This expanded reissue has been newly re-mastered from the original master tapes and features an additional 33 bonus tracks drawn from new 5.1 surround sound & stereo mixes from the original multi-track master tapes, BBC radio sessions from 1968 and 1971, the singles Early Morning, Brother Thrush & Taking Some Time On, a rare Woolly Wolstenholme solo demo from 1969 of The Sun Will Never Shine, along with the 1968 short film Mr. Sunshine.
In April 1968 Barclay James Harvest released their first single, Early Morning, on EMI’s Parlophone label and became the first signing to EMI’s progressive label Harvest Records (named after them) the following year. Their self-titled debut album was released in June 1970, and saw BJH successfully fuse an orchestra with rock to create a unique, sometimes pastoral, form of symphonic progressive rock. Produced by Norman Smith (also famed for his work with Pink Floyd and the Pretty Things), Barclay James Harvest was dominated by the twelve-minute epic Dark Now My Sky and also featured such wonderful material as The Iron Maiden, Mother Dear, When the World Was Woken and the fine rock tracks Taking Some Time On and Good Love Child. The album established Barclay James Harvest as one of Britain’s most unique groups and paved the way for a remarkable career and a catalogue of music that continues to endure.
In addition to the 4 Disc boxset the self titled album ‘Barclay James Harvest’ is also available to purchase. This expanded reissue has been newly remastered from the original master tapes and also includes nine bonus tracks, including the classic Early Morning, Brother Thrush and Taking Some Time On singles and four tracks recorded in August 1968. The lavishly illustrated booklet features previously unseen photographs and an essay by BJH specialists Keith & Monika Domone.
