6. A World of Fantasy
Album: Never Surrender (Canada 1982, US 1983)
Writers: Rik Emmett, Mike Levine, Gil Moore and Tammy Patrick
Lead vocals: Rik Emmett
Chart History: US Mainstream Rock #3
Video?: Yes
Lyrical category: Love/lust/breakup
Alert: This is Track 2 of Never Surrender.
"A World of Fantasy" may be the best example of how at the top of their game, Triumph was extremely melodic AND extremely powerful. The first single from Never Surrender, "A World of Fantasy" is an extremely dynamic track that combines the intricacies of prog with the pop sense of the best AOR tracks and the raw power of hard rock and metal.
The acoustic guitar-and-synth opening suggests we might be about to hear a prog tune, but as Rik Emmett begins to overlay the main melody on electric guitar, the vibe switches to "epic rock/metal." It's the kind of thing we might have heard from Queensryche a few years later. As Emmett begins to sing, Mike Levine comes in with some supportive bass lines, but the song is still pretty hushed by Triumph standards. Then, when Emmett hits a high note at the end of the verse, THWACK! We are off and running. Emmett repeats the main melody on guitar, but it's double-tracked for greater impact, and Levine and Gil Moore begin a pounding rhythm that is perfect for fist-pumping accompaniment at the arena. This passage is one of my favorites in the band's entire catalog.
The second verse has the same melody as the first, but as the band is swinging at full speed, Emmett's vocal is louder and more impassioned.
The chorus comes in two parts, the first of which features Emmett singing alone and hitting some of the highest notes he ever managed, and the second of which is a torrent of melody that produces one of the Biggest Choruses of the band's career. It was a sign of the times that the song's biggest hook didn't appear until more than 2 minutes into the song. Like many of the best bands of its day, Triumph rewarded the patience of its listeners.
The third verse adds some fills and keyboard lines that hadn't appeared earlier in the song. After another run through the first part of chorus, we get to Emmett's brief guitar solo, which matches the anguish of his vocal, which resumes as we begin a bridge featuring a dynamic buildup from Moore that leads us into the Big Chorus again. This time, Emmett wails on guitar and vocals in between the lines of the chorus and the song continues its momentum until it fades out.
Like "Spellbound" (#12 on my list), "A World of Fantasy" is about a man who is "hypnotized" by a lover who is wrong for him. The "evil woman"/"witchy woman" theme is one trope from the classic rock era that I don't miss, but this song deals with it better than most because the narrator takes some of the blame himself:
I was chasing a dream, I was fancy free
I was so naive
You were all wrapped up in a mystery
You looked good to me
And I needed love, I wanted it desperately
But oh, real love, you never came to me
The dated lyrics may be the reason that the Never Surrender tracks represented at their reunion shows and on their most popular compilation album (2010's Greatest Hits Remixed) are the title track (#15 on my list) and "When the Lights Go Down" (#23), but not "A World of Fantasy" despite it getting more play on MTV (with a video that combined footage from the studio, a soundstage and a live show) and (in the Philly market, at least) on the radio.
"A World of Fantasy" appeared regularly on the Never Surrender and Thunder Seven tours, but not after that except for one of those special-setlist Toronto shows in 1988. It often served as the lead-in to Moore's drum solo. On the vinyl version of the Stages live album, the drum solo is listed as a separate track, "Druh Mer Selbo," but on the remastered CD version and the Spotify version, "A World of Fantasy" and the drum solo are combined into one track. (The original CD version cut the drum solo altogether.)
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1o3XYqBnyGQ
Live version from The US Festival in 1983:
https://open.spotify.com/track/11zw2XgP8lbehy8S9DlMue?si=b9154cb0b0ef44b6
Live version from Dallas in 1983 or 1984:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNYJwSRfvDE
Live version from Stages (includes drum solo):
https://open.spotify.com/track/1m4nWE0eK5JyYapsQoB6bx?si=ea3c768281024152
With the highest-ranked songs from Never Surrender, Rock & Roll Machine, Progressions of Power and Thunder Seven having appeared all in a row, all that is left are the best songs from Just a Game and Allied Forces. At #5, my highest-ranked song sung by Gil Moore, and the second song I ever heard by the band.
) selection from Sandinista!
I honestly don't remember hearing this song at all, but weirdly Anytime had some familiarity. I liked the groove and solo on this one slightly more than the straight rocking follow up. The opening trio of Infinity is so damn good: Lights + Feeling that Way/Anytime. Hopefully I am doing this great band some justice for long time fans despite my blunder. 
Wow, I am dense sometimes. I thought you were saying the ranking was too low for people, not the wordplay. Time for bed.
