Trace

Hailing from the Netherlands, Trace featured the talents of two (cousins) van der Lindens. Rick, the classically-trained keyboard player, cut his teeth with classical performance before leading Ekseption (sic) for nearly five years. That band found considerable success by rocking up classical adaptations and jazz standards, though they offered little more than novelty. And yet, this would become the popular Dutch variant of prog rock. Drummer Pierre had been in several Dutch groups, including Brainbox and Focus. In 1974, the pair joined up with bassist Jaap van Eik to form Trace. Unsurprisingly, the album offers a combination of classical adaptations interspersed with original numbers. The originals, such as the jazzy "Once" and "Progression," are the highlights. Rick was clearly a first-rate talent, and his performance is technically perfect, if a bit of an exercise. Expectedly, the album went gold in their native Netherlands. Trace released a second album, Birds, in 1975, but now with English drummer Ian Mosley, fresh from Darryl Way's Wolf. The first side contained a continuous suite written by Rick; and overall the album felt more varied, even introducing a little guitar and vocal into the equation. "Opus 1065" was a standout, with Darryl Way adding violin. Like their debut album, it also saw release in the US on Sire Records. A final album, White Ladies, appeared in 1976, after which Rick would go solo and Mosley on to Steve Hackett's band.