The Syn
Encyclopedia
The Syn are an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 band that were active from 1965 to 1967, and then reunited as a 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 in 2004. Chris Welch
Chris Welch
Chris Welch is a music journalist, reviewer and critic with Melody Maker, famous during the 1960s and 1970s for reporting on the rise of such bands as The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, Traffic, If, Cream and Jeff Beck. During that time he also reported on the UK jazz scene.- Career...

, in his book, Close to the Edge: The Story of Yes wrote, "The Syn were very similar to Yes in fact. It was very much a precursor of Yes."

Early years

The roots of The Syn are in an earlier north London R&B band called High Court including Steve Nardelli
Steve Nardelli
Steve Nardelli founded The Syn in 1966 with Chris Squire, Andrew Jackman, John Painter and Martyn Adelman. In 1968, Nardelli left The Syn to carve out a business career in the fashion and sports industries before reforming the band in 2003 with Adelman and Peter Banks...

 on guitar and his school friend George Arzimanow on vocals. The band evolved over time and, in 1965, with Nardelli now handling lead vocals and John Painter on guitar, they changed their name to The Syn.

Shortly after, however, The Syn merged with another local band, The Selfs
The Selfs
The Selfs were a British R & B band from the Wembley area of London in 1964. Band members included Chris Squire , Andrew Pryce Jackman , John Wheatley , Chris Slater The Selfs were a British R & B band from the Wembley area of London in 1964. Band members included Chris Squire (bass), Andrew...

, so Nardelli and Painter were joined by Chris Squire
Chris Squire
Christopher Russell Edward "Chris" Squire , is an English musician, known as the bass guitarist and backing vocalist for the progressive rock group Yes. He is the only member of the group to appear on every album.-Before Yes:...

 (bass), Andrew Jackman
Andrew Jackman
Andrew Pryce Jackman was a keyboard player and arranger. He was in The Syn with bassist Chris Squire . Jackman subsequently worked on Squire's solo album Fish Out of Water, on The Steve Howe Album and on the Yes album Tormato.-History:In the mid-1960s, Jackman was the keyboard player in The Selfs...

 (keys) and Martyn Adelman
Martyn Adelman
Martyn J Adelman or Martin, also known as Max Adelman, is a British photographer and former drummer .Adelman learnt to play drums aged 14 and soon formed his first group, The Insteps, also including John Altman. A subsequent band included Peter Knight, later of Steeleye Span.Adelman was at Barnet...

 (drums). The band's first gig, at Nardelli's school Kingsbury County, included covers of "(Love is Like a) Heat Wave
(Love is Like a) Heat Wave
" Heat Wave" is a 1963 hit single penned by the Holland–Dozier–Holland songwriting team and made popular by Motown girl group Martha and the Vandellas. It was originally released in July 1963, on the Motown subsidiary label Gordy, peaking at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the Billboard Hot...

" and The Marvelettes
The Marvelettes
The Marvelettes were an American singing girl group on the Tamla label. Motown's first successful female vocal group, the Marvelettes are most notable for recording the company's first #1 Pop hit, "Please Mr...

' "I'll Keep On Holding On". Paul Korda
Paul Korda
Paul Korda is an English songwriter, singer, musician, and actor. He has been writing and performing music since the 1960s...

 produced his composition "Merry-go-round" as a demonstration record for the band.

Psychedelic period

John Painter was replaced by Peter Banks
Peter Banks
Peter Banks is an English guitarist. He was the original guitarist of the progressive rock band Yes.-Early career:When Banks was a young boy, his father bought him an acoustic guitar...

 and Martyn Adelman was replaced by Icelandic
Icelanders
Icelanders are a Scandinavian ethnic group and a nation, native to Iceland.On 17 June 1944, when an Icelandic republic was founded the Icelanders became independent from the Danish monarchy. The language spoken is Icelandic, a North Germanic language, and Lutheranism is the predominant religion...

 drummer Gunnar Jökull Hákonarson usually referred to as Gunnar Jökull or Jökullinn (literally meaning Jökull "glacier"). The band also got a new manager, Peter Huggett, former bass player with Lonnie Donegan
Lonnie Donegan
Anthony James "Lonnie" Donegan MBE was a skiffle musician, with more than 20 UK Top 30 hits to his name. He is known as the "King of Skiffle" and is often cited as a large influence on the generation of British musicians who became famous in the 1960s...

.

The band moved away from R&B covers and started writing their own material, led by Jackman and Nardelli. Reflecting the musical changes going on around them, they became more influenced by psychedelic music
Psychedelic music
Psychedelic music covers a range of popular music styles and genres, which are inspired by or influenced by psychedelic culture and which attempt to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues-rock bands in the...

