Starlight Dancer is a 1977 album by Dutch progressive rock

Progressive rock

Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...

 band Kayak

Kayak (band)

Kayak are a Dutch progressive rock band formed in 1972 in the city Hilversum by Ton Scherpenzeel and Pim Koopman. In 1973, their debut album "See See The Sun" was released, including 3 hit singles. Their main popularity was in the Netherlands, with their top hit reaching #6 on the Dutch charts in...

. It was produced by Jack Lancaster

Jack Lancaster

Jack Lancaster is a British composer, record producer and musician.In the late 1960s, Lancaster co-founded the British rock group Blodwyn Pig with Jethro Tull guitarist Mick Abrahams...

 and Kayak. It was released on the Janus

Janus Records

Janus Records was a record label owned by GRT Records, also known as General Recorded Tape. Artists who had hits on Janus included Mungo Jerry, The Whispers, Cymande, Charlie, Al Stewart, Ian Thomas, and Ray Stevens. Chess Records was administered as a division of Janus in the early 1970s...

 label (JXS 7034).

Track Listing (North America)

Side 1

1. "I Want You To Be Mine" - 4:46 (T. Scherpenzeel)
2. "Ballad For A Lost Friend" - 4:14 (T. Scherpenzeel)
3. "Turn The Tide" - 3:34 (T. Scherpenzeel)
4. "Nothingness" - 3:56 (T. Scherpenzeel)
5. "Still My Heart Cries For You" - 4:34 (P. Koopman)

Side 2

1. "Starlight Dancer" - 5:03 (T. Scherpenzeel)
2. "Love Of A Victim" - 2:48 (P. Koopman)
3. "Land On The Water" - 2:28 (P. Koopman)
4. "Do You Care" - 2:56 (P. Koopman)
5. "Back To The Front" - 4:32 (T. Scherpenzeel/J. Slager)
6. "Irene" - 4:22 (T. Scherpenzeel)

There is much confusion about this particular album. This is because the North American release is very different from the original Dutch/European release with the same title. The North American release is in fact a compilation of songs from two European Kayak LP's: The Last Encore

The Last Encore

The Last Encore is the fourth album by the Dutch progressive rock band Kayak. It was originally released in 1976 and issued on CD in 1995, with a re-release in 2002....

 (1976) and Starlight Dancer (1977). To add to the confusion, the American record company Janus Records used the title "Starlight Dancer", but the sleeve design of "The Last Encore".

Track Listing (Europe)

The original Dutch release of "Starlight Dancer" (released on the Vertigo label) contains the following songs:

1. "Daughter Or Son" (T. Scherpenzeel)
2. "Starlight Dancer" (T. Scherpenzeel)
3. "Want You To Be Mine" (T. Scherpenzeel)
4. "Letdown" (T. Scherpenzeel)
5. "Irene" (T. Scherpenzeel)
6. "Golddust" (M. Werner)
7. "May" (T. Scherpenzeel/D. Ireland)
8. "Turn The Tide" (T. Scherpenzeel)
9. "Dead Bird Flies Forever" (T. Scherpenzeel)
10. "Sweet Revenge" (T. Scherpenzeel)
11. "Where Do We Go From Here?" (T. Scherpenzeel)

Only 2 songs of this release ("Turn The Tide" and "Starlight Dancer") were used on the North American release. "Want You To Be Mine" and "Irene" are also included, but these were in fact demo-versions, slightly different from the versions on the European LP.

Six songs on the North American LP come from the European LP "The Last Encore".

The song "Ballad For A Lost Friend" is a not included on any Kayak album at
all in Europe. In the Netherlands, the song was used as a single b-side.

This LP (the European version) is the only Kayak album with members Charles
Louis Schouten (drums) and Theo de Jong (bass).

The song "Golddust" is the only Max Werner-written song that Kayak
recorded. This song features a guest appearance by Dutch keyboardist Rick van der Linden

Rick van der Linden

Rick van der Linden was a Dutch composer and keyboardist. Van der Linden first gained fame as a member of Ekseption, but played in several other bands including most notably Trace, as well as solo...

.

The North American LP was not released on CD.

Until july 2010, the European "Starlight Dancer" LP was not released on CD in its own
right. But it was part of a double CD set called "Three Originals". That
double CD exists of the complete albums "Starlight Dancer", "Phantom Of
The Night" and "Periscope Life", plus the non-album bonus tracks:

1. "Theme From "Spetters""
2. "Ballad For A Lost Friend"
3. "Ivory Dance"
4. "I Want You To Be Mine" (Demo/USA version, but with different ending)
5. "Irene" (Demo/USA version)

In july 2010, Universal/Mercury released the European album on a single CD.

Band members

• Johan Slager
  Johan Slager
  Johan Slager is the original guitar player of the Dutch Progressive Rock band Kayak. He co-founded the band along with Ton Scherpenzeel, Pim Koopman and Max Werner in 1972. He left the band in 1982 after 9 albums, and returned briefly for a couple of performances in the 1990s...
  
  - Electric and acoustic guitars, vocals
• Ton Scherpenzeel
  Ton Scherpenzeel
  Ton Scherpenzeel is a keyboardist and a founding member of the Dutch rock band Kayak, together with Pim Koopman and Max Werner whom he met whilst at the Hilversum Muziek Lyceum ....
  
  - Piano, clavinet, organ, string ensemble, mellotron, accordion, synthesizers, double bass, vocals
• Max Werner
  Max Werner
  Max Werner was lead singer, drummer and percussionist of the Dutch Progressive rock band Kayak. He co-founded the band along with keyboardist Ton Scherpenzeel, guitarist Johan Slager and drummer Pim Koopman in 1972....
  
  - Vocals, mellotron, percussion
• Theo de Jong
  Theo de Jong
  Theodorus Jacob de Jong is a former Dutch footballer, and now coach.During his career he played for NEC Nijmegen and Feyenoord Rotterdam...
  
  - Bass guitar on the songs from the Dutch Starlight Dancer album
• Bert Veldkamp - Bass guitar on the other songs
• Charles Louis Schouten - Drums on the songs from the Dutch Starlight Dancer album
• Pim Koopman
  Pim Koopman
  Wilhelmus Frederikus Koopman was the drummer and percussionist of the Dutch Progressive rock band, Kayak.-Biography:...
  
  - Drums on the other songs