The Great Adventure (The Neal Morse Band album)

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| quote = Well, it's more of a different view of The Similitude of a Dream. It's the journey of the abandoned son who was left behind in TSOAD. After the guy who is left behind has a vision, he tries to convince his wife to join him, but she won't. So, he takes to the trip on his own. It's based on The Pilgrim's Progress book which tells her story. Lyrically, it didn't work for us to tell the story from her perspective, so I thought, 'Why not sing from the perspective of the eldest son who was angry to be left in the city of destruction?'

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| source = Neal Morse when asked if The Great Adventure was a continuation of The Similitude of a Dream.

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Morse was not willing to create a sequel to The Similitude of a Dream at first, and neither was the band. Members were also against creating another double album. The quintet got together in August 2017 and then in January 2018 to perform some songs. Later in 2018, as Morse toured his solo album Life and Times, he revisited the recordings and used Pro Tools to work on the songs, ultimately creating a 2.5-hour version of the original album, which was well received by the band.{{cite web |title=NEAL MORSE Explains Decision To Scrap Initial Version Of New Conceptual Double Album 'The Great Adventure' |url=https://www.blabbermouth.net/news/neal-morse-explains-decision-to-scrap-initial-version-of-new-conceptual-double-album-the-great-adventure/ |website=Blabbermouth.net |access-date=15 February 2021 |date=January 20, 2019}}{{cite web |last1=Beaudoin |first1=Jedd |title=The Neal Morse Band’s ‘Great Adventure’ |url=https://www.kmuw.org/post/neal-morse-band-s-great-adventure |website=KMUW |publisher=Wichita State University |access-date=February 16, 2021 |date=March 5, 2019}}{{cite web |last1=Fuoco-Karasinski |first1=Christina |title=‘The Great Adventure’: The Neal Morse Band gets emotional about new songs |url=https://entertainermag.com/blog/2019/03/06/the-great-adventure-the-neal-morse-band-gets-emotional-about-new-songs/ |website=Entertainer Mag |publisher=Times Media Group |access-date=February 16, 2021 |date=March 6, 2019}}

Morse says there are "three or even four" versions of the album recorded as demos and that the record spent 18 months in the making. The final cut of the effort was finished in August 2018, when a 2.5 hour version of it was shortened to just under two hours.{{cite web |last1=Frazier |first1=Preston |title=Neal Morse on ‘The Great Adventure,’ Sequels and Cruise to the Edge: Something Else! Interview |url=https://somethingelsereviews.com/2019/01/31/neal-morse-great-adventure-interview/ |website=Something Else! |access-date=February 16, 2021 |date=January 31, 2019}} Many songs and parts had to be cut, with Morse commenting that "everybody lost something that they loved on this album. And everybody gained." The band barely made it in time for a January 2019 release. Some songs, such as the closing track "A Love That Never Dies" and "Vanity Fair", had been written long before the sessions.

The album's title was suggested by drummer and vocalist Mike Portnoy, based on the last line of The Similitude of a Dream, which says "let the great adventure now begin".

{{Album ratings

| rev1 = Jesus Wired

| rev1score = 96%

| rev2 = Sea of Tranquility

| rev2score = {{rating|5|5}}

| rev3 = Sonic Perspectives

| rev3score = 9.3/10

}}

Writing for Jesus Wired, David C. Coleman said "the members of the band musically complement each other to an extraordinary degree, creating a whole far greater than the individual parts" and pondered that "overall, The Great Adventure is not quite as earth-shattering as the career-defining The Similitude of a Dream but it's still a remarkable accomplishment and fitting conclusion for the tale of The Pilgrim's Progress.{{cite web |last1=Coleman |first1=David C. |title=Review: The Neal Morse Band – The Great Adventure |url=https://jesuswired.com/2019/01/08/review-neal-morse-band-the-great-adventure/ |website=Jesus Wired |access-date=15 February 2021 |date=January 8, 2019}}

