🎵 AotW AOTW: Gato Barbieri - EUPHORIA (SP-4774)

[Captain Bacardi]

Gato Barbieri
EUPHORIA
A&M SP-4774

Released 1979

Format: Vinyl/Cassette/8-Track

Produced and Arranged by Jay Chattaway
Associate Producer: Michelle Barbieri

Songs:

• 1. Theme From Firepower (Gato Barbieri) - 6:08
  2. Sophia (Gato Barbieri) - 4:36
  3. Carnavalito (Gato Barbieri) - 5:17
  4. Lions Also Cry (Gato Barbieri) - 4:12
  5. Gods And Astronauts (Errare Humanum Est) (Jorge Ben) - 6:59
  6. Secret Fiesta (Gato Barbieri) - 7:05
  7. Speak Low (Weill - Nash) - 6:32

Musicians:
Gato Barbieri - Tenor Sax, Voice, Keyboards (5), Percussion
Ron Carter - Bass (4)
Luico Hopper - Bass (6)
Anthony Jackson - Bass (3, 5, 7)
Neil Jason - Bass (1, 2)
Billy Cobham - Drums (3, 5, 6, 7)
Idris Muhammad - Drums (4)
Alan Schwartzberg (1, 2)
Eric Gale - Guitar (3, 6, 7)
Steve Khan - Guitar (5)
Jeff Layton - Guitar (1, 2)
David Spinozza - Guitar (4, 5)
Lance Quinn - Guitar (1, 2)
Eddie Martinez - Keyboards
Pat Rebillot - Keyboards (1, 2)
Richard Tee - Keyboards (7)
Jimmy Maelen - Percussion
Miguel Valdez-Pomier - Percussion
Strings: David Nadien (Concertmaster), Ida Kavafian, Guy Lumia, Barry Finclair, Curtis Macomber, Diana Halprin, Naoko Tanaka, Lucy Stoltzman, Ben Hudson, Lew Eley, Robin Bushman, Masako Yanagita, Guillermo Figueroa
Violas: Alfred Brown, Louise Schulman
Celli: Fred Sherry, Jonathan Abramowitz, Gerry Grossman, Richard Sher
Trumpets: Jon Faddis, Michael Lawrence, Lew Soloff, Jim Bossy, Ron Tooley, John Frosk
Trombones: Wayne Andre, Paul Faulise, Earl McIntyre
French Horns: Peter Gordon, John Clark, Don Corrado
Woodwinds: Harvey Estrin, Phil Bodner, David Tofani

Production Coordinator and Contractor: Christine Martin

Recorded and Mixed at The Power Station, New York, March 1979
Recording Engineers: Bob Clearmountain and Neil Dorfsman
Assistant Engineers: Ray Wilhard, Jeff Hendrickson and John Rotondi
Additonal Recording at Media Sound, New York
Engineer: Doug Epstein
Mastered at CBS Recording Studios, New York
Mastering Engineer: Vlado Meller

Art Direction: Roland Young
Design: Amy Nagasawa
Photography: Bill King




Capt. Bacardi

 

[Captain Bacardi]

Since I'm leaving for vacation in the morning I thought I'd go ahead and do a new AOTW. Besides, no one seemed to have heard - or cared for - the Gap Mangione album.



Capt. Bacardi

 

[Dave]

Well, this is one that I've not yet heard, and I think know where I might, yet get a copy...

A lot of the personnel appeared on some of Barbieri's previous efforts, so you'd think I'd have picked this up, at least for that...


Dave

 

[Captain Bacardi]

This is about as terrible an album as an artist can make. A flagrant attempt at commercialization. This album is devoid of any creative spark or imagination. This is Gato? This is the Cat??? My God, it's awful! This is NOT what Gato was about. Listening to the opening track "Firepower" there's a sudden rhythm break which sounds as if it were lifted from Barry Mailow's "Copacabana". Then on "Lions Also Cry" Gato makes yet another attempt to recreate "Europa", and fails miserably. But wait, he tries it again on a couple of other tunes. Producer Jay Chattaway had just scored a hit with Maynard Ferguson doing this kind of thing, and apparently was hoping for the same results with Gato. Guess what? It didn't happen. Gato was soon dropped from A&M and was made to go to the woodshed and get his sh** together. Don't waste your time or money on this one! A half star for this, only because Gato showed up.



Capt. Bacardi
...back from vacation and feeling feisty online...

 

[seashorepiano]

It seems like the nightmare version of a Don Sebesky production magnified about ten times. There are too many people involved in this album!!

 

[Captain Bacardi]

Yup, it looks like one big rhythm section with strings, which usually signified "disco" back then.



Capt. Bacardi

 

[Dave]

Surely this must'a been worth buying Back In Tha' Day for those Big New York City Musicians... But, OK, you guys seem to have warned me not to give this that "in-store" listen I promised myself; that copy is still languishing at one of my haunts...!!


Dave