Dean Watson is a multi-instrumentalist from Toronto in Canada and, until he reached out to me, I have to confess that I had not heard any of his music before.
I am now exceedingly grateful that he did!
‘Track of Days’ is Dean’s fifth album of prog-fusion music and contains the 51 minute epic title track. To be fair apart from the short introductory track Updown Waltz, the whole album is the title track.
And what a track it is, sumptuous progressive rock fused with some extremely stylish jazz, a complete instrumental tour-de-force that takes you on a wonderfully involving musical journey with nods to the likes of Keith Emerson, Happy The Man, Pat Metheny, UK, Bruford, Yes, Genesis, Gentle Giant and a whole gamut of others.
All instruments, programming, writing, mixing and mastering are done by Dean and he is an incredibly talented individual. It’s often said that you should listen to an album in one sitting and with ‘Track of Days’, that is a must, it is meant to be treated as one long piece and you will get the most from it if you do follow that advice.
It flows and segues from one act to the next, the musical ingenuity and complexity fusing and melding to create an intoxicating musical tapestry. For me it is the keyboards and synthesisers that are Dean’s piece-de-resistance and the comparisons with Emerson are earned. They come alive in his hands and give an energy and life force to the music that gives it a vibrancy all of its own.
The best compliment I can give to an album new to me is if I immediately press play again as soon as I have listened to it for the first time and with this album I did that not once but at least three times, it really is that good.
I’ll certainly be seeing where this accomplished musician goes next, with inventiveness like this then the sky is surely the limit!
Released 8th September 2018.
Amazing accomplishment. At times, this art is at the level of The Way Up, my favorite Metheny album, because of its tone and theme. The stereo separation is exquisite. I would give this five stars. Shawn Lane composition style is also encased here at times. What is amazing to me is that the chord structure allows tremendous freedom. There is a gamut of emotions felt in listening to this virtuosity of authorship, without tremendous speed being a factor. This is a contemplative work of art. I look forward to Dean’s future endeavors. GB