Pyramid 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.
One of the most interesting aspects about the Alan Parsons Project is the band's ability to forge a main theme with each of its songs, while at the same time sounding extremely sharp and polished. Much of this formula is used in Ammonia Avenue, only this time the songs rise above Parsons' overall message due to the sheer beauty of the lyrics partnered with the luster of the instruments. The album touches upon how the lines of communication between people are diminishing, and how we as a society grow more spiritually isolated and antisocial. But aside from the philosophical concepts prevalent in the lyrics, it is the music on this album that comes to the forefront.
Engineer/producer Alan Parsons and his colleague, songwriter and lyricist Eric Woolfson, formed the Alan Parsons Project in 1975. Throughout their career, the Alan Parsons Project recorded concept albums (including adaptations of Poe and Asimov books) with a revolving cast of session musicians. Released in 1982, Eye in the Sky was their greatest success; the title track charted in the Top Ten on the pop charts and the album went platinum. Although they weren't able to repeat that success, the group maintained a devoted cult audience, even after they stopped recording following 1987's Gaudi.
On the evening of August 31st, 2013, a large crowd gathered at Parque Pies Descalzos in Medellín, Colombia. When Alan Parsons appeared on stage, along with the Medellín Philharmonic Orchestra and his band the audience went wild. This is an audio visual document of that incredible evening. The Alan Parsons Symphonic Project "Live in Colombia" is was released on May 27th, 2016 on earMUSIC as a DVD, Blu-ray, 2-CD digipak, 3 x Vinyl, and download. Alan Parsons was 19 years old when he landed a job at the world famous Abbey Road Studios, an important first step on his journey to becoming a world class engineer, producer and artist. Following his beginnings with George Martin and The Beatles, his contribution to Pink Floyd's classic 'The Dark Side Of The Moon' earned him worldwide attention.
Legendary artist and studio maestro Alan Parsons has announced the release of a new live album entitled “The Neverending Show: Live in the Netherlands” on November 5, 2021. The show was recorded live on May 5, 2019 and showcases the performance that Alan Parsons Live Project held at the Tivoli in Utrecht, Netherlands. The band was, as usual, in fine form and fed extra energy by an enthusiastic audience. An amazing performance by quite possibly the definitive band line-up of exemplary musicians that Alan has toured with.
The 12 tracks that appear on The Best of the Alan Parsons Project include some of their greatest singles, like "I Wouldn't Want to Be Like You" from 1977's I Robot and the inducing "Games People Play" off of The Turn of a Friendly Card. Even though these songs are splendid all by themselves, they seem to lose their conceptual weight when taken away from their original albums. As singles, they do act as a fine representation of how The Alan Parsons Project's music sounds and conveys its mysterious air, but even with a dozen singles on this album there's just too much of their other worthy material that is sadly left off. Present is their biggest single and most alluring piece, "Eye in the Sky," from the album of the same name, and the entrancing "Time" from Turn of a Friendly Card.
The Best of the Alan Parsons Project, Vol. 2 typically picks up where its predecessor left off. With 11 tracks covering seven albums, including Gaudi, Stereotomy, and Vulture Culture, the songs here are a tad weaker than those on the first collection, since some of the albums that these songs originate from were not of this band's finest caliber. The highlights here include both "Prime Time" and "Don't Answer Me" from Ammonia Avenue, and the provocative instrumental "I Robot," the only non-vocal track on the album. All of the selections on this package convey their purpose much better within their former albums, since each song is a link in the album's conceptual chain.
The 12 tracks that appear on The Best of the Alan Parsons Project include some of their greatest singles, like "I Wouldn't Want to Be Like You" from 1977's I Robot and the inducing "Games People Play" off of The Turn of a Friendly Card. Even though these songs are splendid all by themselves, they seem to lose their conceptual weight when taken away from their original albums. As singles, they do act as a fine representation of how The Alan Parsons Project's music sounds and conveys its mysterious air, but even with a dozen singles on this album there's just too much of their other worthy material that is sadly left off.
Instrumental Works collects ten of The Alan Parsons Project's best musical pieces and acts as a wonderful journey through some of this group's most innovative material. Although famous for his concepts, Alan Parsons is equally renowned for his illustrious mood-invoking instrumentals that helped create atmosphere on all of his albums. These movements can easily be taken away from their master albums without losing their grandeur and charm, unlike his vocal works that act as pieces in a thematic puzzle and are better left within their conceptual domain. Both intricacy and subtlety are depicted here, with selections such as "I Robot," "Paseo de Gracia," and "Hawkeye."