Eruption Part 2

Track by track 88 Eruption (Live FLIA)

Archive number: 88

Title: Eruption (Live)

Main Album: Focus Live In America

Track number: 4

Genre: Progressive Rock Instrumental

Venue: Patriots Theater, 1 Memorial Drive, Trenton, New Jersey, USA

Length: 16' 27”

Composer: Thijs van Leer

Musicians: Thijs van Leer – Hammond organ, Flute, Whistling, Voice; Jan Dumee – Gibson Marauder Guitar; Bobby Jacobs - Bass; Bert Smaak - Drums

Producer: Gavin Bott/Bob Carruthers

Engineer: Mike Potter (Orion Sound) Mix (Total audio)

Label: Classical Rock Legends Limited

Date of recording/release: October 2002 (part of a two day Uriah Heep led classic rock legend festival that also featured Nektar, Mostly Autumn and Asia). Released on DVD and CD (edited) in 2003.

Alternative version: The full original is found on the album Moving Waves

Notes: The announcment for this track is on the previous track. Van Leer says there “Now we'd like to take you to the second side, B side, of our album - actually the first album to break here in the States - that was Moving Waves. And it was a title called Eruption.” Here we start with 'violined' guitar the fare is quite standard until around 04:45 when van Leer comes in first with the flute then some lovely whistling. This leads into a creditable Tommy (from 05:50). Then, after a little more whistling, we have more of the familiar live stuff, allowing Dumee to shine. There is some brief scat from van Leer, mainly at 12:40-13:17, but recurring over the next minute or so after that and including something of a variation on the theme. There is also a jazzy flute-led break at 13:55-14:31 and an organ-led one at 14:32-15:34 which again features van Leer's scat voice at certain points. There is then an abrupt return to the slow original theme (15:35-15:55) to round off. Applause and speech follow from 15:56-16:27. Van Leer says “Thank you so much ... Thanks ... We'd like to do a song that was once dedicated to a girl named Sylvia.” This is an edit, however, as it is clear from the DVD that before Sylvia another two tracks intervened (Focus 3 – at the end of the CD) and Brother (omitted from the CD).

Eponymous Titles

Some 15 Focus tracks refer to individuals real or imaginary.

Orfeus and Euridice are, of course, from Greek mythology as is Orion. Venus is from Roman mythology (as in Ode to Venus on Focus 9).

Nobody seems to know who Bennie Helder is. No doubt, like Elspeth of Nottingham, he is imagined. (Turns oout it was the name Thijs used fr himself as a boy).

Le Clochard (meaning tramp in French) could be included here and may be Anonymus.

Sylvia, of course, is Sylvia Alberts; Tommy, Tom Barlage; Pim, Thijs's grandson (not Pim Jacobs as I had guessed); Eddy, Thijs's father; Janis, Janis Joplin.

Tokyo Rose was the composite name given to a number of Japanese broadcasters of propaganda in World War II.

Father Bach refers to the composer J S Bach.

One should also mention Judy, as in Ole Judy on the 1985 album.

As of 2024 we can add Bela (probably Bela Bartok) and (David) Bowie plus Nura and Gaia.

Other Composers

Apart from those who were members of the group at the time Focus have looked occasionally to other writers for material. These have usually been classical composers. The exceptions are Tom Barlage (Tommy) and Paul Stoppelman (No Hang Ups). Also Eelke Nobel (Euridice).

Classical composers are Bach, Brahms and Haydn

We should also mention the lutenist John Dowland

Track by track 28 Eruption (Live)

Archive number: 28

Title: Eruption (Live)

Main Album: Focus at the Rainbow

Track number: 4

Genre: Live Progressive Rock Instrumental

Venue: Rainbow Theatre, Finsbury Park, 232 Seven Sisters Road, N4 3NX (recorded using Pye Studios Mobile Unit and edited from the two performances)

Length: 08' 28”

Composer: Thijs van Leer, Tom Barlage

Musicians: Jan Akkerman – Electric guitar (Gibson Les Paul Custom); Thijs van Leer – Hammond organ, Voice; Bert Ruiter - Bass; Pierre van der Linden – Drums

Producer: Mike Vernon

Engineer: Phil Dunne

Label: LP – Polydor, Sire CD – EMI-Bovema, IRS, Red Bullet, JVC Victor Date of recording/release: May 4, 5 1973/October 1973 (May 4 concert televised UK July 1973) CD 1988, 1993, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006

