The Similitude of a Dream

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The Similitude of a Dream
Studio album by
The Neal Morse Band
ReleasedNovember 11, 2016[1]
RecordedJanuary–September 2016[2][3]
GenreProgressive rock
Length106:35
LabelMetal Blade
Radiant Records
The Neal Morse Band chronology
The Grand Experiment
(2015) 		The Similitude of a Dream
(2016) 		The Great Adventure
(2019)
Neal Morse chronology
Alive Again
(2016) 		The Similitude of a Dream
(2016) 		Life & Times
(2018)

The Similitude of a Dream is the second studio album by progressive rock supergroup The Neal Morse Band, released on November 11, 2016.[1][4] It is a concept album, loosely based on The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan[5] and follows Christian, who is tormented by spiritual anguish and told he must leave the City of Destruction to find salvation in the Celestial City.[6]

The album was released as a two-CD package, a special edition with a bonus making of DVD, and as a triple vinyl version.[7]

Background and writing[edit]

Morse began writing in December 2015 and started researching The Pilgrim's Progress when he thought he needed some direction and presented his idea to the band one month later.[8] As the band began working on the album, Mike Portnoy was adamant that the album be a single disc whereas Morse felt there was much more to the story that needed to be explored. Morse wrote additional material to complete a second disc and as the band was finishing the album, Mike Portnoy told the band, "we just made the album of our careers.".[9] Portnoy later made these comments public when the album was announced saying, "Neal and I have now made 18 studio albums together, and I consider 'The Similitude Of A Dream' the absolute creative pinnacle of our collaborations together, after a career of almost 50 albums, I honestly consider this to be one of the defining works of my career".[10] These comments caused much excitement and anticipation in the prog rock community.[11]

The band released five videos in support of the album release. Long Day/Overture,[7] City of Destruction,[12] So Far Gone,[13] The Ways of the Fool,[14] and The Man in the Iron Cage.[15]

Track listing[edit]

All lyrics are written by Neal Morse; all music is composed by Neal Morse, Mike Portnoy, Randy George, Bill Hubauer and Eric Gillette

Disc 1
No.TitleLength
1."Long Day"1:42
2."Overture"5:51
3."The Dream"2:28
4."City of Destruction"5:11
5."We Have Got to Go"2:29
6."Makes No Sense"4:10
7."Draw the Line"4:06
8."The Slough"3:03
9."Back to the City"4:19
10."The Ways of a Fool"6:48
11."So Far Gone"5:21
12."Breath of Angels"6:32
Total length:51:59
Disc 2
No.TitleLength
1."Slave to Your Mind"6:27
2."Shortcut to Salvation"4:36
3."The Man in the Iron Cage"5:16
4."The Road Called Home"3:24
5."Sloth"5:48
6."Freedom Song"3:59
7."I'm Running"3:44
8."The Mask"4:28
9."Confrontation"3:59
10."The Battle"2:57
11."Broken Sky / Long Day (Reprise)"9:58
Total length:54:36

Personnel[edit]

The Neal Morse Band
  • Neal Morse – lead vocals, keyboards, 6 & 12 string electric guitars, percussion, mandolin
  • Mike Portnoy – drums, vocals
  • Randy George – bass and bass pedals
  • Bill Hubauer – organ, piano, synthesizers, lead vocals
  • Eric Gillette – lead and rhythm electric guitar, lead vocals
Special guests
  • Chris Carmichael – violin, viola, and cello
  • Eric Darken – percussion ("Breath of Angels")
  • Ann, Alfreda and Regina McCrary – background vocals ("Breath of Angels")
  • Sarah Hubauer – baritone and alto saxophone ("Overture")
  • Spencer McKee – marimba ("The Battle")
  • Dave Buzard – stomps ("City of Destruction")
  • Bruce Babad – saxophone ("Shortcut to Salvation")
  • Steve Herrman – trumpets ("I'm Running")
  • Jim Hoke – tenor and baritone saxophone ("I'm Running")
  • Rich Mouser – pedal steel

