Magnum: Livin' The Dream: Live In The UK 2005 auf 2 DVDs

MAGNUM "Livin`The Dream"

Founded in the mid-Seventies, Magnum brought out their debut, Kingdom of Madness, featuring diverse prog-rock of the melodic variety, in 1978. Magnum II, out one year later, sounded even more symphonic, and their first live album, Marauder, arrived at the stores twelve months later. Chase The Dragon (1982) and The Eleventh Hour (1983) documented the musicians’ unmistakable development, but the big breakthrough took a long time in coming. It arrived, deservedly, in 1985 with On A Storyteller’s Night, Vigilante (1986) (produced by Queen drummer Roger Taylor) and Wings Of Heaven, which made no. 5 of the British album charts and spawned three top 30 single hits. Celebrated tours and invitations to most important open-air festivals of the Eighties followed, the Reading Festival, the Monsters Of Rock in Castle Donington among them, as well as several shows at the Wembley Arena and annual appearances at the legendary Hammersmith Odeon.


In the early Nineties, the musicians flew to Los Angeles, where they recorded their Goodnight L. A. album, composer Clarkin being supported by Russ Ballard and Jim Vallance. The band’s record company released The Spirit, featuring rare or previously unreleased tracks from another studio session, towards the end of their mutual contract, followed by Sleepwalking, another new, regular studio album soon afterwards. The first chapter of Magnum’s success story ended in 1994 with Rock Art and a major farewell tour, during which the final live album The Last Dance (out in May 1996) was recorded.


Clarkin went on to work as a producer and songwriter for other artists, released two albums with Bob Catley, recorded by their intermezzo project Hard Rain in 1997 and 1999 (Hard Rain & When The Good Times Come), and generally recharged his musical batteries. Then, almost precisely eight years after Rock Art, glorious times returned for Magnum. Their 2001 album Breath Of Life oozed present and past all at once and was followed by a number of celebrated shows. “It was very inspiring for me to write and produce material for Magnum again,” Clarkin explains. “Compared to the Hard Rain tracks, Magnum compositions are more powerful, deeper and more passionate.”


With their last release, Brand New Morning, and the impending European tour in late summer 2004, the band offered an exciting preview of the future which allows but one prognosis: Magnum will be a force to be reckoned with for years to come!


And this culminates in the release of the new DVD "Livin`A Dream". Packed with over 215 minutes of Magnum stuff - a dream for all fans come true. (08.Nov. 2005)