The “studio symphony” The Pillory provided the soundtrack for my lunchtime walk, Simon, and what a singular thing it proved! I concur that Dolden is the only real comparator, but even that’s a stretch in places. Oddly, though, the “hi” section put me vaguely in mind of Tubular Bells (a pet hate of yours, I note, so I’m sorry for bringing it up!), perhaps owing to the irregular meter and unhinged-sounding vocals.
I’m proud to say I played snare drum on the Pillory. It has withheld the scrutiny of time! The idea that Jasun Martz organized putting a LARGE group together in a Hollywood recording studio, and captured that creation is something that is extremely rare today.
I was just wondering about the instrumentation, as I’m just giving it another listen, and was wondering whether that (at the time) most unhip of instruments, the Mellotron, might have been used to create some of the instrumental effects. Maybe not, by the sound of things…!
Ah, I now see that you mention said track not once, but twice, above, Simon. Rumbled for not re-reading your review properly before posting…!
Re: Don’s comment about the now-almost-unimaginable feat of getting that many musicians together to “lay down” the tracks for one’s own solo album, I guess being a backing alumnus for both Frank Zappa and (later) Michael Jackson doesn’t hurt when it comes to acquiring the necessary “connections”…!
Thanks for your comment Don – it certainly has stood up to the passage of time; it sounds remarkably fresh and as i noted in the article, the sound quality is remarkable considering its age!
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The “studio symphony” The Pillory provided the soundtrack for my lunchtime walk, Simon, and what a singular thing it proved! I concur that Dolden is the only real comparator, but even that’s a stretch in places. Oddly, though, the “hi” section put me vaguely in mind of Tubular Bells (a pet hate of yours, I note, so I’m sorry for bringing it up!), perhaps owing to the irregular meter and unhinged-sounding vocals.
I’m proud to say I played snare drum on the Pillory. It has withheld the scrutiny of time! The idea that Jasun Martz organized putting a LARGE group together in a Hollywood recording studio, and captured that creation is something that is extremely rare today.
I was just wondering about the instrumentation, as I’m just giving it another listen, and was wondering whether that (at the time) most unhip of instruments, the Mellotron, might have been used to create some of the instrumental effects. Maybe not, by the sound of things…!
Yes, Chris, it was: and to prove the point properly the Pillory disc includes a 15-minute track titled “Mellotron Outtakes and Rehearsal”!
Ah, I now see that you mention said track not once, but twice, above, Simon. Rumbled for not re-reading your review properly before posting…!
Re: Don’s comment about the now-almost-unimaginable feat of getting that many musicians together to “lay down” the tracks for one’s own solo album, I guess being a backing alumnus for both Frank Zappa and (later) Michael Jackson doesn’t hurt when it comes to acquiring the necessary “connections”…!
Thanks for your comment Don – it certainly has stood up to the passage of time; it sounds remarkably fresh and as i noted in the article, the sound quality is remarkable considering its age!