. They released two singles titled Created by Clive (b/w Grounded) and Flowerman (b/w 14 Hour Technicolour Dream) in 1967.

In 1967, they played in support of Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...

 at the Marquee Club
Marquee Club
The Marquee was a music club first located at 165 Oxford Street, London, England when it opened in 1958 with a range of jazz and skiffle acts.It was also the location of the first ever live performance by The Rolling Stones on 12 July 1962....

 in London, a legendary gig attended by many rock luminaries including The Beatles, and that introduced Hendrix to the music world.

Later line-ups saw a number of different drummers play after Hákonarson returned to Iceland.

Aftermath

The band split up in 1967. Both Squire and Banks then joined Mabel Greer's Toyshop before eventually coming back together in Yes
Yes (band)
Yes are an English rock band who achieved worldwide success with their progressive, art, and symphonic style of rock music. Regarded as one of the pioneers of the progressive genre, Yes are known for their lengthy songs, mystical lyrics, elaborate album art, and live stage sets...

.

Nardelli, Jackman and sometimes Squire also worked together after the band split up. Nardelli and Jackman recorded a planned further Syn single, entitled "Sunshine and Make Believe", with session appearances by Tony Kaye
Tony Kaye (musician)
Tony Kaye is a British musician.Kaye was the original keyboard player for the progressive rock group Yes from 1968 to 1971, and rejoined Yes from 1983 to 1995...

 on keys and David O'List
David O'List
David 'Davy' O'List is a rock guitarist, vocalist and trumpeter.Most notably, he played with The Attack, The Nice and Jet.- Career :...

 on guitar. Unfortunately, tapes for this session could not be located in 2004. Jackman recorded another Syn piece with an orchestra, "The Last Performance of the Royal Regimental Very Victorious and Valiant Band", eventually released on the 2004 compilation Original Syn. Another Syn piece, "Mr White's White Flying Machine", was released in 1970 by Ayshea
Ayshea
Ayshea , is an English actress, singer and TV presenter.-Biography:Born in Highgate, London and educated at Arts Educational School, London, Ayshea was trained in ballet, music, drama and dance. She made her film debut at age 9 as an uncredited extra at in Tom Thumb. At seventeen, she was signed...

 in a session produced by Jackman and with Squire on bass.

Jackman continued to work with Squire, including on his first solo album Fish Out of Water and on Yes's Tormato
Tormato
Tormato is the ninth studio album by British progressive rock group Yes. Issued as the follow-up to 1977's acclaimed Going for the One, Tormato received less than charitable reviews upon release and its virtues are still a matter of debate for Yes fans and critics...

. Squire has emphasised Jackman's role on Fish Out of Water, saying he offered him co-writing credits, but Jackman declined.

Reunion

The Syn reunion grew out of two events. In 2003, Martyn Adelman contacted the webmaster of a Yes fan site and agreed to do an interview. Steve Nardelli saw this and was put back in touch with Adelman. With Banks too, they met up for lunch and discussed a reunion. Around the same time, Andrew Jackman died, and there was a desire to mark his passing.

In 2004, the new band started rehearsals. Banks had brought in keyboard player Gerard Johnson, with whom he had worked on several previous projects. John Wetton
John Wetton
John Kenneth Wetton is an English bassist, guitarist, keyboardist, singer and songwriter. He was born in Willington, Derbyshire, and grew up in Bournemouth. He has been a professional musician since the late 1960s...

 was originally to have played bass, but pulled out at the last minute and was replaced by Steve Gee (bassist in progressive rock band Landmarq
Landmarq
Landmarq are a UK-based neo-progressive rock band. Since forming in 1990, they have so far released six albums, two of which were recorded live at various concerts in the UK and elsewhere in Europe....

). The sessions produced new versions of old Syn songs "Illusion" and "Grounded" and an extended new version of Yes' song "Time and a Word". Recordings were carried out at the studio owned by guitarist Paul Stacey
Paul Stacey
Paul Stacey is a British guitarist and producer, best known for his work with Oasis and The Black Crowes.Paul Stacey's early work included the 1990s band, The Lemon Trees and Denzil....

. However, Banks did not continue on with the group, and gave an explanation on his web site which was later removed.

Nardelli continued with the band and, in late 2004, he and Johnson had begun recording on a new song "Cathedral of Love" when Nardelli asked Squire if he could play on the tune. Squire did and went on to join the band. Paul Stacey became the guitarist and his twin Jeremy Stacey
Jeremy Stacey
Jeremy Stacey is a British drummer. His early work included the 1990s band, The Lemon Trees and Denzil...

