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Ghost Canyon

Title - Focus 50: Live In Rio (3CD+BR)
Artist - Focus

For those unaware, to celebrate 50 years of ground-breaking progressive rock, Focus are delighted to announce their Focus 50 3CD/Blu-Ray package to be released on April 30th, 2021 through In Focus Records distributed by Cherry Red Records.

The Coronavirus pandemic forced Focus to postpone their anniversary celebrations from 2020 and Focus 50 will herald a year of celebration which will culminate in the release of a brand new studio album in early 2022.

At the heart of the Focus 50 package are 2CDs and Blu-Ray of Focus Live In Rio, a concert recorded in Nitteroi, Rio de Janeiro, in 2017. The concert features music from across the history of the band from Focus 1 and House Of The King, on their very first album, through the classics Hocus Pocus, Sylvia and Focus III to Song For Eva - first released in 2017.

Focus 50 also includes a bonus CD entitled Completely Focused with the classic Focus tracks numbered 1 through 12 re-recorded by the current Focus line-up of Thijs van Leer (keyboard, flute and vocals), Pierre van der Linden (drums), Menno Gootjes (guitar) and Udo Pannekeet (bass).

The Focus tracks have been recorded during the lockdown period and mixed by Udo Pannekeet.

DISC ONE: LIVE IN RIO (CD)
1. FOCUS 1
2. HOUSE OF THE KING
3. ERUPTION
4. SYLVIA
5. SONG FOR EVA
6. ALL HENS ON DECK

DISC TWO: LIVE IN RIO (CD)
1. LE TANGO
2. PS MARCH
3. FOCUS 5
4. HAREM SCAREM
5. HOCUS POCUS
6. FOCUS 3

This quite magnificently opulent live performance from Focus includes not only trips down memory lane a plenty, but some gloriously extended versions of all their fan favorites, such as Focus 1, House Of The King and one of my own personal favs, Sylvia.

For me, and I am sure all their fans and admirers around the world, one of the most amazing features of Focus is that their longer pieces - such as Eruption and Harem Scarem - can still hold the attention of an attentive listener even today.

I mean, sure, the shorter, normal one can also do that, be here on the extended version, and one that completely rocks, I might add, there is still such an elegant mastery to the track that makes it simply ageless and timeless.

Furthermore, overall, the two live CDs along with the magnificently captured Blu-ray provide a rather magical history of Focus - both audibly and visually - as material from Focus past is blended in seamlessly with more latter day compositions; such as All Hens On Deck and Le Tango from 2012s X and Song For Eva released in 2017.

DISC THREE: LIVE IN RIO (BLU-RAY)
1. FOCUS 1
2. HOUSE OF THE KING
3. ERUPTION
4. SYLVIA
5. SONG FOR EVA
6. ALL HENS ON DECK
7. LE TANGO
8. PS MARCH
9. FOCUS 5
10. HAREM SCAREM
11. HOCUS POCUS
12. FOCUS 3

And lest we forget that their is also a 12-track CD included in this new and quite wondrous 3CD+BR package, entitled Completely Focussed which is just perfect for all Focus aficionados, as it culls all of their tracks named Focus + a number!

DISC FOUR: COMPLETELY FOCUSSED (CD)
1. FOCUS 1
2. FOCUS 2
3. FOCUS 3
4. FOCUS 4
5. FOCUS 5
6. FOCUS 6
7. FOCUS 7
8. FOCUS 8
9. FOCUS 9
10. FOCUS 10
11. FOCUS 11
12. FOCUS 12

The discs are accompanied by a booklet with notes by the band, their long serving engineer Geert Scheijgrond and South American tour promoter Marcel Castro with whom Focus have had a long relationship and who brought together the recording of the show in Rio.

The booklet also features photos from the Rio concert showing the energetic and fun side of life on the road with Focus together with personal photos from touring and in the studio - a more intimate view of the band away from the limelight.

This captures the essence of the Focus family which includes Geert, Marcel and legendary artist Roger Dean, and is incredibly important to the band.

The current line-up has been together since 2016 and has a magical chemistry which manifests into electrifying performances.

Official 3CD+BR Purchase Link

www.cherryred.co.uk

www.focustheband.co.uk





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