Technical personnel

  • Rich Mouser - mixing

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Stereoboard.com[16]
Prog Radio[17]

The Similitude of a Dream was received with high praise, being honored as "Album of the Year" (2016) by several online music magazines, including Prog Radio,[18] The Prog Report,[19] The Fire Note,[20] and Rock at Night.[21]

The Prog Report said, "‘The Similitude of a Dream’ does the impossible and exceeds all expectations. It is absolutely a jaw-dropping release that will no doubt rank alongside the best albums by Neal Morse and Mike Portnoy, if not above them."[22] Two years later, in 2018, The Prog Report ranked Similitude of a Dream as the all time best album in the Neal Morse discography.[23]

Sonic Perspectives added, "'Epic' doesn’t begin to describe what these five musicians have managed to pull off here. It is a fantastic progressive rock opus in the best tradition of the finest prog of the 70s and is an album that I find tremendously satisfying, both spiritually and musically. It has everything any prog fan can ask for and then some, it is really the prog fan’s wet dream."[11]

Charts[edit]

Chart (2016) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[24] 169
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[25] 86
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[26] 49
French Albums (SNEP)[27] 178
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[28] 25
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[29] 56

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Munro, Scott (September 9, 2016). "The Neal Morse Band issue Long Day/Overture lyric video". Prog. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  2. ^ "Radiant Records – Timeline". Facebook. January 13, 2016. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  3. ^ "Radiant Records – Timeline". Facebook. September 13, 2016. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  4. ^ "THE NEAL MORSE BAND To Release 'The Similitude Of A Dream' In November". Blabbermouth. September 10, 2016. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  5. ^ Karadimitris, Chris (October 24, 2016). "The Neal Morse Band (Neal Morse)". Noisefull. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  6. ^ "The Similitude of a Dream (Album Review)". Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  7. ^ a b "Neal Morse Band premiere lyric video for "Long Day/Overture"". Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  8. ^ "Interview: The Neal Morse Band — Behind the Scenes of 'The Similitude of a Dream'". Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  9. ^ "Neal Morse Band on the "greatest" album of their career". Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  10. ^ "Mike Portnoy Announcement". Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  11. ^ a b "The Neal Morse Band – The Similitude of a Dream (Album Review)". Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  12. ^ "Neal Morse Band release "City of Destruction" video". Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  13. ^ "Neal Morse Band Premiere So Far Gone". Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  14. ^ "Neal Morse Band premiere new track "The Ways of the Fool"". Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  15. ^ "Neal Morse Band Rock Out With The Man In The Iron Cage". Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  16. ^ Ramsay, Simon (November 24, 2016). "The Neal Morse Band – 'The Similitude Of A Dream' (Album Review)". www.stereoboard.com. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  17. ^ Yak, The Prog (November 24, 2016). "The Neal Morse Band – 'The Similitude Of A Dream' (Album Review)". www.progradio.com. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  18. ^ Album of the Year 2016
  19. ^ Best Prog Albums of 2016
  20. ^ Prog 2016 – The Year In Review
  21. ^ Progressive Rock Extravaganza: A look at my favorite albums of the year 2016
  22. ^ "Neal Morse Band – The Similitude of a Dream (Album Review)". Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  23. ^ "Prog Report Ranking – Neal Morse Albums". Retrieved April 8, 2022.
  24. ^ "Ultratop.be – The Neal Morse Band – The Similitude of a Dream" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 19, 2016.
  25. ^ "Ultratop.be – The Neal Morse Band – The Similitude of a Dream" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 19, 2016.
  26. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – The Neal Morse Band – The Similitude of a Dream" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 19, 2016.
  27. ^ "Lescharts.com – The Neal Morse Band – The Similitude of a Dream". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  28. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – The Neal Morse Band – The Similitude of a Dream" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved November 19, 2016.
  29. ^ "Swisscharts.com – The Neal Morse Band – The Similitude of a Dream". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 23, 2016.
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