Herb Music
Renaissance photo

Renaissance

a.k.a.Michael Dunford's Renaissance
CountryUnited Kingdom
FormedJanuary 1969, Thames Ditton, Surrey
GenresSymphonic Prog, Progressive Rock, Progressive Folk, Progressive Pop, New Wave, Piano Rock

Line-up (members)

  • Annie Haslam : Vocals (1971–1987, 1998–2002, 2009–)
  • Rave Tesar : Keyboards (2001-2002, 2009-)
  • David J. Keyes : Bass (2001-2002, 2009-)
  • Frank Pagano : Drums, Percussion, Vocals (2009-)
  • Jason Hart : Keyboards (2010-)
  • Ryche Chlanda : Guitar (2013-)

Former members

  • Jim McCarty : Drums (1969-1970)
  • Keith Relf : Vocals, Guitar (1969-1970) (R.I.P. 1976)
  • John Hawken : Piano, Keyboards (1969-1970)
  • Louis Cennamo : Bass (1969-1970)
  • Jane Relf : Vocals (1969-1970)
  • Terry Crowe : Vocals (1970-1971)
  • Terry Slade : Drums (1970-1972)
  • Neil Korner : Bass (1970-1971)
  • Michael Dunford : Guitar (1970–1972, 1973–1987, 1998–2002, 2009–2012) (R.I.P. 2012)
  • Anne-Marie "Binky" Cullom : Vocals (1970-1971)
  • John Tout : Piano, Keyboards (1970-1980, 1998-1999) (R.I.P. 2015)
  • Danny McCulloch : Bass (1971) (R.I.P. 2015)
  • Frank Farrell : Bass (1971) (R.I.P. 1997)
  • John Wetton : Bass (1971-1972)
  • Jon Camp : Vocals, Bass (1972-1985)
  • Mick Parsons : Guitar (1972) (R.I.P. 1972)
  • Ginger Dixon : Drums, Percussion (1972)
  • Terence Sullivan : Drums (1972-1980, 1998-2002)
  • Rob Hendry : Guitar (1972-1973)
  • Peter Finberg : Guitar (1973)
  • Peter Gosling : Keyboards (1980-1983)
  • Peter Baron : Drums (1980-1983)
  • Gavin Harrison : Drums (1983-1984)
  • Mike Taylor : Keyboards (1983-1984)
  • Greg Carter : Drums, Percussion (1984-1985)
  • Raphael Rudd : Keyboards (1984-1987) (R.I.P. 2002)
  • Mark Lampariello : Bass, Guitar (1985-1987)
  • Charles Descarfino : Drums, Percussion (1985-1987)
  • Roy Wood : Bass (1998-1999)
  • Mickey Simmonds : Keyboards (1999-2002)
  • Alex Caird : Bass (1999-2001)
  • Tom Brislin : Keyboards, Vocals (2009-2010)
Releases : 42     Total votes : 0     Reviews : 0
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Added by Pop-Tarts Last edited by Pop-Tarts

Renaissance Discography

Album title Lyrics Type Released Rating Votes Reviews
Renaissance - Renaissance (1969) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
Renaissance - Illusion (1971) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
Renaissance - Prologue (1972) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
Renaissance - Ashes Are Burning (1973) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
Renaissance - Turn of the Cards (1974) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
Renaissance - Scheherazade and Other Stories (1975) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
(1976) collection wish list Live - 0 0
Renaissance - Novella (1977) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
(1978) collection wish list Compilation - 0 0
Renaissance - A Song for All Seasons (1978) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
Renaissance - Azure d'Or (1979) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
Renaissance - Camera Camera (1981) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
Renaissance - Time-Line (1983) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
(1990) collection wish list Compilation - 0 0
(1990) collection wish list Compilation - 0 0
(1992) collection wish list Compilation - 0 0
(1995) collection wish list Compilation - 0 0
Renaissance - The Other Woman (1995) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
Renaissance - Ocean Gypsy (1997) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
(1997) collection wish list Compilation - 0 0
(1997) collection wish list Live - 0 0
(1997) collection wish list Live - 0 0
(1998) collection wish list Compilation - 0 0
(1999) collection wish list Live - 0 0
(2000) collection wish list Live - 0 0
(2000) collection wish list Live - 0 0
Renaissance - Tuscany (2000) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
(2001) collection wish list Compilation - 0 0
(2002) collection wish list Live - 0 0
(2002) collection wish list Live - 0 0
(2002) collection wish list Live - 0 0
(2002) collection wish list Live - 0 0
(2003) collection wish list Compilation - 0 0
(2004) collection wish list Compilation - 0 0
(2006) collection wish list Live - 0 0
(2008) collection wish list Live - 0 0
(2008) collection wish list Video - 0 0
(2010) collection wish list Video - 0 0
(2011) collection wish list Video - 0 0
Renaissance - Grandine il vento (2013) collection wish list Studio - 0 0
(2015) collection wish list Live - 0 0
(2015) collection wish list Live - 0 0
Additional notes
The history of Renaissance is essentially the history of two separate groups, rather similar to the two phases of the Moody Blues or the Drifters. The original group was founded in 1969 by ex-Yardbirds members Keith Relf and Jim McCarty as a sort of progressive folk-rock band, who recorded two albums (of which only the first, self-titled LP came out in America, on Elektra Records) but never quite made it, despite some success on England's campus circuit.

The band went through several membership changes, with Relf and his sister Jane (who later fronted the very Renaissance-like Illusion) exiting and McCarty all but gone after 1971. The new lineup formed around the core of bassist Jon Camp, keyboard player John Tout, and Terry Sullivan on drums, with Annie Haslam, an aspiring singer with operatic training and a three-octave range.

Prologue Their first album in this incarnation, Prologue, released in 1972, was considerably more ambitious than the original band's work, with extended instrumental passages and soaring vocals by Haslam. Their breakthrough came with their next record, Ashes Are Burning, issued in 1973, which introduced guitarist Michael Dunford to the lineup and featured some searing electric licks by guest axeman Andy Powell. Their next record, Turn of the Cards, released by Sire Records, had a much more ornate songwriting style and was awash in lyrics that alternated between the topical and the mystical.

Renaissance Ibiza The group's ambitions, by now, were growing faster than its audience, which was concentrated on America's East Coast, especially in New York and Philadelphia -- Scheherazade (1975) was built around a 20-minute extended suite for rock group and orchestra that dazzled the fans but made no new converts. A live album recorded at a New York concert date reprised their earlier material, including the "Scheherazade" suite, but covered little new ground and showed the group in a somewhat lethargic manner. The band's next two albums, Novella and A Song for All Seasons, failed to find new listeners, and as the 1970s closed out, the group was running headlong into the punk and new wave booms that made them seem increasingly anachronistic and doomed to cult status.

Their '80s albums were released with less than global or even national fanfare, and the group split up in the early '80s amid reported personality conflicts between members. During 1995, however, both Haslam and Dunford made attempts to revive the Renaissance name in different incarnations, and Jane Relf and the other surviving members of the original band were reportedly planning to launch their own Renaissance revival which, if nothing else, may keep the courts and some trademark attorneys busy for a little while.