{"id":1155,"date":"2026-11-01T21:37:02","date_gmt":"2026-11-01T21:37:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.peterbanks.net\/archive\/?page_id=1155"},"modified":"2026-11-01T21:37:02","modified_gmt":"2026-11-01T21:37:02","slug":"flash-on-record-reviews-1972-73","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.peterbanks.net\/archive\/reading-room\/flash-on-record-reviews-1972-73\/","title":{"rendered":"FLASH ON RECORD: reviews, 1972\u201373"},"content":{"rendered":"

NEWSPAPER NOTICES – 1972 and 1973<\/p>\n

\n

Flash on record<\/h1>\n

Extracts from contemporary reviews of the singles and albums<\/h3>\n

These are short extracts from newspaper notices of Flash\u2019s records, in order of publication, with the original clippings where the newspaper allows. The records are the single Small Beginnings<\/em> and the albums Flash<\/a>, In The Can<\/a> and Out Of Our Hands<\/a>. Printed errors are marked [sic]. The Record Mirror reviews of October 1973 are on their own page<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n

The Knutsford Guardian (Cheshire) \u2013 June 1, 1972, page 10<\/h2>\n

Singles column: Flash, \u201cSmall Beginnings\u201d (Sovereign SOV 105).<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

\u201cA punchy number with Peter Banks, the group\u2019s leader adding his own distinctive lead guitar feel to the music. Flip \u2018Morning Haze.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"The<\/a>
Click the clipping to enlarge.<\/small><\/p>\n

\n

The Springfield Leader and Press (Missouri) \u2013 January 7, 1973, page 36<\/h2>\n

\u201cMusic, Cover Score\u201d, the \u201cOff The Record\u201d column by Mike Kelley, on In The Can.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

\u201c\u2018Black and White,\u2019 the album\u2019s best cut, is almost jazz-like with its staccato melodies that jump out at you from the practiced fingers of guitar man Banks, who used to play with Yes.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"The<\/a>
Click the clipping to enlarge.<\/small><\/p>\n

\n

The Illinois State Register (Springfield) \u2013 January 16, 1973<\/h2>\n

\u201cFlash in the Can\u201d, the \u201cAlbums-Albums\u201d column, signed Tux.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

\u201cOf all the new bands that appeared in 1972, Flash seems to be the best of the bunch. Their sounds seems [sic] much more alive and innovative than any of the other new bands.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

\u201cI like this album better though, because Bennett\u2019s bass playing, the vocals and the guitar work are all improved.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"The<\/a>
Click the clipping to enlarge.<\/small><\/p>\n

\n

The Los Angeles Times \u2013 March 4, 1973<\/h2>\n

\u201cPop Album Brief\u201d by Terry Atkinson: In The Can (Sovereign SMAS-11115).<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

\u201cThough in many ways a pretty blatant copy of Yes (guitarist Peter Banks\u2019 former band), Flash has much to recommend it\u2014especially Banks\u2019 jazzy, indeed flashy guitar work. And its second album is a slight improvement over the first.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

\u201cThe band isn\u2019t in the same class as Yes, but it couldn\u2019t have chosen a better model.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"The<\/a>
Click the clipping to enlarge.<\/small><\/p>\n

\n

The Guardian Journal (Nottingham) \u2013 April 21, 1973, page 11<\/h2>\n

\u201cHappy reunion for original Byrds rock group\u201d, a pop column signed Adrian Tame; In The Can, \u201cjust out on Sovereign\u201d. (The clipping is not reproduced here.)<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

\u201cFlash, the band formed by Peter Banks when he split from Yes, have their second album, \u2018In the Can\u2019 just out on Sovereign. Like their debut it is a complex mixture of hinted themes and subtle shadings. At first hearing it seems long and rambling, incoherent even, but with a little effort tracks like \u2018Lifetime\u2019 or \u2018Black and White\u2019 emerge as compositions of real strength.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

The Star-Phoenix (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) \u2013 October 11, 1973, page 40<\/h2>\n

\u201cA message in music\u201d, no byline: Out Of Our Hands.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

\u201cAlthough the two bands sound alike there is a very definite distinction in their respective sound that allows no confusion over who it is that you are listening too [sic].\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

\u201c. . . Banks really creates the eccentric sound that carries Bennetts\u2019 [sic] music.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"The<\/a>
Click the clipping to enlarge.<\/small><\/p>\n

\n

The Anderson Daily Bulletin (Indiana) \u2013 October 16, 1973, page 10<\/h2>\n

Short notice by \u201cYouth Seen\u201d rock critic Randall L. Rohn: Out Of Our Hands and Two Sides of Peter Banks. The clipping is cropped.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

\u201c\u2018Out of Our Hands\u2019 . . . by Flash is a respectable album but Yes plays the same kind of music only better . . . However, Flash\u2019s lead guitarist Peter Banks, has released an excellent solo album, \u2018Two Sides of Peter Banks\u2019 . . .\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"The<\/a>
Click the clipping to enlarge.<\/small><\/p>\n

\n

The Calgary Herald (Alberta) \u2013 October 19, 1973, page 73<\/h2>\n

\u201cRock\u201d column, signed K.S.: Out Of Our Hands (Sovereign).<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

\u201cBesides appearing on the sexiest record covers in the business, Flash also have a lot going for them musically. Their third album has a style distinctive to Yes with Peter Banks excelling on lead guitar and moog. The only trouble is Colin Carter\u2019s flat vocals \u2014 Jon Anderson, he isn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"The<\/a>
Click the clipping to enlarge.<\/small><\/p>\n

\n

The Vincennes Sun-Commercial (Indiana) \u2013 November 2, 1973, page 14<\/h2>\n

\u201cOld Post Platter Pics\u201d, no byline: Out Of Our Hands.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

\u201cOverall, this \u2018Out of Our Hands\u2019 is a below-average album. It lacks all vocal refinement, especially good harmony.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

\u201cUnless you are a real Flash enthusiast who praises \u2018Flash in the Can\u2019 as a masterpiece, forget this album. Get their first one instead, or better yet buy a Genisis [sic] album. They play the same style of music, but a whole lot better.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\"The<\/a>
Click the clipping to enlarge.<\/small><\/p>\n

\n

Newspaper names, dates and page numbers are as recorded on each clipping; where a clipping was cropped, they follow the archive\u2019s own records. Extracts are given as printed.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NEWSPAPER NOTICES – 1972 and 1973 Flash<\/a> on record Extracts from contemporary reviews of the singles and albums These are short extracts from newspaper notices of Flash<\/a>\u2019s records,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":732,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1155","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.peterbanks.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1155","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.peterbanks.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.peterbanks.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.peterbanks.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.peterbanks.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1155"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.peterbanks.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1155\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1156,"href":"http:\/\/www.peterbanks.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1155\/revisions\/1156"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.peterbanks.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/732"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.peterbanks.net\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1155"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}