A Change of Seasons Japanese liner notes

GREETINGS ONCE AGAIN TO OUR LOYAL AND BELOVED JAPANESE FANS!!

It is with great pleasure that we present to you this collection of odds and ends from the Dream Theater vault.

The new and improved recorded version of “A Change Of Seasons” is something that we’ve been longing to do for many years now and are very excited to have finally released.

We were able to make many changes (musically, lyrically, and melodically) from the original 1989 version, which can give you a sense of where we were, where we are, and where we are going.

It also marks the first recorded performance of our new keyboardist, Derek Sherinian, whose talents shall prove to be a very valuable asset to both the writing and enthusiasm of the band. Welcome aboard Derek!!

The “Uncovered” show at Ronnie Scott’s was a one-of-a-kind, unique experience for all of us involved.

During our tour of Japan in January of 1995, while you fans were gearing up to attend our shows, we were onstage at soundchecks learning endless amounts of cover songs. (In fact, we even threw Pink Floyd’s “In The Flesh” into a couple of our shows on that tour to test it out on stage!)

Here’s a brief walk-through of the tracks we selected for inclusion on this release:

1. “Funeral For A Friend / Love Lies Bleeding”

The often overlooked Elton John masterpiece that really seemed right up our alley to cover. (The long and mysterious instrumental overture combined with a great melodic rock & roll song.)

When citing our influences, everybody is very quick to point out our Progressive Rock or Heavy Metal favorites. However, we are also big fans of classic, mainstream stuff like Elton, Billy Joel, U2, Journey, Peter Gabriel, The Beatles, etc.

2. “Perfect Strangers”

Deep Purple were an obvious choice as a band for us to cover. They were one of the first bands to combine progressive elements with metallic overtones. They also use keyboards as a predominant and lead instrument in the same way that we do.

We originally chose and rehearsed “Child In Time”, but on the day before the “Uncovered” show, we recorded a version of “Perfect Strangers” with Bruce Dickinson on vocals for his BBC1 radio show in England.

It felt so powerful and alive that we decided to go with this track instead.

3. “The Rover/Achilles Last Stand/The Song Remains The Same”

Led Zeppelin were THE band of the ‘70’s to any teenager growing up in America at the time. Their influence on modern music is practically unparalleled by any other band. Their extensive, improvised jams in their live shows set the precedent for bands (including Dream Theater!) who occasionally dabble in a bit of self-indulgence.

Choosing a Zeppelin song to cover was a tough one because there are so many classics and a lot of them have already been done. We decided to choose three of the less-likely choices and combine them for a mini-medley.

We were fortunate enough to have the privilege of playing several shows with the reunited Page/Plant this past summer in Germany, and those shows only confirmed their status as legitimate living legends!

4. The Big Medley

In June of 1990, while still searching for that “right” vocalist we did an instrumental show on Long Island, New York, under the moniker of “Ytse Jam”. The encore of that show was a medley made up of old favorites of ours, and we used that medley as a blueprint for this medley.

A) “In The Flesh?” – The opening track to possibly the greatest album of all time. (Pink Floyd’s “The Wall”) Pink Floyd have always been a huge influence to us and this seemed to be a great start to the big medley.

B) “Carry On Wayward Son” – The old classic Kansas AOR radio hit. They were an incredibly talented band, and maybe one of the most overlooked of the progressive rock movement of the ‘70’s.

C) “Bohemian Rhapsody” – Our original medley from 1990 included this piece, and that was before “Wayne’s World” made this song a household name. Queen are another huge influence for us and they made some of the most innovative music of the ‘70’s.

D) “Lovin’ Touchin’ Squeezin’” – A bit of nostalgia here: This was the very first song we played with James when he auditioned for the band in January of 1991. Steve Perry is one of James’ biggest vocal influences and, judging by the way he sings this song, you’ll see why he got the gig with us!!

E) “Cruise Control” – The Dixie Dregs were the original, instrumental, progressive band. Their virtuosity was untouchable and their influence on us is immeasurable. They never got the appreciation that they deserved. (Except, of course, from John Petrucci, who still to this day cites Steve Morse as his biggest guitar hero!)

F) “Turn It On Again” – It probably would have been more appropriate for us to have covered an older, more progressive song by Genesis, but this one really seemed to wrap up the big medley quite nicely. Maybe at the next “Uncovered” show we can do “Firth Of Fifth”......or “In The Cage”......or “Supper’s Ready”......or........

Enjoy and we’ll c-ya on tour again real soon.

Kanpai!!

Mike Portnoy / Dream Theater