PING PONG

How did I miss this cool album from the glory days of 1973 RPI? Perhaps because the band was hiding out in the Crossover section, which is pretty funny. The second album from Ping Pong is a much more interesting recording than their first. The biggest surface-level change is that they brought in a serious vocalist in Giorgio Bertolani, and all of the vocals changed from English to Italian language. Hugely helpful right there. The songwriting also became noticeably more elaborate and exploratory, although it still needs to be said that it's pretty tame in comparison to what else was happening around it.

The inclusion of a 10-minute long "suite" shows that Ping Pong were now feeling more comfortable with what they were hearing around them, although they do not go all-in. It's more of a pop-rock album that is dabbling with the RPI movement we so enjoy. That said, I still found it very enjoyable. Even the more "pop" numbers here shift from a '60s British vibe to a warmer, more romantic Ital-pop with more interesting embellishments in backing ingredients. Bertolani's voice is a huge improvement to the serviceable vocals of the first album. It is apparent by the second track that he is the real deal, already showcasing a romantic side and a big/bold/feisty side. The songs generally are only a little longer than the debut's 3-minute ditties, but they are more sophisticated and convincing. The sound is much improved, and the performances are killer in places, driving and jazzy, full of energy.

The short and acoustic "Il Villaggio" serves as the unofficial but lovely intro to the album's centerpiece, the 10-minute "Suite in 4 Tempi." The first part is jazz rock, the second part is romantic song, the third part a baroque-like interlude, and the fourth part mostly a drum solo, again, quite jazz-flavored. Does it deliver on its grand aspiration to be an album-defining suite? No, not really. It's okay and it's fun, but it sounds like an attempt into Supersister territory that doesn't quite cut it. I actually prefer their more Ital-pop songs with the good melodies and nice arrangements over their attempt at some high-minded suite. That other half of their coin that aspires to jazz fusion just doesn't excite me. However, you do get a nice mix of both here and, unlike the first album, I do recommend that RPI fans check this out. There's enough here to call this a good album, and it certainly is a part of the RPI story even if not fully convincing. A special note of thanks to Pierre/hellogoodbye who, way back in 2013, recommended that I check this out. Better late than never, my friend.

Alan Taylor was a British musician who became very popular in Italy with a band called The Casuals. I'm no expert on The Casuals, but at some point they relocated to Italy for an extended period, and Taylor was apparently spreading out into other projects. Enter Ping Pong. Not a lot of history about these guys, but they would release two albums before splitting up. This first one is not a bad slice of '60s pop-rock, and it does sport a groovy album cover. But while it may have been released in 1971 when RPI was starting to gel, this sounds way more like a mid-late 60s British affair than anything remotely Banco/PFM-ish. I'm not dissing this album. These guys are accomplished musicians who can seriously play, and it wouldn't surprise me if they were doing session work.

While some tracks are sunny 60s pop, others are steamier and injected with wild bits of flute and sax, and the flute excursions certainly bring early Tull to mind. About Time recalls period song structures and a style already covered by countless similar bands, but everything is pretty short and unrealized (at least for prog fans) to be all that fulfilling. The moment you really start getting into something, the song is basically over. As mentioned, this sounds much more British than Italian, and all of the vocals are in English and are of a merely average quality. My impression of this album was that if you drop the vocals, the music that remains would make awesome background music for a somewhat cheesy late-60s TV show, perhaps a campy spy show. That might be right up your alley, but I can't recommend it unless you are a fan of '60s pop-rock that, despite some jazzy and brief hard rock sections, is still not especially memorable to me. Certainly not bad, has its moments, but not in the same league as even something like the debut Yes album.

It's a fun record, with some Jethro Tull-influences. It's not essential but okay to listen to. I stumbled upon this LP via youtube, so I haven't bought the record. I don't know if it's easy to obtain, but I wouldn't spend 1000 euros on discogs to get the lp.

The album contains some lightweight early seventies symphonic rock with lots and lots of flute. The songs are rather short, wich maybe is why not many prog-enthousiasts want to pick this album up. But I had a fun time listening to it. So I rate this one 3,5* (rounded down).