Alan Parsons Project - Eve

Eve

Eve was the Project's fourth studio album. It went to #13 on the album charts & there weren't any charting singles released from the album. Eve has always been a wee bit of a disappointment to me. There's only one weak song on the album but there aren't any outstanding songs on it, either.

The album opens in typical fashion with the instrumental "Lucifer". Unlike many of the Project's previous albums where the opening instrumental jumped out & made you take notice, "Lucifer" doesn't come close to doing this. The next song, "You Lie Down with Dogs", is one of the two best songs on the album. It has a definite pop feel to it with a good groove. "I'd Rather Be a Man" is an average song that opens with programmed synths but never delivers. "You Won't Be There" is a slow tempo song, Bairnson does provide a melodic lead solo. "Winding Me Up" is a slight improvement but still nothing more than average. It does a catchy chorus that'll have you singing along but it's, oh, so commercial. "Damned If I Do" falls into the pop category also but doesn't go anywhere. It does have a driving set of brass & some strings which should prove interesting on the remastered version coming out later in the year. Bairnson provides us with a solid lead solo. "Don't Hold Back" follows & is way into the commercial end of things; for the first time we get a female doing a lead vocal on a Project track. By this time I'm disappointed in the album with so many average tracks. What follows is the other good song on the album, "Secret Garden" which should've been the opening number. David Paton provides an interesting bass riff in this instrumental. "If I Could Change Your Mind" is the album's closing track. This one also has a female lead vocal but the song is the weakest of the album. Knowing what the album's theme is, this song then is the female's reply to that theme.

Eve hasn't ever been my favorite Project album nor did it have the best recording dynamics. I look forward to the newly remastered version being released. June 23, 2008

I Had No Idea!!

I had no idea this album was so controversial with APP fans! Although not my favorite, it is one of his best. Appears that many other enjoy it as much as I do but others are simply too worked-up. March 17, 2008

Good Sleeper APP album

"Eve", originally released in 1979, was The Alan Parsons Project's (APP)4th album. It didn't earn the same acclaim as, say, "I Robot", but "Eve", in my opinion, offers a nice selection of solid APP music. The main theme of this album focuses on, sadly, a rather negative view of women.

There is something for most every APP fan on this album.

There are two instrumentals:
- Lucifer - 3/5 stars...very repetitive, but not bad for background music
- Secret Garden - 5/5...good APP instrumental!

There are also some harder driving tracks:
- You Lie Down With Dogs - 3/5
- I'd Rather Be a Man - 3/5
- Damned If I Do - 4/5

Some mellow tracks:
- You Won't Be There - 5/5
- If I Could Change Your Mind - 5/5

And some pop-tracks:
- Winding Me Up - 4/5
- Don't Hold Back - 5/5

While "Eve" probably won't ever be know as a Hallmark APP disc, it is, in my opinion, still a good one! After all, how many discs out there are truly 5-stars through and through?

I give this disc 4 stars overall, knowing that, at least for me, it has a mixture of 3/5 to 5/5 star offerings. And, I think that the whole disc makes for pretty impressive background music.

4 stars! This disc is a definite must-have for dedicated APP fans, but if this is your first foray into APP music, try "I Robot", "Turn of a Friendly Card" or "Tales of Mystery and Imagination" for a taste of what's best about APP.
February 11, 2008

Alan Parsons - One Of Their Weaker Efforts

"Eve" was the APP conceptual piece about women. I've always loved the album cover which on first glance features several beautiful women, but upon closer inspection finds their faces covered with warts (If you've never seen it......it is hard to describe). Some of the subject matter is rather nasty with song titles like "You Lie Down With Dogs", and "I'd Rather Be A Man" pretty much ripping women from a very chauvinistic point of view. In the end, the women get the last say with two female vocal tracks (very rare for Parson's releases) closing out the album. Unfortunately this is probably one of the APP weaker efforts. With the exception of the opening instrumental track "Lucifer" the music here is rather bland and has a programmed feel to it. The vocals are all good and the lyrics decent, but the album does not hold up to the three that came before it. The album produced one hit with "Dammed If I Do", which is a decent enough song. Another notable feature by his absence is the lack of any vocals from Eric Wolfson. Overall "Eve" is far from essential Alan Parsons, but it does have its moments. December 5, 2007

If you should change your mind about this beautiful album

Luis Mejia (son) - Eve has been one of the least regarded TAPP albums, being released after the mildly weak Pyramid and before the super produced The Turn Of A Friendly Card, this album assumes an incredible, amazing musicianship, with a set of conceptual, mellodic, original and experimental compositions ever released by The Alan Parsons Project.

Eve has been mainly regarded as a concept album, mainly themes of interpersonal relationships, and all above them: angryness, hate, love, hope, ego, among others. If you take it as a concept album, then its nothing but one of their most emotionally intricate concept album, but taking it by the seriousness and emotional contents in its songs, the light, undertaking ambient assumed of the album, the fine but pure complexity, mixed with Alan Parsons' pop inclinnations, Andrew Powell orchestral dedication, and a set of marvelously mellodic, intricate and slightly experimental set of songs + the diversity among the vocalists and collaborators, then you get one of their greatest and most dedicate albums: Eve. Mainly assuming a very mellodic, versatile and good natured prog and a lightly experimental popcraft, it also contains certain rock moments, mellodical techno arrengements and mellow ballads. It retains a content of mellow, emotional, experimental, orchestral, potent/powerful, beautiful and intricate moods.

Within the tracks each of them has their specific sounds and moments, but they all fit in a strongly emotional mood: the first track Lucifer is a well crafted song and one of TAPP most famous instrumental pieces, its the only track to contain intricate and exotic moods. You Lie Down With Dogs is the first song to assume strongly emotional and slightly misogynist themes, but regarding that is kind of a rutine song, focused on a rock/new wave style. I'd Rather Be A Man is alike with the previous track, it contains slightly misogynist themes, but it assumes much more powerful and energetic vocals, it has also some techno arrengements, still its a wonderful song. You Won't Be There is the first emotionally romantic ballad in the album, one of the bests, its a beautiful, mellodic and sentimental song, one of the fewest song to possess Dave Townsend' vocals. Winding Me Up is the second romantic ballad in the album, it starts as if someone is starting up a music box, possessing beautiful, cheerful and enjoyable moods, it has the greatest orchestration in the album. The poppy Damned If I Do is another one among the best songs in the album, having Lenny Zakatek's best vocal performance the song is a mellow, techno emphasized song with certain instrument performance surprises. Don't Hold Back is the first song in the album featuring a female vocalist (Clare Torry), its a fantastic, catchy song with fine, original tunes, while Secret Gardens stays as a simple interlude instrumental. If I Could Change Your Mind is the second and last song in the album featuring a female vocalist (Lesley Duncan), and it stays as a sentimental, melancholic ballad with a piano basis, its sang full of emotion. Track pick: Lucifer, Winding Me Up, Damned If I Do, If I Could Change Your Mind.

The only highlight among the artists becomes the first and only two female vocals on only two songs, just because of this is a collectable album. It was also unconventional that the marvelous vocalist Eric Woolfson didn't appeared in any song, although at this time Woolfson commercial voice wasn't yet discovered, and as Alan Parsons' used to say: "The reason beacause I don't put Woolfson in many songs is because I usually need the collaboration of real singers; Eric is mainly a professional lawyer, not a singer".

In conclussion Eve may be regarded as a mediocre 70's album but it still keeps some highlights and some fantastic songs, a beautiful release to collect, but not a must. August 23, 2007

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