Alan Parsons - Pyramid

2007 digitally remastered and expanded edition of the Alan Parsons classic album that was originally released in 1978. Parsons himself digital remastered all his catalog albums reissued in 2007 using the original master tapes. The difference in sound quality is amazing-each sounds absolutely fantastic. The packaging includes revamped booklets with fresh, elaborated liner notes based on interviews with Parsons and Woolfson as well as rare photos and memorabilia. Album Description

Pretty much perfect

As one of the first albums I ever bought myself on LP, and having been disappointed with the previous CD issue, I'm very pleased to finally have this captivating journey properly remastered at last. It's gratifying to see the lengths that Parsons and Woolfson have gone to in raiding their archives (and fairly brave in a few instances, though the demos are fascinating documents in their own right).

"Pyramid" itself was described by them at the time as "a look at the past" in the way that "I Robot" had been "a look at the future." It succeeds in this perfectly - conjuring up distant times and spaces and displaying the trademark Parsons epic sound, using full orchestra and rock band in ways I think have never been bettered. All of this would mean little if the vocal songs themselves weren't evocative and moving, written by one of the best writers working in rock (Woolfson) and delivered by the pick of Parsons' crack team of vocalists (Blunstone, Paton, Zakatek, Miles, Ford).

The tracks range from the sublime to the ridiculous. The music builds superb choral and orchestral complexities over seemingly simple rock structures, combinations of electronic and acoustic, and even a keyboard track (from Parsons) that predicts the future of polyphonic synthesisers in its treated keyboard structure.

Subtlety, beauty, poignancy, literate lyrics and sweeping music - an album that needs to be heard (and reheard) in its entirety. For new listeners, I'd recommend saving the bonus tracks for another day - give the whole album a few listens first and let it gradually work its magic. September 11, 2008

The single most underrated "Project" by Eric Woolfson & Alan Parsons

While I ROBOT and EYE IN THE SKY generally enjoy their fair share of accolades, PYRAMID has always struggled for the recognition it so richly deserves. Given its cohesion both conceptually and musically, that somewhat low regard seems every bit as mysterious as the theme of the album itself. But, then, if ever there was a complex theme cleverly shrouded in nuance and subtlety, it would be that of PYRAMID!

The opening instrumental staggers the listener with an atmospheric ambience one would hope is destined for a proper quadraphonic presentation while the following piece "What Goes Up..." asks why, if nothing is lasting, even build a pyramid at all. Colin Blunstone of The Zombies made his first appearance with the project singing "The Eagle Will Rise Again," a stunning ballad where a very young Pharaoh struggles to reconcile the deity he is proclaimed to be with the gnawing insecurities from which every child suffers. (Curiously, this thought-provoking ballad was a favorite of the prodigious Kate Bush who would listen to it repeatedly in the late seventies.) Of "One More River" Alan, himself, has gone on written record saying, "this was better than anything we did on I ROBOT." Wow...that's a tall order for a shuffle to achieve, but "One More River" more than lives up to that assessment with its ambient bridge alone. The radio hit "Can't Take It With You" explains, in stark terms, how all the earthly treasures Tutankhamen accumulated throughout his short life won't be joining him in the next. "In The Lap Of The Gods" is arguably the finest piece of experimental music that Parsons and Woolfson ever composed, not the least of which is due to some of the best orchestral arrangements Andrew Powell has ever crafted, but it also marks a turning point on the album where the deceased pharoah lay entombed in his singular mausoleum while the multitudes who built it rejoice over the fruits of their life's singular task. Given all the heaviness of melancholy thought throughout PYRAMID, Woolfson and Parsons wisely saw the need for bit of humor. At the much deserved expense of G. Patrick Flanagan and his, shall we say, questionable claims of pyramid power, "PYRAMANIA" is a send-up in the proud tradition Rodgers & Hammerstein. "Hyper-Gamma-Spaces" is another ambient instrumental by Alan Parsons that makes me pine for a quadraphonic surround mix on Sony's SACD. Lastly, "Shadow of a Lonely Man" closes PYRAMID in epic, albeit somber, proportions with the spirit of the dead pharoah hovering quietly over his earthly treasures in a museum exhibit as passersby examine them with varying degrees of interest.

