And...

Mostly a track Burleigh's double-tracked thin falsetto, but a lovely
prelude to the bonanza of sounds and textures to follow. Kind of
angelic, it guides us to a truly place we've never been. The
explosion of sound at the beginning is one of the most splendid
bursts of music to open an album that I've ever heard.

Somewhere I've Never Travelled

The cornerstone titular masterpiece, full of the eclectic blend of
instruments and aural textures, it is the most kindred to the first
album's sonic landscape and direction. If you listen closely you can
hear the chorus refrained as "We Need You Too" fades. This is an
exceptional showcase of Joe's melodic bass style.

Cowboy Star

My! What fun they must have had putting this pastiche together.
Beginning on the poetic segue from "Somewhere" this both musically &
lyrically dramatic tune full of wordplay chronicles the pining of a
man out of time. Replete with all manner of cinematic references from
an Aaron Copland by way of "The Magnificent Seven" soundtrack to a
seemingly anachronistic Phantomesque pipe organ swell (perhaps paying
homage to the silent movie days of the pit organist?). Watch out on
this one, bullets are flying towards the "finis". I'm really quite
fond of this quintessential Ambrosia piece. There is a wonderful
juxtaposition of Puerta singing the main verses and Pack singing the
bridge. And the instrumentation is rich with unique sounds. There is
a trumpet fanfare that harkens back to the days of the Round Table.
And a luscious harpsichord that reminds of the Baroquen days of yore.
And that hauntingly sweet violin (a la "Heart to Heart") of Daniel
Kobialka.

Runnin' Away

After all of that prog bombast, this light ballady pop tune is a
refreshing break in style. I find it the prettiest Pack-flavored tune
of all. And the vocal layers and double-tracked Pack (no Joe here, I
think) harmonies don't get better than this. Period. Great
imaginative morsels of percussion from Burl as well

Harvey

The legendary Puerta ballad. So poignant that it tears out the
heartstrings. And such an unglamorous subject, not lovers, neither a
flat-bed truck nor a dog. Not about God or mother. Just a song about
a sweet, but broken old man. Good, clean fingerstyle picking on Joe's
part not to mention his impassioned vocal reading. This track has a
beautiful warmth and presence, not altogether a Parsons strength.

I Wanna Know

Some more Puerta brilliance (To me the SINT album is a showcase for
Joe). This is the most passionate Ambrosia song. The angst over man's
condition and potential just wreaks from its pores (grooves). Pack
lays some tastefully splendid picking and chords. The coda is a
powerful surge that rivals "Drink of Water" and "Ready for
Camarillo". Very hot drumming and as usual, imaginative bass lines
from Joe. The staccato string section plays against Pack's chops in
the beginning of this tune with (quick gang, I need another gushing
superlative) awesome musicality. I would have liked to have heard
this end on Joe being double tracked for a change, to show off his
harmonic sense, much as Dave got to do in "Runnin' Away". But I'll
not muck with a seemingly perfect song.

The Brunt

The ultimate safari tune. This tune was fun, fun, fun 'til papa took
the rhino away. The one-two punch of this and "George" are Ambrosia
at their intellectual acme. Starts off with an uncharacteristically
unpretty (but fitting for the subject matter) vocal Dave (sounded as
if he were singing it while grunting on the john) that modulates into
a pleasant voice quickly. This track is very Zappa, from melodic
manic vocal textures to looney tooney instrumentation to time sig
changes. There is so much going on in this track, that 14 average
bands couldn't keep up. I have to say that if there was one track I'd
play a progger to turn them on to Ambrosia, this would be it. You've
got charging elephants, a Masai-like tribal chant with native
drumdrops (world music before world music was big), the roar of the
crowd, pinball machines, a blaring siren, a tropical rainforest with
a babbling brook; it sounds like a bad dream morphed into a rock
opera. Well the song IS about dreaming.

Danse with Me George

Very sophisticated in its blend of history and wit. Nicely shows off
brother North's classical etudinous piano training. Includes some
homages to the honky-tonk tack piano boogie of a saloon, the horns
and calliope sound of a circus oompah band, the Tijuana Brass sound
of a mariachi band, a faux musicbox, and the loungey camp of a Guy
Lombardo sax solo as well as a reprise of Zappaesque xylophonics. A
very sophisticated vocal arrangement tops it all off. Proggers take
note even with all of the eclectic touches, this is the most
neoclassical of Ambrosia's compositions. It even quietly echoes the
cacophony of crescendoed orchestral instruments a la Alan Parsons'
"Fall of the House of Usher". What a tour de farce! (sic)

Can't Let a Woman

Ambrosia's best standard chugging rocker, IMHO. I'm sure our female
contingent can't relate bet I've been left dumbfounded like Pack
writes. Chris does a nifty chuffing B3 solo and Dave actually gets
his axe to make catty mewing sounds. A dizzying number, goo goo goo
goo goo!

We Need You Too

A touching very overlooked beautiful ballad which could have been too
maudlin in the hands of a less sincere musician, but plays just the
right balance between melancholy and hope. The pipe organ resurfaces
in the only out-of-place sound that I can accuse an Ambrosia song of
having. Not that it was awful or even all that obvious, but why was
it used. I think it detracts from the drama of the rest of the song.
What adds to the song beside the great lyric and melody is the superb
"All You need is Love" trumpet (or is it a flugelhorn) solo at the
end. Chris also plays some very tasteful and assured piano here. It
trails off echoing the "Somewhere I've Never Travelled" refrain from
the title track, punctuating the song cycle of a musical picture of
life's journey.