MIKE WESTBROOK ORCHESTRA Metropolis (RCA) Gary Boyle RARE 1971 UK Pressing MINT-
$
40
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Description
MIKE WESTBROOK ORCHESTRA Metropolis (RCA SF 8396) Gary Boyle RARE 1971 UK Pressing MINT-
RARE early UK pressing of Mike Westbrook`s magnificent "Metropolis" on RCA Records (1971). Released the same year as the first issue on RCA`s Neon Records subsidiary, this is the single-sleeve second RCA pressing.
"Imagine if you will two bands playing at once - one improvising freely and noisily, the other playing hard-hitting jazz-rock-funk riffs in a selection of interesting tempi - with an overlay of plush brass arrangements. The Test Card scored by Albert Ayler? Not quite. But Metropolis remains an extraordinary work, even by Westbrook's own standards. His biggest ensemble assembled outside of Marching Song (23 musicians in all, including a double rhythm section, electric and acoustic) works to create an astonishing melee of impressionistic urban onomatopoeia which can sometimes ("Part I") come across like a noisy neighbour hi-fi battle (no bad thing in this instance), at other times a delicate tracery of pointillistic free interaction (the immaculate Norma Winstone on "Part III"), at yet other times like Archie Shepp hijacking the Northern Dance Orchestra (George Khan's tenor freakout on "Part VI"), and finally as a series of gorgeous ballad settings, most notably in the terribly moving finale "Part IX," a justly celebrated feature for Harry Beckett's melancholic but very Milesian trumpet which somehow manages to fuse the Miles of both Miles Ahead (those Evans-esque carpets of brass and woodwind) and In A Silent Way (the twinkling electric piano and stealthy percussion). Both the apex of, and epilogue to, Westbrook's first phase of large-scale composing, Metropolis can still astonish and touch three-and-a-half decades later." - Amazon review by "A customer" (August 2005)
GRADING:
EX+ COVER in very fine all-round condition. Please see photos for details.
- Largely pristine unlaminated sleeve "Printed in England by West Brothers Printers Ltd".
- Minor record imprint on front cover only.
- Two or three very small creases to the spine.
- Includes the original RCA inner sleeve in MINT- condition.
MINT- RECORD that looks practically unplayed!
- Near-perfect vinyl on both sides, with impeccable audio reproduction throughout.
- A tiny cluster of near-invisible "scratchlets" towards the end of Side Two causes a bit of sonic crackle: A pity, as the record is in otherwise perfect condition.
- Other than that, no hairlines, scuffs or any other visible signs of previous play at all!
- Original second-pressing glossy orange RCA Records labels with no spindle wear whatsoever.
- The matrix stamps in the run-off grooves read "SF 8396 A-1E" and "SF 8396 B-1E".
- This record is fully certified to be a second UK pressing of "Metropolis", released in 1971.
price rating
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