On Sea of Tranquility, Pete Pardo said the album is "perhaps even more proggy and certainly heavier" than The Similitude of a Dream. He praised all members' performances and finished his review by saying "while it's no doubt a little early yet to make any claims [about the album being better than its predecessor], The Great Adventure easily comes pretty damn close."{{cite web |last1=Pardo |first1=Pete |title=The Neal Morse Band: The Great Adventure |url=https://www.seaoftranquility.org/reviews.php?op=showcontent&id=21621 |website=Sea of Tranquility |access-date=February 16, 2021 |date=February 24, 2021}}

Scott Medina from Sonic Perspectives said that "sonically, the band has never sounded better. The production is flawless" and that "the collective known as The Neal Morse Band rises to the formidable task of matching their most celebrated work, The Similitude of a Dream, proving they continue to grow and heighten the quality of their musical output."

PopMatters ranked it as the eighth best progressive rock/metal release of 2019.{{cite web |last1=Blum |first1=Jordan |title=The Best Progressive Rock/Metal of 2019 |url=https://www.popmatters.com/best-progressive-rock-2019-2641461304.html |website=Pop Matters |access-date=February 17, 2021 |date=December 6, 2019}}

{{tracklist

| headline = Chapter 1{{cite web |title=The Neal Morse Band - The Great Adventure |url=https://www.ultratop.be/fr/album/5be2a/The-Neal-Morse-Band-The-Great-Adventure |website=Ultratop |publisher=Belgian Entertainment Association |access-date=February 17, 2021 |language=French}}

| all_lyrics =

| all_music =

| title1 = Overture

| length1 = 10:06

| title2 = The Dream Isn't Over

| length2 = 2:40

| total_length = 12:46

}}

{{tracklist

| headline = Chapter 2

| all_lyrics =

| all_music =

| title3 = Welcome to the World

| length3 = 5:30

| title4 = A Momentary Change

| length4 = 3:42

| title5 = Dark Melody

| length5 = 3:29

| title6 = I Got to Run

| length6 = 6:05

| title7 = To the River

| length7 = 5:02

| total_length = 23:48

}}

{{tracklist

| headline = Chapter 3

| all_lyrics =

| all_music =

| title8 = The Great Adventure

| length8 = 6:06

| title9 = Venture in Black

| length9 = 5:16

| title10 = Hey Ho Let's Go

| length10 = 3:22

| title11 = Beyond the Borders

| length11 = 3:08

| total_length = 17:52

}}

{{tracklist

| headline = Chapter 4

| all_lyrics =

| all_music =

| title1 = Overture 2

| length1 = 3:46

| title2 = Long Ago

| length2 = 3:45

| title3 = The Dream Continues

| length3 = 1:20

| title4 = Fighting with Destiny

| length4 = 5:23

| title5 = Vanity Fair

| length5 = 4:00

| total_length = 18:15

}}

{{tracklist

| headline = Chapter 5

| all_lyrics =

| all_music =

| title6 = Welcome to the World 2

| length6 = 4:01

| title7 = The Element of Fear

| length7 = 2:34

| title8 = Child of Wonder

| length8 = 2:28

| title9 = The Great Despair

| length9 = 6:18

| title10 = Freedom Calling

| length10 = 7:31

| title11 = A Love That Never Dies

| length11 = 8:38

| total_length = 31:30

}}

The Neal Morse Band

• Neal Morse – lead vocals, keyboards, guitars
• Eric Gillette – guitars, lead vocals
• Mike Portnoy – drums, vocals
• Randy George – bass
• Bill Hubauer – organ, piano, synthesizers, lead vocals

Additional musicians

• Amy Pippin, Debbie Bresee, April Zachary, Julie Harrison – backing vocals on "A Love That Never Dies"
• Chris Carmichael – strings

Technical personnel

• Rich Mouser – mixing
• Jerry Guidroz – drum engineer

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Category:2019 albums

Category:Music based on novels

Category:Neal Morse albums

Category:2010s concept albums

Category:Metal Blade Records albums