Ardent fans will revel in the bonus material. I was particularly intrigued with "What Goes Up/Little Voice" and the two demo versions of "In The Lap Of The Gods." The vast improvement in sound quality from the original Arista disc is directly attributed to Sony's Direct Stream Digital sampling from the best source tapes available. My only complaint is that this masterpiece is not available in surround on SACD. That said, I could not be more pleased with this remastered product even if it is only a redbook compact disc for moderate volume listenings. From start to finish, PYRAMID more than rises to the occasion to which its liner notes allude:

"From the rise and fall of an ancient dynasty, to the quest for a key to unlock the secrets of the universe, this album seeks to amplify the haunting echoes of the past and explore the unsolved mysteries of the present. Pyramid...the last remaining wonder of the ancient world." September 5, 2008

Great Album as is, this Remaster is a must!

I was tempted to call this their most underrated, but despite "Tales'" standing among APP fans, I still think that "honor" (?) goes to "Tales of Mystery and Imagination". I think because APP's albums after "Tales" were all on the Arista label (here in the US anyway), "Tales" got swept under the rug for many years, especially since its original version wasn't available (aside from MFSL) until just recently.

But hey!! This is supposed to be a review of "Pyramid"! Sorry, just needed to get that disclaimer out there before moving on.

"Pyramid" came out between "I Robot" (with a top 40 single in "I Wouldn't Want To Be Like You", and the instrumental title track which many people know and don't realize it) and "Eve" (Top 40: "Damned If I Do").

So this one didn't have any "hits". This is a great album and if you're an APP fan, this remaster is a must if only for the better sound quality. This is a vast improvement on prior editions of this CD. The bonus material is what it's supposed to be, maybe not essential, but a glimpse into some of the blueprint versions of what ultimately was put out on the final release. Worth having if you're a fan.

The Project did enjoy some hit singles in the late 70s and early 80s, but I think most of their real fans appreciate the albums. Don't let this one get away. The three instrumentals are amazing, and all the other songs are beyond worthwhile. The opening three (especially "The Eagle Will Rise Again") are all classic Parsons. July 24, 2008

A stunning Remaster of Pyramid

I've waited for years for a quality digital remastering of any Alan Parons Project CD. I must ad to the other reviews that this Pyramid remaster just wipes out the US issue Arista CD. Finally, the sound is now completely fleshed out and uncompressed even beyond my best vinyl pressings more like hearing a master tape! This is one my favorite Alan Parons Project works, great production and music that stands the test of time. Now I hope Turn of a Friendly Card and I Robot gets the same level of remastering. April 25, 2008

Uneven follow-up to their smash sophomore album

After "I Robot" I had high, high hopes for the Alan Parson Project. But whimsy is not a theme that works well with them. "The Mayan panoramas on my pyramid pajamas haven't helped my little problem"? The title track? Please. This is not what APP is all about. It's great that one of the other reviewers liked those lines, but let's face it, the lyrics are just plain silly. The singing was done in almost a Bee-Gees falsetto that was annoying, and topping off the problems with the title track is a bridge that seems almost randomly thrown together. APP is capable of composing fantastic bridges, e.g., Silence and I, but in Pryamid it's just jarring and clumsy.

Thematically too, the album has wild variances. Death and God feature prominantly on the A side* but then disappear with a shortened B side, which has no coherence of its own. The album is saved by the two instrumentals (In the Lap of the Gods and Hyper-Gamma-Spaces) which are as good as APP has ever produced, as well as "Shadow of a Lonely Man," a wonderfully composed song with pop appeal but that doesn't engage in pop pandering. I have the old album, so maybe the bonus tracks also add something to the CD.

Look, I'm not saying the album's not worth the price, or a listen. It is. It's no "Sicilian Defense." It's just not up to APP's very high standards of theme, coherence and instruments.

* For those too young to remember vinyl, that means the first five tracks on the CD or the first five downloads on your MP3 player. April 15, 2008

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