, the drummer. Adelman had chosen to step away from performing, although he remained associated with the band for a period as a photographer—photography rather than drumming having been his career for over 30 years.

The band released their first full studio album Syndestructible in October 2005, with Cathedral of Love coming out beforehand as a single. The lineup of musicians performing on that album is
  • Paul Stacey - guitars, engineer, co-producer
  • Gerard Johnson - keyboards, co-producer
  • Steve Nardelli - vocals
  • Jeremy Stacey - drums
  • Chris Squire - bass, backing vocals


An interviewer for 20th Century Guitar magazine described Syndestructible as "one of the best prog-rock albums of the new century" and "a masterpiece of beat-prog." Richie Unterberger for Allmusic said, "It's rather like hearing a slightly middle-of-the-road version of Yes, with plenty of multi-sectioned song structures and progressive rock interplay between the instruments. [...] It's well executed and well recorded. But it should have been credited to Steve Nardelli and Chris Squire, or a different band name than Syn, as the links to the '60s Syn sound are virtually absent."

The More Drama Tour, scheduled to begin in North America in August 2005, was to have seen three acts, The Syn, White
Alan White (Yes drummer)
Alan White is an English rock drummer known for his work with the progressive rock band Yes. White was also a member of the Plastic Ono Band, playing live in 1969 at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival, which was recorded and released three months later as Live Peace in Toronto 1969...

 and Steve Howe
Steve Howe (guitarist)
Stephen James "Steve" Howe is an English guitarist, known for his work with the progressive rock group Yes...

 touring together, with Squire, Howe, Alan White
Alan White (Yes drummer)
Alan White is an English rock drummer known for his work with the progressive rock band Yes. White was also a member of the Plastic Ono Band, playing live in 1969 at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival, which was recorded and released three months later as Live Peace in Toronto 1969...

 and Geoff Downes
Geoff Downes
Geoffrey "Geoff" Downes is an English rock keyboard player, songwriter, best known as the keyboardist for the bands The Buggles, Yes and Asia, of which he is the only consistent member. When he was a keyboardist for The Buggles, he played multiple keyboards to achieve a New Wave technopop sound...

 playing Yes material at the end of the evening (with Kevin Currie of White handling lead vocals). However, the tour was cancelled shortly before it was due to begin. The Syn line-up for the tour was to have comprised:
  • Francis Dunnery
    Francis Dunnery
    Francis Dunnery is an English musician, singer-songwriter, record producer and record label owner. He is best known as a solo performer , and for fronting the original lineup of the band It Bites between 1982 and 1990 .Dunnery served as a sideman and...

     - guitars
  • Gerard Johnson - keyboards
  • Steve Nardelli - vocals
  • Gary Husband
    Gary Husband
    Gary Husband is a British jazz and rock drummer, pianist and composer.- Short biography:Gary Husband is an English jazz and rock drummer, pianist and composer...

     - drums
  • Chris Squire - bass


The Syn album line-up debuted live at a show in London at the end of 2005 (assisted by Husband), but for live dates in January 2006, the band was:
  • Steve Nardelli - vocals
  • Chris Squire
    Chris Squire
    Christopher Russell Edward "Chris" Squire , is an English musician, known as the bass guitarist and backing vocalist for the progressive rock group Yes. He is the only member of the group to appear on every album.-Before Yes:...

     - bass guitar
  • Gerard Johnson - keyboards
  • Shane Theriot - guitar
  • Alan White
    Alan White (Yes drummer)
    Alan White is an English rock drummer known for his work with the progressive rock band Yes. White was also a member of the Plastic Ono Band, playing live in 1969 at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival, which was recorded and released three months later as Live Peace in Toronto 1969...

     - drums


A UK tour in May that year was cancelled through poor ticket sales and, on 16 May 2006, Squire announced his departure from the group: "Chris has decided to leave the Syn, and is no longer involved with that band despite reports to the contrary."

Nardelli assembled an album, Armistice Day, combining a new studio track ("Armistice Day", recorded with Johnson and P. Stacey) with live work from 2006. Although Johnson recorded and mixed the track, he was never paid for his work. In an October 18, 2006, in a message on Yesworld.com, Chris Squire
Chris Squire
Christopher Russell Edward "Chris" Squire , is an English musician, known as the bass guitarist and backing vocalist for the progressive rock group Yes. He is the only member of the group to appear on every album.-Before Yes:...

 discouraged fans from purchasing the album. The album was released without the permission of any of the artists, save Nardelli himself. Both Johnson and P. Stacey left the band. While a release date in November 2006 was initially announced, legal action saw the album delayed until 2007.