Alternative version: The original is on Moving Waves

Notes: Van Leer continues his announcement about the set list with 'We'd like to do now a bit of a number called Eruption' which is greeted with applause (00:00-00:13). The piece begins with the slow and stately Orfeus on organ, 'violined' guitar and bass (00:14-01:52). The organ plays alone at 01:33-01:40 then with the guitar at 01:41-01:52 as tension builds. The whole band then burst in with the allegro Answer (00:53-02:57). Next it is the contrasting Orfeus again (02:58-03:50) with the guitar quite prominent. We then have a brief snatch of Pupilla, featuring van Leer's voice (03:51-04:19) and the Answer (04:20-04:38) before the main Pupilla movement, 04:39-05:49. The way is now open for Akkerman and a magnificent guitar-led rendition of Tommy (05:50-07:44). Having been lifted high, a final segment of Pupilla gently brings us back to earth (07:45-08:25). Applause follows.

Track by track 15b Eruption (Part 2 - End of Orfeus, Answer, Pupilla, Answer, Tommy, Pupilla, Answer, The Bridge)

Archive number: 15b

Title: Eruption (Part 2 - End of Orfeus, Answer, Pupilla, Answer, Tommy, Pupilla, Answer, The Bridge)

Main Album: Moving Waves (Focus 2 in Holland). Tommy was also a single in 1972.

Track number: 6

Genre: Progressive Rock (Symphonic)

Studio: Sound Techniques Studio, 46a Old Church Street, Chelsea, London SW3

Length: This part 10' 44" (22' 57" the whole)

Composer: Thijs van Leer, Tom Barlage, Jan Akkerman, (Eelke Nobel, Pierre van der Linden)

Musicians: Jan Akkerman – Electric guitars (Gibson Les Paul Customs), Bass; Thijs van Leer – Hammond organ, Piano, Mellotron,Voice; Cyriel Havermans - Bass, Voice; Pierre van der Linden - Drums

Producer: Mike Vernon

Engineer: Jerry Boys

Label: LP - Imperial, Blue Horizon CD – EMI Bovema, IRS, Red Bullet

Date of recording/release: April, May 1971/October 1971. CD - 1988, 1993, 2001

Notes: Eruption is a brilliant composite piece that pulls together various musical elements. Album notes refer to as many as 15 different parts though the nature of the music means that there are overlaps and the debatable nature of deciding just where one part ends and another begins is reflected in the varied timings given. We have divided it into four parts in our own attempt to convey what is included. Next 03:50-14:34

03:50-04:15

At 03:50 slow solo organ comes in followed by 'violined' guitar as the opening theme is repeated to close the Orfeus element.

04:16-05:07 Answer

And so back to the fast guitar-led answer, which this time features drums and is brought to a conclusion by a short drum break, 04:38-05:07.

05:08-06:10 Pupilla

The next section is Pupilla. This is a band effort. It is quite slow and features ethereal background voices and mellotron. From 5:42 the guitar comes in and dominates.

06:11-07:58 Tommy

From here Akkerman features more, beginning with the wonderful Tommy – a soaring guitar with the band backing - still played by Akkerman today. The Who's rock opera Tommy made the name fashionable and The Who had performed much of it in Amsterdam in 1969vbut Tommy himself is the flautist and saxophonist Tom Barlage, who often played with Akkerman's previous band Brainbox. Barlage's own band Solution recorded a track called Divergence where one of the themes, played on saxophone, is this same tune.

07:59-08:30 Pupilla

After Tommy we return to the ethereal voices backed by the band for a short reprise of Pupilla.

08:31-09:17 Answer

We are then back into Answer with an ascending guitar-led band then strong chords. From 08:52 we have the Answer riff then a rising and falling scale (09:05-09:17) when we enter into the next section. The section 09:05-09:17 is discussed by a musicologist here in relation to a similar riff by the band Camel.

09:18-14:34 The Bridge

This begins with a heavy rock guitar-led section (09:18-11:35) concluded (11:36-12:01) with the Answer riff and rising scales. This Akkerman section is matched by a van Leer one, a heavy rock organ-led part (12:02-13:44) concluding again (13:45-14:10) with the Answer riff and rising scales. The final part of this section is the Break (14:11-14:34) where it is scorching solo guitar after the three introductory double beats from the rhythm section.