Bo Hansson - Magician's Hat (Reissue) (1972)

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.

"Lord of the Rings" is a beautiful, timeless album of instrumental psychedelia worth hearing, even if it does sound rather 70ish production-wise. It doesn't feature any "fantasy/medieval" themes à la AYREON but captures the otherworldly, pastoral feel of Tolkien's work, like a Nordic album should. HANSSON later pursued with the more jazzy album "Magician's Hat" in '73 and, then with a second winner in '75 entitled "Attic Thoughts", which features a much better sound than the "Lord" album. This time, violin and acoustic guitars are added to the mix while organs and synths swell in impressive solos. "Music Inspired by Watership Down" (1977), however, was quite a disappointment and signalled HANSSON's decline. He finally released "Mitt I Livet" in 1985 but the flame had already died long ago. Having turned 60 in April 2003, he is now rumoured to be incapacitated by illness and has ceased recording.

Both "Lord of the Rings" and "Attic Thoughts" are a must for any collector of early Swedish prog, even if you still can't tell Gandalf from Frodo.