Meanwhile, Johnson and the Stacey brothers are continuing to work with Squire. Chris Squire, Gerard Johnson and Jeremy Stacey worked with two of Andrew Jackman's brothers (Jeremy Jackman
Jeremy Jackman
Jeremy Jackman is a UK choral director, composer and arranger, and formerly a counter-tenor of the King's Singers.-Biography:Jackman was a chorister at St Paul's Cathedral. He trained at the Royal College of Music and Hull University....

 and Gregg Jackman) on Chris Squire's Swiss Choir album, while Squire, Johnson and both Staceys have been working on another Squire solo project. Work on this has stalled, but Jeremy Stacey appears on a forthcoming album by Squire and Steve Hackett
Steve Hackett
Stephen Richard Hackett is a British singer-songwriter and guitarist. He gained prominence as a member of the British progressive rock group Genesis, which he joined in 1970 and left in 1977 to pursue a solo career...

.

New Line Ups

In June 2007, Nardelli said, "The Syn today is me and the musicians I chose to play with." Nardelli formed a new Syn line up in 2008, as follows:
  • Steve Nardelli - vocals
  • Francis Dunnery - guitars
  • Tom Brislin
    Tom Brislin
    Tom Brislin is an American keyboardist, vocalist, songwriter, and producer from New Jersey. He is the founding member of the rock band Spiraling, and plays or has played keyboards with several well-known acts...

     - keyboards


The band recorded a new album, Big Sky, released early 2009, with Brett Kull
Brett Kull
Brett Kull is an American rock and pop multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, composer and record producer, best known for his work with the progressive rock group Echolyn.-Solo works:-Echolyn:...

, Paul Ramsey
Paul Ramsey
Paul Christopher Ramsey is a former professional footballer and Northern Ireland international who played in a defensive midfield role. He featured for Northern Ireland in the 1986 FIFA World Cup.-Career:...

 and Dorie Jackson. A US tour began (with Kull, Ramsey, Jackson and Jamie Bishop) in April 2009, but was cancelled after 6 dates, with the band breaking up. Brislin, Kull, Ramsey and Bishop went on to join Dunnery in his New Progressives project. Big Sky made the top 10 best albums of the year at Classic Artists Today FM radio and was voted the best progressive rock album of 2009 at USA Progressive Music magazine.

In October 2008, Umbrello Music Entertainment released a track written by Nardelli for the musicians from The Syn fan forum called "Reasons and Rituals". The executive producer for the project is radio station host and teacher Steve Sikes-Nova. The project was named 14 Hour Technicolour Dream V-Band after the Nardelli/Jackman written Syn track.

In December 2010, Nardelli announced a new collaboration with Swedish band Moon Safari
Moon Safari (band)
Moon Safari is a progressive rock band from Skellefteå, Sweden. Formed in 2003, the band quickly recorded a demo that caught the attention of Tomas Bodin of The Flower Kings. They have since released three albums on their own label Blomljud....

, known for their artistic rock sound and five-part harmonies. Recording sessions began in December 2010 in Skelleftea
Skellefteå
-Industry:*Boliden AB, a big mining and smelting company*Alimak*Natural User Interface Technologies AB - NUITEQ, a promising emerging technology start-up company-Sports:*Skellefteå AIK, an ice hockey team in the highest Swedish league, Elitserien....

, Sweden. The resultant new Syn album is scheduled for release in 2011.

Albums

Original Syn YesServices Limited edition - Umbrello/2004

Syndestructible - Umbrello/2005

Original Syn -Umbrello/2005

Armistice Day - Umbrello/2007

Big Sky - Umbrello/2009

With Various Artists

compilation: Roots of Yes 1964-68

various artists: The Psychedelic Scene

various artists: The Freakbeat Scene

various artists: Rubble Collection 3

compilation: Peter Banks
Peter Banks
Peter Banks is an English guitarist. He was the original guitarist of the progressive rock band Yes.-Early career:When Banks was a young boy, his father bought him an acoustic guitar...

 Can I Play You Something? (The Pre-Yes Years Recordings from 1964–1968), 1999

various artists: Nuggets II, 2001

The Syn/Steve Howe/White More Drama Tour

Singles

"Created By Clive"/"Grounded" - Deram/1967

"Flowerman"/"14 Hour Technicolour Dream" - Deram/1967

"Cathedral of Love" - Umbrello/2006

External links

  • Official Site
  • http://www.myspace.com/thesyn
  • http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Syn/8804892878
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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