The Alan Parsons Project released ten albums between 1976 and 1987 which sold millions of copies, yet the group never performed live during that time. They were the studio creation of engineer Alan Parsons and songwriter/composer Eric Woolfson. While they used a different lead singer on most of the tracks, bassist David Patton and guitarist Ian Bairnson would play on most of the albums.

The Arista/Legacy Label through Sony Music has just issued re-mastered and expanded versions of six of their albums. Pyramid (1978), Eve (1979), The Turn Of A Friendly Card (1980), Ammonia Avenue (1984), Stereotomy (1986), and Gaudi (1987) have all been re-released with a large number of bonus tracks.

The two albums being reviewed here, Pyramid and Eve, were the first two in the series of releases. When comparing the sound to the vinyl editions in my collection, I find it significantly improved. The lyrics and the instrumentation are crystal clear and have a crispness that the original issues never had. Each comes with seven bonus tracks. They are mostly early demos of material contained on the albums and provide an interesting look into the development of their songs.

Pyramid was a cohesive and mysterious concept album. It looked at the past as I Robot had foreseen the future.

“The Eagle Will Rise Again” is one of the best songs that The Alan Parsons Project would create. It is a lovely ballad with a lead vocal by Colin Blunstone of The Zombies. Other highlights include “What Goes Up” with sarcastic lyrics about making monuments to yourself, and “Can’t Take It With You” which is about King Tut not being able to take his treasure with him.

There are two instrumentals that are excellent. “In The Lap Of The Gods” and “Hyper-Gamma-Spaces” both have a soaring quality and cosmic feel.

Article Author: David Bowling

I have been collecting vinyl records for over forty years and my collection is approaching 50.000 records. My wife Susan and children, Stacey and Amy, have learned to humor my passion. I am now settled in beautiful Whispering Pines, North Carolina …

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