LIVESPAN

This double live set features performances taken from two concerts of the Alan Parsons Band at the Stuttgarter Beethoven-Halle (Germany), providing the listener with a career-spanning overview of the Alan Parsons Project recorded output, which includes as its highlight the entire suite occupying the second half of The Turn Of A Friendly Card (5th beloved album of the Project).

OK, downside first: this register pales in comparision to Live in Colombia, where the instrumental host were augmented nothing less than by the Philharmonic Orchestra of Medellin ..., and believe me, it shows. Besides, the vocalist P.J. Olsson, even not being bad, falls a bit short on several occasions (to my taste, at least, having attended myself another concert of this APB).

But there's a brighter side to this affair, and it can't be more obvious: Mr. Parsons' music still shines here, no matter what. Since "I Robot" introduces the proceedings, the symphonic environment takes place, and is awesome. There's no demanding metric shifts here, but instead a true sense of musical purpose conveyed by the players with skill and no need to show-off their undeniable abilities. Don't misunderstand me, I'm a true fan of Mahavishnu and King Crimson, for example, and enjoy their intricacy as well, but this is a different occasion, and it's very likable in its own terms. As a treat to the audience, a rarity is included: "Fragile", taken from a 2013 single credited to Alan Parsons.