Not long after CD Services first opened for business in the mid-late 80’s we produced our first Synth / New Age Catalogue, and this brought many new names to our world-wide Synth / Instrumental Music customer / fan-base. One of these new musicians was Clifford White, a UK based keyboardist with a strong fair for melody. His crystalline and celestial tuneful synth themes set the world alight with: ‘Ascension’ his debut album of Vangelis styled dream-like tracks of uplifting beauty, first on Cassette and then on CD, selling regularly over the years that followed and going on to become one of CDS Towers biggest selling titles of the late 80’s and early 90’s.
These new tracks have lost none of the simplistic, serene, melodic charm and majestic glory of White’s best-selling 80’s masterpiece – a hard act to follow indeed, but and even with the passing of 25 years ‘Ascension II’ certainly seems to have perfectly recaptured the mood of that very successful original.
Back in that first CDS catalogue, we described ‘Ascension’ as being.”celestial excursions of tranquil synthesizer music that is appealing and rewarding”, “uplifting and gentle music that does considerable justice to the composer/musician”. We also I likened his music to that of Frenchman Richard Vimal’s wonderful ‘Aquarythmies’ album, from the early-mid 80’s and recommended the CD to anyone into the lighter side of Vangelis’s music.
‘Ascension II’ does all that and more, but with the benefit of more advanced equipment and recording technology, the panoramic parameters have expanded somewhat.
At the time when ‘Ascension I’ was first released, another budding new UK Synth musician was just coming on to the UK Synth Music scene, and that would be one David Wright, another keyboardist heavily influenced by Vangelis who was following a similar musical path to that of Clifford White at the time. David Wright has since gone on to become one of the UK’s best loved melodic synth music makers, and a regular feature in many CD Towers campaigns, so if you’re a fan of his music, then you’ll find a lot to enjoy with Clifford White’s new ‘Ascension II’ album as well.
June 7th, 2010 | By Dave Shoesmith, CD Services