Kites (album)

Kites
Studio album by Jade Warrior
Released	1976
Genre	Experimental rock, progressive rock
Length	36:27
Label	Island
Producer	Jon Field, Tony Duhig
Jade Warrior chronology
Waves (1975) Kites (1976) Way of the Sun (1978)

Kites is the sixth studio album by British progressive/experimental rock band Jade Warrior released in 1976 by Island Records. Kites, more layered and complex than Waves, the duo's previous outing, took nine months to record.[1]

Style

Kites presented the band "at their most musically abstract and progressive",[2] featuring a larger number of guest musicians than any previous album. Each side here is a long concept piece: side A – Jon Field's side (partly inspired by abstract artist Paul Klee's painting "The Kingdom of the Air", otherwise meaning to convey the sounds of a kite drifting through skies),[1] on side B, driven by Tony Duhig, the wandering Zen boat monk Teh Ch'eng in 9th century China provided a conceptual focus.[3]

Reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]

Casey Elston of AllMusic described the result as "dense and dramatic" and a "rare example of intense ambient sound".[1]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Tony Duhig and Jon Field

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Songs of the Forest"	3:12
2.	"Wind Song"	4:05
3.	"The Emperor"	1:58
4.	"Wind Borne"	6:52
5.	"Kite Song"	3:04
6.	"Land of the Warrior"	3:29
7.	"Quietly by the River Bank"	3:20
8.	"Arrival of the Emperor: What Does the Venerable Sir Do?"	1:06
9.	"Teh Ch'eng: Do You Understand This?"	2:32
10.	"Arrival of Chia Shan: Disclosure and Liberation"	4:10
11.	"Towards the Mountains"	2:03
12.	"The Last Question"	0:36

Personnel

• Tony Duhig – guitars, percussion, keyboards, production
• Jon Field – flutes, guitar, percussion, production

Studio guests

• Roger Bryson – piano
• Fred Frith – violin
• Pete Gibson – brass, horn
• Coleridge Goode – bass guitar
• Debbie Hall – violin
• Jeff Westley – electric piano
• Graham Morgan – drums
• Joe O'Donnell – violin
• Clodagh Simonds – vocals
• Gowan Turnbull – saxophone
• Geoff Westley – piano
• Willie – drums, percussion
• Elmo – Mexican foot drums

Production

• Tom Newman – audio engineer, engineer
• David Platt – liner notes
• Mark Powell – reissue producer
• Paschal Byrne – digital remastering, remastering
• George Chkiantz – audio engineer, engineer
• Hugh Gilmour – package design[4]

References

1. Casey Elston. "Kites album review". AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-01-01.
2. Thelen, Peter (2001-04-09). "Reviews: Jade Warrior". Gnosis2000.net. Retrieved 2010-01-18.
3. "A History of Jade Warrior (version of 28 June 2010)". www.radagast.org. Retrieved 2011-01-01.
4. "Kites Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-01-01.