1977 Albums

In 1975, the original 1969 lineup of Renaissance tossed around the idea for a reformation. Sadly, guitarist Keith Relf died in May 1976 before anything was formalized; he was electrocuted in his home while playing guitar. But the unfortunate turn of events (sorry) energized the remaining members to form Illusion, taking their name from the second album of the original Renaissance lineup.

Estranged son of famed composer Maurice Jarre, French synthesist Jean-Michel Jarre studied with Pierre Schaeffer's GRM during the late 60s and early 70s. His earliest release was a single, "La Cage" b/w "Eros," a mixture of electronics and tape collages, none of which should be surprising, given the pedigree. From this release to the international success of Oxygène was quite a leap, especially considering that heretofore, Jarre had only composed a few soundtracks at his burgeoning home studio in Paris.