Biography
The Alan Parsons Project was the collective reference to several lineups of a British progressive rock team, active between 1975 and 1990, whose rosters consisted of Alan Parsons and Eric Woolfson surrounded by a varying number of session musicians and some relatively consistent band members such as guitarist Ian Bairnson, arranger Andrew Powell, bassist and vocalist David Paton, drummer Stuart Elliott, and vocalist Lenny Zakatek. Behind the revolving line-up and the regular sidemen, the true core of the Project was the duo of Parsons and Woolfson. Parsons was an audio engineer and producer by profession, but also a musician and a composer. A songwriter by profession, Woolfson was also a composer, a pianist, and a singer. Almost all songs on the Project’s albums are credited to “Woolfson/Parsons”. Noted contributors to the Project were, David Patton, Stuart Elliott, Stuart Tosh, John Miles, Lesley Duncan, Gary Brooker, and many more. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Alan_Parsons_Project
Album & Cover
Pyramid (stylized as Pyr△mid) is the third album by progressive rock band The Alan Parsons Project, released in 1978. It is a concept album centred on the pyramids of Giza. At the time the album was conceived, interest in pyramid power and Tutankhamun was widespread in the US and the UK. Pyramid was nominated for the 1978 Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical. Liner notes read “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.” The album also dabbles with new wave, a genre that was emerging in Britain around the time of the album’s recording. Many progressive and soft rock artists incorporated this style into their albums during the time spanning from late 1977 to 1979. In this album, the genre is mildly evident, through rhythm, in songs such as “Can’t Take it with You” and immensely so in others such as “Pyramania”. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyramid
The idea for the cover came from Alan Parson’s fascination with the pyramids of Giza while staying in a hotel in Cairo. In the room there were pyramid shaped objects, the clock being one and it had stopped at 3:14, which is the value of Pi. Thus, Parson’s was having an outer body experience. The hotel scene was set up in the studio with the clock stuck at 3:14 of course.
Cover Location: Hipgnosis Studio, London.
Who Did What: Cover Design – Hipgnosis. Photography – A Powell with R. Brimson
Label: Arista AB 4180(US), Arista SPART 4C 058-60792
Source: Vinyl. Album. Cover. Art, The Complete Hipgnosis Catalogue: Aubrey Powell
| Side One Voyager What Goes Up… The Eagle Will Rise Again One More River Can’t Take It With You |
Side Two In The Lap Of The Gods Pyramania Hyper-Gamma-Spaces Shadow Of A Lonely Man |
Credits
Acoustic Guitar – Alan Parsons, David Paton, Ian Bairnson
Arranged By [Orchestra And Choir] – Andrew Powell
Bass – David Paton
Chorus Master [Choirmaster] – Bob Howes
Conductor – Andrew Powell
Drums – Stuart Elliot
Electric Guitar – Ian Bairnson
Engineer – Alan Parsons
Engineer [Assistant] – Chris Blair, Pat Stapley
Executive-Producer – Eric Woolfson
Keyboards – Duncan Mackay, Eric Woolfson
Mastered By – Chris Blair
Percussion – Stuart Elliot
Producer – Alan Parsons
Vocals – Colin Blunstone, David Paton, Dean Ford, Jack Harris, John Miles, Lenny Zakatek
Written-By – Alan Parsons, Eric Woolfson
