up on repeated listening. J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy provide the inspiration for a series of strange, other-worldly tracks that transcend their source material. Hansson's keyboard playing is quite unlike the work of such rivals as Keith Emerson or Rick Wakeman, less heavy and "gothic" and more oriented toward jazz. His guitar work as is flashy and aggressive as his keyboards ("The Black Riders/Flight to the Ford" is a great showcase for both), and the backing by sax, flute, and drums creates an overall rich sonic palette.

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Bo Hansson - Magician's Hat
Tracklist -

01 Big City
02 Divided Reality
03 Elidor
04 Before the Rain
05 Fylke
06 Playing Downhill into the Downs
07 Findhorn's Song
08 The Awakening
09 Wandering Song
10 The Sun
11 Excursion with Complications
12 City
13 Waltz at Dawn

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Review by Bruce Eder - Allmusic Hansson's second album is more jazz-tinged and less successful than his first, being more diffuse and lacking some of the energy of Lord of the Rings. Still, there is a compelling power to some of this music, as his organ, guitar, and synthesizer alternately move out in front -- think of a space-rock version of Jimmy Smith or early Herbie Hancock. "Big City" (extended) is lively and engaging, which is a fairly notable accomplishment for an 11-minute opening track, and the rest is more manageable, though none of it seems overly inventive. "Divided Reality" opens up with a densely strummed acoustic guitar that threatens to turn into a remake of "Nights in White Satin" until the tempo changes, and instead we get a minute of fascinating progressive guitar noodling in the best Peter Banks/Steve Howe tradition, followed by an organ cadenza that Ray Manzarek or Tony Kaye might've approved of. Fans of the second and third incarnations of King Crimson (Lizard, Islands, Earthbound) may enjoy this recording with its prominent saxophone and flute backing, not to mention Kenny Håkansson's heavily wah-wahed guitar.

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