Spooky tooth ceremony PSYCH LP PINK ISLAND Pierre Henry
$
32
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Description
Spooky tooth and Pierre Henry: Ceremony - An Electronic Mass
Original UK pressing on the Pink Island label from 1969. The sleeve and record are in excellent condition.
For their third album, Spooky Tooth aligned themselves with French avant-garde/electronic artist Pierre Henry to produce one of the weirdest albums ever recorded. This is an “Electronic Mass” incorporating religiously-themed songs with early synthesizers and many other strange sounding things. I had heard Spooky Tooth before but never knew they could get this spooky. There are some genuinely frightening moments on this album and I wouldn’t suggest listening to it at night with the lights off.
There are moments on this album where I swear the stereo is malfunctioning, especially on the first song, “Have Mercy.” The vocals by Mike Harrison are very powerful throughout the album. There are chanting parts on “Jubilation” that are just plain weird! The song “Prayer” is very ominous, starting out very quiet with ghostly sounding electronics and lonely harpsichord notes evoking a horror movie soundtrack. Gary Wright’s organ slinks in and the lyrics “Our Father who art in Heaven....” will send chills down the spine.
There was quite a controversy surrounding this album when it was released. Apparently many fans were turned off by the theme of the album. The recording process also took it’s toll on the band. This was to be the final album for keyboardist and main songwriter Gary Wright who departed after the recording of this album.
There are some albums out there that completely defy genre categorization. But every once in a blue moon, an album comes along that manages to completely defy all rational explanation. This would be one of those albums.
Spooky Tooth was one of the heavier hard rock acts of its day, driven by Gary Wright (later of "Dream Weaver" fame) and Mike Harrison's dual, bluesy wails set against Luther Grosvenor's searing guitar leads. They were on the ascent, having just released Spooky Two, an overlooked classic of late 60s British rock. One day, they were approached in the studio by avant-garde composer Pierre Henry for what they thought would be session work, involving a concept album setting the text of the Catholic liturgy to music. Their record label, however, decided to market this as Spooky Three. And thus endeth the ballgame.
What music lies behind an album cover that would have made Barry Godber proud? Well, imagine Jesus Christ Superstar, with its performers straining to hold together ill-fitting text with music. Now, mix over this foundation, with complete disregard, something like Frank Zappa's "The Chrome Plated Megaphone of Destiny" and you have yourself a fair approximation. "Confession" literally sounds like construction workers were not only alongside the band in the studio booth, obliviously hammering and welding away, but even placed nearer to the microphones! "Credo," perhaps the ultimate example of artistic incompatibility, literally had me on the floor in spasms of laughter the first time I heard it. And right after that, we get hit with "Offering," or... music + panting. The only track that even comes anywhere near successfully merging these two disparate visions is the final "Prayer," with acoustic guitar and Wright's delicate vocals set to less intrusive, ghostly wind effects of Henry.
Musicians:
Pierre Henry, electronics; Gary Wright, vocal, organ; Mike Harrison, vocal; Luther Grosvenor, guitar; Mike Kellie, drums; Andy Leigh, bass
Tracklist:
1. Confession — 7:02
2. Have Mercy — 7:51
3. Credo — 8:25
4. Offering — 3:26
5. Hosanna — 7:33
6. Prayer — 10:50
total time 45:31
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